Keno Guide (Rules & Strategy)
Keno was introduced into the United States during the mid-1800s when Chinese immigrants who came to work on the railways, brought it with them. It is now a popular game in land-based and online casinos worldwide.
Selecting your Numbers in a Game of Keno
In order to begin playing a game of keno in a land-based casino, you will need to locate the keno booth in the casino. Here you will find keno tickets with the numbers 1 through 80 and you must select a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 10 numbers. Some games may allow up to 15 numbers. Each number is known as a spot so if you select 8 numbers, you are said to be playing an 8-spot game. Once you have marked your ticket, you hand it into the keno booth along with your bet and you will be given a duplicate ticket. In online keno, simply choose your numbers. $1 minimum bets are often found at online keno games, whereas smaller minimum bets may be allowed at land-based casinos.
Winning in a Game of Keno
Once you have selected your numbers, you simply sit back and wait for the numbers to be drawn. In a land-based casino, you must find the keno screens and wait there because if you miss the draw or you do not get back to the keno booth before the next keno game begins, your ticket will be void and you will not be able to collect any winnings that may have been due to you. If you do not wish to rush back to the keno booth after every game, you can give your ticket to a keno runner if one is available. Alternatively, you can purchase multi-race tickets that pre-select a number of games for you. You can typically buy a ticket with up to 20 games at once.
The more of your numbers that match the winning numbers, the more money you will win.
Payouts in a Keno Game
The payouts in keno games vary from casino to casino, however below is a typical table.
Matches |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
10 |
1 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
0 |
2 |
- |
9 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
3 |
- |
- |
16 |
6 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
4 |
- |
- |
- |
12 |
15 |
3 |
6 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
5 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
50 |
30 |
12 |
6 |
4 |
3 |
6 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
75 |
36 |
19 |
8 |
5 |
7 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
100 |
90 |
20 |
10 |
8 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
720 |
80 |
30 |
9 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
1,200 |
600 |
10 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
1,800 |
For example, if you match 6 numbers in a 9 spot game, you will win 8x your bet. If you match 6 numbers in a 6 spot game, you will win 75x your bet.
