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Powerball
lotteryA multi-state lottery game with jackpots starting at $20 million. Players pick 5 numbers from 69 and 1 Powerball from 26.
Key Takeaways
- 1Pick 5 from 69 + 1 from 26 for $2 per ticket
- 2Jackpot odds: 1 in 292 million
- 3Any prize odds: 1 in 24.87
- 4Expected value is negative for virtually all jackpot sizes
What is Powerball?
Powerball is one of the two major multi-state lottery games in the United States (along with Mega Millions). It's known for producing some of the largest jackpots in history.
How It Works
- Pick 5 numbers from 1-69 (white balls)
- Pick 1 number from 1-26 (the Powerball)
- Match all 6 to win the jackpot
- Drawings: Monday, Wednesday, Saturday at 10:59 PM ET
- Ticket cost: $2 ($3 with Power Play multiplier)
Prize Tiers
| Match | Odds | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 5 + PB | 1:292,201,338 | Jackpot |
| 5 | 1:11,688,054 | $1,000,000 |
| 4 + PB | 1:913,129 | $50,000 |
| 4 | 1:36,525 | $100 |
| 3 + PB | 1:14,494 | $100 |
| 3 | 1:580 | $7 |
| 2 + PB | 1:701 | $7 |
| 1 + PB | 1:92 | $4 |
| PB only | 1:38 | $4 |
The Math
- Overall odds of winning any prize: 1 in 24.87
- Expected value per $2 ticket (non-jackpot prizes): ~$0.32
- You lose ~$1.68 per ticket on average before jackpot consideration
- The jackpot must exceed ~$1.1 billion to be theoretically +EV
Record Jackpots
- $2.04 billion (November 2022) — single winner in California
- $1.77 billion (October 2023)
- $1.586 billion (January 2016) — split three ways