Powerball Odds and Prizes
When you play Powerball, your chances of matching all six numbers are 1 in 292,201,338. If you beat these odds, you win the jackpot. The grand prize starts at $20 million and grows every time it is not won, so it can quickly grow into the hundreds of millions of dollars. The jackpot is shared if there are multiple winners.
If you fail to match all the winning numbers, there are still eight other ways to win. Payouts start from $4 for getting just the Powerball, and go up to $1 million for matching all five main numbers without the Powerball. These prizes are all fixed amounts, so it doesn't matter how many other players win in the same prize level, either in New York or in total.
The following table shows all the different amounts you can win and the odds for each prize level.
| Numbers Matched | Odds of Winning | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 5 + Powerball | 1 in 292,201,338 | Jackpot |
| 5 | 1 in 11,688,053 | $1 million |
| 4 + Powerball | 1 in 913,219 | $50,000 |
| 4 | 1 in 36,525 | $100 |
| 3 + Powerball | 1 in 14,494 | $100 |
| 3 | 1 in 579 | $7 |
| 2 + Powerball | 1 in 701 | $7 |
| 1 + Powerball | 1 in 91 | $4 |
| Powerball | 1 in 38 | $4 |
The overall odds of winning a prize are 1 in 24.87.
There's no limit to how big the jackpot can go, and it has even reached $1 billion a few times in recent years. Big wins in New York have included the $343 million payout that went to Manhattan's Robert Bailey in October 2018.
Big wins are obviously subject to taxation, and New York has a higher rate than anywhere else. Go to the Taxes page to find out how much is withheld in the Empire State.
Power Play Prizes
If you add the Power Play option to your ticket, any non-jackpot prize you win will be increased by the value of a multiplier that is randomly selected as part of every draw. Match 5 prizes are automatically doubled to $2 million with Power Play regardless of which multiplier is drawn. Go to the Power Play page to find out exactly how it works.
Claiming Prizes
The way you can claim depends on the value of your win. You can collect most payouts from New York Lottery retailers, but for larger amounts you'll need to mail in your winning ticket, go to a customer service center or go to the NY Lottery headquarters in Schenectady. Go to the How to Claim page for more details.