Casino Games with Best Odds: Strategy Guide
Casino games involve complex calculations, with each game carrying different odds affected by its house edge percentage. Understanding how this works and which games offer better odds helps you play more strategically.
Understanding House Edge and RTP
House edges come hand-in-hand with RTP or Return to Player. House edge represents the share of profit that casinos retain in the long run from each game, ensuring they won't lose money even while offering occasional big wins to players. As each casino game has a different house edge, knowing how much house edge is applied to the casino game you're playing can be a wise strategy. The larger the house edge, the bigger the casino wins in the long run and the more it disadvantages the player. RTP represents the same relationship from a player-focused perspective, as a theoretical percentage of potential player returns over time. If a casino game offers an RTP of 96%, the game's house edge is 4%.
- House edge
- The percentage of every wager a casino expects to keep over the long run, built into a game's rules and payouts.
- RTP (Return to Player)
- The inverse of house edge, expressed as the percentage of wagered money a game returns to players over time.
House edge and RTP vary significantly by game type:
| Game | Bet | House Edge | RTP |
| Baccarat | Banker | 1.06% | 98.04% |
| Player | 1.24% | 98.76% | |
| Tie | 14.36% | 85.64% | |
| Roulette | Single Zero | 2.70% | 97.30% |
| Double Zero | 5.26% | 94.74% | |
| Slot Machines | 2%-15% | 85%-98% | |
| Video Poker | Jack's or Better (Full Pay) | 0.46% | 99.54% |
| Blackjack | Liberal Vegas rules | 0.28% | 99.72% |
Casino odds affect players' winnings based on long-term calculations, so short-term play may not significantly impact results.
Games with the Best Odds – Ranked
Casino games' odds vary significantly, with some offering substantially better winning potential than others.
- Craps (Pass Line Bet): Craps' house edges differ depending on the bet. Choosing the pass-line bet, where you bet on the shooter win or lose on the next roll, gives you around a 50% chance of winning.
- Blackjack: Blackjack is a casino game with the best odds, known for its low house edge. Regardless, if you're playing at online casinos or in land-based establishments, they typically only have a house edge of around 1%. That means, it's a casino game you're unlikely to lose when played over a long period. With approximately a 49% chance of winning, blackjack is one of the best casino games.
- Roulette: The average odds of a roulette game are approximately 47.3%, depending on the variation. European roulette stands out as the best choice, offering slightly higher winning odds of 48.7%.
- Baccarat: When considering odds, baccarat is one of the casino games ranked highly. This is because the chance of the player's hand winning is around 44.6%, while the banker's hand has a 45.8% winning potential. Meanwhile, the tie has a 9.6% winning chance. If you don't factor in the tie, betting on the banker's hand gives you a potential odds of 51% of the time.
- Video poker: Video poker's house edges can vary dramatically, with variations like Jacks or Better reaching as low as 0.46%. You can win good odds through video poker using the right strategy and maximizing your hand's potential.
Blackjack – Top Pick for Low House Edge
Blackjack's house edge ranges from 0.5% to 2%, among the lowest of any table game. The game appeals to both casual players and strategists, making it popular in casinos like DraftKings.
Deck count, strategy, and side bets all move the blackjack odds you play:
- Play variations with fewer decks: The blackjack house edge can run 0.57% higher in eight-deck games than in single-deck games. More decks in play give the dealer more options, making things unpredictable and harder to card-count. More tens in the shoe increase busting potential and lower your chance of hitting a blackjack.
- Using basic blackjack strategy: A perfect blackjack play keeps the house edge to a minimum through a basic formulated strategy that ensures you play the best move for every hand by comparing your cards to the dealer's upcard, helping you optimize your winning odds.
- Avoiding side bets: Side bets in a blackjack game, like the Insurance Bet, carry significantly higher house edges than standard bets, even though they sometimes promise lower risk or the chance to win more. The house edge will still limit how much you can win from them.
Craps – Best Odds on the Pass Line
Craps is one of the most popular casino dice games, and its betting moves through a fixed sequence:
- Players wager at the start of each round, including line bets on pass or don't pass.
- The shooter rolls two dice (the come-out roll) to establish a point or a number, and the shooter later rolls again to decide whether the shooter will win or lose the pass line.
- Pass line bets win if the come-out roll is 7 or 11. If the come-out roll result is 2, 3, or 12, the don't pass line bets win. If the roll ends with the other numbers, it establishes the point.
- After the point is set, the shooter rolls the dice until hitting another established point or 'crap out/throwing a crap' if they roll a seven. If they hit a point to set a new point, the shooter will continue to roll into the next round.
