The short answer
A $1 Carolina Keno ticket pays $100,000 for matching all 10 numbers on a 10 spot play, $420 for 5 of 5, and $75 for 4 of 4. Prizes scale with your wager. Draws run every 4 minutes. The optional Multiplier multiplies any win by up to 10x.
Carolina Keno Top Prizes and Odds by Spot Count
The headline view: what each spot count pays for a perfect ticket, how likely that is, and the theoretical return on a $1 play once every prize in the table is weighted by its chance of landing.
| Spots Played | Top Prize ($1) | Odds of Matching All | Return per $1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Spot | $2 | 1 in 4 | 50.0% |
| 2 Spots | $11 | 1 in 17 | 66.1% |
| 3 Spots | $27 | 1 in 72 | 65.2% |
| 4 Spots | $75 | 1 in 326 | 65.9% |
| 5 Spots | $420 | 1 in 1,551 | 65.6% |
| 6 Spots | $1,100 | 1 in 7,753 | 65.5% |
| 7 Spots | $4,500 | 1 in 40,979 | 66.1% |
| 8 Spots | $10,000 | 1 in 230,115 | 66.5% |
| 9 Spots | $30,000 | 1 in 1,380,688 | 66.1% |
| 10 Spots | $100,000 | 1 in 8,911,711 | 66.7% |
How the Multiplier changes these prizes
Carolina Keno offers Multiplier, an optional add-on that costs the same as your base wager, so it doubles the price of a play. A multiplier of 1x, 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x or 10x is drawn at random for each game and applies to every prize on the ticket, so the $100,000 top prize in the chart below becomes $1,000,000 at the highest multiplier. Every prize in the tables on this page is the base prize before any Multiplier multiplier.
Wager Amounts and How Prizes Scale
Every prize on this page is quoted per $1 played. Carolina Keno accepts wagers of $1 up to $10 per draw, and prizes scale straight up with the amount you bet: a $2 play pays double the amounts shown, a $5 play pays five times, and so on. That means the $100,000 top prize on a $1 10 spot play is worth $500,000 on a $5 play.
Full Carolina Keno Paytable: Every Match Level
1 Spot
| Match | Prize ($1 play) | Chance | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 of 1 | $0 | 75% | 1 in 1.3 |
| 1 of 1 | $2 | 25% | 1 in 4 |
2 Spots
| Match | Prize ($1 play) | Chance | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 of 2 | $0 | 56.01% | 1 in 1.8 |
| 1 of 2 | $0 | 37.97% | 1 in 2.6 |
| 2 of 2 | $11 | 6.013% | 1 in 17 |
3 Spots
| Match | Prize ($1 play) | Chance | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 of 3 | $0 | 41.65% | 1 in 2.4 |
| 1 of 3 | $0 | 43.09% | 1 in 2.3 |
| 2 of 3 | $2 | 13.88% | 1 in 7.2 |
| 3 of 3 | $27 | 1.388% | 1 in 72 |
4 Spots
| Match | Prize ($1 play) | Chance | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 of 4 | $0 | 30.83% | 1 in 3.2 |
| 1 of 4 | $0 | 43.27% | 1 in 2.3 |
| 2 of 4 | $1 | 21.26% | 1 in 4.7 |
| 3 of 4 | $5 | 4.325% | 1 in 23 |
| 4 of 4 | $75 | 0.3063% | 1 in 326 |
5 Spots
| Match | Prize ($1 play) | Chance | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 of 5 | $0 | 22.72% | 1 in 4.4 |
| 1 of 5 | $0 | 40.57% | 1 in 2.5 |
| 2 of 5 | $0 | 27.05% | 1 in 3.7 |
| 3 of 5 | $2 | 8.394% | 1 in 12 |
| 4 of 5 | $18 | 1.209% | 1 in 83 |
| 5 of 5 | $420 | 0.06449% | 1 in 1,551 |
6 Spots
| Match | Prize ($1 play) | Chance | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 of 6 | $0 | 16.66% | 1 in 6 |
| 1 of 6 | $0 | 36.35% | 1 in 2.8 |
| 2 of 6 | $0 | 30.83% | 1 in 3.2 |
| 3 of 6 | $1 | 12.98% | 1 in 7.7 |
| 4 of 6 | $8 | 2.854% | 1 in 35 |
| 5 of 6 | $50 | 0.3096% | 1 in 323 |
| 6 of 6 | $1,100 | 0.0129% | 1 in 7,753 |
7 Spots
| Match | Prize ($1 play) | Chance | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 of 7 | $0 | 12.16% | 1 in 8.2 |
| 1 of 7 | $0 | 31.52% | 1 in 3.2 |
| 2 of 7 | $0 | 32.67% | 1 in 3.1 |
| 3 of 7 | $1 | 17.5% | 1 in 5.7 |
| 4 of 7 | $3 | 5.219% | 1 in 19 |
| 5 of 7 | $17 | 0.8639% | 1 in 116 |
| 6 of 7 | $100 | 0.07321% | 1 in 1,366 |
| 7 of 7 | $4,500 | 0.00244% | 1 in 40,979 |
8 Spots
| Match | Prize ($1 play) | Chance | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 of 8 | $0 | 8.827% | 1 in 11 |
| 1 of 8 | $0 | 26.65% | 1 in 3.8 |
| 2 of 8 | $0 | 32.81% | 1 in 3 |
| 3 of 8 | $0 | 21.48% | 1 in 4.7 |
| 4 of 8 | $2 | 8.15% | 1 in 12 |
| 5 of 8 | $12 | 1.83% | 1 in 55 |
| 6 of 8 | $50 | 0.2367% | 1 in 423 |
| 7 of 8 | $750 | 0.01605% | 1 in 6,232 |
| 8 of 8 | $10,000 | 0.0004346% | 1 in 230,115 |
9 Spots
| Match | Prize ($1 play) | Chance | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 of 9 | $0 | 6.375% | 1 in 16 |
