Guide
RTP and house edge explained
RTP is the percentage of all money staked that a game returns to players over its lifetime. House edge is the rest. Both are certainties over millions of spins and almost meaningless over one evening - and understanding that gap is the most useful thing you can learn about casino games.
Last reviewed August 2026 by the WagerVerdict editorial team.
The two numbers
A slot with 96% RTP has a 4% house edge. Over its entire life across every player, it returns 96 units for every 100 staked. The 4% is how the operator and the provider get paid.
The crucial detail: RTP applies to total stakes, not to your deposit. Stake 100 units ten times over in a session and you have staked 1,000. The expected cost is 4% of 1,000, which is 40 - not 4% of your original 100.
This is why session length and stake size matter more than which 96% game you pick. Cost is a function of how much you put through, not how much you brought.
What 96% does not mean
- It does not mean you get 96 back from 100. Most sessions end at zero or well above the average. The mean is made of extremes.
- It does not apply to your session. RTP converges over millions of spins. Over a few hundred, variance dominates completely.
- It is not a schedule. A game that has paid nothing for an hour is not "due". Each spin is independent.
- It is not always fixed. Many slots ship in several RTP configurations and the operator chooses. Two casinos can run the same game at 96% and 94%.
The info or paytable panel usually states the configured RTP for that operator. If a casino hides it, that is a finding - we score RTP publication as part of the game library category in our methodology.
Volatility matters more than RTP
Two slots can both run at 96% and feel completely different. Volatility describes how the return is distributed.
| Volatility | Pattern | Suits |
|---|---|---|
| Low | Frequent small wins, slow drift, few big swings | Long sessions on a small bankroll, and clearing wagering requirements |
| Medium | Balanced between the two | General play |
| High | Long dry spells punctuated by rare large wins | Short sessions and large-win chasing, with a much wider range of outcomes |
On a high volatility game, the most likely single outcome of a short session is losing your stake, even though the long-run RTP is identical to a low volatility game. If you are clearing a bonus, low volatility is usually the sensible choice - it maximises the chance of surviving to the end of the wagering.
House edge by game
Table games are usually far cheaper per bet than slots. They are also usually excluded or heavily discounted in bonus wagering, which is not a coincidence.
| Game | House edge | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Blackjack, basic strategy | Around 0.5% | Requires correct play. Poor play can push it above 2% |
| Baccarat, banker | 1.06% | Player 1.24%. Avoid the tie bet |
| Craps, pass line | 1.41% | Rises steeply on proposition bets |
| European roulette | 2.7% | American double-zero is 5.26% for identical gameplay |
| Slots | 2% to 10% | Typically 4% to 6%. Varies by title and by operator configuration |
| Keno and scratch games | 5% to 25%+ | Consistently the most expensive games in the lobby |
Cost per hour is the number that matters
Edge alone is not the cost. Edge multiplied by how fast you play is the cost.
Slots: 2 units a spin, 500 spins an hour, 4% edge = 1,000 staked, expected cost 40 an hour.
Live blackjack: 10 units a hand, 50 hands an hour, 0.5% edge = 500 staked, expected cost 2.50 an hour.
The blackjack player is staking five times as much per bet and it is costing sixteen times less per hour.
If you want the longest entertainment for a fixed budget, play a low-edge game slowly at a stake you are comfortable with. That is the whole strategy, and it is the only one that survives contact with the maths.
Things that do not work
- Martingale and other progressions. Doubling after losses does not change the edge. It converts many small wins into an occasional catastrophic loss, and table limits guarantee the catastrophe eventually arrives.
- Due payouts. Games have no memory. A long losing run changes nothing about the next spin.
- Hot and cold games. A pattern visible after the fact is not predictive.
- Paid tipsters and systems. If a method beat the house edge, selling it would be the least profitable use of it.
FAQ
Is a 97% slot meaningfully better than a 96% slot?
Over the long run, yes - it is a third less expensive per unit staked. Over one evening the difference is invisible next to variance. Choose the higher RTP because it is free to do so, not because you will feel it tonight.
Can a casino change a game RTP?
It cannot change it mid-play, but many providers offer multiple configurations and the operator picks one at deployment. That is why the same title can differ between casinos, and why publication of the configured figure matters.
Do progressive jackpots have a worse RTP?
The base game RTP is usually lower because a slice of every stake funds the jackpot. Total RTP including the jackpot can be similar, but almost all of it sits in an outcome you will not experience.
Which game is cheapest to play?
Blackjack with basic strategy under good rules, at around 0.5%, played at a normal pace. Baccarat banker is a close second and requires no decisions.
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