El Gordo[]
Spain’s Sorteo Extraordinario de Navidad (Spanish Christmas Lottery) is generally considered to be the world’s largest lottery game, with the largest first prize/jackpot. In 2012, the first prize was €720 million (then US$941.8 million; $1.058 billion in 2020 dollars). The total prize pool in 2012 was €2.52 billion (US$3.297 billion; $3.704 billion in 2020 dollars). The tickets for this drawing have pre-printed five-digit numbers, with each set of numbers sold multiple times in series. For example, a ticket with the number «00001» was printed 180 times under different series numbers. Moreover, each series is divided into 10 décimos (tenths in English), which are the individual tickets available for purchase. This results in the top prize being split by a very big number of winners usually from different regions of Spain. The 2011 top prize of €720 million was paid out as €4 million (US$5.2 million) to each of the 180 tickets (or €400,000 for each décimo) with the number 58268. In 2016, the total prize pool was $2.310 billion (US$2.414 billion)
United States[edit]
All lottery winnings are subject to Federal taxation (automatically reported to the Internal Revenue Service if the win is at least $600); many smaller jurisdictions also levy taxes. The IRS requires a minimum withholding of 25% of the prize (minus the wager) of any gambling win in excess of $5,000. However, the net for a major prize often is misleading; winners often owe the IRS upon filing a return because the Federal withholding was below the winner’s tax obligations. Nonresident U.S. lottery winners have 30% of winnings of at least $600 withheld.
While the largest lottery prizes in the early history of U.S. state lotteries were «annuity-only», these lotteries gradually introduced a «cash option» for these games.
All prizes listed below are reported as the pre-withholdings amount, as this is taxable income the player must report on their returns to be subject to taxation. Jackpots and jackpot shares listed below are annuity amounts (and the cash value.)
For various reasons, an annuitized jackpot can have a higher cash value than a larger annuity with a lower cash value. Examples include the annuity structure of various games: while Mega Millions’ and Powerball’s annuity option each are 30 annual payments, Mega Millions’ annuity payments increase 5 percent yearly, while Powerball increases 4 percent yearly; this makes the Mega Millions’ annuity structure somewhat more «inflated».
List of U.S. lottery drawings of $300 million or more (annuity value) with at least one jackpot-winning ticket (dollar amounts in millions):
| Rank | Jackpot | Cash value | Tickets | Per ticket | Game | Date | Where | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $1,586.4 | $983.5 | 3 | $327.8 | Powerball | Jan. 13, 2016 | CA, FL, TN | World’s largest jackpot (cash value & annuity); 9th largest cash value per ticket. |
| 2 | $1,537 | $877.8 | 1 | $877.8 | Mega Millions | Oct. 23, 2018 | SC | Largest jackpot for a single ticket; largest cash value for a single ticket. |
| 3 | $768.4 | $477 | 1 | $477 | Powerball | Mar. 27, 2019 | WI | 3rd largest jackpot for a single ticket. Bought in New Berlin, Wisconsin. |
| 4 | $758.7 | $480.5 | 1 | $480.5 | Powerball | Aug. 23, 2017 | MA | 2nd largest jackpot for a single ticket. |
| 5 | $687.8 | $396.2 | 2 | $198.1 | Powerball | Oct. 27, 2018 | IA, NY | |
