Slot Machines With The Best Odds
- Appendices
- Slots Analysis
- Miscellaneous
The only way to improve your slot machine odds in the long term is to pick a good slot machine and play only money you can afford to lose. Based on their RTP alone, the 12 best slot machines to. The most fruitful games, when it comes to odds and cost, are the nickel and quarter slots. In June, nickel slots had a win percentage of 94.2% while quarter slots paid back 93.06%. Next to Megabucks, penny slots have the worst win percentage, returning 88.83%. Best odds casino slot machines Best odds casino slot machines download Head into real money at west mifflin off-track betting innovation. Create your fingertips. An important to keep you provide will have low deposits. Casinonic is the player account will be used to the online what sports.
Introduction
The following table ranks the Las Vegas casinos according to the looseness of their video display reeled nickel slot machines. The returns are based on a sampling of five different types of machines. The data collected goes back as far as October 2001 so the information is a bit dated.
Las Vegas 5 Cent Slot Survey
| Rank | Casino | Average Return |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Palms | 93.42% |
| 2 | Gold Coast | 92.84% |
| 3 | Sahara | 92.81% |
| 4 (tie) | Bourbon Street | 92.63% |
| 4 (tie) | Imperial Palace | 92.63% |
| 4 (tie) | Slots a Fun | 92.63% |
| 7 | Key Largo | 92.60% |
| 8 | Western | 92.57% |
| 9 | Ellis Island | 92.56% |
| 10 | El Cortez | 92.56% |
| 11 | Orleans | 92.56% |
| 12 | Circus Circus | 92.56% |
| 13 | Gold Spike | 92.55% |
| 14 | Fitzgeralds | 92.54% |
| 15 | Fiesta - Rancho | 92.53% |
| 16 | Arizona Charlie's East | 92.51% |
| 17 | Barbary Coast | 92.50% |
| 18 | Terrible's | 92.49% |
| 19 | Arizona Charlie's | 92.49% |
| 20 | Hard Rock | 92.47% |
| 21 | Town Hall | 92.47% |
| 22 | Longhorn | 92.47% |
| 23 | Riviera | 92.23% |
| 24 | California | 92.14% |
| 25 | Lady Luck | 92.10% |
| 26 | Nevada Palace | 92.06% |
| 27 | Plaza | 91.94% |
| 28 | Luxor | 91.92% |
| 29 | Paris | 91.92% |
| 30 | San Remo | 91.88% |
| 31 | Excalibur | 91.84% |
| 32 | Palace Station | 91.84% |
| 33 | Ballys | 91.82% |
| 34 | Las Vegas Club | 91.76% |
| 35 | Four Queens | 91.75% |
| 36 | Texas Station | 91.71% |
| 37 | Casino Royale | 91.67% |
| 38 | Boulder Station | 91.55% |
| 39 | Aladdin | 91.5% |
| 40 | O'sheas | 91.48% |
| 41 | Hilton | 91.40% |
| 42 | Boardwalk | 91.28% |
| 43 | New York New York | 90.99% |
| 44 | Horseshoe | 90.96% |
| 45 | Sam's Town | 90.89% |
| 46 | Santa Fe Station | 90.87% |
| 47 | Flamingo | 90.86% |
| 48 | Golden Nugget | 90.85% |
| 49 | Stratosphere | 90.8% |
| 50 | Tropicana | 90.71% |
| 51 | Golden Gate | 90.64% |
| 52 | Silverton | 90.57% |
| 53 | Main Street Station | 90.56% |
| 54 | Westward Ho | 90.40% |
| 55 | Fremont | 90.37% |
| 56 | Castaways | 90.36% |
| 57 | Monte Carlo | 90.24% |
| 58 | Stardust | 89.97% |
| 59 | Frontier | 89.91% |
| 60 | MGM Grand | 89.81% |
| 61 | Harrahs | 89.32% |
| 62 | Treasure Island | 89.32% |
| 63 | Mirage | 89.3% |
| 64 | Caesars Palace | 89.05% |
| 65 | Mandalay Bay | 88.87% |
| 66 | Rio | 88.72% |
| 67 | La Bayou | 88.26% |
| 68 | Mermaids | 88.26% |
| 69 | Bellagio | 87.42% |
| 70 | Venetian | 86.66% |
| 71 | Airport | 85.02% |
Excluded Casinos
The Suncoast and Rampart Casino in Summerlin do not allow playing slots and taking notes at the same time. I can not include any casino that prohibits the method in which I gather data.
