Keno in New Zealand

5 months ago 1020

Keno is run here by Lotto New Zealand. Unlike almost everything else covered on this site, it is a domestically regulated product with published rules, audited draws and a fixed prize table.

For live results, go to MyLotto. Results appear there immediately after each draw and can be checked by scanning your ticket. This page explains the game rather than duplicating a results feed we cannot keep current.

How the game works

How Keno works in New Zealand

Run by Lotto New Zealand, with published rules and audited draws

Draws	Four times daily — 10:00 am, 1:00 pm, 3:00 pm and 6:00 pm, every day.
The draw	20 numbers are drawn from a pool of 80.
Your ticket	You choose how many numbers to play — a “spot” of one to ten — and how much to stake per line. That combination sets both your odds and your prize.
Top prize	$250,000 for ten from ten on a $1 line.
Multiplier	An optional add-on that multiplies a winning prize, for an added cost per line.
Entry	Open right up to the draw, with the next draw available immediately. Multi-draw lets you enter several in advance.
Where	MyLotto online, and at retailers with Keno terminals. An online account requires you to be 18.

The part that trips people up

How many you need to match depends on how many you picked. Matching three balls wins on a six-spot line. Matching three on a seven-spot to ten-spot line does not.

Read the match-and-win table for your spot before you buy, because the same three matched numbers can be a prize on one ticket and nothing on another.

One number that circulates and is wrong for New Zealand

Some sites state that New Zealand Keno draws every four minutes from 6:00 am to midnight, giving over 250 draws a day.

That describes Keno in another market, not this one. Lotto New Zealand runs four draws a day at the times above. If you are reading a page that gives the four-minute figure, it is not describing the game you are playing.

If you are reading a page that gives the four-minute figure, it is not describing the game you are playing — which is worth knowing before you plan around it.

The odds, and what choosing a spot does

The odds, and what choosing a spot actually does

It changes the shape of the outcome, not the expected return

Ten from ten is roughly 1 in 8.9 million on a ten-spot line. That pays a fixed $250,000 per dollar wagered.

For comparison, that is longer than the odds of taking Lotto First Division.

A low spot wins more often and pays less

A one-spot or two-spot line hits regularly and returns a small multiple of the stake. A ten-spot line almost never hits the top tier and pays enormously when it does.

Neither is the better bet. Each spot has its own published odds and its own prize scale, and the operator’s margin is built into every one of them. Choosing a spot selects how you want to lose — slowly and steadily, or rarely and dramatically. It does not select whether you lose.

Keno is one of the poorer-value products available

As a game class, Keno carries one of the highest house edges of any common gambling product — materially worse than a pokie at around 96%, and far worse than blackjack played correctly at under 1%.

Lotto New Zealand publishes prize tables and odds for each spot rather than a single return figure. Read the table for the spot you are playing and treat the ticket price as the cost of the entertainment, because on average that is what it is.

And no selection method changes any of it

Advice to play four to eight numbers, buy multiple cards, or split a bankroll across spots is presented as strategy. It is not.

Keno is a fixed-odds game with a published prize table and a random draw. The prize table and the draw mechanics determine the return, and no selection method moves it. Playing more tickets does not improve your odds; it stakes more money at the same odds.

That is longer than the odds of taking Lotto First Division.

Our guide to how casino algorithms work sets those figures alongside each other.

Hot and cold numbers

Hot and cold numbers tell you nothing

Interesting to browse, useless to act on

Frequency data from past draws is genuinely interesting, and it has no predictive value whatsoever.

Each draw is independent. A ball that has come up six times this week is exactly as likely as one that has not appeared all month. The machine has no memory of the last draw, and neither do the balls.

Why some numbers always look hot

Over a short run some numbers will always appear more than others. That is what randomness looks like, not a signal within it.

Perfectly even distribution over a small number of draws would be the surprising result. Clumping is the expected one.

And check the date on any list you are shown

Hot and cold lists are frequently published once and never updated. A list labelled “the last 30 draws” on a page last edited a year ago is not describing the last 30 draws — and at four draws a day, thirty draws is about a week.

A stale list presented as current data is worse than no list, because it looks like information.

If you enjoy looking at the history, look at it. Lotto New Zealand publishes full draw archives and there is nothing wrong with browsing them.

Just do it knowing it is a record of what happened, not a guide to what will.

Where to play, and how to check results

Online: MyLotto is the official platform. The app lets you pick numbers, enter multiple draws, scan a paper ticket to check it, and see results after each draw.

In person: Lotto NZ retailers, supermarkets, dairies and self-service terminals. Staff can check a ticket against the latest draw.

Checking results: MyLotto publishes winning numbers and prize breakdowns for every draw. Third-party sites republish them, but for anything that matters — confirming a win, checking a prize tier — use the official source. Republished results carry no guarantee and are not what a retailer will pay against.

Prizes are not taxed in New Zealand, though interest earned on a prize is. If you receive a benefit, Work and Income has separate guidance on declaring one-off payments.

Prizes not claimed within 12 months are forfeited and returned to the Prize Reserve Fund.

