How to play keno
Keno in four steps – pick numbers, watch the draw, count your matches, check the pay table.
What is keno: eighty numbers, twenty drawn
- The board: eighty numbers, from one to eighty.
- The draw: each game, the machine or the caller draws twenty of them at random.
- Your job: guess some of those numbers before the draw.
Each game is new. Numbers drawn in the last game have no effect on the next one – see the gambler's fallacy.
Pick spots, then count your catches
A spot is a number you pick. A catch is one of your spots that gets drawn.
| Catch | Chance | Pays (for 1) |
|---|---|---|
| 4 of 4 | 0.31% | 120 |
| 3 of 4 | 4.32% | 4 |
| 2 of 4 | 21.26% | 1 |
| 1 of 4 | 43.27% | – |
| 0 of 4 | 30.83% | – |
Pick 4: exact chance of each catch when 20 of 80 numbers are drawn. Return 75.32%.
Example: you mark four spots. Twenty balls come out, and three of your four are among them – that is a catch of three out of four.
Decide how many spots you will play before you bet, because each spot count has its own column in the pay table.
Read the pay table
| Numbers picked | Best prize (for 1) | Chance to catch all | Return |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | 1 in 4 | 75.00% |
| 2 | 12 | 1 in 17 | 72.15% |
| 3 | 40 | 1 in 72 | 69.38% |
| 4 | 120 | 1 in 326 | 75.32% |
| 5 | 750 | 1 in 1,551 | 79.67% |
| 6 | 1500 | 1 in 7,753 | 65.41% |
| 7 | 5000 | 1 in 40,979 | 77.65% |
| 8 | 10000 | 1 in 230,115 | 87.98% |
| 9 | 10000 | 1 in 1,380,688 | 82.10% |
| 10 | 10000 | 1 in 8,911,711 | 83.59% |
Our example video keno pay table. Casinos set their own pay tables; the return changes with them.
Find the column for the number of spots you picked, then the row for your catches. Few catches usually pay nothing.
"For one" means the prize already includes your bet. A prize of five for one on a one-dollar bet gives you five dollars in total – your dollar back plus four dollars of profit.
On our study table, picking four spots returns 75.32% of all money bet over time; the house keeps the rest. More details are on keno payouts.
Live keno vs video keno
- Live keno: a caller draws the balls in a keno lounge, and games come every few minutes. A Wizard of Odds survey of Las Vegas found it returns 65% to 80% of money bet.
- Video keno: a machine draws the numbers in seconds. A Wizard of Odds check in San Diego found it returns 84% to 95%.
Both games use the same rules. No way of picking numbers changes the return – see keno strategy.
Questions
How do you play keno?
You pick some numbers (spots) from eighty, then twenty numbers are drawn. Your picked numbers that get drawn are catches, and the pay table shows the prize for your spots and catches.
What does "for one" mean on a keno pay table?
It means the prize includes your original bet. A prize of five for one pays five in total, which is four of profit plus your bet back.
What is a catch in keno?
A catch is a number you picked that is also one of the twenty numbers drawn. On the pay table, you find the column for your spots and then the row for your number of catches.
Is video keno better than live keno?
Video keno usually returns more – about 84% to 95% compared with 65% to 80% for live keno in Wizard of Odds surveys. In both games the house keeps part of every bet over time.
Can you pick numbers that win more often in keno?
No. Every number has the same chance in every draw, and past draws do not change future ones.