| 6 | $656 | $474 | 3 | $158 | Mega Millions | Mar. 30, 2012 | IL, KS, MD | |
| 7 | $648 | $347.6 | 2 | $173.8 | Mega Millions | Dec. 17, 2013 | CA, GA | |
| 8 | $590.5 | $370.9 | 1 | $370.9 | Powerball | May 18, 2013 | FL | |
| 9 | $587.5 | $384.7 | 2 | $192.4 | Powerball | Nov. 28, 2012 | AZ, MO | |
| 10 | $564.1 | $381.1 | 3 | $127.0 | Powerball | Feb. 11, 2015 | NC, PR, TX | |
| 11 | $559.7 | $352 | 1 | $352 | Powerball | Jan. 6, 2018 | NH | |
| 12 | $543 | $320.5 | 1 | $320.5 | Mega Millions | July 24, 2018 | CA | |
| 13 | $536 | $378.3 | 1 | $378.3 | Mega Millions | July 8, 2016 | IN | |
| 14 | $533 | $324.6 | 1 | $324.6 | Mega Millions | Mar. 30, 2018 | NJ | |
| 15 | $530 | $345.2 | 1 | $345.2 | Mega Millions | June 7, 2019 | CA | |
| 16 | $487 | $341.7 | 1 | $341.7 | Powerball | July 30, 2016 | NH | |
| 17 | $456.7 | $269.4 | 1 | $269.4 | Powerball | Mar. 17, 2018 | PA | |
| 18 | $451 | $281.9 | 1 | $281.9 | Mega Millions | Jan. 5, 2018 | FL | |
| 19 | $448.4 | $258.2 | 3 | $86.1 | Powerball | Aug. 7, 2013 | MN; NJ (2) | |
| 20 | $447.8 | $279.1 | 1 | $279.1 | Powerball | Jun. 10, 2017 | CA | |
| 21 | $437 | $261.8 | 1 | $261.8 | Mega Millions | Jan. 1, 2019 | NY | |
| 22 | $435.3 | $263.4 | 1 | $263.4 | Powerball | Feb. 22, 2017 | IN | |
| 23 | $429.6 | $284.1 | 1 | $284.1 | Powerball | May 7, 2016 | NJ | |
| 24 | $425.3 | $242.2 | 1 | $242.2 | Powerball | Feb. 19, 2014 | CA | |
| 25 | $420.9 | $254.6 | 1 | $254.6 | Powerball | Nov 26, 2016 | TN | |
| 26 | $414 | $230.9 | 2 | $115.4 | Mega Millions | Mar. 18, 2014 | FL, MD | |
| 27 | $410 | $316.8 | 1 | $316.8 | Mega Millions | June 09, 2020 | AZ | |
| 28 | $399.4 | $223.3 | 1 | $223.3 | Powerball | Sep. 18, 2013 | SC | |
| 29 | $396.9 | $274.6 | 1 | $274.6 | Powerball | Jan. 29, 2020 | FL | |
| 30 | $393 | $247 | 1 | $247 | Mega Millions | Aug. 11, 2017 | IL | |
| 31 | $390 | $233.1 | 2 | $116.5 | Mega Millions | Mar. 6, 2007 | GA, NJ | |
| 32 | $380 | $240 | 2 | $120 | Mega Millions | Jan. 4, 2011 | ID, WA | |
| 33 | $372 | $251.6 | 1 | $251.6 | Mega Millions | Dec. 17, 2019 | OH | |
| 34 | $365 | $177.3 | 1 | $177.3 | Powerball | Feb. 18, 2006 | NE | |
| 35 | $363 | $180 | 2 | $90 | The Big Game | May 9, 2000 | IL, MI | Largest Big Game jackpot before it became Mega Millions |
| 36 | $344.6 | $223.3 | 1 | $223.3 | Powerball | June 1, 2019 | NC | |
| 37 | $340 | $164.4 | 1 | $164.4 | Powerball | Oct. 19, 2005 | OR | |
| 38 | $338.3 | $211.0 | 1 | $211.0 | Powerball | Mar. 23, 2013 | NJ | |
| 39 | $337 | $224.7 | 1 | $224.7 | Powerball | Aug. 15, 2012 | MI | |
| 40 | $336.4 | $210.0 | 1 | $210.0 | Powerball | Feb. 11, 2012 | RI | |
| 41 | $333 | $214 | 2 | $107 | Mega Millions | Aug. 28, 2009 | CA, NY | |
| 42 | $331 | $174 | 3 | $58 | The Big Game | Apr. 16, 2002 | GA, IL, NJ | |
| 43 | $330 | $194.4 | 4 | $48.6 | Mega Millions | Aug. 31, 2007 | MD,NJ,TX,VA | |
| 44 | $326 | $197.5 | 1 | $197.5 | Mega Millions | Nov. 4, 2014 | NY | |
| 45 | $319 | $202.8 | 1 | $202.8 | Mega Millions | Mar. 25, 2011 | NY | |
| 46 | $315.3 | $183 | 1 | $183 | Powerball | May 19, 2018 | NJ | |
| 47 | $315 | $185 | 1 | $185 | Mega Millions | Nov. 15, 2005 | CA | |
| 48 | $314.9 | $170.5 | 1 | $170.5 | Powerball | Dec. 25, 2002 | WV | Won by Jack Whittaker |
| 49 | $314.3 | $146.0 | 1 | $146.0 | Powerball | Aug. 25, 2007 | IN |
Notes:
MM. ^ ^ The Big Game became The Big Game Mega Millions and then Mega Millions in 2002.