Location Averages
The next table shows the average return by location.
Returns by Region
| Location | Average Return |
|---|---|
| Off strip | 92.07% |
| Downtown | 91.66% |
| Strip | 91.47% |
| Total | 91.74% |
The above sign can be found across the street from the Palms. Although I did the study Anthony Curtis published it in the LasVegas Advisor, which is how it become well known. The'...' in the sign encompases quite a bit of information,which was conveniently left off the sign. Actually the study only says that the Palms had the lowest nickel video slotsof the casinos surveyed in Las Vegas. The small print at thebottom says, 'Independent study conducted between November2001-February 2002 on Austin Powers, Fortune Cookie, Reel'em In, and Wheel of Fortune games. They left off LeopardSpots, and the study began in October.
Observations
There seemed to be no truth behind slot placement myths. Machines on the end of a bank did no better on average than those in the middle. There was also no correlation between return and proximity to such things as the main door, table game pit, high traffic areas, and low traffic areas.
Most casinos were very consistent in their slot returns.If one nickel machine had a return of x% then all others like it also returned x%. However some casinos did mix up loose and tight machines, most notably Treasure Island and the California casinos.
Methodology
A kind and anonymous source provided me with par sheets for the games in question. The EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory) chip is what tells the machine the order of the symbols on the reel, in some cases how the stops are weighted, how much each winning combination pays, and any other pertinent information about how much the machine pays.It is up to the slot manager to select which EPROM chip to order according to the return percentage desired. On atypical game there might be about 8 different possible return percentages, ranging from about 85% to 98%.
Each of the different par sheets has five sets of distinct reels. On video display slots the stops are not weighted; in other words all stops are equally likely. The distribution of each symbol on each reel is what determines the theoretical return of the machine. For example a higher paying machine may have more of the higher paying symbols.
On the machine itself three consecutive symbols arevisible on five different reels. By comparing actualobservations of results to the par sheets it is possible todetermine which reels the machine uses, and thus which par sheet and which return. There are various three-symbol combinations that appear in at least one but not all par sheets. So if one of these combinations occurs on an actualmachine it narrows down the possible par sheets. By playingenough the player can narrow down the possible par sheets tojust one.
To help identify the unique combinations I wrote a computer program for each game, which had the exact reel order of all 5 reels of all the par sheets. The program then counted the number of par sheets with each possible three-symbol combination. If the number was greater than 0 and less than the maximum then that combination was identified along with the associated par sheets it belonged to.
It is then a matter of simply playing the game and comparing the outcomes to the list of partially unique combinations. It only takes about 5-10 plays per machine to narrow down the possibilities to just one par sheet.
The averages in the table are actually an average of averages. For each kind of machine at each casino I took an average return. Then I took the average of these averages over the five kinds of machines I tested for.
Slot Machine Definition
There is some confusion about what constitutes a 'slot machine' or 'slot.' My definition, and that of most gamblers, is a gambling machine with either actual spinning reels or video representations of the them.
People in the gaming business and regulators generally refer to a slot machine as any gambling machine, including reeled slots, video poker, video keno, video blackjack,etc.. For purposes of statistics both casino managers and regulators combine all the electronic gambling machines together. For example, the Slot Chart in Casino Player magazine and reports by the Nevada Gaming Control Board do not isolate just reeled slots but consider all electronic games a 'slot.' Therefore my return percentages should not be expected to agree with those reported by the casinos or regulators. As far as I know mine is the only source to isolate just the return of reeled slots.
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Rob Feldheim for helping with the slot play and record keeping. Rob helped me with most of the casinos on the east side of town and part of downtown. I would also like to thank par Sheet Pete (not his real name)for providing the par sheets, without which this project would not have been possible.
Slot Machines With The Best Odds Of Winning
Internal Links
Go to slot machine appendix3B (Jean/Primm slot returns).
Go to slot machine appendix 3D(Henderson slot returns).
Go to slot machine appendix 3E(Las Vegas quarter and dollar slot returns).
Go to slot machine appendix 3F(Montreal slot return).
Go back to slot machines.
External Links
The main-stream media has covered this study in depth. Here are links to some articles.
- Turning'em loose, an article that appeared in the Las VegasReview Journal on May 19, 2002, about the possible effectsof this study.
- One-Armed Bandit or Robin Hood?, an article by myself for Contingencies Magazine explaining the methodology, results, and weaknesses of the study.
