Number 42

In Powerball under the 5/69 + 1/26 · since Oct 2015 rules — 1,418 draws, 5 from 1–69.

99times drawn · chance expected 103 −0.38σ

3draws waiting · a wait this long: 86% for any number

14.4average wait between appearances · chance says 13.8

62longest completed wait · 63% chance of one at least that long

42 is drawn as often as chance explains

Drawn 99 times in 1,418 draws against 102.8 expected, −0.38σ. Each draw is independent: after 3 draws away it is exactly as likely tonight as a number drawn yesterday.

Number 42, draw by draw

Drawn 99 times in 1,418 draws · average wait 14.4 draws · longest completed wait 62 · waiting 3 draws now

a completed wait — darker is longer the wait still running — a lower bound, not a finished gap

Where it lands in a sorted draw

Sort a draw and 42 has a favourite seat — chance gives a large number the high positions more often. That is the shape of sorting, not of the machine.

1st smallest0 · chance 2.1
2nd smallest17 · chance 14.6
3rd smallest34 · chance 35.0
4th smallest32 · chance 35.0
5th smallest16 · chance 12.3

Every position’s lane →

The company it keeps

Seen most often with these — chance gives every partner about 5.8 shared draws, and the leaders are simply the ones that came out ahead this time.

52 19 40 20 28 29

It has shared a draw with every one of the other 68 numbers; chance expected about 0.2 still unmet by now. Every pair →

How many people play it

Under the crowd model, 42 is picked about 0.93× as often as an indifferent choice — 35th most popular of 69. That changes nothing about whether it comes up, and everything about how many ways a jackpot on it would be shared.

No documented preference lifts or lowers it — the model treats it as an even pick.

The model and its sources → · What people believe about 42 →

Every draw it appeared in

Date	Wait	Position	The draw
2026-10-03	2	2nd	4 42 44 55 59
2026-09-28	8	4th	17 21 29 42 49
2026-09-09	18	3rd	9 40 42 55 65
2026-07-29	25	4th	30 36 40 42

What this cannot tell you

Nothing here predicts the next draw. A number’s history is a record of a fair machine’s past, and the machine keeps none of it: 42 is drawn with probability 5/69 tonight whatever it did last week.

2024-07-24	29	2nd	16 42 59 63 68
2024-05-18	1	4th	19 36 37 42 59
2024-05-15	19	2nd	19 42 45 55 69
2024-04-01	12	4th	19 24 40 42 56
2024-03-04	3	2nd	36 42 50 52 67
2024-02-26	2	3rd	24 29 42 51 54
2024-02-21	22	5th	4 27 33 41 42
2024-01-01	17	3rd	12 21 42 44 49
2023-11-22	4	5th	20 24 33 39 42
2023-11-13	13	5th	24 33 35 37 42
2023-10-14	11	3rd	14 16 42 48 64
2023-09-18	7	5th	2 21 26 40 42
2023-09-02	12	3rd	25 38 42 66 67
2023-08-05	22	2nd	18 42 44 62 65
2023-06-14	2	4th	3 20 36 42 64
2023-06-10	28	3rd	21 32 42 46 50
2023-04-05	33	4th	3 5 9 42 52
2023-01-18	39	4th	6 15 22 42 47
2022-10-19	3	5th	6 8 15 27 42
2022-10-12	14	4th	14 30 41 42 59
2022-09-10	27	2nd	38 42 56 68 69
2022-07-09	10	3rd	14 22 42 46 52
2022-06-15	1	4th	19 28 41 42 51
2022-06-13	8	3rd	2 27 42 44 51
2022-05-25	1	4th	19 28 39 42 57
2022-05-23	20	5th	1 33 37 39 42
2022-04-06	20	2nd	6 42 45 47 64
2022-02-19	1	5th	3 10 15 33 42
2022-02-16	27	4th	22 30 40 42 48
2021-12-15	26	4th	19 20 40 42 59
2021-10-16	6	4th	30 31 41 42 48
2021-10-02	62	3rd	28 38 42 47 52
2021-03-20	1	4th	1 6 22 42 61
2021-03-17	14	3rd	34 38 42 61 62
2021-01-27	25	4th	17 33 35 42 52
2020-10-31	20	4th	2 6 40 42 55
2020-08-22	27	4th	19 30 36 42 66
2020-05-20	1	4th	18 34 40 42 50
2020-05-16	2	5th	8 12 26 39 42
2020-05-09	8	3rd	12 18 42 48 65
2020-04-11	5	4th	22 29 30 42 47
2020-03-25	30	5th	5 9 27 39 42
2019-12-11	1	3rd	24 29 42 44 63
2019-12-07	2	2nd	18 42 53 62 66
2019-11-30	24	3rd	15 35 42 63 68
2019-09-07	25	4th	11 20 41 42 56
2019-06-12	1	4th	5 35 38 42 57
2019-06-08	3	3rd	9 13 42 48 60
2019-05-29	26	4th	3 32 34 42 61
2019-02-27	16	3rd	21 31 42 49 59
2019-01-02	1	3rd	8 12 42 46 56
2018-12-29	13	2nd	12 42 51 53 62
2018-11-14	2	2nd	7 42 49 62 69
2018-11-07	8	4th	26 28 34 42 50
2018-10-10	25	4th	8 23 27 42 60
2018-07-14	4	3rd	22 41 42 49 67
2018-06-30	14	4th	3 9 20 42 61
2018-05-12	11	2nd	22 42 45 55 56
2018-04-04	26	3rd	8 24 42 54 64
2018-01-03	21	5th	2 18 37 39 42
2017-10-21	25	3rd	14 41 42 45 69
2017-07-26	7	4th	7 19 21 42 69
2017-07-01	29	2nd	19 42 45 48 53
2017-03-22	4	5th	2 9 27 29 42
2017-03-08	6	3rd	23 33 42 46 59
2017-02-15	2	5th	5 28 33 38 42
2017-02-08	10	3rd	14 20 42 49 66
2017-01-04	3	5th	16 17 29 41 42
2016-12-24	16	3rd	28 38 42 51 52
2016-10-29	37	4th	19 20 21 42 48
2016-06-22	25	3rd	14 40 42 43 52
2016-03-26	24	3rd	11 23 42 52 68
2016-01-02	5	5th	5 6 15 29 42
2015-12-16	16	4th	9 10 32 42 55
2015-10-21	—	3rd	30 32 42 56 57