Casino Betting Guide
Step into a casino, or log into one online, and you’ll find a variety of betting opportunities. But, to make the most of your betting experience, and have as much fun as possible – you’ll need to have a good understanding of how casino betting works. This simple casino betting guide is here to help you with that.
To help dispel some of the mystery and confusion that can surround casino betting, here we’ll explain how casino odds work, how the most popular games are played and how to pick a casino. Plus, we give you some useful casino betting tips. Let’s get started.
Types of Casino Bets
Casinos are all about betting. At its very core, whatever game you play in a casino, you’re placing bets on the outcomes of events, whether that’s a draw of a card or the spin of a slot. But casinos offer a huge variety of betting options, with games for all tastes.
The main types of casino games you’ll find in online and brick-and-mortar casinos are:
Table games: Played at a table, with a banker and usually other players. These include card games like poker and blackjack, plus craps and roulette.
Slot machines: There are a huge variety of games, all based on spinning reels to land winning combinations of symbols.
Specialty games: A range of other betting games that may be offered in casinos, including bingo, lottery, and keno betting, plus sports betting.
Understanding Casino Odds and Payouts
Every time you place a bet in a casino, you’re betting on an outcome that has a probability of happening. That probability will be reflected in the odds you’re given for each bet.
In the UK, casino betting odds are usually written as a ratio, like this – 5:1. This means, for every £1 you bet, if you win, you’ll win £5 (plus your £1 bet back, for a total of £6).
For example, if you play roulette, and you bet on:
The ball landing on a specific number, you’re playing against odds of 35:1. If you bet £1, and you win, you’ll get £36 back (your £1 bet plus £35 winnings).
The ball landing on either a red or black number, you’re playing against odds of 1:1. If you bet £1, and you win, you’ll get £2 back (your £1 bet plus £1 winnings).
Casino Betting Strategies
Follow these casino betting tips to enhance your casino gaming experience:
Know the Game You’re Playing
The simplest and most important strategy for successful casino betting is to understand the rules of the games you want to play. Try to learn them before you step into a casino. It’s important to try and understand basic betting strategy for those games too.
Stick to Casino Games with the Lowest House Edge
The House Edge is the advantage the casino (house) has over you in each casino game.
Some games offer lower House Edges than others, meaning you could have a better chance of winning, or at least losing less as you play. The games with the lowest House Edge include blackjack, poker, baccarat and craps. The games with the highest House Edge are usually slot machines and keno.
You can reduce the House Edge by making informed bets and by understanding the rules and the odds of a game you’re playing. For example, a good blackjack player who understands blackjack betting strategy can lower the House Edge by knowing the best moves to make when they’re dealt their cards. You can lower the House Edge when playing roulette by placing bets with lower odds, like betting on odds and evens, red or black, or columns of numbers, rather than betting on single numbers.
If you want to know the odds of a game you’re playing, you can ask the dealer. If you’re playing an online game, there will usually be an odds table in the game’s menu.
Play the Versions of Games with the Best Rules
You’ll often find different alternatives of these games at casinos, with slightly different takes on the rules, with some offering better odds and rules than others. Once you’ve picked a low House Edge game to bet on, play a version of it with the best rules and odds on offer.
For instance, if you’re playing blackjack, try to play at blackjack tables where a single deck of cards is used, rather than multiple decks, as it makes blackjack strategy more reliable. Three-card poker allows you to better use basic poker strategy. Play European roulette, with 37 pockets, over American roulette, that has 38.
When you’re learning to play a specific casino game, try to also learn which versions of that game offer the most advantageous rules.
Stake a Small Percentage of Your Bankroll Per Bet
The smaller your bets, the less you’ll lose on lost ones, and the longer you can sustain losses. A good rule of thumb is to never bet more than 3% of your bankroll (the total amount of money you have available to play) on a single bet. If you have a £100 bankroll, this means you shouldn’t stake more than £3 per bet. If you want to place £5 bets, you should have a bankroll of £170.