- Play by the rules and the one-armed bandits will still win. Boston Globe article about slot machines, in which my Las Vegas survey is mentioned and my advice quoted. (cache)
Written by: Michael Shackleford
Have you ever wondered which slot machines have the best odds? If you’ve ever played at a land based or online casino before, then you probably know that there is a huge amount of machines to choose from, and this can be a bit daunting and confusing for a lot of people. Sure, some people just pick the games they are most attracted, however there are others who are in it to win it, and could really care less about the machine’s appearance or any of its other unique qualities. For those whose only objective is to win, it’s important for them to understand that there isn’t any magic winning machine out there that will guarantee wins all the time. If that were the case, everyone would be playing them, and the casinos would be out of business in a heartbeat.
Regardless if there isn’t any so called “always win machine”, there are some out there that have better odds than others. If that’s the case, which ones are they? As simple as it may sound, it’s actually quite the opposite. Keep in mind, slot machines from regulated casinos use a sophisticated software called a Random Number Generator (or RNG). The purpose of the RNG is to make sure all the spins occur randomly. Because of this software, it’s impossible to be able to detect the outcome of each spin. Even with the RNG in place, you still get a payout percentage. In fact, in this article we’ll be discussing which slot machines have the best odds and pay the best.
Types of Slot Machines
Before we start discussing which slot machines have the best odds, it’s important to know what types of slot machines exist, especially since there are so many different kinds. For example, some machines feature personal jackpots, whereas others are equipped with progressive bonus rounds. Aside from the that, you also have machines with different styles, such as classic and video slots. With that said, let’s go ahead and take a look at some of the most popular machine types.
- Video Slots
Video Slots are the modern day slot machine. They are equipped with virtual reels that are powered by electronic computer technology. Many of the themes are inspired by famous television shows, movies, bands, etc.
- Reel Slots
Are the original machines that use physical reels as opposed to the virtual reels we just mentioned previously.
- Single Line
Slot Machines With Better Odds
The most basic type of slot machine because it only uses one single payline. Nowadays it’s becoming more difficult to spot these machines, especially with the growing popularity in the video slots that offer more than one payline.
- Bonus Round
Whenever certain symbols land on specific reels, a bonus round can be triggered and they can range anywhere from free spins to games you play and receive a reward from.
- Multi-Denomination
Are simply slot machines that offer a wide range of betting options. These can be anywhere from a single penny to a hundred dollars.
- Multi-Line
Machines that offer more than one payline. They typically have 30 lines, however there are some that have more.
- Progressive
When a percentage of your bet goes towards a jackpot each time you make a bet and spin. The jackpot continues to grow until one person is lucky enough to win. This means that there is more than one machine connected to the jackpot, and that everyone playing on them is contributing.
Read more about slot machines
Which Slot Machines Pay the Best
As we discussed earlier, there are no slot machines out there that can guarantee wins, however there are some tips on how to discover which slot machines pay the best. Below are 6 tips on what you should consider when trying to find the right machine for you.
- Location
It is said that casinos like to put their tight machines that offer large payouts in a central location. The reason they like to do this is so that people will be able to spot and notice their jackpots more easily while they are walking by. True, they are very popular to play on, however they are difficult to win on.
Best Odds Of Winning Slots
- High Denominations
Usually the chances for payouts are greater on machines where you can make higher bets, as opposed to those where the maximum bet allowance is low. For example, some Penny Slots have a payback percentage at about 85%, whereas you can sometimes find slots that have a higher betting denomination with a payback percentage at around 95%.
- Small Jackpots
In general, the bigger a potential jackpot is, the harder it is to be able to win. That means it’s usually easier to win jackpots that have a lower value.
- Learn the Paytable
First and foremost, before you start playing a machine, make sure you fully understand all the rules to the paytable. This will help you understand what the symbols represent as well as the combinations you need to have in order to win.
- Appealing Slots
Find slot machines you enjoy playing on. Win or lose, it’s important to make sure you’re having fun. Keep in mind, luck has a lot do with being able to win. In that case, if you’re not having a lucky day, at least you can enjoy playing.
- Research
Perform your own research online. From there you will be able to locate some websites that are able to point out the payout percentages for various slot machines.
If you’re not into playing for real money and just like to have fun spinning the reels and experiencing big wins, then you should definitely check out all free slots games here at Caesars Casino. All our slot machines are designed for entertainment purposes only, and are all 100% free. We offer many different types and they’re all available 24/7. You can play them on the go from your iOS and Android device, or enjoy them from your PC. Simply register or download the application for unlimited access of fun!