US Powerball Explained: A Beginner’s Guide to the World’s Biggest Jackpot
If you’ve ever seen headlines about billion-dollar lotteries, they are almost always referring to the US Powerball. Known for its massive, record-breaking jackpots, it is one of the most popular lottery games on the planet.1
For beginners, the American system can seem a bit different from the Australian “Lotto” format. Here is everything you need to know to get started.
1. How the Game is Played
Powerball is a “two-drum” lottery game.2 To play a single game, you must select a total of six numbers:
-
5 White Balls: Pick 5 numbers from a pool of 1 to 69.3
-
1 Red Powerball: Pick 1 number from a pool of 1 to 26.4
To win the Jackpot (Division 1), you must match all five white balls (in any order) plus the red Powerball.5
2. When are the Draws?
The US Powerball draws take place three times a week: Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday nights at 10:59 PM Eastern Time in the USA.6
Aussie Tip: Because of the time difference, these draws actually occur on Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday mornings in Australia.7
3. Boosting Your Wins: The Power Play
When you buy a ticket, you usually have the option to add a feature called “Power Play” for a small extra fee.8
Before the main numbers are drawn, a multiplier number (2x, 3x, 4x, 5x, or 10x) is randomly selected.9 If you win a non-jackpot prize and have Power Play on your ticket, your prize is multiplied by that number!
-
Note: The 10x multiplier is only available when the jackpot is $150 million USD or less.10
-
Match 5 Exception: If you match all 5 white balls but miss the Powerball, the prize is usually $1 million.11 With Power Play, this prize is doubled to $2 million, regardless of which multiplier was drawn.12
4. The 9 Ways to Win
You don’t need all six numbers to take home cash.13 There are nine different prize tiers:14
| Match | Prize (Standard) | With Power Play (Example 5x) |
| 5 White + Powerball | JACKPOT | (Multipliers don’t apply) |
| 5 White Balls | $1,000,000 | $2,000,000 (Fixed) |
| 4 White + Powerball | $50,000 | $250,000 |
| 4 White Balls | $100 | $500 |
| 3 White + Powerball | $100 | $500 |
| 3 White Balls | $7 | $35 |
| 2 White + Powerball | $7 | $35 |
| 1 White + Powerball | $4 | $20 |
| Powerball Only | $4 | $20 |
5. How Jackpots are Paid: Annuity vs. Cash
If you are lucky enough to hit the jackpot, you have two choices for how you receive your money:
-
Annuity Option: You receive the full advertised jackpot amount, but it is paid out in 30 installments over 29 years.15 The payments increase by 5% each year to keep up with inflation.
-
Cash Option (Lump Sum): You receive a single, one-time payment. This amount is smaller than the advertised jackpot (usually around 60% of the total) because it represents the actual cash currently in the prize pool.
6. Can you play from Australia?
Yes! While you cannot buy a “physical” ticket from a US newsagency while standing in Melbourne or Sydney, services like The Lottery Office allow Australians to participate.16
They buy a “matching ticket” in the official US draw.17 If the US ticket wins, they collect the prize and pay the exact same amount to you. Just keep in mind that US Federal Taxes (usually 30% for non-residents) are deducted from the prize before it is sent to Australia, as the win originates in the US system.18