| 1 of 9 | $0 | 22.07% | 1 in 4.5 |
| 2 of 9 | $0 | 31.64% | 1 in 3.2 |
| 3 of 9 | $0 | 24.61% | 1 in 4.1 |
| 4 of 9 | $1 | 11.41% | 1 in 8.8 |
| 5 of 9 | $6 | 3.26% | 1 in 31 |
| 6 of 9 | $25 | 0.572% | 1 in 175 |
| 7 of 9 | $150 | 0.05917% | 1 in 1,690 |
| 8 of 9 | $3,000 | 0.003259% | 1 in 30,682 |
| 9 of 9 | $30,000 | 0.00007243% | 1 in 1,380,688 |
10 Spots
| Match | Prize ($1 play) | Chance | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 of 10 | $5 | 4.579% | 1 in 22 |
| 1 of 10 | $0 | 17.96% | 1 in 5.6 |
| 2 of 10 | $0 | 29.53% | 1 in 3.4 |
| 3 of 10 | $0 | 26.74% | 1 in 3.7 |
| 4 of 10 | $0 | 14.73% | 1 in 6.8 |
| 5 of 10 | $2 | 5.143% | 1 in 19 |
| 6 of 10 | $15 | 1.148% | 1 in 87 |
| 7 of 10 | $40 | 0.1611% | 1 in 621 |
| 8 of 10 | $450 | 0.01354% | 1 in 7,384 |
| 9 of 10 | $4,250 | 0.0006121% | 1 in 163,381 |
| 10 of 10 | $100,000 | 0.00001122% | 1 in 8,911,711 |
Source: nclottery.com official game rules. The Keno Multiplier doubles the ticket cost and is drawn at random; the odds of a 2X or better are about 1 in 1.67. Always verify the current prize chart with the North Carolina Education Lottery before you play.
How Carolina Keno Compares to the Average Paytable
Keno prizes are not the same everywhere. This table puts the Carolina Keno top prize for each spot count next to the typical prize across the 22 other lottery keno paytables we track. The comparison figure is the median rather than the mean, so one unusually rich schedule cannot drag it out of shape.
| Spots | Carolina Keno | Typical Game | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 spot | $2 | $2 | In line with the rest |
| 2 spots | $11 | $10 | 10% above typical |
| 3 spots | $27 | $25 | 8% above typical |
| 4 spots | $75 | $72 | 4% above typical |
| 5 spots | $420 | $410 | 2% above typical |
| 6 spots | $1,100 | $1,150 | 4% below typical |
| 7 spots | $4,500 | $4,750 | 5% below typical |
| 8 spots | $10,000 | $10,000 | In line with the rest |
| 9 spots | $30,000 | $30,000 | In line with the rest |
| 10 spots | $100,000 | $100,000 | In line with the rest |
Carolina Keno beats the typical top prize on 4 of the 10 comparable spot counts and falls short on 2, which puts it on the generous side of the games we track. Top prizes are only half the picture, though. Weighing every prize by its chance of landing, a $1 Carolina Keno ticket returns about 64.4% averaged across all spot counts, well ahead of the 62.1% typical for the comparison group. Either way the paytable is fixed, so no pick pattern and no spot count turns keno into a positive bet.
Run your own North Carolina numbers
Open the keno payout calculator and choose North Carolina Carolina Keno to model any spot count and bet size against this exact paytable, or use the keno odds calculator to check the probability of a specific catch.
Frequently Asked
On a $1 play, Carolina Keno pays from $2 for matching 1 of 1 up to $100,000 for matching all 10 numbers on a 10 spot ticket. A 5 spot ticket tops out at $420 and a 4 spot ticket at $75. Prizes scale with your wager, so a $5 play pays five times these amounts. The full prize table for every spot count is on this page.
The odds of matching all 10 numbers on a 10 spot Carolina Keno ticket are 1 in 8,911,711. Those odds are fixed by the math of drawing 20 numbers from a field of 80, so they are the same at every retailer and on every draw.
Multiplier is optional. It costs the same as your base wager and applies a randomly drawn multiplier of 1x, 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x or 10x to every prize on the ticket. At the top multiplier the $100,000 10 spot prize would pay $1,000,000. The prizes listed on this page are base prizes before any Multiplier multiplier.
Weighing every prize by its chance of landing, the 10 spot game returns the most on Carolina Keno, about 66.7% of a $1 play over the long run, against roughly 64.4% averaged across all spot counts. Higher spot counts are not better value, just more volatile: they trade frequent small wins for a rare large one.
KenoSpots carries Carolina Keno results at kenospots.com/states/north-carolina-keno/results/, updated straight from the North Carolina Education Lottery feed, with a checker that matches your saved numbers against every draw. Match your picks against the prize table on this page to see what a ticket is worth.