How much of tonight's $835 million Powerball jackpot you would actually keep after taxes?
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Tonight's Powerball jackpot is an estimated $835 million, up from $803.9 million after nobody won Monday's drawing. That jackpot number is the sum of 30 yearly payments and the cash option is $357.9 million.
Here is what the federal government takes from the cash, using 2026 brackets for an unmarried winner with no other income. The first $640,600 of taxable income is taxed at rates from 10% to 35%, about $193,000 in all. Everything above that is taxed at 37%. On $357.9 million, minus the $16,100 standard deduction, the federal bill is about $132.4 million, an effective rate just under 37%.
| Amount | |
|---|---|
| Cash option | $357,900,000 |
| Withheld at the claim (24%) | $85,896,000 |
| Total 2026 federal tax | $132,373,000 |
| Still owed at filing | $46,477,000 |
| Left after federal tax | About $225.5 million |
That gap between withholding (24%) and the real tax bill catches some people out. The lottery sends 24% to the IRS on the spot, so the first check is bigger than what the winner gets to keep. About $46.5 million more comes due at filing next April.
| Where the ticket was bought | State rate used | Kept after all taxes |
|---|---|---|
| Texas, Florida, Tennessee, Washington | None | $225.5 million |
| California | Exempt for California Lottery prizes | $225.5 million |
| Arizona | 2.5% | $216.6 million |
| Ohio | 2.75% | $215.7 million |
| Pennsylvania | 3.07% | $214.5 million |
| North Carolina | 3.99% | $211.2 million |
| Michigan | 4.25% | $210.3 million |
| Illinois | 4.95% | $207.8 million |
| Georgia | 4.99% | $207.7 million |
| Massachusetts | 9% (5% plus 4% surtax) | $193.3 million |
| New Jersey | 10.75% | $187.1 million |
| New York | 10.9% | $186.5 million |
| New York City resident | 10.9% plus 3.876% city tax | $172.6 million |
So the same ticket is worth about $53 million more to a winner in Houston than to one in Brooklyn. Rates for every state are built into our lottery tax calculator.
Taking the annuity spreads the tax out. The 30 payments rise 5% a year, so the first would be about $12.6 million before tax and the last about $51.7 million, as our annuity schedule shows. Each payment is taxed in the year it arrives, mostly at 37%. UK players see the same jackpot quoted as £440 million, a figure that already allows for UK tax.
A single play still hits the jackpot 1 in 292,201,338 times. The run has gone 35 drawings since the last jackpot on August 12, and odds and prize tiers are on the Powerball analysis page.
How we did this. The jackpot, cash option, and Monday's result are from official Powerball figures in our draw database on November 4, 2026. Federal tax uses the IRS's 2026 brackets and $16,100 standard deduction for an unmarried filer with no other income. State figures apply each state's top rate to the full cash option, which slightly overstates tax in states with graduated brackets, and leave out county and city taxes except New York City's. The annuity figures assume 30 payments growing 5% a year.
Sources
IRS: 2026 tax brackets and standard deduction
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Frequently Asked Questions
How much is the $835 million Powerball jackpot after taxes?
Taking the $357.9 million cash option, a single winner with no other income would owe about $132.4 million in 2026 federal tax, leaving about $225.5 million before state tax. State tax then ranges from nothing in Texas or Florida to about $39 million in New York.
How much federal tax is withheld from a Powerball jackpot?
The lottery withholds 24%, or about $85.9 million on the $357.9 million cash option. Nearly all of the prize falls in the 37% bracket, so the winner would owe about $46.5 million more when filing the 2026 return.
Which states do not tax Powerball winnings?
Florida, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming have no state tax on the prize, and California exempts its own lottery winnings. In those places, the cash option after federal tax comes to about $225.5 million.
