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• Odds Of Winning Slot Machines

Learn about the odds and probabilities of slot machines, including how slots payouts work at land casinos and also at online casinos.

Payout odds vary based on the machine. Two slot machines may look identical, yet may have different odds. So you can’t tell by the appearance of the machine. The odds of hitting the top award vary greatly by machine, and may be as low as one in 17,000,000 spins – comparable to winning Lotto 6/49. Jun 06, 2018  Online slots that pay real money with a higher level of volatility might result in less frequent payouts, but the payout is typically higher. Some machines might offer more frequent wins, but result in lower payouts. If you are playing a machine that has higher odds of winning, but lower payouts, it makes sense to bet lower.

Article Highlights:

Introduction | Slot Payouts at Land Casinos | Slot Payouts at Online Casinos

Introduction

Attempting to pinpoint the odds for slot machines is a daunting task. With such a variety of machines and games available, the odds can vary a great deal. Generally slots odds are expressed in the form of a payback percentage. The closer to 100%, the better for players. Some machines even pay back at percentages greater than 100%, giving the lucky players who find them a positive expectation for winning. These 'loose slots' are frequently mixed into the sea of machines on a casino gaming floor. For a while, casino operators placed the highest paying machines in high traffic areas like entrances, bars, and near lines for buffets or shows - basically any place a crowd of people was likely to be. The strategy behind the prominent placement of higher paying machines was that since they produced winners more frequently, they would also generate more interest from passers-by, making other players more likely to play at average or low paying machines.

It didn't take long for slots players to figure out this simple strategy, so casino managers shuffled things up a bit. Reverse methods were employed, putting low-paying machines in high traffic areas, and vice versa. These days, there really is no standard procedure for distributing the different pay level machines on a casino floor. Machines are mostly placed at random or in a secret arrangement that only the casino management and staff are privy to. The machines, themselves, still offer a mix of payout percentages with some high and the majority being low to average.

One popular guideline that is easy to follow is to try multiple machines until you find one that pays. Start with a nominal amount of money - such as 20 credits for a .25 or .50 credit machine - and see how it pays. If you are getting more back than you put in, you may have found a hot slot - or one set for higher payouts. Keep playing until it proves itself otherwise, and then try another machine. If the slot you picked is paying out next to nothing from the start, that could either be a cold machine or one set for lower payouts, which also means it's time to move on. There are many strategies slots players utilise, but a few rules of thumb will hold true regardless of where you play.

Average Slots Payout At Land Based Casinos

When playing slots games at land casinos, you will likely have machines that offer .01, .05, .25, 1, 5, and 100 credit betting denominations. How do you know which ones offer the best return rates? The highest denomination ones of course. Casinos generate more revenue by getting a large monetary turnover. Operators know that less overall money will go in and out of a .05 credit slot machine during the course of a day than will in a 1 credit machine. Because more money turns over in the higher-denomination machines, casinos can afford to offer higher return rates for players. Your bankroll may not be able to support playing a five-credit machine for several hours a day, but with a 98.4% payout, it offers significantly better odds than a .25 credit slot. To take it a step further, although you would have to be a high roller, the one hundred credit slots usually offer a near-100% return rate. Even though the machines don't see nearly as much action as the .25 and 1 credit slots, so much is at stake on a single spin that allows the casino to offer a near even money return.

So how much bankroll do you need to play different denominations of slot machines? Based on a three-coin maximum bet averaging ten spins per minute, and matched against the according payout rates, to play for an hour you would need:

• 6.75 credits to play the .05 credit slots
  
• 26.75 credits to play the .25 credit slots
  
• 74 credits to play the 1 credit slots
  
• 145 credits to play the 5 credit slots
  

Keep in mind that these bankroll figures are only estimates, based on the average payout across all slots. While playing, your actual return may vary a good bit from these numbers. To be conservative, you might try doubling the amounts listed above to ensure one hour's worth of play, if the length of your session is a concern. Lots of players have won giant jackpots with small bankrolls. In 2001, an Arizona businessman on holiday at Harrah's Las Vegas won the multi-million dollar Megabucks jackpot after investing only 22 dollars. The simplicity of the games, and the high win potential is a big part of what fuels the popularity of slot machines.

