Winner, winner.
A new study revealed the U.S. states that have the highest chances of winning the Powerball — and sadly, none of the tri-state area was included in the top five.
The lottery game played in 45 U.S. states offers several different ways to win a prize, ranging from a player matching just the Powerball number and winning only a few dollars to matching all six numbers and winning the jackpot.
A study conducted by CSDB.gg looked at Powerball data from 1992-2025 to help them figure out where someone has to live to have the highest likelihood of winning either the Match 5, Match 5+ Power Play or Powerball jackpot per 100,000 residents.
New Jersey and New York ranked 31 and 32 on the 45-state list with only 2.45 and 2.14 wins per 100,000 locals.
On that sad note, it seems like good old Rhode Island is the place to be. Based on the data they analyzed, researchers figured out that there is an estimated 38.39 Powerball wins per 100,000 residents.
Little Rhody has seen 427 total Powerball wins over the past 33 years. Lucky them!
West Virginia came in at No. 2 with 27.29 wins per 100,000 residents. The Mountain State has seen over 483 total Powerball wins — so the odds are in the residents’ favor.
Delaware slid into the third-place spot. It’s seen over 285 total wins. New Hampshire estimates 21.15 wins per 100,000 residents with 285 total Powerball wins in history.
Indiana rounded out the list, coming in at No. 5 with 18.41 wins per 100,000 natives.
On the flip side, there are five very unlucky states where the chances of a resident there ever screaming “I won” are slim to none.
California has a recorded 357 total Powerball wins, but the Golden State will realistically only see 0.91 wins per 100,000 residents. Texas trailed close behind with 275 total wins, but the odds aren’t great for residents of the Lone Star State: 0.88 wins per 100,000 people.
Wyoming comes in a close third at 0.85 wins. The No. 2 spot went to Washington, with only 0.78 wins per 100,000 residents.
And the worst state for lotto lovers to live in? Mississippi.
The Magnolia State has only been participating in the Powerball since early 2020 — and within the past five years, it’s only had two wins. It’s estimated that there will be approximately 0.07 wins per 100,000 locals.
“The regional gaps in Powerball wins are striking, with smaller states in the Northeast consistently outperforming larger states in terms of wins per capita,” said Corey Sims, Head of Content at CSDB.gg.
“This doesn’t mean the lottery is rigged – it simply highlights that ticket-buying habits vary significantly across regions and that win rates are likely influenced by the year each state began participating in the Powerball.”
Read the full article here
