The largest lottery winnings in world history are almost entirely tied to the United States. It is the American Powerball and Mega Millions that offer players a chance at jackpots exceeding $1 billion. Winnings exceeding $1 million are also rare; this is due to long streaks without winners. If the top prize isn’t won, it rolls over to the next drawing and continues to grow.
Ranking of Lottery Jackpots
The winner of the record $2.04 billion jackpot chose a lump-sum payment rather than a 30-year annuity. According to media reports, the amount was nearly $1 billion before taxes and significantly less after taxes. Nevertheless, Castro became the recipient of the largest single lottery payout.
Second place goes to a $1.817 billion jackpot, also won in Powerball, in December 2025. A single ticket sold in Arkansas matched all the winning numbers. The winner could choose a 30-year annuity or receive the entire amount at once: the cash option was $834.9 million before taxes.
Two other major wins occurred in 2023 and 2022. In January 2023, a ticket from Maine won $1.35 billion in Mega Millions, and in July 2022, a ticket from Illinois won $1.337 billion. In both cases, the winners chose to take a lump-sum payment.
Another record-breaking Powerball drawing took place in September 2025. The $1.787 billion jackpot was split between two tickets purchased in Missouri and Texas. The winners remained anonymous and opted for a lump-sum payment. Each received approximately $410.3 million before taxes.
Mega Millions has also turned players into “overnight billionaires” on more than one occasion. In August 2023, a single ticket in Florida won $1.602 billion—the largest jackpot in the history of that lottery. The ticket was purchased in Neptune Beach, Florida. The cash option amounted to $794.2 million before taxes.
The “take-home” amount is always less
The main feature of such winnings is that the amount in the headlines is almost never equal to the “take-home” amount. The advertised jackpot usually represents the annuity value—that is, payments made in installments over decades. If the winner chooses the lump-sum option, the amount is smaller. Federal taxes—and sometimes state taxes—are then withheld from that amount.
That’s why a lottery billionaire doesn’t always have a billion deposited into their account. But even after all the deductions, the biggest Powerball and Mega Millions winners become owners of fortunes comparable to the wealth of major business tycoons.