Average Slots Payout At Online Casinos

Like their land-based counterparts, online casinos are capable of producing large slots wins. Not only have the number of online slots choices matched - and sometimes even exceeded - the variety found in land casinos, but their payout rates tend to be even higher. Depending on the frequency and size of jackpots, online casinos may occasionally even top the 100% mark for overall slots payouts in a given month. While it holds true that players benefit from higher return rates, playing slots online also offers some conveniences over land based play (more on this topic at slots.info). Gone are the expenses and travel requirements of playing at a brick and mortar casino. Playing slots at home can also be much more informal. For example, a player can play in his or her pajamas, if they choose. For an idea of how well average online casino slot machines pay, the table below shows a recent ranking of top paying internet casinos for slots games:

The numbers on the chart above represent the top five online casinos in terms of slots payouts based upon an unbiased monthly audit by one of the largest international accounting firms for the most recent audit period. All of these casinos' slots games are tested using rigorous accounting standards to ensure fairness for players, and that the casinos are providing a consistently high rate of return.

If you'd like to try your luck playing slots online, browse our list of approved online casinos, which features a number of reputable establishments offering a large variety of slots.

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New slot machine players are going to find a lot of advice for beating the slots. Have a healthy skepticism when a slots expert tells you they know how to beat the slot machines. Among the games in a casino, video slots (in general) have a high house edge. Besides finding gaming machines with high jackpots and a low house edge, no skill or strategy is required to play slots. That means you can’t expect to increase your odds of winning in most situations.

Odds Of Winning Slot Machines

Read through the advice below to optimize your chances of winning at slots. None of the advice assures winning sessions. Instead, it helps you stretch your bankroll, so you enjoy playing the slots longer. Also, the longer your bankroll lasts, the more chances you’ll have of hitting the big jackpot every slots player wants.

Use a Slots Card

Upon entering a live casino, sign up for a slots card. This provides comps and cashback, which automatically lowers the house edge by a bit. Never play a spin without using your slots card. In an online casino, accept the highest slots bonus and play according to the terms and conditions until you meet the wagering requirement. Once again, this lowers the house edge on online slots.

Make Max Bets

Look at the payout chart on a slot machine to determine how jackpots are paid. On many slot machines, the 5-coin bet pays out a higher percentage on the top fixed jackpot. For instance, a 1-coin bet might pay $200, a 2-coin bet might pay $400, a 3-coin bet might pay $600, and a 4-coin bet might pay $800. You might expect the 5-coin bet to pay $1000, but many slot machines pay out $1200 or $1500 in that case, trying to convince bettors to make the max bet.

If the jackpot increases a bigger percentage with a maximum coin wager, then it makes sense to make the max bet on a slot machine. If the bet size is too high for your tastes, then lower the coin denomination and make a max bet at that level. Of course, if there is no additional jump between the 4-coin and 5-coin bet, then you can wager a single coin and max out the coin denomination to the bet size you like.

Read the RTP Information

If an online casino or land-based casino publishes its return-to-player information, read through the RTP percentages to find the video slots with the best RTPs. Return-to-player or expected return is the percentage of a theoretical $100 you expect to see returned to you. It is a theoretical percentage based on probability, so an RTP of 95% does not assure you’ll be paid $95 for every $100 you put in the machine. You might lose $50 or you might win $150, or you might win a progressive jackpot and go home rich.

The point of the RTP percentage is to give a player an idea of their expected return. If two slot machines sit next to one another and one has an RTP of 93% and the other an RTP of 95% (and both have similar jackpots), then it pays to play the game with the higher percentage. Over time, this leads to you maintaining a higher percentage of your bankroll.

Money Management Techniques

Read about bankroll management techniques. “Money management” or “bankroll management” is a series of steps you take to lock on winnings when good luck happens and limit your losses when a bad streak occurs. These do not assure that you’ll win, but it optimizes your bankroll.

Players should know three core bankroll management methods: percentage betting, win goals, and loss limits. Learn to calculate your bankroll and divide this into percentages. Then bet between 1% and 5% of your bankroll on any given hand, depending on your capacity for risk. This limits the amount of your stake you lose on any given session, keeping you playing for longer throughout your vacation. It is a given that people go to the ATM machine or credit card when they lose their whole bankroll — which means you spend more than you intended. The point of percentage betting is to assure your bankroll last through your whole trip, so you never have to replenish.

