Where Wheel of Fortune’s four $1 million winners are today

According to People, only four contestants have won Wheel of Fortune’s $1 million grand prize since the show debuted on Jan. 6, 1975; the million-dollar prize was introduced in 2008 during the program’s 26th season. The first winner was Michelle Loewenstein in 2008, who took home $1,026,800; she was a newly married floral designer who said at the time she planned to buy a house and help family and has since stayed out of the spotlight.

Autumn Erhard won $1,030,340 in 2013 while wedding planning with her then-fiancé and told Good Morning America the win eased stress; per her LinkedIn she appears to have married and left her sales role in October 2014. Sarah Manchester, a math teacher from Silver Spring, Md., won $1,017,490 in September 2014 and, as of summer 2021, was still teaching eighth-grade geometry at Takoma Park Middle School.

The most recent winner, Christina Derevjanik, claimed $1,035,155 in September 2025 — the largest amount in the show’s history — and has said the money will allow her to pay off student loans and invest in a future home; she told TV Insider in October 2025 her main priority is buying a house, and her LinkedIn lists her as a marketing manager at Con Edison since May 2024.

Key Topics

Culture, Michelle Loewenstein, Autumn Erhard, Sarah Manchester, Christina Derevjanik, Con Edison