All news

Powerball jackpot hits $1.8B in longest record-breaking run ever

It's already the second-biggest prize, but could this streak rewrite the Powerball record books?

A billboard displaying a $1.8 billion Powerball jackpot, and a $336 million Mega Millions jackpot.
Todd Betzold
Add lotteryusa.com as a preferred source on Google

Powerball fever is reaching a boiling point as the jackpot surges to heights rarely seen before. With history already being made and billions on the line, the excitement surrounding Saturday's drawing has players across the country wondering if this could finally be the night, or if the record-breaking run still has room to grow.

Record-breaking jackpot run

On Friday, September 5, 2025, lottery officials announced that the estimated jackpot for the Powerball drawing on Saturday, September 6, is now $1.8 billion. The jackpot has an estimated cash value of $826.4 million.

With this increase from the original $1.7 billion, Saturday's Powerball jackpot ranks as the second-largest Powerball jackpot in U.S. lottery history. The biggest Powerball jackpot was $2.04 billion, which was won by Edwin Castro in California on November 7, 2022.

In addition, Saturday's drawing will be the 42nd drawing since the Powerball jackpot was last won. That jackpot win took place on May 21, 2025, when one ticket purchased in California matched all the numbers drawn to win the $205 million jackpot.

This current jackpot run is the game record for the most consecutive drawings without a jackpot winner. The previous record was 41 drawings, which that streak ended on April 6, 2024, when a ticket in Oregon won the $1.33 billion jackpot.

Powerball frenzy brings lots of non-jackpot winners

With the jackpot growing and growing, more and more people are buying tickets in hopes of becoming a billionaire. Even without a jackpot winner during Wednesday night's drawing, there were still 15 new millionaires created.

The winning white ball numbers for Wednesday, September 3, 2025, were 3, 16, 29, 61, and 69. The Powerball number was 22, and the Power Play multiplier was 2.

Across the country, 11 tickets matched all five of the white ball numbers to win $1 million. Those $1 million-winning tickets were sold in California (2), Colorado, Florida, Georgia (2), Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.

There were also four tickets that matched all five of the winning white balls and included the Power Play option, so their winnings doubled to $2 million. Those $2 million-winning tickets were sold in Michigan, Oregon, Texas, and Wyoming.

In addition, there were 117 tickets that won $50,000 prizes (Match 4 + Powerball), and 36 tickets that won $100,000 prizes (Match 4 + Powerball + Power Play). In total, lottery officials said over 6.3 million tickets won cash prizes during Wednesday's Powerball drawing.

Top 10 Powerball jackpots

The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million. These people have done it before, as we share the top 10 Powerball jackpots of all time:

  1. $2.04 billion – November 7, 2022 – Winning ticket sold in California.
  2. $1.8 billion (estimated) – September 6, 2025 – Will someone win it all, or will the jackpot run continue?
  3. $1.77 billion – October 11, 2023 - Winning ticket sold in California.
  4. $1.59 billion – January 13, 2016 – Three jackpot-winning tickets were sold in California, Florida, and Tennessee.
  5. $1.33 billion – April 6, 2024 - Winning ticket sold in Oregon.
  6. $1.08 billion – July 19, 2023 – Winning ticket sold in California.
  7. $842.4 million – January 1, 2024 – Winning ticket sold in Michigan.
  8. $768.4 million – March 27, 2019 – Winning ticket sold in Wisconsin.
  9. $758.7 million – August 23, 2017 – Winning ticket sold in Massachusetts.
  10. $754.6 million – February 6, 2023 - Winning ticket sold in Washington.

The next Powerball drawing will take place on Saturday at 10:59 p.m. ET. Enjoy playing the lottery, and please remember to play responsibly.

Comments

0
Loading comments

Related articles

New Jersey Lottery Executive Director James A. Carey.
Featured
Exclusive interview
New Jersey Lottery chief sets sights on decade of billion-dollar streaks

Exclusive interview: New Jersey Lottery Executive Director James A. Carey shares how the state keeps players invested.

Samantha Herscher profile pic

Samantha Herscher

The Megabucks logo over a yellow background with confetti and baloons.
Record-breaking $29.71M Megabucks jackpot finally has a winner

The game's historic run finally came to a close Monday when a single ticket matched all six numbers.

Todd Betzold profile pic

Todd Betzold

People playing slots at a casino.
Why the lottery is still winning in America’s gambling boom

Lottery sales grow by billions despite growing competition.

Alex Cramer profile pic

Alex Cramer

Recent articles

View All
New Jersey Lottery Executive Director James A. Carey.
Featured
Exclusive interview
New Jersey Lottery chief sets sights on decade of billion-dollar streaks

Exclusive interview: New Jersey Lottery Executive Director James A. Carey shares how the state keeps players invested.

Samantha Herscher profile pic

Samantha Herscher

The Powerball X's & O's logo over a white background.
Featured
🎓 Academic
The math behind Powerball X’s & O’s

We crunch the odds, prizes, and fairness behind Powerball X's & O's lottery game.

Dr. Catalin Barboianu profile pic

Dr. Catalin Barboianu

The North Carolina Lottery logo over a white and golden background.
North Carolina Lottery players get a bigger slice of every dollar

Prize payouts have soared in just two years, but that player-friendly shift comes with a major trade-off.

Todd Betzold profile pic

Todd Betzold

The Megabucks logo over a yellow background with confetti and baloons.
Record-breaking $29.71M Megabucks jackpot finally has a winner

The game's historic run finally came to a close Monday when a single ticket matched all six numbers.

Todd Betzold profile pic

Todd Betzold