Powerball Jackpot Hits $1.7 Billion, Fourth Largest In History: Winner Could Have Holiday 'Excitement And Joy' With Christmas Eve Drawing
Someone playing the Powerball lottery could have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year with the U.S. Lottery jackpot hitting one of the largest totals of 2025 and the fourth-largest jackpot in history. Here's a look at how much the jackpot is and what a winner would get if they took the lump sum payout.
The Powerball Jackpot
The Powerball drawing set for Wednesday, Dec. 24 at 10:59 p.m. ET stands at $1.7 billion at the time of writing. This marks the second-largest Powerball drawing in 2025 as of now, with two winners splitting a $1.787 billion jackpot in September 2025.
The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million. The overall odds of winning a prize are 1 in 24.9 tickets.
Lottery players can purchase $2 tickets in more than 40 U.S. states, choosing their own numbers or opting for a random selection. Five numbers between 1 and 69 are selected, along with a Powerball number 1 to 26. To win the Powerball, a player has to match all six balls in the drawing.
The numbers on the Dec. 22 drawing that were not matched were 3, 18, 36, 41, 54 with the 7 Powerball. While no one matched the five balls and the Powerball, there were nine $1 million winners who matched all five balls.
Wednesday's drawing will mark the 47th drawing in the current run, marking the Powerball record for the most drawings in a jackpot cycle. The last Powerball winner was on Sept. 6, with two winners splitting a $1.787 billion jackpot.
Powerball drawings take place on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays. If no ticket matches all six numbers, the jackpot increases for the next drawing.
While not guaranteed, a Christmas Eve winner would be historic for the U.S. Lottery, with only one other winner on the holiday in 2011. There have been four winners of the Powerball on Christmas Day (1996, 2002, 2010, 2013).
"Much like the holidays, Powerball is a game that brings people together to dream big and hope for a brighter future," Powerball Product Group Chair Matt Strawn said. "We hope this growing jackpot inspires excitement and joy, and most importantly, good will to all."
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Lottery Winnings
Winners of large jackpots can take a lump-sum cash payment or receive the full amount over 29 years, with 30 payments. One payment is made upfront, and additional payments each year increase by 5% to account for inflation.
The cash payout is lower than the full payout over 29 years. The current cash payout listed on the Powerball website is $781.3 million.
A winner must pay federal taxes on the winnings and is responsible for state taxes based on their state of residence.
The IRS takes a 24% withholding on winnings over $5,000. This means that the cash payout for Wednesday's Powerball jackpot would be $593.8 million, based on a lump sum cash option after the 24% federal taxes are taken out.
Winners should consult a financial expert to determine whether a lump-sum cash option or annual payments are the best option.
Record U.S. Lottery Jackpots
Wednesday's Powerball jackpot of $1.7 billion is currently the fourth-largest in US lottery history and could quickly move up the list if it grows. If no winner is drawn on Wednesday, the jackpot could become one of the largest ever.
Here are the current record holders for the U.S. lottery:
- $2.04 billion: Powerball, November 2022, one winner
- $1.787 billion: Powerball, September 2025, two winners
- $1.765 billion: Powerball, October 2023, one winner
- $1.70 billion: Powerball, (Current drawing)
- $1.602 billion: Mega Millions, August 2023, one winner
- $1.586 billion: Powerball, January 2016, three winners
- $1.537 billion: Mega Millions, October 2018, one winner
- $1.348 billion: Mega Millions, January 2023, one winner
- $1.337 billion: Mega Millions, July 2022, one winner
- $1.326 billion: Powerball, April 2024, one winner
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