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Key Takeaways
- Winning the $1.8 billion Powerball jackpot would instantly make you richer than some of the wealthiest celebrities.
- If the winner chooses to receive an immediate lump sum, they’d receive around $628.1 million after the IRS takes its cut—before any other income taxes.
- That’s more than the estimated net worth of stars like Brad Pitt, Serena Williams, Tom Brady, and more.
By Sunday morning, one Powerball winner could have more money than Brad Pitt without shooting a single scene or Serena Williams without picking up a tennis racket.
This weekend’s $1.8 billion jackpot is the second-largest Powerball draw in history. If there’s a winner, they get a choice of an annuity that pays the full amount in annual installments for the next 29 years or a lump sum payment of an estimated $826.4 million.
Assuming the winner picks the lump sum and lives in one of the eight states that don’t tax lottery earnings, their take-home pay would be an estimated $628.1 million after the IRS takes its first cut.
That much money would place a lucky winner ahead of some high-profile high earners. Here are just a few, according to figures from Celebrity Net Worth and elsewhere:
Brad Pitt ($400 million)
Pitt’s movie credits are numerous and Oscar-laden, but he notably appeared in “The Big Short,” an Academy Award-winning 2015 film about the global financial crisis of 2007 and 2008. More recently, he reportedly received $30 million upfront for the 2025 Apple TV movie “F1”.
Mariah Carey ($350 million)
Carey makes an average of $2.5 million in royalties every year for her 1994 Christmas song “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” according to a 2016 estimate from The Economist. The holiday classic has earned her more than $60 million from streaming royalties alone, according to the New York Post.
Serena Williams ($300 million)
Williams earned $95 million in prize money over the course of her illustrious tennis career, which included 23 Grand Slam titles and four Olympic gold medals. She owns several businesses, including ventures in makeup, clothing, jewelry, sports recovery, and entertainment.
Tom Brady ($300 million)
The seven-time Super Bowl champion is estimated to have earned about $450 million over his 23-year career, according to Forbes. In 2022, he inked a 10-year $375 million contract to step into the analyst booth at Fox Sports starting in 2024. Brady is also a minority owner of the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders franchise.
Drake and Kendrick Lamar—combined ($440 million)
The pair of Grammy-winning, platinum record-selling artists were locked in a highly publicized rap beef in 2024 and 2025. Winning the Powerball jackpot would be enough to pass them both, at least on the net worth charts. Drake has a net worth of about $300 million, while Lamar is at roughly $140 million. (Lamar is winning the Grammy battle, though, with 22 wins to Drake’s five.)
Travis Kelce $90 million
The three-time Super Bowl winner (and fiancé of Taylor Swift) has made millions in the NFL since being drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in 2013. Off the field, Kelce signed a three-year, $100 million deal with Amazon for the “New Heights” podcast he hosts with his brother, former Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce. Taylor Swift, if you’re curious, is worth a cool $1.5 billion.
The Bottom Line
The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are incredibly small, just 1 in roughly 292 million. Buying additional tickets does virtually nothing to move the odds in your favor. Someone will eventually win, though, and that person will be able to count themselves among the A-Listers (at least on Tax Day).