- When the 'don't pass' bets win, a new shooter plays the next roll.
Based on the probabilities of hitting a crap and the dice combinations, you can calculate the true crap odds for every point you roll.
Your wager type determines the house edge. The craps pass line bet carries a low house edge of 1.41% and works well for beginners. Making a pass line bet means placing a wager before the come-out roll. It'll pay if the shooter rolls a 7 or 11 during their first try.
If you're new to Craps, choosing to do a pass line bet helps you learn the casino game without risking too much. Then, to get the best craps odds, after placing a pass line bet and the point is established, you have the option to place an odds bet. The odds bet has no house edge, as it's paid according to its true odds, letting you add an extra wager without increasing your overall house edge.
Baccarat – Safe Bets with Low Variance
Baccarat is a simple table game with low house edges that stand out among casino games. Different bets carry different odds and house edges.
You can bet on the player or banker in baccarat. There's also a tie bet. Baccarat banker bet is the option that puts baccarat as one of the games with the lowest house edge. The banker bet has the best odds because it only comes with a 1.06% house edge.
The banker bet includes a 5% commission on winning bets. When calculating the payout (1:1), you should subtract the 5% from the winning total.
The player's bet carries a 1.24% house edge. It pays 1:1 without commission, a choice preferred by players who want to avoid the banker's commission fee.
The tie bet offers an attractive payout at 8:1 or 9:1 but carries a 14.36% house edge, the steepest of the three baccarat bets:
| Bet Type | House Edge | Payout | Odds |
| Banker | 1.06% | 0.95:1 (1:1 - 5% commission fee) | 45.86% |
| Player | 1.24% | 1:1 | 44.62% |
| Tie | 14.36% | 8:1 or 9:1 | 9.52% |
Video Poker – Strategy-Based Edge
Video poker is another good table game considering its house edge. Video poker lets you play at your own pace against the machine, allowing time to develop and test your best strategies. Real money online casinos often have many poker variations, so you can also compare your options.
Jacks or Better is a poker game with the best odds and offers one of the lowest house edges in all casino games. Poker games don't lean towards random algorithms or preset odds. They calculate the probabilities of a standard deck so that an optimum play can affect the house edge.
When playing Jacks or Better, your odds of winning range between 45% to 49%. When you play your hands well, the house edge can drop to 0.46%. Reviewing the pay table is essential for getting the best video poker odds.
Pay tables significantly vary in video poker. Consistency and understanding the best strategies for any hand can help you maximize your odds. Jacks or Better pays out per winning hand:
| Hand | Payoff |
| Royal Flush | 800 |
| Straight Flush | 50 |
| Four of a Kind | 25 |
| Full House | 9 |
| Flush | 6 |
| Straight | 4 |
| Three of a Kind | 3 |
| Two Pair | 2 |
| Jacks or Better | 1 |
European Roulette – Better Than American
Many table game players prefer the European version to the American roulette when they're online gambling because of one key difference visible on the roulette wheel: American wheels carry both a 0 and a 00 pocket, while European wheels carry only a single green zero. This seemingly small difference significantly impacts the game's house edge and odds. American roulette carries a 5.26% house edge, nearly double European roulette's 2.7%, with French roulette offering an even lower 1.35%.
As the European roulette wheel has one fewer pocket, it offers higher winning odds. Combined with the lower house edge, European roulette becomes a more preferable option.
Games with the Worst Odds – What to Avoid
You should avoid these casino games if you aim to find a casino game with the best odds. They offer a bad house edge and are known as the worst odds casino games.
One of the casino games with the worst odds is the Big Six Wheel. Its simple rules and fast-paced spins have kept it popular despite offering only low odds of 26% to 39%.
Playing a Big Six Wheel means you'll wager where the wheel will stop spinning. The spot it stopped on would usually determine how much your payout is. Placing a $1 bet can offer you the best winning odds, as the house edge is only 11%, though it also provides the worst payout. The Joker segment offers a considerable winning potential, but the casino still keeps a 74% chance of winning.
Keno is the second-worst casino game to play when considering house edge. It's a simple casino game where the house picks 20 out of 80 numbers, and you win based on how many match your selections. Counting the probabilities is difficult, and the house edge ranges from 20% to 40%, making Keno unlikely to produce frequent wins.
Slots are generally better than the two above. They're also the most commonly featured game, like on High 5 Casino, which has thousands of slots available. Still, not every game or slot has bad or the worst odds. You can still find a slot offering a good house edge.
