Best Bet On Slot Machines

Slots or slot machines are coin-operated gaming machines that generate combinations of symbols at random on a dial. Certain combinations will produce a win and payout. Slot machines are known by different names across the globe, from fruit machines in the U.K. To pokies in Australia.


Slot machines are the most popular game in any casino. Sure, people bet more on the lottery, and the worldwide sports betting market is huge. But slot machines are the game du jour in most casinos, especially in the United States.

With a $100 bet on a single line at Diamond Queen slot, your potential wins range from $500 to $100k. As a result, you either lose everything in just a few spins or win an amount in the range from nice to legendary. Placing a $1 bet has the best odds of winning, with only an 11 Percent edge for the house, but also the worst payout. The Joker offers a 36x payout but has a 24 percent edge for the house. Slots: Odds of Winning Around 1 in 49,836,032. For example, my favorite slot machine is Buffalo Gold and usually 75 to 80 percent of the time I bet the minimum bet and do very well, but I have noticed lately when I bet more than the minimum my.

Sadly, slot machines games also offer the worst odds in the casino except maybe for keno. The compounding effect of making hundreds of bets per hour at the slots make these games a bigger moneymaker for the casino than keno.

There’s no science to playing slots. You put your money in, spin the reels, and hope for the best. The only decisions you make are which game to play and how much to bet.

This post covers how much you should bet. You’ll often hear so-called gambling experts say you should always place the maximum bet on slot machines.

This isn’t true for most games.

There Are Two Kinds of Max Bets on Slot Games

You’ll only find one “Max Bet” button on a slot machine game, but some games allow you to adjust the number of paylines you bet on. These are older games. They preceded the guaranteed “243 ways to win” games.

Many of the slot games that use configurable paylines have 20 to 50 paylines. You can turn them all off but one.

The first time I saw one of these games, a friend of mine called them “penny slots.”

The minimum bet was 10 cents per payline and the game had 25 paylines. The minimum bet was, to my way of thinking, $2.50. You could never bet just a penny on that “penny slot” game.

The maximum bet was $1 per payline. This was a sneaky way of getting the players to lay down more money. If you hit “Max Bet” on that machine, it took $25 in credits from your balance.

The More Complicated the Slot Game, the Less Likely You’ll Win


If you don’t understand how much you’re betting when you push a button on a slot game, there’s something wrong with the game. Perhaps the gaming industry just went through a phase of bad design.

But just because a slot machine game has multiple paylines, you shouldn’t assume that you’ll lose money if you bet on fewer paylines. Each bet on each payline is a separate bet, so playing all the paylines at once might make you more likely to see a winner. But you’ll also see more losing spins on the other paylines to compensate (in the long run, anyway).

The game is still programmed to spin as if all the paylines are active. I watched in horror, as that $25 bet spun the reels. I got lucky and the machine paid a low prize. I didn’t lose $25.

You can save money on a slot machine like this in two ways.

  1. You can bet on fewer paylines.
  2. You can lower the size of your bet.

My buddy disabled all the paylines and played $1. We saw a big prize combination come up but it didn’t pay anything. It was on a deactivated payline. There was no pattern on the one active payline.

A Few Older Games Increased Your Probability With Your Bet Size

This kind of game worked in the opposite way. You didn’t disable or enable paylines. The game’s help screen said some features were only enabled for the max bet.

We deduced that meant the theoretical return to player was calculated only for the max bet. And if the game wasn’t allowing you to use all the features with lesser bets then it must have had a lower RTP.

I went back to play some blackjack that night but my friend stayed and played that game. He did okay, not great. He said it made a big difference to play the max bet.

A Basic Slot Game Doesn’t Change the Probabilities


Whether it’s a 3D video slot with monsters running around the screen or just a classic three-reel game, if the slot game doesn’t disable paylines or require max bets, then the probabilities don’t change.

You can bet the minimum or maximum credits, and it won’t affect the outcome of the game. You simply change the number of guaranteed spins you can play.

If you have $300 and a game has a $1 minimum, you can play that game 300 times. If you make a maximum bet of $5 on every spin, then you can only play the game a maximum of 60 times (if you lose every time).

This makes a difference to some players. Other players say you’re not going to lose 60 times in a row, so why worry about that? Bet the max and get the most from your prize.

Most Progressive Slot Games Only Pay on Max Bets

If you’re playing a progressive slot game, then you need to make a maximum bet. I’ve seen a few games with multiple progressive jackpots where you only needed a max bet for the biggest jackpot.

If you have two versions of the same slot game, one is progressive and the other is not, you might as well play the max bet on the progressive version of the game.

Bet
Don’t ever play anything less. The progressive jackpot is awarded randomly.

Progressive slot games have a mixed reputation. I’ve talked to people who refuse to play them. They’re convinced the payouts are less on progressive games.

And I know people who almost exclusively play progressive slot games. They would rather win a big prize beyond whatever the machine itself pays. They don’t have to win $1 million if they can come away with a few thousand.

I’ve seen it play out both ways. I’ve never been in a casino where someone won more than $10,000.

The Math Says Max Bets Put You Ahead Faster


Assuming you find a slot machine that pays reasonably well, maybe it’s on a “hot” streak despite its regular RTP, why not play only max bets?