What Is a Bankroll?

“Bankroll” is not defined as your entire bank account. It isn’t defined as your discretionary spending budget or the money you have earmarked for entertainment expenses. Instead, it is a part of your discretionary spending cash and entertainment budget which is set aside specifically for gambling. In this case, a bankroll is less than your entertainment budget.

Once you have your bankroll figured, divide this into easy to understand percentage. If you have a bankroll of $1000, then divide this into percentages. These are simple calculations, but you should have an understanding of 1%, 2%, 5%, 10%, and 20% of your bankroll. In the earlier example, 1% would be $10, while 2% would be $20. 5% would be $50, 10% would be $100, and 20% would be $200.

Now that you have these, decide whether to bet 1% to 5% of your bankroll. Most experts suggest betting no more than 1% to 2% in order to maintain your bankroll throughout your casino trip or online slots session.

Setting a Win Goal

Next, set your win goal. This is the amount of winnings you set as your goal for any given slots session. If you have a win goal of 10%, then your win goal would be $100 for any given slot machine sessions. As soon as you hit that goal, you walk away from the slot machine — no matter what. A win goal is a hard-and-fast rule, because it locks in winnings. One of the biggest mistakes players make is losing back their winnings, because they think they’re on a hot streak.

Setting a Loss Limit

Even more dangerous is trying to win back cash you just loss. To protect against this tendency, set a loss limit. Once again, make this your hard-and-fast rule. Typical loss limits can be 5%, 10%, 15%, or 20% — though 20% means you could lose the entire bankroll in 5 slots session. 10% to 15% is a good middle ground. Once you’ve lost that amount, walk away from the slot machine under all circumstances. The slots game is not “due” to pay out, so step away from the machine and clear your mind.

Win goals and loss limits guard against gambler’s fallacy. Gambler’s fallacy is the idea that the law of averages assures or weight the odds in your favor. Slots use random number generators and every spin is entirely separate from the previous spin. Losing the last spin does not make it more likely you’ll win the next spin. The odds stay the same, no matter how many wins or losses in a row you’ve had.

Avoid Progressive Betting

For that reason, avoid progressive betting systems like the Martingale system, D’Alembert system, Fibonacci system, and so on. Betting experts have used computer simulations to track the progressive betting methods against flat betting (same bet each spin). Flat betting beats all of the progressive betting schemes over 1 billion spins.

Progressive betting seems like it’s working, because it leads to a lot of small winning sessions. The problem is that it also has a handful of huge losing sessions which wipe out all the wins — and then some. You can’t beat the house edge with the Martingale system, however it might look to the naked eye. The Fibonacci numbers are incredible, but they are not a magical way to beat the casino.

The reason progressive bets are bad is they increase the size of your bets (in some systems exponentially). If you start with $5 or $10 bets, a streak of bad luck has you betting hundreds of dollars on one spin. That’s busts your bankroll and leads to a “risk of ruin” — meaning you’ll lose your whole bankroll if you hit a bad luck streak. No matter what you read online, flat bets are better.

Take Breaks for Rest and Refreshments

Play when you are at your best physically and mentally. Don’t play when you’re tired or sleepy. Don’t play when you’re hungry or thirsty. Take frequent rest and restroom breaks. If you get bored, take a break and walk the casino. Play another game to change up the betting pattern.

When you are rested and engaged, you won’t have distractions that might lead to bad decisions. The idea is to have fun, so if anything is causing you to lose focus on the entertainment aspect of the game, walk away and save your bankroll.

Don’t Go on Tilt

Tilt is a concept in poker where a player makes decisions based on emotional responses instead of solid strategy. It can cost a player a lot of money if they make bets based on anything but rational decisions. While going on tilt is not a concept in slot machine gambling, every game of chance has a personal component.

In short, don’t play when you’re agitated. Take stock of your inner thoughts. If your ego or anger is causing you to make irrational decisions, take a deep breath and calm down. If that doesn’t work, walk away and clear your head. It stinks to lose a series of bets, but what stinks more is to lose a series of bigger bets when you’re trying to make up for lost bankroll.

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