Many still offer good winning potential despite the wide swings. Slot fans who are unsure of the game's payout often choose social casinos like Wow Vegas to find their favourite slots.
Slots' house edge ranges from 2% to 15%, and you can't apply specific strategies to change the odds or house edge.
Slots vary widely in volatility and RTP, so check each game's details before playing. These are the house edges of the games to avoid:
| Game | House Edge |
| Keno | 20%-40% |
| Big Six | 16%-24% |
| Casino War (tie) | 18.651% |
| Sic Bo | 33.3% |
Tips to Improve Your Odds
Player decisions directly impact odds. Practical approaches to improve your winning chances include:
- Understand how the casino game works: Knowing how each game works is always advantageous, even for chance-based games. The more you understand the mechanics, the better your decisions will be.
- Know basic casino strategy: As a beginner, you can start by sticking to low-house-edge casino games to play. Don't let yourself gamble on one casino game for too long. If you can ask for free trials, don't hesitate to do so.
- Learn advanced strategies: Some games benefit from advanced strategies, including popular methods such as D'Alembert or the Martingale System, so you can learn how to react appropriately to specific situations while limiting your playing sessions to maintain clear-headed decision-making.
- Stick to your gambling budget: Bankroll management is crucial for all casino players. Setting aside the money you're willing to lose allows you to set realistic expectations and lower your playing risks. When you're winning and losing, it doesn't matter; once you've spent your budget you should stop and rest.
- Avoid side bets: Side bets can increase the edge for the house. They might offer more chances for you to win big, but the promise comes with greater risks.
Pairing a low-house-edge game like blackjack or the craps pass line with strict bankroll limits pays off most, since the math favors you when a bad session can't wipe out your budget.
Land-Based vs Online Odds
Land-based games usually have a higher house edge because land-based casinos must pay electricity, maintenance, staff wages, and other daily operating expenses that online casinos avoid, making their business model more costly and requiring larger house edge margins to fund operations.
Online casinos cost less to run than land-based ones, so online casino odds are generally better if you're finding the best games with lower house edges.
Each establishment and software can affect the odds and house edge for other games like blackjack. They can apply unique rules that make the land-based casino odds higher or lower than those of different blackjack games.
Another advantage you'll get when you play online is the availability of casino bonuses. You can use them to lower your risks further.
Online casino games' RTPs, especially slot machines, are often higher than land-based games, with RTPs typically above 90%. Many land-based slot machines, in contrast, still operate with RTPs below 90%:
| Category | Land-Based | Online Casinos |
| Slots | RTP is typically lower (70%-90%) | RTP is typically higher (94%-99%) |
| Blackjack | RTP is generally slightly more favourable (99%-99.5%) | RTP may be lower, but it significantly varies (98%-99%) |
| Transparency | RTP and paytable can be hard to find | RTP and paytable are usually displayed |
Where Skill Beats Chance
Most casino games are chance-based with fixed RTP and house edges that players can't influence. Each spin is random and software-controlled. Skill-based games like poker and blackjack work differently, allowing player strategy to affect outcomes.
Skill-based games offer better odds because player strategy can affect the house edge, allowing skillful players to know how to obtain the best possible outcome and improve their chances of winning.
Not every casino game is player-friendly. If you aim to lower the house edge and take the casino advantage, it's always good to go for skill-based games. They take more effort to learn than chance-based games like slots, but mastering your hands is one way to get the best odds of winning.
Conclusion – Choose Wisely for Better Results
Choosing the best casino games isn't just about fun; it involves making smart decisions to improve your winning potential. Understanding the house edge and how to lower it through basic strategies gives you more control over the outcome.
Understanding casino game odds is key to smart gambling because knowing which games have the best odds helps maximize your return potential while enabling you to manage your bankroll responsibly and approach the activity with logic.
Choosing casino games with best odds isn't all. You must also know how to find the right online casinos that are safe and provide fair play. Explore our reviews to find your go-to sites or the best casino promo so you can check out the best games with lower risks.
We've also compiled many tested strategies to help you play smart and boost our winning chances. If you still have questions, check our frequently asked questions in our reviews. Also, you can check the asked questions about casino games with the best odds FAQs below.
FAQ
Which casino game gives you the highest chance of winning?
Which wager offers the most favourable odds in a casino?
Which gambling game is the simplest for beginners to learn?
What casino game relies most on player skill and strategy?
Which games in a casino offer the biggest potential return?
What can you do to minimize losses while gambling?
Related Articles
Best Online Baccarat Casino Sites