If the maximum payout is 1000x your bet, you’ll make $999 on a $1 bet or $4995 on a $5 bet. That’s a really simple equation, so why doesn’t everyone bet that way?

If you’re down to your last $20, you may decide to “roll it up. ” But what’s the difference between rolling up $20 and rolling up $200?

It comes down to how many spins you can guarantee yourself. This is a psychological game we play with ourselves. The odds of winning on the next spin are the same regardless of how much you bet.

There Is Another Advantage to Not Making Max Bets

If you want to play a lot of different games and you don’t have an unlimited bankroll, then playing minimum bets allows you to spread your time around.

Some players like to test the games when they visit a casino for the first time. They make a decision based on luck.

I remember watching a man approach a slot machine late one night. I was getting ready to leave. He put a dollar in the machine and spun the wheels.

He went down the line of machines until one of them paid. There, he stopped and began playing.

This strategy has no better chance of winning than any other strategy. But if the player feels better playing slots this way, that’s what matters.

Conclusion

Slot game designs have become more polished, but their rules are less confusing. People want to push a button and win some money.

I think caution is only warranted if you’re unfamiliar with the games and you don’t know immediately if they have any special rules. It’s always a good idea to read the pay tables first.

And if you’re a little confused by the game rules, then only play minimum bets until you understand what the game is doing.

There’s no need to rush into max bets if you’re not ready to take that chance.

Slot machines use random number generators to ensure that each spin is independent of the next. But despite this technological innovation, there are plenty of players who still cling to the notion that they can beat the house by using a slot machine betting system. It should also come as no surprise that numerous individuals have looked to capitalize on this belief, offering all manner of “winning” slots systems across the Internet (for a fee, of course).

This article will highlight some of the most popular slot betting systems in the hope that you’ll avoid them in the future. While slot machines offer flashing lights, animation, and the chance for a large payday, they should never be viewed as anything other than games of pure chance. Once you’ve gotten this idea through your head, your experience at the casino should be much less frustrating.

The Zig Zag Method

This bizarre slot machine betting system relies more on the player’s powers of observation than anything else. To initiate the zig zag method, you’ll need to study several of the slot machines around you. Your objective is to find machines with certain reel patterns, especially those with the same symbols on all reels. According to the system, this means that the machine is “hot” and about to offer a big payday.

Best Odds On Slot Machines

While horizontal and v-patterns are desirable, the most coveted alignment in the zig zag method is roughly the shape of a diamond. Adherents to this system will tell you that a diamond configuration is a harbinger for a big jackpot, but all forms of scientific analysis dispute this claim.

The biggest problem comes in the form of the slot’s random number generator. Since each spin is independent of the next, looking for patterns is useless.

The Hot and Cold Theory

This is a bare-bones system, but it makes about as much sense as the zig zag. All that’s required is for the player to hang back and observe people playing at a bank of slot machines. When another player vacates their seat at a “cold” machine, the system says to swoop in and start pumping coins into the slot. That’s because the cold machine is bound to turn “hot,” which will result in big winnings for the current player.

Best Bet On Slot Machines

I shouldn’t have to say it, but the random number generators in all modern slots render this way of thinking obsolete. The appearance of hot or cold streaks is nothing more than an illusion.

The Martingale Technique

When it comes to betting systems, the martingale is the most well-known of the bunch. Its origins stretch back to 18th century France, and the basic premise of the system hasn’t changed much in several centuries. The idea behind the martingale is that the player doubles their bet after every loss. This is supposed to result in larger wins that cover any previous losses, as well as achieving a profit equal to the original stake.

The biggest problem with a martingale betting system is that players don’t possess unlimited funds. If they did, their increasingly larger bets would eventually pay off and bring in a vast payday. But since even the wealthiest players have a budget, a losing streak combined with a continual doubling of bets can quickly deplete even the most ambitious bankroll.

Bet

Best Bets On Slot Machines

The Anti-Martingale Technique

Best Odds On Slot Machines In Las Vegas

Also known as the “reverse martingale,” this betting system calls on the player to reduce wagers after a loss and increase them following a win. This is meant to take advantage of hot streaks while minimizing the damage of those pesky cold streaks.

Best Bet On Slot Machines To Play

This system is flawed for the same reason as the traditional martingale theory. Each spin of the reels is entirely independent of the next, so concepts such as “streaks” are nothing more that figments of the player’s imagination. Add bankroll limitations to the equation and you have yet another slot system that fails to live up to expectations.

While slot machine betting systems offer players a sense of hope, they’re ultimately leading them down a path fraught with misinformation and outright lies. Some players swear by these systems, of course, but they seem incapable of admitting that their winnings are the result of nothing more than good luck.

Best Bet On Slot Machines

The hucksters who sell “secrets” to winning slot machine strategies further muddy the waters, as they’re willing to say anything in the pursuit of the almighty dollar. The best advice I can give is to avoid these individuals and their schemes like the plague. Even if their systems yield some profits in the short term, you’re bound to give it all back to the casino by practicing a flawed gaming method.

The best solution is to look at slot machines for what they truly are: games of chance. All wins or losses are determined entirely at random, and each spin has as much chance of winning or losing as the previous one. Hardcore gamblers may find the preceding sentence decidedly unsexy, but pretending that slot systems are anything other than nonsense is a waste of everyone’s time.