Powerball Calculator
Find out what you would actually take home from a Powerball jackpot after taxes. Enter the advertised jackpot, choose lump sum or annuity, and set your federal and state tax rates to see the real payout.
The advertised Powerball jackpot is the annuity value -- what you would receive spread over 30 annual payments. The lump sum cash option is approximately 60% of that number. So a $500 million jackpot has a cash value of about $300 million before taxes.
Taxes take a massive bite. Federal tax on lottery winnings is 37% for amounts this large. Add state taxes (0-13.3% depending on your state), and you are looking at keeping only 50-58% of the lump sum. On a $500 million jackpot with 5% state tax:
- Lump sum: $300 million gross, minus $111 million federal (37%) and $15 million state (5%) = $174 million net (34.8% of headline)
- Annuity: $500 million gross, minus $185 million federal and $25 million state = $290 million net over 30 years ($9.67 million per year)
States with no lottery income tax include Florida, Texas, California (for lottery only), Washington, South Dakota, Wyoming, Tennessee, and New Hampshire. Winning in one of these states keeps an extra 3-13% in your pocket.