The Biggest ‘Jeopardy!’ Winners of All Time

First up on our list of the biggest prize winners in Jeopardy! history is Julia Collins. Her 20-game winning streak in 2014 was the longest run by a female contestant for over seven years. When this supply chain professional from Illinois stepped onto the stage, nobody could have predicted she’d win $429,100 in regular gameplay.

Collins’ run was particularly special because she quietly dominated game after game with her vast knowledge and steady nerves. After her initial victory, she just kept winning—20 times in total!

When she finally returned for the Tournament of Champions, she placed third, behind other Jeopardy! favorites like Ben Ingram and Arthur Chu. While later champions have since surpassed her records, Collins’ achievements in 2014 helped prove that Jeopardy! champions can come from any background.

Next, another one of the biggest Jeopardy! winners is David Madden, who captured viewers’ attention in 2005 with a 19-game winning streak. His vast knowledge helped him rack up $432,400 in regular gameplay, making him one of the show’s earliest mega-champions.

Though musician Victoria Groce eventually halted his streak, Madden wasn’t done with Jeopardy!. He later returned as part of “Team Brad” in the 2019 All-Star Games, where, alongside other champions Brad Rutter and Larissa Kelly, they claimed the million-dollar grand prize. More recently, Madden even competed in the 2024 Invitational Tournament, bringing his total earnings to over $785,000.

Also Read: Top 10 Funniest Moments on ‘Wheel of Fortune’

Moving down our list, we can’t forget Jason Zuffranieri, who was a big winner in the summer of 2019. This former rocket scientist turned math teacher put his analytical mind to work. He ended up with an impressive $532,496 over 19 consecutive wins. His run was so notable that fans dubbed him “Jeopardy Jason,” much like James Holzhauer before him.

Though he later returned for the 2021 Tournament of Champions and made it to the semifinals, it was his original streak that cemented his place as one of the biggest Jeopardy! winners. These days, he actually teaches math at Greenhill School in Dallas. Whether it was on Jeopardy! or teaching, he proved his commitment to learning and sharing knowledge with the next generation.

Related: The Most Anticipated TV Premieres of 2025

Another one of the biggest Jeopardy! winners is Mattea Roach, from Season 38. The young Canadian tutor’s quick wit carried them through 23 victories, building up $560,000 in regular gameplay. Their run captivated audiences right up to its nail-biting finish – a single-dollar loss that instantly became Jeopardy! legend.

But the tournaments would prove even more exciting. After gaining experience in the 2022 Tournament of Champions, Roach finished second in Jeopardy! Masters, worth $250,000. And later, in 2024, they returned to Masters, adding another $75,000 to their nearly $900,000 total earnings.

Now, many fans see Roach as queer representation on the screen and as an advocate for the community. From their memorable first win (celebrated by shouting about paying off student loans) to hosting their own radio show, Roach has proven that Jeopardy! success stories can unfold in unexpected ways.

Next, few competitors have drawn as many comparisons to James Holzhauer as Cris Pannullo. The customer success manager from New Jersey dominated Season 39 with a 21-game streak, winning $748,286 in regular play.

Pannullo’s approach was methodical: starting with high-value clues, hunting Daily Doubles, and even adopting Holzhauer’s classic buzzer stance. His precision paid off. All but four of his games were locked before Final Jeopardy!. The streak finally ended in a nail-biter against Andy Tirrell, and Pannullo also returned for the 2024 Tournament of Champions, capping his career earnings at $754,286.

If you’ve watched Jeopardy! in recent years, you’ve definitely heard about the iconic Amy Schneider. She absolutely destroyed records in late 2021 with a 40-game winning streak, second only to Ken Jennings himself. Her quick wit and skill in Final Jeopardy! – where she answered correctly 30 out of 41 times – helped her win over $1.3 million in regular gameplay, earning her a spot on our list of the biggest Jeopardy! winners of all time.

Her dominance didn’t stop there. Schneider returned to win the 2022 Tournament of Champions, adding another $250,000 to her earnings. Although, she was later eliminated in the quarter-finals of Jeopardy! Masters, her legacy as the most successful woman contestant in the show’s history remains untouched.

Amazingly, her classmates seemed to predict this success as a kid. They voted her “Most likely to appear on Jeopardy!” back in eighth grade!

Another one of the biggest Jeopardy! winners of all time is Matt Amodio, who dominated in 2021 with a remarkable 38-game winning streak. As Yale computer science PhD student, Amodio became known for his distinctive habit of starting every response with “What’s”. Instead of adjusting his grammar to every question, he just focused on thinking of the right answers. His approach paid off, earning him a total of $1,519,601 in regular gameplay.

One thing that made Amodio’s run particularly unique was that it actually spanned five different hosts during the post-Alex Trebek era, including Robin Roberts, LeVar Burton, and David Faber. He returned for the Tournament of Champions and the Masters tournament, where he notably defeated the legendary James Holzhauer in a game.

While his streak eventually ended against actor Jonathan Fisher, Amodio’s gameplay and consistent performance secured him the second-highest regular season winnings in Jeopardy! history (other than Ken Jennings).

Related: Top 10 America’s Got Talent Auditions of All Time

Capping our list of the biggest winners in Jeopardy! history is James “Jeopardy James” Holzhauer, who had a mind-blowing 32-game winning streak in 2019. As a professional sports gambler, Holzhauer broke records with a single-game high of $131,127, just behind Ken Jenning’s $2,520,700. His strategy of aggressively hunting for Daily Doubles and making massive wagers helped him rack up $2,464,216.

His streak finally ended in June 2019 when librarian Emma Boettcher used his own strategy against him. But Holzhauer still had the last laugh, defeating Boettcher in a dramatic Tournament of Champions rematch.

Later, he competed in the Greatest of All Time tournament and the Masters, bringing his total Jeopardy! earnings to over $3.6 million. While other contestants have since surpassed his streak, Holzhauer still holds the top spot for single-game winnings, earning him the final spot on our list.