El Gordo
Spain’s Sorteo Extraordinario de Navidad (Spanish Christmas Lottery) is generally considered to be the world’s largest lottery game, with the largest first prize/jackpot. In 2012, the first prize was €720 million (then US$941.8 million; $1.058 billion in 2020 dollars). The total prize pool in 2012 was €2.52 billion (US$3.297 billion; $3.704 billion in 2020 dollars). The tickets for this drawing have pre-printed five-digit numbers, with each set of numbers sold multiple times in series. For example, a ticket with the number «00001» was printed 180 times under different series numbers. Moreover, each series is divided into 10 décimos (tenths in English), which are the individual tickets available for purchase. This results in the top prize being split by a very big number of winners usually from different regions of Spain. The 2011 top prize of €720 million was paid out as €4 million (US$5.2 million) to each of the 180 tickets (or €400,000 for each décimo) with the number 58268. In 2016, the total prize pool was $2.310 billion (US$2.414 billion)
United States[]
All lottery winnings are subject to Federal taxation (automatically reported to the Internal Revenue Service if the win is at least $600); many smaller jurisdictions also levy taxes. The IRS requires a minimum withholding of 25% of the prize (minus the wager) of any gambling win in excess of $5,000. However, the net for a major prize often is misleading; winners often owe the IRS upon filing a return because the Federal withholding was below the winner’s tax obligations. Nonresident U.S. lottery winners have 30% of winnings of at least $600 withheld.
While the largest lottery prizes in the early history of U.S. state lotteries were «annuity-only», these lotteries gradually introduced a «cash option» for these games.
All prizes listed below are reported as the pre-withholdings amount, as this is taxable income the player must report on their returns to be subject to taxation. Jackpots and jackpot shares listed below are annuity amounts (and the cash value.)
For various reasons, an annuitized jackpot can have a higher cash value than a larger annuity with a lower cash value. Examples include the annuity structure of various games: while Mega Millions’ and Powerball’s annuity option each are 30 annual payments, Mega Millions’ annuity payments increase 5 percent yearly, while Powerball increases 4 percent yearly; this makes the Mega Millions’ annuity structure somewhat more «inflated».
List of U.S. lottery drawings of $300 million or more (annuity value) with at least one jackpot-winning ticket (dollar amounts in millions):
| Rank | Jackpot | Cash value | Tickets | Per ticket | Game | Date | Where | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $1,586.4 | $983.5 | 3 | $327.8 | Powerball | Jan. 13, 2016 | CA, FL, TN | World’s largest jackpot (cash value & annuity); 9th largest cash value per ticket. |
| 2 | $1,537 | $877.8 | 1 | $877.8 | Mega Millions | Oct. 23, 2018 | SC | Largest jackpot for a single ticket; largest cash value for a single ticket. |
| 3 | $768.4 | $477 | 1 | $477 | Powerball | Mar. 27, 2019 | WI | 3rd largest jackpot for a single ticket. Bought in New Berlin, Wisconsin. |
| 4 | $758.7 | $480.5 | 1 | $480.5 | Powerball | Aug. 23, 2017 | MA | 2nd largest jackpot for a single ticket. |
| 5 | $687.8 | $396.2 | 2 | $198.1 | Powerball | Oct. 27, 2018 | IA, NY | |
