What Does RTP Mean in Gambling?

The RTP, or return to player, measures how much a casino or gambling company pays back to players. It’s an important statistic you should consider when choosing where to play and one that casinos must disclose.

The RTP number signifies the likely amount a player will win over the long run, presuming the player is playing with optimal strategy.

The RTP is generally expressed as a percentage ranging from 95 per cent up to 99 per cent. This means players will receive 95 cents for every dollar wagered.

In some cases, the RTP is slightly higher, especially for games with less casino advantage.

While many people like playing games with low house edges (such as blackjack or roulette), you must also ensure the game has a high RTP.

Also, remember that RTP doesn’t depend on the payment method-based casinos you choose — be it Apple Pay casinos or PayPal ones.

Most games have a lower RTP than 100, with slots having the lowest at around 85%.

Classic slot machines often have RTPs in the 90% range, however.

Other games, such as

• Blackjack
• Craps
• Roulette, and
• Some card games,

have moderate RTPs in the range of 90% to 95%.

Advanced craps players might want to play the less common variant of the game because games with an RTP of 99% are fairly common.

Other card games, such as poker and baccarat, have RTPs in the 85% to 95% range, though variations in these games can have much higher or lower RTPs.

Here is a table of some widespread casino games and their average Return to Player (RTP) percentages:

These are only general assessments, and the RTP of each game can vary depending on

• The specific rules
• Paytables, and
• Strategies used by the casino.

Also, some games, such as slots, can have a wide range of RTPs depending on the specific game and the casino's settings.

It’s crucial to check the exact game rules and paytables before playing to apprehend your odds of winning.

Random number generation (RNG) is used in many online casino games, and one of the most important is called random poker betting. This helps determine the outcome of a game, making it fairer for all players.

Return to player is critical in

• Poker
• Blackjack
• Slots, and
• Craps.

All of these games rely on some form of luck to determine winnings. And while luck plays a big part in winning, having an RTP helps ensure the casino has a reasonable advantage over players.

In turn, this allows online casinos to be profitable while remaining fair to gamers.

In poker, for example, players compete against one another by drawing cards and using their cards along with the community cards to make the best hand. This means that while the player largely determines the hand, the outcome is largely determined by luck.

And since poker is one of the most popular online casino games, there’s a lot of RNG use. The random card draws, for example, help determine who wins the hand and in what position.

In addition, the random number generator determines whether or not a player gets a raise or fold option.

The percentages tell how much of the money wagered by players is given back to them in winnings. This tells players how often they’ll be profitable when playing and helps them decide how often to play.

You might think that the return to player would be a major factor in determining your prospects of winning money at a casino game.

But in many cases, other factors take precedence. After all, if you play strategically and maximise your odds of winning, you can often come close to the RTP rate.

For example, online blackjack games tend to have an RTP of around 97 per cent. But despite the high rate, players still lose money over the long term because the cards are dealt in a soft-drop fashion.

So, while the RTP figures can be a good starting point for evaluating games, you also need to look at other features to determine whether a game is worth playing.

Though RTP and payout ratios might seem similar, they are fairly different. The payout ratio refers to the amount the casino pays out to players without considering bets. For example, the payout ratio for roulette is 95%, meaning that the casino pays out 95 cents for every dollar wagered.

However, the RTP of roulette at the Yukon Gold Casino is around 97%. This discrepancy comes from the fact that the game has an edge. Because there is a small edge (typically around 2% in American roulette), the payout ratio exceeds the RTP.

When comparing games, you should look at RTP rather than the payout ratio. Because the payout ratio only compares what the casino pays out to players, it doesn’t tell you how much the game profits the casino.

When choosing a gambling game to play, you may have come across the term RTP, and wondered what it means. It refers to the amount of money returned to players compared to the total amount wagered.

The lower the RTP, the less money you can expect to win back. For example, a slot machine with an RTP of 97 per cent will return 97 cents for every $1 wagered. A game with a return to player of 105 per cent will give you $1.05 back for every dollar wagered.

So, why would you want to play games with a low RTP? The answer is simple: the higher the RTP, the less you stand to win. If you can find a game with an RTP in the 90 per cent or lower range, you have a much better chance of making a substantial win.

As a general rule, most online gambling sites feature games with a return to players between 85 and 95 per cent. Live casino games tend to have higher RTPs, as the house wants to retain as much of the money wagered as possible.

Games with low RTPs are typically found at online casinos with speciality themes, such as

• Slots with animal themes (crocodile, lion, dragon etc.)
• Themed video poker, and
• Lottery-style games.

Online poker has a very low RTP; the cards have a predetermined value, and luck plays only a small part in the outcome.

Low RTP gambling games are only regulated and licensed when appropriate. The best way to know what the RTP is when you’re playing or shopping for games is to look for a certificate that tells you what it is.

