Best Powerball Lottery in 2023/2024

One of the biggest lotteries today is Powerball, formerly known as Lotto America. The lottery is run by a not-for-profit organization comprising several US corporations and lobbyists who work under one umbrella dubbed Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL). Powerball is available in 45 states in the US and the District of Columbia, the US Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.

While this online lottery is based in the United States, players from outside the country can participate. However, they need to physically purchase their tickets in any of the Powerball ticket-selling jurisdictions.

Best Powerball Lottery in 2023/2024
Where to buy tickets for Powerball?
Where to buy tickets for Powerball?

Where to buy tickets for Powerball?

In the 45 states, the District of Columbia, the US Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico, players can buy Powerball tickets in gas stations, convenience stores, or grocery stores. For the record, Powerball lottery tickets are not sold in Alaska, Hawaii, Mississippi, Nevada, Utah, and Alabama.

How to buy a lottery ticket online

Powerball lottery tickets can also be purchased online. But it's only in a few states where players can buy their lottery game tickets online, which are Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, and Pennsylvania.

For the record, there are specific sites where Powerball tickets are sold legally in the abovementioned states. These sites are run by either the state lottery corporation or the government. Players buying tickets from third-party sites risk losing their winnings.

Where to buy tickets for Powerball?
History of Powerball

History of Powerball

The history of Powerball goes back to 1988, when it was known as Lotto America. But then, in 1992, it rebranded to Powerball. The first Powerball draw was held on April 22, 1992.

When Powerball was introduced, it started using two drums to draw the winning numbers, a lotto model that has also been adopted by other popular online lotteries including Mega Millions, Australia's Powerball, the UK's Thunderball, EuroMillions, and Eurojackpot.

Biggest Powerball winners

Over the years, there have been many Powerball winners. As of 2021, the biggest single Powerball winner is Manuel Franco, an 18-year old from Wisconsin who won an astounding $768.4 million in March 2019. However, the biggest Powerball prize remains $1.586 billion, but it was split among three winners from Florida, California, and Tennessee.

History of Powerball
Powerball Taxes

Powerball Taxes

Besides the jurisdiction and age requirements, players must be aware of the tax regime. Powerball and other lotteries are subject to both federal and maybe, state taxes.

Powerball Federal Taxes

As of 2021, Powerball winners pay 25% to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). This applies to all winnings above $5,000.

Powerball State Taxes

When it comes to state taxes, they vary depending on the state's taxation laws. Some states, including Pennsylvania, California, New Hampshire, Delaware, Florida, South Dakota, Washington, Tennessee, Texas, and Wyoming, don't tax lotteries. However, the likes of Maryland and Washington DC take close to 9% in state taxes.

As for winners from outside the United States, there is a 30% flat rate charge.

Powerball Taxes
How to play Powerball online?

How to play Powerball online?

The US Powerball is among the most accessible lotteries to play. Basically, the Powerball winning numbers are drawn from two drums. The first drum has white balls (WB) numbered from one to 69, while the second drum has red balls, otherwise known as power balls (PB), numbered from one to 26.

To get in the game, a player must first purchase a ticket, priced at $2 each. The next step is to pick five white ball numbers from the first drum and one red ball number from the second drum. Those who don't want to choose the numbers themselves can go for the auto-pick (quick pick) option, where the numbers from both drums are picked automatically.

To win the Powerball grand prize, players must correctly guess all the five numbers from the first drum and the number from the second drum. But then, there are several other ways to win this lottery even if players miss the grand prize.

Do not forget to check powerball results after playing this game.

What is Powerball Power Play?

In 2021, Powerball added another exciting feature called Power Play. For starters, this is a token that boosts winnings by up to five times when the prize is $50,000 and up to 10 times when the prize is under $150,000. Activating a Power Play costs an extra $1. For the record, Power Play is available in all states and jurisdictions where Powerball tickets are sold except California.

How to play Powerball online?
What are the odds to win Powerball?

What are the odds to win Powerball?

Everyone who buys a Powerball ticket has the hopes of grabbing the top prize, or at least any of the other lower bounties. But then, it's such a challenging feat now that the odds of winning the Powerball are so slim.

Below are some of the Powerball prizes, how to win them, and the odds.

  • Grand Prize $40 million+ (5WB + PB): Odds are one in 292,201,338
  • $1,000,000 (5WB): Odds are one in 11,688,053
  • $50,000 (4WB + PB): Odds are one in 913,129
  • $100 (4WB): Odds are one in 36,525
  • $100 (3WB + PB): Odds are one in 14,494
  • $7 (3WB): Odds are one in 580
  • $7 (2WB + PB): Odds are one in 701
  • $4 (1WB + PB): Odds are one in 92
  • $4 (0WB+ PB): Odds areone in 38
What are the odds to win Powerball?
Powerball payout options

Powerball payout options

When it comes to payout options, there are two available methods.

Winners of less than $600 can claim their money at a lottery vendor in the state where they bought their ticket. As for the jackpot winners, they can claim their prize money as a lump sum paid in two installments or installments paid in over 30 years.

Lump-sum payments attract higher taxes, and the total amount is lower, while with annuities, the tax sum is lower, and each installment is higher by 5%.

Powerball Draws

The US Powerball draw is held thrice weekly: Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday at 10:59 p.m. ET.

Powerball payout options
Tips and tricks to play Powerball

Tips and tricks to play Powerball

From the Powerball odds discussed above, it's clear that hitting the Powerball grand prize or winning any other prize is a mountain to climb. This is because the lottery odds are so slim. But that is not to say winning this game is impossible. While it's purely a game of chance, some strategies can help players increase their chances of winning.

The first important tip to increase the chances of winning is buying more tickets, of course, with different Powerball numbers. While a player might have to spend a lot of money on tickets, it can be worthwhile if they hit any of the big prizes.

Another pro tip is to focus on the standard Powerball winning numbers. While all numbers stand a chance to be drawn, some have been drawn repeatedly.

Joining lottery pools is also another strategy to win the Powerball. When playing as family, friends, or colleagues, the chances are high that one of the pool's members can hit the jackpot. But the shortcoming is that the prize money will have to be shared.

Tips and tricks to play Powerball
Wrapping up

Wrapping up

That's the end of this guide on how to play the lottery online. While winning the Powerball lottery sounds impossible, it's worth trying out by buying an online lottery ticket. However, responsible gambling should always remain a priority.

Wrapping up

Latest news

$1.76 Billion Powerball Ticket Sold in California After Matching All Six Numbers
2023-10-15

$1.76 Billion Powerball Ticket Sold in California After Matching All Six Numbers

The inevitable has finally happened! On October 12, 2023, a single ticket sold in California, United States, won the runaway Powerball jackpot. This was after the lucky player matched all six numbers in the Wednesday draw to win the $1.765 billion jackpot. The jackpot has a cash value of $774.1 million.

$1.04 Billion Prize Up for Grabs After Latest Powerball Draw
2023-10-02

$1.04 Billion Prize Up for Grabs After Latest Powerball Draw

After a draw held on September 30, 2023, the Powerball jackpot crossed the jaw-dropping $1 billion mark. This was after the jackpot went unclaimed to reach $1.04 billion, with a cash value of $478.2 million for the next draw on Monday night.