| 6 | $656 | $474 | 3 | $158 | Mega Millions | Mar. 30, 2012 | IL, KS, MD | |
| 7 | $648 | $347.6 | 2 | $173.8 | Mega Millions | Dec. 17, 2013 | CA, GA | |
| 8 | $590.5 | $370.9 | 1 | $370.9 | Powerball | May 18, 2013 | FL | |
| 9 | $587.5 | $384.7 | 2 | $192.4 | Powerball | Nov. 28, 2012 | AZ, MO | |
| 10 | $564.1 | $381.1 | 3 | $127.0 | Powerball | Feb. 11, 2015 | NC, PR, TX | |
| 11 | $559.7 | $352 | 1 | $352 | Powerball | Jan. 6, 2018 | NH | |
| 12 | $543 | $320.5 | 1 | $320.5 | Mega Millions | July 24, 2018 | CA | |
| 13 | $536 | $378.3 | 1 | $378.3 | Mega Millions | July 8, 2016 | IN | |
| 14 | $533 | $324.6 | 1 | $324.6 | Mega Millions | Mar. 30, 2018 | NJ | |
| 15 | $530 | $345.2 | 1 | $345.2 | Mega Millions | June 7, 2019 | CA | |
| 16 | $487 | $341.7 | 1 | $341.7 | Powerball | July 30, 2016 | NH | |
| 17 | $456.7 | $269.4 | 1 | $269.4 | Powerball | Mar. 17, 2018 | PA | |
| 18 | $451 | $281.9 | 1 | $281.9 | Mega Millions | Jan. 5, 2018 | FL | |
| 19 | $448.4 | $258.2 | 3 | $86.1 | Powerball | Aug. 7, 2013 | MN; NJ (2) | |
| 20 | $447.8 | $279.1 | 1 | $279.1 | Powerball | Jun. 10, 2017 | CA | |
| 21 | $437 | $261.8 | 1 | $261.8 | Mega Millions | Jan. 1, 2019 | NY | |
| 22 | $435.3 | $263.4 | 1 | $263.4 | Powerball | Feb. 22, 2017 | IN | |
| 23 | $429.6 | $284.1 | 1 | $284.1 | Powerball | May 7, 2016 | NJ | |
| 24 | $425.3 | $242.2 | 1 | $242.2 | Powerball | Feb. 19, 2014 | CA | |
| 25 | $420.9 | $254.6 | 1 | $254.6 | Powerball | Nov 26, 2016 | TN | |
| 26 | $414 | $230.9 | 2 | $115.4 | Mega Millions | Mar. 18, 2014 | FL, MD | |
| 27 | $410 | $316.8 | 1 | $316.8 | Mega Millions | June 09, 2020 | AZ | |
| 28 | $399.4 | $223.3 | 1 | $223.3 | Powerball | Sep. 18, 2013 | SC | |
| 29 | $396.9 | $274.6 | 1 | $274.6 | Powerball | Jan. 29, 2020 | FL | |
| 30 | $393 | $247 | 1 | $247 | Mega Millions | Aug. 11, 2017 | IL | |
| 31 | $390 | $233.1 | 2 | $116.5 | Mega Millions | Mar. 6, 2007 | GA, NJ | |
| 32 | $380 | $240 | 2 | $120 | Mega Millions | Jan. 4, 2011 | ID, WA | |
| 33 | $372 | $251.6 | 1 | $251.6 | Mega Millions | Dec. 17, 2019 | OH | |
| 34 | $365 | $177.3 | 1 | $177.3 | Powerball | Feb. 18, 2006 | NE | |
| 35 | $363 | $180 | 2 | $90 | The Big Game | May 9, 2000 | IL, MI | Largest Big Game jackpot before it became Mega Millions |
| 36 | $344.6 | $223.3 | 1 | $223.3 | Powerball | June 1, 2019 | NC | |
| 37 | $340 | $164.4 | 1 | $164.4 | Powerball | Oct. 19, 2005 | OR | |
| 38 | $338.3 | $211.0 | 1 | $211.0 | Powerball | Mar. 23, 2013 | NJ | |
| 39 | $337 | $224.7 | 1 | $224.7 | Powerball | Aug. 15, 2012 | MI | |
| 40 | $336.4 | $210.0 | 1 | $210.0 | Powerball | Feb. 11, 2012 | RI | |
| 41 | $333 | $214 | 2 | $107 | Mega Millions | Aug. 28, 2009 | CA, NY | |
| 42 | $331 | $174 | 3 | $58 | The Big Game | Apr. 16, 2002 | GA, IL, NJ | |
| 43 | $330 | $194.4 | 4 | $48.6 | Mega Millions | Aug. 31, 2007 | MD,NJ,TX,VA | |
| 44 | $326 | $197.5 | 1 | $197.5 | Mega Millions | Nov. 4, 2014 | NY | |
| 45 | $319 | $202.8 | 1 | $202.8 | Mega Millions | Mar. 25, 2011 | NY | |
| 46 | $315.3 | $183 | 1 | $183 | Powerball | May 19, 2018 | NJ | |
| 47 | $315 | $185 | 1 | $185 | Mega Millions | Nov. 15, 2005 | CA | |
| 48 | $314.9 | $170.5 | 1 | $170.5 | Powerball | Dec. 25, 2002 | WV | Won by Jack Whittaker |
| 49 | $314.3 | $146.0 | 1 | $146.0 | Powerball | Aug. 25, 2007 | IN |
Notes:
MM. ^ ^ The Big Game became The Big Game Mega Millions and then Mega Millions in 2002.