Some countries regulate different RTPs for different games so that you may see certificates for different games on the same site.

As I’ve said, the RTP tells players how profitable a game is in the long run. However, there’s no set RTP that’s considered to be best. Different players have different preferences when it comes to return to player.

The RTP also doesn’t account for factors like strategy and skill. Strategy plays a big part in winning in games like blackjack, where players can manipulate the odds in their favour.

In contrast, online roulette is largely based on luck, making its RTP of 95 per cent pretty good in the eyes of many gamers.

Of course, there’s still some debate around these subjects, and online casinos are constantly updating their games to create the most entertaining and profitable experiences for gamers.

So, what's a good RTP rate for a casino game? Well, that depends on the game and your preferences as a player.

For example, if you’re a Roulette fan, then a 95 per cent RTP is pretty good. But if you prefer Blackjack, then 97 per cent might be better. As I said, it’s all about what works best for you.

There's also another related question. Is return to player always accurate? Not always. Just like other statistics, RTP can be manipulated. Online casinos are in business to make money, after all. Some might fudge the numbers to display a slightly higher RTP than their game.

That said, online casinos are very careful regarding RTP since it’s a big draw for players. They don’t want to deceive or drive players away by displaying inflated RTP rates.

Here is a table of some of the highest RTP slots and their corresponding Return to Player percentages:

A good RTP is a great tool for gamers who are into probability and odds. And it’s especially useful when they want to determine their long-term prospects of winning money. But the good RTP is a secondary consideration for most players.

That’s because online casinos have worked hard to create an immersive and entertaining environment that appeals to gamers’ senses. The graphics, sound effects and themes are all part of the experience, and they help distract gamers from the fact that they’re playing a game that can be won through strategy and skill.

That’s not to say that a good return to a player isn’t significant. After all, the high RTP rates on top online casino games can result in big payouts that would’ve been difficult to achieve otherwise. But the overall gaming experience is what matters most to players.

The return-to-player ratio is calculated by determining the amount paid out to players and dividing it by the amount wagered.

Calculating the RTP of a game is fairly simple, and you can do it using this simple equation:

RTP = Payout ration (100 -House edge)House edge

For example, the RTP of roulette is 97%. This means that the payout ratio is 95% (95 cents paid out for every dollar bet) and that there is 3% of the money lost due to the house edge (which is 5.26%.)

Let’s consider another example if the casino paid out C$100 for every C$100 bet, its RTP would be 100.

While this calculation might seem straightforward, it does involve some assumptions. The most commonly used assumptions are that a player plays with optimal strategy or plays with the house edge as their risk.

The latter is often used for calculating the return to players for poker because it’s difficult for players to use optimal strategy.

Let’s consider some more examples of RTP and your hypothetical winning amount.

Of course, I have to warn you that these winning amounts are just hypothetical examples I took to showcase the way the RTP rates function. So, the actual winnings may vary depending on the specific game and casino's settings.

What’s more, the RTP rate is an average percentage of the total amount of money wagered that is returned to players over a long period, so these winning amounts are not guaranteed for every bet.

Be sure always to gamble responsibly and understand the risks involved.

The return to player percentage tells you the house’s expected profit from offering that game. It’s similar to the stake rate in poker. By choosing games with a high RTP, you’re more likely to make money at the casino or online poker site.

But does RTP actually matter to players in practice? After all, most people don’t spend time analysing the winning odds. They just want to have a good time. And if the graphics and sound effects are good, players will enjoy themselves regardless of the RTP rates.

But if you want to give yourself the best chance of winning money long-term, RTP is an important consideration.

Unfortunately, many casinos try to lure customers with high return-to-player games with low payouts — so-called ‘soft-drop’ games that compensate for small wins by cutting the payouts in half.

As a result, players can quickly run out of money and have a hard time walking away.

Online casinos that respect their customers won’t resort to these tactics. And they recognise that high RTP rates lead to more long-term profitability for players. So, when you’re looking for a new casino to play at, make sure to check the RTP rates on casino games.

RTP is a term that you’ll see often when it comes to gambling. It expresses the amount of money that the casino, on average, gets back from the wagers made by players. Due to this number being so important, casinos strive to have as low RTP as possible.

While RTP is a term commonly used in land-based casinos, it’s less prevalent in online gambling due to the complexity of the algorithms and the software needed to run games with low RTP.

That being said, some online casinos do boast high return-to-player games like roulette or blackjack.

Thanks to the information in this article, you’ll know exactly what RTP means and how casinos make their money.

If you want to lower your costs while having fun, casino blackjack is a great game to play because its RTP is about 5% which is about half of the standard video poker. And if you’d like to boost your bankroll, try high-variance slot machines with a return to player of more than 95%.

I sincerely wish you good luck!