If you play online slots machines, you probably need to know that game’s overall payout rate, commonly known as RTP. But what is an RTP? That’s precisely what we’re going to explain in the following article.
RTP stands for Return to Player. Return to Player is a figure expressed as a percentage that shows how much money players theoretically get back in the form of prizes for all the money they invest. For example, if the RTP of a game is 95%, players will get back $95 in prizes for every $100 they invest in theory.
Does this mean that players always lose when they spin the reels? Absolutely not. We should not forget that slot machines are games of chance, so some lucky players will have a much higher return percentage, while unlucky ones will have a lower one. In other words, if you bet $100 and get $200, you have a 200% RTP. If you spend all the money you've allocated to gambling for that session and get nothing in return, your RTP is 0%.
RTP is actually calculated based on millions and millions of game rounds. When many sessions over a long period of time are taken into account, we’ll get the overall return percentage of a game. This is what we mean when we say theoretically. The percentage can vary a lot in the short run.
After all, casinos are trying to make a profit, which is also why RTP exists in the first place. The return percentage of 95% means that the house edge is 5%.
One type of game where RTP plays an essential role is slots. The rule of thumb is to always look for slots with higher payout rates, as there’s a slightly higher chance of winning if you're lucky.
So, how big of a return percentage is good? In the world of online casinos, we’d say anything north of 95% is considered a good return. If the slot of your choice has an RTP below 95%, it doesn’t mean you should avoid it altogether, but it’s probably not a good idea to make it your default go-to game.
That said, the slots you should stay away from are those with a return percentage of 90% or below.
Most slots are transparent when it comes to their return percentage, but you have to find that information in the game. Here’s a quick guide on how to find it.
Alternatively, you can find the Return to Player in slot reviews online.
That's pretty much it - now that you know what RTP is and what rate is considered good, feel free to start browsing slots on new online casinos and checking out their payout percentage before beginning to spin the reels for real money.