Lottery payout calculator: from the check to the final tax
A prize goes through three stages: the check the lottery hands over, the tax return that settles the real tax, and what is left. This calculator follows all three.
- Federal withholding
- 24 % over $5,000
- Top federal rate
- 37 %
- Jurisdictions
- 51
Lump sum after all taxes
$174,636
30.1 % of the prize goes to tax: $75,364. $68,750 is withheld at the claim, the rest is due with the 2026 return.
| Prize this year | $250,000 |
| Federal income tax (top rate reached 35 %) | $66,614 |
| Kentucky tax | $8,750 |
| Withheld when the prize is paid | $68,750 |
| Still to pay with the return | $6,614 |
Compiled by Radif Partners · How we calculate · brackets, state rates and lottery rules read on official sites · estimate, not tax advice
The payout of a lottery prize is not one number but three. The first is the check: the prize minus the 24 % federal withholding on amounts over $5,000 and minus the state withholding of the lottery that sold the ticket. The second is the tax actually owed, computed on the return with the 2026 federal brackets and the state rates. The third is what you keep. For a Kentucky resident who wins $250,000, with $60,000 of other income and filing single, the check is $181,250, the federal and state tax total $75,364, and $6,614 is still owed at filing, leaving $174,636. A married Kentucky couple with $90,000 of wages keeps $188,622 of the same prize. An Indiana resident who won $250,000 on an Illinois ticket pays Illinois as a nonresident and Indiana minus its credit, and keeps $171,128. The calculator does the same for any prize, state and city.
Your prize, your state
Lump sum after all taxes
$174,636
| Prize this year | $250,000 |
| Federal income tax (top rate reached 35 %) | $66,614 |
| Kentucky tax | $8,750 |
| Withheld when the prize is paid | $68,750 |
How to fill in the calculator
For a fixed prize, a scratch-off or a state game, enter the prize in both amount fields: the advertised prize and the cash value are the same. For a jackpot, enter the advertised jackpot and the cash value the game publishes with the drawing, then choose lump sum or annuity. The state where you live and the state where the ticket was sold can differ; the calculator then applies the nonresident rules of the second and the credit of the first. The advanced fields hold your filing status and your other income for the year, which set the brackets the prize starts from.
What the result shows
The result card gives what you keep and the tax in total. The lines below separate the federal tax, the tax of the state that sold the ticket, the tax of your home state after its credit, the city or county tax where it applies, and the withholding. The line "owed at filing" is the tax minus everything withheld: the amount to plan for, usually by estimated payments in the quarter of the claim. A note explains each state rule applied, in plain words, such as a nonresident threshold or the absence of a credit.
Six prizes in three states
| Prize | Arizona keeps | Kentucky keeps | Wisconsin keeps |
|---|---|---|---|
| $10,000 | $8,200 | $8,100 | $7,979 |
| $50,000 | $38,400 | $37,900 | $37,059 |
| $250,000 | $177,136 | $174,636 | $170,195 |
| $1,000,000 | $637,820 | $627,820 | $593,133 |
| $10,000,000 | $6,082,820 | $5,982,820 | $5,574,633 |
| $100,000,000 | $60,532,820 | $59,532,820 | $55,389,633 |
The three states were chosen for their shapes. Arizona shares with North Dakota the lowest top rate among states with an income tax, 2.50 %, applied flat; Kentucky a flat 3.50 %; Wisconsin a graduated schedule that reaches 7.65 %. On $10,000,000, an Arizona resident keeps $6,082,820. The federal part is the same in all three columns, at the brackets of Rev. Proc. 2025-32.
Small prizes behave differently
On a $50,000 prize, the federal withholding of 24 % is close to the federal tax actually due, because much of such a prize sits in the 22 % and 24 % brackets. A Wisconsin resident who wins $50,000 has $15,825 withheld in all, against $12,941 of tax, and owes -$2,884 at filing. On large prizes, the gap opens: the withholding stays at 24 % while the tax goes toward 37 %. Prizes of $5,000 or less have no federal withholding at all and are taxed in full on the return (W-2G instructions).
Two states on one prize
The Indiana resident of the summary bought the ticket in Illinois, which taxes nonresidents on prizes of its lottery at its flat 4.95 %. Indiana taxes its residents on all income, including that prize, and gives a credit for the Illinois tax up to its own tax on the same income. The calculator shows both lines and the credit; tickets bought in another state explains the rules, and the Indiana page its county tax, which this calculator does not add.
The paper trail of a payout
Every prize above the reporting threshold comes with a Form W-2G, which shows the amount paid, the federal tax withheld and, at the bottom, the state and local figures (Form W-2G). The lottery sends a copy to the IRS. The return has to match it: the prize goes on the line for other income, the withholding on the line for federal tax withheld, and the state copy goes with the state return of each state concerned. A winner whose ticket came from another state files there as a nonresident, which is where the withholding of that state is credited or refunded. Keeping the claim form, the W-2G and a copy of the ticket together saves a long search the following spring.
Limits of the estimate
The calculator does not know your deductions beyond the standard one, your credits, the alternative minimum tax, or a move during the year. It applies the 2026 rules as read on official pages on October 20, 2026; where a state's rule could not be read, it says so instead of guessing. The method page lists every formula. A payout is the result of chance, not of a strategy; if playing has become a strain, 1-800-MY-RESET is free and confidential.