Biggest Lottery Jackpots In U.S. History

Here’s the list of the Top 25 annuity jackpots — 29 annual payments in Mega Millions and Powerball — with cash payouts included (and ranked in parentheses), since almost all winners take the cash.

The jackpots below are all from three multistate games: Powerball, Mega Millions, and its precursor, the Big Game.

1. $656 million, Mega Millions, won March 30, 2012, by three tickets, sold in Maryland, Illinois and Kansas. Cash (1): $471 million (U.S. record for total cash all-time).

2. $648 million, Mega Millions, for Dec. 17, 2013 drawing. Cash (4): $347.6 million.

3. $590.5 million, Powerball, won May 18, 2013, in Florida. (record annuity jackpot for Powerball.) Cash (3): $370.9 million (record for most cash collected by a single winner).

4. $587.5 million, Powerball, won Nov. 28, 2012, by two tickets, sold in Missouri and Arizona. Cash (2): $384.7 million (record all-time total cash for Powerball).

5. $448.4 million, Powerball, for Aug. 7, 2013, drawing, won by 3 tickets, 2 of them in New Jersey, one in Minnesota. Cash (5): $258.2 million.

6. $399.4 million, Powerball, for Sept. 18, 2013, drawing, won in South Carolina. Cash (9): $223 million.

7. $390 million, Mega Millions, won March 6, 2007, by 2 tickets, in Georgia and New Jersey. Cash (6): $233.1 million.

8. $380 million, Mega Millions, won Jan. 4, 2011, in Idaho and Washington State. Cash (5): $240 million.

9. $365 million, Powerball, won Feb. 18, 2006, in Nebraska. Cash (18): $177.3 million.

10. $363 million, Big Game, won May 9, 2000, by 2 tickets, in Illinois and Michigan. Cash (17): $180 million.

11. $340 million, Powerball, won Oct. 19, 2005, in Oregon. Cash (25): $164.4 million.

12. $338.3 million, Powerball, won March 23, 20013, in New Jersey. Cash (11): $211 million.

13. $337 million, Powerball, won Aug. 15, 2012, in Michigan. Cash (8): $224.6 million.

14. $336.4 million, Powerball, won Feb. 11, 2012, in Rhode Island. Cash (12): $210 million.

15. $336 million, Mega Millions, won Aug. 28, 2009, by two tickets, in New York and California. Cash (10): $214 million.

16. $331 million, Big Game, won April 16, 2002, by three tickets, in Georgia, Illinois and New Jersey. Cash (19): $176.7 million.

17. $330 million, Mega Millions, won Aug. 31, 2007, by four tickets, in New Jersey, Maryland, Texas and Virginia. Cash (14): $194 million.

18. $319 million, Mega Millions, won March 25, 2011, in New York. Cash (13): $202.9 million.

19. $315 million, Mega Millions, won Nov. 15, 2005, in California. Cash (16): $184.6 million.

20. $314.9 million, Powerball, won Dec. 25, 2002, in West Virginia. Cash (20) $170.5 million.

21. $314.3 million, Powerball, won Aug. 25, 2007, in Indiana. Cash (35): $146 million.

22. $295.7 million, Powerball, won July 29, 1998, in Ohio. Cash (27): $161.5 million.

23. $294.8 million, Powerball, won Aug. 25, 2001, by four tickets, in Delaware, Kentucky, New Hampshire and Minnesota. Cash (23): $165.8 million.

24. $294 million, Mega Millions, won July 2, 2004, in Massachusetts. Cash (21): $168.5 million.

25. $276.3 million, Powerball, won March 15, 2008, in West Virginia. Cash (39): $139.4 million.

If this were a world-record list, No. 1 would be the 2012 Spanish Christmas Lottery, which awarded $950 million to 180 winners through its top tier known as El Gordo, or “The Fat One.”  The 2013 top prize was $875 million which was more than any U.S. jackpot.