The second-largest Powerball jackpot in US history has been claimed — and after taxes, the record-shattering prize looks a lot smaller than the headline figure.
Saturday’s $1.787 billion drawing produced two winning tickets, one sold in Missouri and the other in Texas, lottery officials confirmed. Each winner is entitled to a lump-sum cash payout of roughly $410.3 million before taxes.
That eye-popping number is immediately pared back by the taxman’s take. The IRS automatically withholds 24% of winnings, but because jackpot winners fall into the highest income bracket, the full 37% rate applies. After all federal taxes are accounted for, each winner is left with about $258.5 million.
From there, the difference comes down to state law. Texas does not levy a state income tax, so its winner will keep that full amount.
Missouri, however, taxes lottery winnings at 4%, trimming about $16.4 million from the prize and leaving the state’s winner with roughly $242.1 million.
Even after those cuts, the haul represents a once-in-a-lifetime fortune.
To put it in perspective, $258 million could buy four brand-new Gulfstream private jets — or seven to eight used models — at current prices.
It’s also enough to purchase about 600 median-priced homes in the United States, or cover more than a season’s payroll for a Major League Baseball team.
The Missouri winner’s after-tax share of $242 million could instead fund the equivalent of 120 average American workers’ lifetime salaries, based on current wage data.
It could also cover tuition for hundreds of students through full four-year degrees, or thousands if spread more thinly across annual costs.
The $1.787 billion jackpot trails only the record-setting $2.04 billion Powerball prize awarded to a single California player in November 2022.
Both cement Powerball’s reputation for generating jaw-dropping prizes — and equally daunting tax bills.
For now, the identities of the Missouri and Texas winners remain a mystery. Whether they choose to step into the spotlight or stay anonymous, they’ve already joined an exclusive club of instant multimillionaires.
But history offers a warning: studies show that nearly one in three lottery winners eventually fall into bankruptcy or serious financial hardship within just a few years of their windfall.
While the oft-repeated claim that 70% of winners go broke is an exaggeration, researchers say sudden wealth often proves harder to manage than most expect.
Overspending, bad investments, scams and pressure from friends and family remain the most common downfalls.
For the new winners, the question may not be how to spend their fortune — but how to make sure it lasts.
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