NOTE: Below you’ll find basic slot strategies to get you started. Looking for more advanced tips? Then read our advanced betting slot strategy guide >>
The short answer to this question is no there isn’t a simple winning slot strategy. But that doesn’t mean that there isn’t slot strategies you can use to help you win in the long term.
Slot games, by their nature, give the house an edge. If they didn’t, you would be getting £€1 for every £€1 you put in, and what would be the fun in that? Equally if you won every time, then it wouldn’t be gambling, so much as tapping into someone else’s bank account.
So no, there are no winning slot strategies online. But that’s part of the charm. A random game of chance, it requires no skills and gives you dreams of big jackpots wins and far distant lands.
That said, there are ways to try and maximise your bankroll and minimise your losses. The longer you play on a slot machine, the more winning combinations you are likely to hit and potentially, that all mighty jackpot prize (if it has one).
So the best slot strategy and tip we can give you is this; look after your cash. Here’s a few slot tips and tricks that we do when we play to help us make the most out of the slot experience.
Give yourself a betting limit
Never play with real money you don’t have. You can go to the movies without buying the cinema right? Give yourself a betting limit for the session, and stick to it. Sometimes Lady Luck will help you play slots for longer; sometimes she’s out with some other gal/guy. It’s up to you to know when it’s time to call it quits.
Don’t deposit all your money at once
If you know how much you plan on spending that night/session, split it. Deposit half, get playing and try your luck. That way, if you’re on a losing streak, you’re not tempted to keep playing the whole thing. When you have to go in and deposit again, it might be a good time to re-evaluate the slot game you’re playing, try a new one or re-evaluate your luck that night.
You don’t always have to bet big, to win big
Starting the night on £€50 bets might be tempting, but how long will that last? There’s a reason why slot machines have different wagering amounts. During the game you can increase it or decrease it to get you through the long streaks of winning nothing much at all.
We like to play the rule of halves. If we win a decent amount, we up the next wager by a coin until half way through spending the winning coins, then we go back to our neutral starting bet if we don’t win any more. If we are losing we slowly decrease the wager, making our bets last longer through the losing streak.
Don’t spend all your slot winnings
Unless that was part of the plan that night of course. Hell, if all you want is to keep playing, keep playing. Just don’t go over your gambling limit for the night. What we like to do when that big win comes, is put aside half of it for a rainy day – ie. To see you through when the ‘quiet’ slot period when the game doesn’t seem to be paying out very much at all.
Set yourself a winning limit
Simple right? If I win over XX amount, I will cash out. Not always the easiest thing to do when all you want is to keep going for that next big win, but never forget that mobile slot machines are a game of chance. Just because you are winning now doesn’t mean you are going to keep winning.
Now sure which limit to give yourself? If you are playing a low variance slot (so one that pays out little and often) aim for about 20% on top of your starting budget. For high variance slots (not a lot of wins in the base game, but when it hits, it hits BIG) you can stretch that to 50% upwards.
Generally with high variance slots we prefer to think in terms of number of spins – we will budget for 150 spins and then decide whether to continue or move on depending on how much we’ve won.
Give it a go for yourself and see what works best for you.
