The Powerball drawing on Christmas Eve produced one colossal winner and a scattering of comfortable holiday windfalls.
A single ticket sold near Little Rock, Arkansas, matched all six numbers to claim an estimated $1.817 billion jackpot — the second-largest U.S. lottery prize on record. But while that headline stole the spotlight, lottery offices in several states were busy tracing smaller — though still life-changing — prizes handed out by the same drawing.
Winning numbers and how the smaller prizes stacked up
The numbers drawn were 4, 25, 31, 52, 59 with a Powerball of 19. Matching four white balls plus the Powerball pays a secondary prize: $50,000 before any Power Play multipliers. The odds of hitting that combination are roughly 1 in 913,129.
Massachusetts lottery officials said eight tickets that matched four numbers plus the Powerball were sold in the state, each worth $50,000. They were purchased at:
- Cumberland #0135 in Attleboro
- 7-Eleven 34499-1 in Dedham
- Schooner's Market in Essex
- Ted's Stateline Mobil in Methuen
- Go Go Gas in Rockland
- Stop & Shop #005 in Peabody
- Cumberland #2232 in Provincetown
- Castle Hill Mini Mart in Salem
- If you’re curious about laptop deals winners might consider, see coverage of MacBook Air deals. You can also find typical shopping destinations like the MacBook Air available on Amazon.
- Gaming hardware choices often top wish lists; for context on the current console conversation, read about the PlayStation 5 Pro console or check price on a PS5 Pro.
Winners in Massachusetts have one year from the drawing to claim prizes and can do so at one of the state's regional lottery offices.
Connecticut reported two bigger runner-up wins: two tickets with the Power Play option (which landed at 2x for this drawing) matched four white balls plus the Powerball and were doubled to $100,000 each. Another Connecticut ticket matched the same combination without Power Play and won $50,000.
Other local reports named additional $50,000 tickets sold elsewhere — for example, a $50,000 ticket was sold at a Tops market in Camillus, New York, and Nebraska lottery officials said a $50,000 ticket was purchased in Omaha. These mid-tier prizes tend to be spread across many states when jackpots climb this high.
Why this matters beyond the headline
Jackpots like this send people to convenience stores, supermarkets and gas stations in waves — both for a shot at instant riches and for the small consolation that many more players will walk away with five- or six-figure checks. For comparison, the $1.817 billion prize is eclipsed only by one other U.S. haul in size; Massachusetts’ own Mavis Wanczyk collected $758.7 million in a 2017 Powerball drawing when she was the lone winner.
Practicalities matter for new winners: state rules on anonymity, tax withholding and claim deadlines vary widely. Smaller prize-winners often claim at lottery retail locations or regional offices; jackpot winners navigate a different set of legal and financial steps.
If you’re daydreaming about what people might do with a six-figure check, retailers and tech makers tend to get mentions for good reason. Some might splurge on a new MacBook — current deals have made options more accessible — or upgrade home entertainment with a console that’s been in headlines lately. A quick look at recent tech coverage shows deep retailer discounts on laptops like the MacBook Air, and gaming hardware attention around the PlayStation 5 Pro has been notable this year.
No one claimed the Megabucks top prize in Massachusetts on the same night, either — that game’s jackpot climbed to about $9.35 million, the largest since the game's redesign in 2023.
Whether the $1.817 billion winner keeps a low profile or steps into the public eye, the ripple effects of a record-level drawing are already clear: consolation prizes dotted the map, local retailers celebrated luck-bringing sales, and a handful of people will be managing a suddenly very different holiday season.