Powerball Power Play

1. Powerball.net
2. Information
3. Power Play

Power Play is a feature of Powerball that increases the value of non-jackpot prizes, sometimes by up to 10 times their original value!

It is an optional add-on in most states, although in California it is not available and there are a couple of places where it is automatically included. Find out all about how Power Play works, the prizes and odds involved, and the differences between some states.

How Power Play Works

Ahead of each Powerball draw, a separate Power Play draw takes place. This determines which multiplier will be applied to prizes and will be either 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x or 10x. If the estimated jackpot is worth $150 million or more, the 10x multiplier will not be part of the draw.

The odds of each multiplier being selected are different. For example, when the jackpot is $150 million or lower, there are 43 Power Play balls in the draw and only one of them is worth 10x. It is far more likely that the multiplier selected will be 2x. The following table illustrates how the draw is set up and the odds for each multiplier.

Power Play Multiplier	Balls in Power Play draw (when jackpot is $150m or lower)	Odds (when jackpot is $150m or lower)	Balls in Power Play draw (when jackpot is above $150m)	Odds (when jackpot is above $150m)
10x	1	1 in 43	0	N/A
5x	2	1 in 21.5	2	1 in 21
4x	3	1 in 14.33	3	1 in 14
3x	13	1 in 3.31	13	1 in 3.23
2x	24	1 in 1.79	24	1 in 1.75

For the chance to win an enhanced payout, all you need to do is select the Power Play option on your playslip when you buy your ticket. You cannot add it later on. It costs an extra $1 per play.

All you need to do then is keep your ticket safe and check the winning numbers. Any prizes you win below the jackpot will be boosted by the value of the Power Play number that was randomly selected.

If you add Power Play, your odds of winning a prize remain exactly the same, but those payouts could be significantly larger than normal. For example, you could win $40 just by matching the Powerball on its own, if the 10x Power Play is drawn, instead of the regular $4 payout.

The only exception is the 'Match 5' prize - this is always doubled from $1 million to $2 million regardless of the multiplier. Go to the Prizes page to see all the different amounts you could receive with Power Play.

Differences Between States

There are just a few states where Power Play is not an optional feature. In California, it not available at all, while in Idaho and Montana it is built into the game and you cannot opt out.

• California - In California, the law dictates that all lottery prizes must be paid out on a pari-mutuel basis - where the number of tickets that are sold determines the prize fund, and this is then split between all the winners. As Power Play involves multiplying prizes by a fixed amount, this is not permitted in the Golden State.
• Idaho - On August 23, 2021, on the same date that Powerball's Monday draw launched, Idaho became the first state to automatically include Power Play. Tickets in Idaho therefore cost a fixed $3. When the change was made, Idaho Lottery Director Jeff Anderson said many players in the state already added Power Play, while lots of others wished they had included it to make their wins even larger.
• Montana - Power Play has been a permanent feature in Montana, rather than optional, since July 18, 2022. You pay $3 per play and if you win a non-jackpot prize it is guaranteed to be increased. This makes $8 the lowest possible payout. The Double Play game was also introduced in Montana on the same date.

Power Play Winners

Power Play boosts prizes for thousands of players in every draw. A few states have yet to celebrate a jackpot win, but they have still had $2 million payouts with the help of Power Play. One of those was Theodore Drake, a retired obstetrician from Bath in Maine, who only popped in to his local store to return a scrabble dictionary to the owner one day in May 2015. He decided to buy a Powerball ticket with Power Play while he was there, and ended up becoming one of Maine's biggest lottery winners.

A Powerball player from New York won a $2 million Power Play prize in August 2024 after ordering his tickets through the lottery courier service Jackpot.com. His selections, chosen online, were inspired by Jewish scripture - where numbers often carry deep symbolic meaning. It was revealed that he was a long-time New York City resident who had served in the Army and had a career in the music business.