RTP meaning in gambling: how to choose the right casino games
Despite being a crucial part of the gambling equation, RTP isn’t well-defined by casino operators, developers, or regulators. In fact, I’ve spoken to hundreds of gamblers over the last decade or so, and very few can tell me what RTP means in casino gaming. I don’t want you to be one of those players, which is why we’re going to tackle this often-overlooked concept right now. Indeed, because every game is different, you can only make optional choices if you know how RTP casino values can affect your potential win rate. So, what does RTP mean, and how do gambling experts use it to make smart decisions when playing online casino games? Return to player definition The RTP gaming meaning you need to know if you want to play slots, blackjack, roulette, and other popular online casino games is: Return to Player, often referred to using the acronym RTP, is a measure of a casino game’s theoretical payout potential. In simple terms, RTP is the percentage of money you can expect to get back over time based on the amount you wager. I could say that RTP or return-to-player values represent your odds of winning, but that’s not strictly true because there are other factors to consider. Before I unpack the concept of casino gambling odds in its entirety, let’s make sure we’ve covered the basics of RTP. As I’ve said, RTP in gambling is the expected returns from a game over time. That means values are calculated over the course of 1 million bets or more. Determining RTP values over time eliminates the impact of volatility, a concept I’ll explain in the later section. For now, just know that RTP values are an average return based on millions of bets. Factors influencing the return to player percentage Some casino games have fixed RTP values, and others allow individual operators to adjust the RTP within a specific range. For example, my favourite slot machine, Big Bass Bonanza, was created by Reel Kingdom. This software provider gives casino operators the ability to adjust the RTP within a specific range. One casino’s RTP for Big Bass Bonanza could be 95.67%, and another casino’s RTP could be 95.76%. This tells us two things. Firstly, it’s important to find casino games with high RTP values. Secondly, make sure the casino you choose has the highest values possible for your chosen games. Calculating casino RTP: a step-by-step guide Let’s give some context to our RTP meaning with an example. I’ll use Big Bass Bonanza because it’s one of my favourite online slot games: Big Bass Bonanza RTP value = 95.67% The 95.67% RTP value means you’ll win 95.67% of the time. In the context of Big Bass Bonanza, we can say you’ll win (i.e. the game returns) $95.67 for every $100 wagered. This, of course, is theoretical. You might not wager $100. However, I like to think of the potential returns in this way because it’s a nice even number that makes the payout rate easy to understand. Now, you’ll notice that I’ve used the words “theoretical” and “potential” a lot. That’s deliberate because RTP-based returns are what you could expect to receive if you had an infinite amount of time and money. None of us have those luxuries, unfortunately, so you might never achieve the exact RTP. Even if you played the game for 10 years straight, you might only come close to the exact RTP. Therefore, we have to be guided by the theoretical value and base our decisions on one casino game’s RTP vs. another. Understanding averages in casino gaming What happens if I wager $100 on Big Bass Bonanza? Will I always get $95.67 back? No. Statistical averages are a product of the following equation: The sum of all your results / the total number of results This means you need to add up all of your wins and losses, then divide the total by the number of sessions you’ve played. Again, you’d have to do this for over 1 million bets to see the results converge around the average. What I want you to understand, however, is that the RTP doesn’t determine your win rate in a single session. It’s your long-term expected payout. Therefore, you’ll have sessions where you win $150 for every $100 wagered, and some sessions where your returns are less than your outlay. Over a very long time, though, we can expect your average return to move toward the expected RTP. RTP for different casino games Every casino game has its own payout potential. This applies within specific games as much as it applies across gaming categories. For example, one dice game could have an RTP of 97.4%, and a similar dice game with different rules could have an RTP of 97.6%. Because of this, I can’t give you specific RTP values for every single online casino game. What I can do, however, is give you some averages. Before that, let me quickly talk about how I can talk so confidently about RTP values. Random number generators An online casino game’s RTP is upheld by a random number generator (RNG).
Despite being a crucial part of the gambling equation, RTP isn’t well-defined by casino operators, developers, or regulators. In fact, I’ve spoken to hundreds of gamblers over the last decade or so, and very few can tell me what RTP means in casino gaming.
I don’t want you to be one of those players, which is why we’re going to tackle this often-overlooked concept right now. Indeed, because every game is different, you can only make optional choices if you know how RTP casino values can affect your potential win rate.
So, what does RTP mean, and how do gambling experts use it to make smart decisions when playing online casino games?
