Keno · South Africa
Pick Your Numbers. Chase the Win.
How keno works — pick your numbers, watch the draw, and know the odds before you play.
Play keno at ScorebetKeno
Keno is a lottery-style casino game you can play all day: you pick a set of numbers — a “spot” of usually one to ten — from a field of 1 to 80, the game draws 20 numbers at random, and you’re paid on how many of yours land among them. There’s no ticket to buy and no waiting for a nightly draw; rounds run fast and back to back. It’s the simplest game on the casino floor, and that simplicity hides one of the steepest house edges you’ll find anywhere. This is the full map — how a round works, the markets, the maths, and the strategy that’s actually honest.
New to it? Start with how to play keno, then read the odds before you stake.
How a keno round works, in one paragraph
You choose how many numbers to back — your spot — and pick them from 1 to 80. You set your stake, the round draws 20 numbers, and the game counts your “catches”: the picks of yours that came up. A paytable then pays a fixed multiple of your stake based on how many you caught for the spot size you chose. Pick fewer numbers and you’re more likely to catch your whole spot for a modest return; pick more and the top prize balloons while the odds against you lengthen. No skill, no decisions after you’ve placed the bet — it’s a random draw, settled instantly.
The keno markets
The only real choice in keno is how many numbers you pick — the spot size — and that single decision sets both your payout ceiling and your odds. Each spot size has its own paytable, so the same number of catches pays differently depending on how many you backed. Here’s the shape of it, and where to read more:
| Spot size | What you’re chasing | Read more |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 4 numbers | Frequent small catches, lower variance | How to play |
| 5 to 7 numbers | A middle ground — bigger multiples, longer odds | Odds and payouts |
| 8 to 10 numbers | A long shot at a large top-prize multiple | Strategy |
Some keno variants add side options — a way bet that splits one ticket across several spots, or bonus multipliers — but the core is always the same: pick your spot, see 20 balls drawn, get paid on your catches. The exact paytables and any extra markets vary by game, so check the live paytable in the app before you bet.
Keno versus the lottery and the rest of the floor
Keno looks like a lottery, and the family resemblance is real — you pick numbers and wait for a draw. But the product is closer to a casino slot than to a National Lottery ticket. There’s no shared jackpot pool and no waiting for a scheduled draw; the game runs on a random number generator, settles in seconds, and pays you straight from the house at the published paytable. That speed is the appeal and the danger in one: because a round takes seconds, you can churn through far more rands per hour than you would on a twice-weekly lottery, and the steep edge compounds with every round you play.
It’s worth knowing how keno stacks up against the games sitting next to it. A round of keno is simpler than blackjack and asks nothing of you after you’ve placed the bet, but it costs you far more per rand staked over time. The trade you’re making is effort for edge: keno demands no decisions and no skill, and in return it keeps a much bigger slice than a game where your choices matter. If you want a draw-style bet with friendlier odds, fixed-odds lottery betting is the better-value cousin — same pick-and-wait feel, a smaller margin.
The honest bit — keno’s house edge is brutal
This is the part the casino’s “how to play” page glosses over: keno has one of the highest house edges in the entire casino. Where a decent blackjack game holds well under 1% and most slots sit around 4–8%, keno commonly runs into the double digits — on many paytables the house keeps a quarter or more of every rand wagered over the long run. That gap is baked into the paytable: the multiples you’re paid are set well below the true odds of your catches landing. None of that means you can’t have a big night — the appeal is the small stake chasing a large multiple. But over enough rounds the maths is heavily against you, and no pattern, no “due” number and no system changes that, because every draw is independent and random. Play it knowing exactly what you’re paying for: speed, simplicity, and the long-shot dream.
Where to go next
The how to play guide walks the full round step by step. The odds and payouts page shows why picking more numbers lengthens the odds, with a worked rand example. And the strategy page is honest about what actually helps — fewer spots, a firm budget, and treating it as entertainment.
Keno sits alongside the other draw-style games in the Lucky Numbers family, where you bet on real lottery draws at fixed odds rather than a casino RNG — a different product with friendlier odds, worth a look. For the wider floor of slots, tables and live games, head up to online casino. And when you want to play a round, keno is live at Scorebet.
In this section
How to Play Keno
The four steps of a keno round, plus the one decision that sets your odds.
Read the guide → Keno · Odds and payoutsKeno Odds and Payouts
Why bigger spots stretch the odds, and the honest cost of keno's house edge.
Read the guide → Keno · StrategyKeno Strategy
No system beats the draw — but fewer spots and a firm budget keep keno sane.
Read the guide →Frequently asked
What is keno?
Keno is a lottery-style casino game. You pick a set of numbers — a 'spot' of usually one to ten — from a field of 1 to 80, then 20 numbers are drawn at random. You're paid on how many of your picks land among the 20, following a fixed paytable. There's no skill involved; it's pure chance.
How many numbers should you pick in keno?
Fewer numbers give you a far better chance of hitting your whole spot, while more numbers raise the top prize but stretch the odds badly. A pick of two to four numbers lands more often and bleeds less; a ten-spot is a long shot chasing a big multiple. The number you choose is the only real decision keno gives you.
Does keno have a high house edge?
Yes — keno carries one of the highest house edges in the casino, often well into double digits and far steeper than slots, blackjack or roulette. That's the honest trade-off for the simplicity and the big top-prize multiples. Treat it as priced entertainment, not a way to make money.
Why is hitting zero numbers sometimes a winning result in keno?
On larger spots — typically eight, nine or ten numbers — many paytables pay a small return for catching none at all, because matching zero of ten when 20 of 80 are drawn is itself a long-odds outcome. It's a quirk of the maths rather than a generous gesture: the chance of zero catches falls as your spot grows, so the paytable treats it like a rare hit. Always check the live paytable, because not every keno variant offers it.
Does picking 'lucky' or overdue numbers improve your keno odds?
No. Every draw is independent and the balls have no memory, so a number that hasn't appeared for ten rounds is exactly as likely to drop as any other. Patterns, hot-and-cold charts and 'due' numbers change nothing about the maths, and the house edge sits on the paytable regardless of which numbers you back. The only decision that actually shifts your odds is how many numbers you pick, not which ones.