When players visit an online casino they have two things on their mind: to have fun and to win, of course. Everybody has heard stories of people winning a fortune while others losing their whole paycheck in one evening. And then again, there are people who play for hours, enjoying the immersive gaming experience, and spend less money than what they would spend on a cinema ticket.
So is there a way to make money playing casino games? What is the most profitable casino game out there? Is there something one can learn to increase their chances of winning? We discussed these frequently asked questions with Martim Nabeiro, the Portuguese casino expert. You can find more information about Martin’s work here.
Choosing the casino
Different casinos might pay different odds on certain bets. If you are visiting a land-based casino destination, such as Las Vegas it is worth looking around in different casinos to see if one offers better odds on your favorite game than the next one.
If you want to play from Portugal, before signing up on an online casino for the first time, it is always a good idea to read casino reviews from a reputable source, such as https://casinoportugal.online. Here you will find a list of the most reputable online casinos that fulfill the licensing requirements and are legally operating in Portugal.
In Portugal land-based casino business has also exploded in the last few years. Currently, the country has 10 casinos nationwide. Apart from the usual table and slot games, you will find the unique and fast dice game: Banca Francesa on the offer in all Portuguese casinos.
Return to Player and House Edge explained
The house edge is securing profit for online and land-based casinos alike. Unlike other businesses, casinos are guaranteed to make a profit. This is why other business owners are looking at the most profitable casinos in the world, for ideas on how to improve their business.
Return to Player or RTP is a percentage figure. It indicates how many percent of the wagers are won by the players in the long run. House Edge is the opposite. This is the percentage the casino gets to keep. The two figures when added up, total 100%. Here is an example:
In craps when you make a don’t come or don’t pass bet the house edge is 1.36% which means that the RTP is 98.64%.
That being said, it doesn’t mean that if you wager €100 you will leave the game with €98.64. This is the mathematical probability that would apply if you played millions of games.
However, choosing a game with a high RTP (or low house edge) will increase your chances of winning. Games with the lowest house edge are video poker, blackjack, baccarat, craps, poker, roulette, and slots – in this order.
Learn strategy
In games of chance, you can’t raise your chance with strategies or other tactics. It doesn’t matter what numbers you play in Bingo; it doesn’t matter when you pull the lever or (push the button) on a slot game. However, some games require skill or strategy and by applying them you can reduce the house edge by even half.
You can find strategies online for free and some land-based casinos also sell basic strategy cards that you can use at the poker or blackjack table.
More advanced strategies, such as card counting – which requires excellent short-term memory – in Blackjack can really make a difference. However, you can only count cards in land-based casinos as in online casinos the drawn cards are generated by the computer. It is also worth noting that while card counting is not illegal, casinos don’t like it and they might throw you out if they find you counting cards.
Conclusion
In casinos, be it land-based or online, you have more chances of losing than winning. However, by selecting the casino carefully, choosing the games with the best odds, and applying basic playing strategies you can certainly increase your chances.
