Powerball Jackpot Hits $526 Million—Here’s What The Winner Could Take Home

Forbes Published Jul 16, 2026 Reviewed Jul 16, 2026 ✓ Reviewed by citations.press editors

A Powerball jackpot winner who chooses the cash option receives $233.5 million before taxes.

The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million, worse than the Mega Millions jackpot odds of 1 in 290.4 million.

After applying a mandatory 24% federal withholding tax, a Powerball winner who selects the cash payout of $233.5 million would receive approximately $177.46 million.

The Mega Millions jackpot rose to $672 million, making it the largest unclaimed lottery prize of the year and the second-largest overall after a $533 million Mega Millions jackpot won by an Illinois ticket buyer in March—the biggest prize claimed so far this year.

The Powerball jackpot reached $526 million after no winning ticket matched all six numbers in the Wednesday night draw, making it the third-largest lottery prize of the year so far.

A Powerball winner who selects the 30-year installment option would receive annual payouts of about $17.5 million before taxes, which would drop to approximately $11 million after a 37% federal marginal tax rate is applied.

After applying the top federal marginal tax rate of 37%, a Powerball winner who selects the cash payout would likely end up with around $147.1 million.

The Powerball jackpot jumped to $526 million—the third biggest lottery prize of the year so far—after no tickets matched all six numbers drawn on Wednesday night, although the eventual winner will take home a much smaller payout after taxes and deductions.

The six numbers drawn on Wednesday night were 2, 7, 18, 29, 38 and Red Powerball 16.

If there’s a winner in the next draw, they will get to choose between receiving the $526 million split across 30 annual installments or a one-time cash payout of $233.5 million—the preferred option for most winners.

If the winner chooses the cash prize, their winnings will first drop to about $177.46 million after a mandatory 24% federal withholding tax is applied.

They would then likely face a federal marginal rate as high as 37%, depending on their taxable income, further reducing the winnings to around $147.1 million.

If the installment option is picked, the winner’s annual payouts of around $17.5 million will drop to around $11 million after the 37% federal marginal rate is applied.

Depending on where they live, the winner could face additional taxes, as some states, such as New York, tax lottery winnings at 10.9%, while others, such as Texas, Florida, and California, don’t.

The next Powerball drawing is set to take place on Saturday night. A day before that, Mega Millions is set to hold its next drawing for a jackpot that has swollen to $672 million.

1-in-292.2 million. Those are the astronomical odds a Powerball ticket buyer will need to overcome to win the jackpot. This is even worse than the Mega Millions jackpot’s already poor odds of 1-in-290.4 million.

Only two other lottery prizes have crossed the $500 million mark so far this year. The first was a $533 million jackpot won by a Mega Millions ticket buyer from Illinois in March, which is the biggest prize claimed so far. The other is the ongoing Mega Millions jackpot, which has risen to $672 million—with no winner yet. The biggest claimed Powerball jackpot of the year so far is a $250.8 million prize won by a lottery player from Arkansas.

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