September was a lucky month for lottery jackpots. What about October? More than eight weekends after the historic $1.8 billion Powerball and with the Mega Millions jackpot now past $750 million, lottery fever is still spiking.
And perhaps some significant dates might add to the excitement: Halloween, the spookiest holiday of the year, or daylight saving time, when we “fall back” and change wall clocks one hour back (see below).
In the $1.787 billion Powerball drawing for Saturday, Sept. 6, a pair of tickets purchased in Texas and Missouri both matched all five numbers plus the Powerball to split the jackpot. The Missouri Powerball player came forward, and the Missouri Lottery said the winner elected to stay anonymous and opted for the one-time lump sum of $410.3 million before taxes.
The Texas Powerball winner also came forward Oct. 13, according to the Texas Lottery. The organization said the winner was Seven Bridges Revocable Trust of Fredericksburg, Texas.
The current jackpot has since rolled over 20 times after resetting to $20 million on Sept. 8.
After a rollover on Oct. 28, Mega Millions rose to $754 million (from $714 million) for Friday, Oct. 31, or Halloween day.
But before that, there’s almost $380 million up for grabs: After no one matched all five numbers plus the Powerball in the Monday, Oct. 27, Powerball drawing, the grand prize jumped to $376 million (from $358 million) for Wednesday, Oct. 29. The one-time cash option would be $179.3 million, according to Powerball online. Check back after 11 p.m. ET for Wednesday’s winning numbers. We’ll see if there’s a winner ahead of Halloween and daylight saving time this weekend or another chance at a higher payout.
In case you’re wondering, Monday’s winning Powerball numbers were 17-39-43-51-66 and the Powerball was 20. Power Play was 2x. There were no secondary winners in that draw either.
The Powerball jackpot for Wednesday now rises to $376 million, with a cash option of $179.3 million.
Tickets start at $2 a piece. Below is what to know about lottery odds, how long to claim the cash option if you bought a ticket in Florida, and what happens to unclaimed prize money, according to the Florida Lottery.
Good luck!
Powerball lottery drawings are at 11 p.m. ET every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday, including holidays. Check back for Wednesday, Oct. 29, winning Powerball numbers. We’ll see if there’s a winner so soon after the historic $1.8 billion Powerball jackpot or another chance at more money for the grand prize.
The current Powerball streak started Monday, Sept. 8, after a ticket purchased in Fredericksburg, Texas, and St. Louis, Missouri, matched all five numbers plus the Powerball in the $1.787 billion drawing on Sept. 6, 2025.
Below is a recap of drawings and rollovers and how much the jackpot has increased over time.
Powerball drawings are held at 11 p.m. ET Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, including holidays. According to Powerball.com, players have a 1 in 292.2 million chance to match all six numbers whether the jackpot is $20 million or $2 billion. Prizes range from $2 to the grand prize jackpot, which varies.
The next Powerball drawing will be Saturday, Nov. 1, hours before daylight saving time “ends” or we fall back.
Prizes for Florida Lottery must be claimed within 180 days (six months) from the date of the drawing. To claim a single-payment cash option, a winner has within the first 60 days after the applicable draw date to claim it.
The Florida Lottery says its scratch-off tickets and Fast Play game prizes “must be claimed within 60 days of the official end-of-game date. Once the applicable time period has elapsed, the related Florida Lottery ticket will expire.”
According to Florida Lottery’s website, winners cannot remain anonymous: “Florida law mandates that the Florida Lottery provide records containing information such as the winner’s name, city of residence; game won, date won, and amount won to any third party who requests the information.”
However, the site states, the “names of lottery winners claiming prizes of $250,000 or greater will be temporarily exempt from public disclosure for 90 days from the date the prize is claimed, unless otherwise waived by the winner.”
Lottery experts and lawyers have said there are ways to remain anonymous if you win.
Here are the Top 10 Powerball jackpots in the history of the game as of Oct. 29, 2025:
10. $754.6 million — Feb. 6, 2023; Washington
9. $758.7 million — Aug. 23, 2017; Massachusetts
8. $768.4 million — March 27, 2019; Wisconsin
7. $842.4 million — Jan. 1, 2024; Michigan
6. $1.08 billion — July 19, 2023; California
5. $1.33 billion — April 6, 2024; Oregon
4. $1.586 billion — Jan. 13, 2016; California, Florida and Tennessee
3. $1.765 billion Powerball drawing — Oct. 11, 2023; California
2. $1.787 billion — Sept. 6, 2025; Missouri and Texas
1.$2.04 billion — Nov. 7, 2022; California
As of Oct. 29, 2025, there have been 13 lottery jackpots that have reached or surpassed $1 billion. Only once has a jackpot surpassed $2 billion. These are the biggest lottery jackpots in U.S. history.
(This story will be updated to include new information.)