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RTP Explained | Why Is RTP Important for Players?
Online casinos are becoming more and more popular every year. At the same time, slot machines are considered the most liked casino games.
They successfully compete with roulette and poker, which is why most modern gambling sites pay the greatest attention to expanding their portfolio through slots.
If you love gambling and see it not only as entertainment but also as an opportunity to win big, you'll likely have to deal with some technical terms.
Do you know what RTP means? Why is this indicator so important for casino players?
Next, we will shed some light on this topic.
What Is RTP - A Simple Explanation
When you play at a casino, you probably think about the size of your winnings.
RTP or Return to Player indicates how much money you will potentially get back from your bets over the long term. In some casinos, instead of RTP, you can find a payout ratio. Both of these terms are equivalent.
This indicator works according to the following principles:
- The payout ratio is usually stated as a percentage.
- Playing at an online casino with a 96% RTP will return you $96 for every $100 bet.
- The remaining 4 percent is the house edge.
You can also say that a given casino will earn an average of $4 per $100 bet, with the remaining $96 being paid out to the players.
Why Don't You Get $96 Every Time?
But it is worth remembering that this is only a statistical value. A 96% Return to Player does not mean that you will return exactly 96% of your bet in each game round. This value is intended to show the average of how much money is paid out to players on a given casino game over thousands of game rounds.
Casino games are pure games of chance. Otherwise, they wouldn't be so exciting. Therefore, the actual payout rate may differ significantly from the theoretical value, especially in the short term.
However, when you choose a particular casino game, the RTP value serves as an indicator of how good your odds are.
Info: This is especially interesting for games with different betting options. For example, the payout ratio at a craps table is highly dependent on the bet you choose.
How Does RTP Work In Slot Machines?
When it comes to online slots, things get even more interesting.
The bottom line is that there can be hundreds of paylines, as well as dozens of bonus features. So, for example, free spins, wild symbols and multipliers affect the payout percentage. Calculating the casino advantage and RTP value in this case is a whole challenge.
The return to the player in slots is calculated in hundreds of operations. But to put it in simple terms, these games are programmed to return the correct percentage of the total amount of money invested in them over a large number of spins.
The distribution of slot RTP may vary. However, in the long run, a slot with an RTP of 97% will return 97 percent of all the money invested in it over an infinite number of spins.
Casino game developers create slot machines that can be divided into 3 groups depending on their RTP:
- Online slots with low RTP. In this category, you will find slot machines with RTP from 90% to 94%. Most low RTP titles have a jackpot bonus feature with a fair payout range. A great example of a slot with a low RTP is Dark Ninja by Zeus Play (80-94%).
- Average RTP in slots. If you see a slot on an online casino website with a stated Return to Player percentage of 95% – 96%, then this is a slot machine with an average RTP. An example of such a slot is Red Hot BBQ by Red Tiger with an RTP of 95.66%.
- Slot machines with high RTP. A Return to Player rate of 97% to 99% falls into the category of high RTP slots. Texas Tea (97.35%) by IGT Interactives is a great example of a high RTP slot. In addition, there is a high maximum winning potential – 10,000x your initial bet.
Tip: If you are looking for a good online slot to play, one of the first things to check is its RTP. You will find this indicator in the payout table or rules.
Of course, it is recommended to choose high RTPs as they offer the best chances of winning in the long run. But some low-return slot machines offer other benefits that can bring you even more winnings.
Payout Ratio And Variance Are Not The Same
You've probably also heard about variance.
Often RTP and variance are used as analogues. However, they are not the same thing: these terms represent two different statistical quantities.
Variance, also called volatility, measures how much payouts can differ from round to round during a game.
Volatility is especially well understood when playing roulette. You can use simple bets: red/black, low/high or even/odd. They have particularly low variance.
If you bet on black, for example, you will win on average every second time and your bet will be returned to you double. As you can see, your chances of winning are good, but the payout is not very high.
Let us now consider the opposite situation.
A single-number bet has the highest variance of any roulette bet. In the long run, this bet can only be won every 36th time. But if you win, you will receive a payout of 35x your bet.
Therefore, if you choose a bet with high volatility, you may not win for a long time, but then you will be rewarded with a high payout.
It is important to understand that the payout ratio for all bets in roulette is almost the same. RTP and variance are independent of each other here.
Why Is It Important For Players To Know About RTP?
If you have read the information above in detail, the answer will most likely be obvious.
The main benefit of knowing technical terms in general is that it will help you choose what to play. And this, in turn, will help you better manage your bankroll.
To summarize, we can say the following:
- If you are looking for a game with more frequent payouts, you should look for lower volatility.
- If you want higher payouts, you should pay attention to the RTP.
- Knowing the RTP of a game can give you a preliminary idea of what to expect here in terms of winnings.
Planning your capital to invest in online casino games is another important benefit of knowing about volatility and RTP.
If you play occasionally to just have fun and get emotional, this may matter less to you. But if you are still aiming for high winnings, you should also think about how not to lose your money.
How To Choose The Best Slots With The Highest Odds?
When you discover a new platform, you should first look around and then start playing.
This also works when searching for new casino games. If you find an attractive slot machine, read the information about it and open the payout table.
To successfully play video slots, it is important to consider several indicators:
- Return to Player and volatility
- bonus features and multipliers
- maximum possible winnings
You may find it boring to study all this data. Then you can just start playing in demo mode. This will allow you to evaluate the casino game intuitively.
In addition, the demo mode is intended for a deeper acquaintance with the gameplay.
Conclusion
And remember: no matter how much you study the casino game and its statistical indicators, gambling involves a high degree of randomness. Thus, it will never be possible to predict a 100% result.
Most online casino games are based on a random number generator. This is also a prerequisite for obtaining quality certificates and a gambling license.
Therefore, a good balance between studying video slot statistics and simply enjoying the gameplay will be the ideal formula for a great gaming experience.