Florida, California have won big Powerball jackpots. Are they among Top 10 luckiest states?

Jennifer Sangalang, Florida Today
·9 min read

Is Florida among the luckiest states to win the Powerball lottery? The answer may surprise you.

Since the Sunshine State joined the game in 2009, there have been a fair amount of Floridians who won big − one couple from Melbourne Beach, David Kaltschmidt and Maureen Smith, won one of the biggest Powerball jackpots in U.S. history in January 2016. And though this story counts down the Top 10 luckiest states to win the Powerball lottery, it's worth noting that someone in Florida claimed the $1.58 billion Mega Millions jackpot — the largest in the history of that game — for Aug. 8, 2023.

In a new study by gaming website Hearts.land to find the luckiest states in the U.S. to win the Powerball jackpot, researchers used winning statistics from previous drawings, comparing the grand prize wins per state per 1,000,000 population. Data can be found on powerball.net/winners.

Players have a 1 in 292.2 million chance to match all five numbers plus the Powerball. The odds of winning Powerball remain the same whether the jackpot is $1 billion or $1 million. However, players do have a 1 in 24.9 chance of winning a prize, according to powerball.com.

Why do some states have greater luck than others? The researchers in this study surmise the number of players in each state comes into play, as the more each state has, the higher the chances of a winning ticket. The press release states: “Each state's attitudes toward the lottery can affect this more than others. But some states may simply have better luck than others. Google search data shows that Rhode Island has the largest search interest in the Powerball, but ranks third according to its win rate. There is a clear correlation between search interest and win rate, with six of the Top 10 luckiest states having the highest number of Powerball-related searches per capita.”

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Below is the list from Hearts.land and powerball.net sites, using population estimates from April 1, 2020, and Census.gov.

Minnesota ranks No. 10 on list of luckiest states to win Powerball jackpot

Rounding off the list in the Top 10 is Minnesota, the North Star State. The Hearts.land study states, "residents see about 3.8 wins per 1,000,000, based on 22 jackpot wins to an estimated population of 5.7 million. The win rate was 206% higher than the national average."

Kentucky ranks No. 9 on list of luckiest states to win Powerball jackpot

The Bluegrass State was named the ninth luckiest state, "with an estimated population of 4.5 million and 18 Powerball jackpot wins,” according to the study. “This equals 3.9 wins per 1,000,000, greater than the national average by 217%."

Kansas ranks No. 8 on list of luckiest states to win Powerball jackpot

The Sunflower State ranks eighth, "with 4.1 wins per 1,000,000 people, 224% higher than the national average. Kansas has had 12 jackpot wins with an estimated population of 2.93 million.”

West Virginia ranks No. 7 on list of luckiest states to win Powerball jackpot

The Mountain State is the seventh luckiest state, based on “5.01 wins per 1,000,000 population, 298% above the national average. West Virginia's win rate is derived from nine Powerball jackpot wins compared to an estimated population of 1.79 million.”

Missouri ranks No. 6 on list of luckiest states to win Powerball jackpot

Missouri ranks sixth on this list, with a win rate of “5.03 per 1,000,000 people, 299% above the national average, based on 31 wins to 6.15 million people.” The Show Me State’s most recent jackpot win of $70 million was in 2015.

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Nebraska ranks No. 5 on list of luckiest states to win Powerball jackpot

Nebraska was the fifth luckiest state to win the Powerball jackpot with “5.1 wins per 1,000,000, 304% higher than the national average. This equates to 10 wins to an estimated population of 1.96 million,” according to the study. The Cornhusker State last won the Powerball jackpot of $122.9 million in 2013.

Indiana ranks No. 4 on list of luckiest states to win Powerball jackpot

The Hoosier State is the fourth luckiest state to win the Powerball lottery. The Hearts.land study states: “With 39 wins to date, compared to its estimated population of 6.7 million, Indiana has 5.7 jackpot wins per 1,000,000 people, 356% higher than the national average.” Indiana's last jackpot win was in 2017, with a grand prize a whopping $435 million.

Rhode Island ranks No. 3 on list of luckiest states to win Powerball jackpot

Rounding off the Top 3 on this list is Rhode Island at third place. The Ocean State had “7.3 wins per 1,000,000, or 478% higher than the national average, based on 8 wins to an estimated 1.1 million population.”.

New Hampshire ranks No. 2 on list of luckiest states to win Powerball jackpot

New Hampshire took second place in this study with “7.9 wins per 1,000,000, 533% above the national average. New Hampshire has 11 total wins compared to an estimated population of 1.37 million.” The Granite State last won the Powerball jackpot in 2018 with a top prize of $559 million.

Delaware ranks No. 1 on list of luckiest states to win Powerball jackpot

And finally, the analysis revealed Delaware, the Diamond State, is the luckiest state in the U.S. “With 10 total wins, this state has the highest rate compared to the population, at 10.1 wins per 1,000,000 people, 700% higher than the national average of 1.2.” Delaware has one of the smallest population figures. “With an estimated 989,948 residents, the state is among the smallest of all states eligible to play the Powerball, behind Wyoming, North Dakota and South Dakota, Vermont, and Wyoming.” Delaware last won the $121 million jackpot in 2016.

What are the Top 10 largest Powerball jackpots in U.S. history?

Here are the Top 10 Powerball jackpots as of Nov. 15, 2023, and where the top prizes were won:

TLDR: What are the Top 10 luckiest states for winning Powerball lottery?

According to a recent study by Hearts.land, these are the luckiest states in the U.S. for winning the Powerball grand prize:

  • No. 10: Minnesota

  • No. 9: Kentucky

  • No. 8: Kansas

  • No. 7: West Virginia

  • No. 6: Missouri

  • No. 5: Nebraska

  • No. 4: Indiana

  • No. 3: Rhode Island

  • No. 2: New Hampshire

  • No. 1: Delaware

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Is Florida one of the luckiest states for Powerball?

Florida did not make the Top 10 list of luckiest states to win Powerball jackpot, according to the study compiled by Hearts.land and powerball.net/winners. Census.gov stats from April 1, 2020, show Florida’s population at 21.5 million people.

The Sunshine State has had some major lottery wins within the past decade. Below is a list of the largest Mega Millions and Powerball jackpots in U.S. history — and where they were won — as of Nov. 15, 2023.

Is California one of the luckiest states for Powerball?

The Golden State did not make the study’s Top 10 list of luckiest states to win the Powerball jackpot. As of April 1, 2020, California reported a Census.gov population metric of 39.5 million people.

It should be noted that as of Nov. 15, 2023, there have been nine lottery jackpots that have reached or surpassed $1 billion. Only once has a jackpot surpassed $2 billion. The list below shows the winning total and the state where the billion-dollar grand prize was won. California has the majority in this list.

Commenting on the findings, a spokesperson from Hearts.land said: “Powerball claims that the odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million. So why do some states have greater luck than others? One reason for this is the number of players in each state, as the more each state has, the higher the chances of a winning ticket. Each state's attitudes towards the lottery can affect this more than others. But some states may simply have better luck than others. Google search data shows that Rhode Island has the largest search interest in the Powerball, but ranks third according to its win rate. There is a clear correlation between search interest and win rate, with six of the top ten luckiest states having the highest number of Powerball-related searches per capita.

Sangalang is a lead digital producer for USA TODAY Network-Florida. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram at @byjensangalang. Support local journalism. Consider subscribing to a Florida newspaper.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Powerball lottery study: These are luckiest states for jackpot winners