Keno on this site, and Keno at an offshore casino

Keno sits oddly on a site about online casinos, and it is worth being straight about why.

It is a New Zealand product, run by a New Zealand operator, under New Zealand law, with prizes paid in New Zealand dollars and draws audited independently. Almost everything else on this site concerns offshore operators that hold no New Zealand licence.

The keno-style games in an offshore casino lobby are a different product entirely. They share a name and a grid of eighty numbers. They do not share the published prize table, the audited draw, the domestic regulator or the recourse. Odds and returns vary by studio and are set by the game supplier, not by Lotto NZ.

Do not read anything on this page across to one of those. They are not the same game.

Playing within limits

Four draws a day, entry open right up to the draw, and the next one available immediately. Keno is designed for frequent play, and that is worth noticing about it — a spend that accumulates in small amounts across a day is easy not to notice.

Lotto NZ offers spend limits and self-exclusion through MyLotto, and they work properly because it is a licensed domestic operator required to honour them. That is a meaningful difference from an offshore site, where the same tools depend on the operator choosing to respect them.

Free, confidential support is available in New Zealand at any hour: the Gambling Helpline on 0800 654 655 or free text 8006, and PGF Services on 0800 664 262. Both support whānau and friends as well as the person gambling.

Our self-exclusion guide covers bank blocks, device blocking software and the New Zealand venue exclusion scheme. Our responsible gaming page has further information.

Disclaimer

This page is published for information. It is not financial, legal, tax or gambling advice, and nothing on it is a recommendation to play. You must be 18 or older to hold a MyLotto account.

Nothing here improves anyone’s chance of winning. Keno is a fixed-odds game of chance with a negative expected return. No number selection, spot choice, multi-card arrangement or staking pattern alters the odds of any draw, and as a game class Keno carries one of the highest house edges of any common gambling product.

This page is not a results service. Draw times, prize tables, odds and game rules change — confirm them on Lotto New Zealand’s own site. Republished results carry no guarantee and are not what a retailer will pay against; for anything that matters, confirm a win against the official source.

Four draws a day with entry open right up to each one makes Keno a product designed for frequent play, and a spend that accumulates in small amounts is easy not to notice. Set a limit before you start. Free, confidential support is available in New Zealand 24 hours a day on 0800 654 655, or by free text to 8006.

Reference sources

Official game information, regulator guidance, legislation and New Zealand support services. No link below goes to an offshore gambling operator.

MyLotto — Keno results, prize tables and draw archive — Lotto New Zealand’s official channel, and the only source a retailer will pay against.
Lotto New Zealand — playing responsibly, limits and self-exclusion — the operator’s own tools, which work because it is a licensed domestic operator required to honour them.
DIA — gambling in New Zealand, and how lotteries are regulated — Department of Internal Affairs.
Gambling Act 2003 — New Zealand Legislation, under which Lotto New Zealand operates.
Wizard of Odds — keno mathematics and house edge — how spot selection, prize tables and the operator’s margin interact.
Work and Income — declaring lottery and gambling wins while on a benefit — prizes are untaxed, but a benefit has separate reporting rules.
Inland Revenue — Te Tari Taake — on the tax treatment of prizes, and of interest earned on them.
Safer Gambling Aotearoa — Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora.
PGF Services — free counselling and financial mentoring, including for whānau and friends.
Gambling Helpline Aotearoa New Zealand — free, confidential support, 24 hours a day.

Frequently Asked Questions

What time are the Keno draws in New Zealand?

Four times daily at 10:00 am, 1:00 pm, 3:00 pm and 6:00 pm. Entry closes at draw time and you can immediately enter the next draw.

Doesn’t Keno draw every few minutes?

Not in New Zealand. Pages giving a four-minute draw cycle are describing Keno in another market.

What are the odds of matching all 10 numbers?

Roughly 1 in 8.9 million on a ten-spot line. That pays a fixed $250,000 per dollar wagered.

Is there a strategy that improves my chances?

No. Keno is a fixed-odds game with a published prize table and a random draw. Choosing fewer or more spots changes the shape of the outcome, not the expected return. Playing more tickets means staking more money.

Do hot and cold numbers work?

No. Each draw is independent and every number has the same chance every time. Frequency history is interesting to browse and has no predictive value.

Why can I win with three matches on one ticket but not another?

Because what counts as a win depends on your spot. Three matches pays on a six-spot line and not on a ten-spot. Read the match-and-win table for the spot you are playing.

How do I check my ticket?

Through MyLotto, by scanning the ticket barcode or entering its serial number in the app, or by taking it to any authorised Lotto NZ retailer.

Are Keno winnings taxed in New Zealand?

Lottery prizes are not taxed here, though interest earned on one is. If you receive a benefit, Work and Income has separate guidance on declaring one-off payments.

How long do I have to claim?

Prizes not claimed within 12 months are forfeited and returned to the Prize Reserve Fund.

Is Keno the same as an online casino game?

No. Keno here is run by Lotto New Zealand under New Zealand law with audited draws. Keno-style games at offshore operators are a different product with different odds and no domestic oversight.

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