Video Poker Basics: How Pay Tables and Strategy Reduce the House Edge

DPoker33 · Mar 22, 2026

Rost said:
For me, video poker is a cross between slots and table games. But video poker has a clear advantage over other slots. It’s the degree of control that the player can exert over the game. I think it’s precisely this control that gives it its main advantage over other games.

Yes! I played play money just to try it out and I realized that despite counting on luck you at least have the choice for the second round, and your poker experience counts! Good luck to you!

infonazar · Mar 27, 2026

I certainly understand that knowledge, discipline,
an understanding of payout tables, and consistency do increase our chances of success to some extent, but at the same time, if you play this game on a regular basis, it’s clear that the advantage lies with the casino. Otherwise, we’d simply be seeing professionals, half of whom would have their own YouTube channels.

Lena M · Mar 28, 2026

If indeed, skill and experience can make this game break even, then the prospects are obvious. I definitely need to work in this direction. I think compared to regular slots, video poker can give much better results.

thehangdude · Apr 1, 2026

I would really like to see a more advanced version of this thread.
For example, what percentage to hit two pair or three of a kind if I have a small pair (under Jacks).
Should I hold a pair of nines, or go for an open ended straight (if I hold 9, 9, 8, 7, 6)? What about a gut-shot?
Should I hold a small pair if I have four to a flush?

Although I've never done well in 5-card stud, I think video poker would be way better for me than typical slots.
(And the payout at 9-6 seems sweet.)

CRStals · Apr 1, 2026

We can dive into that in a future thread, I agree that understanding the math is key but we did dive into a bit of it here, specifically why it doesn't make sense to go for a Royal if you need more than one card.
The challenge becomes the pay table, if the payout is different, it can drastically change the odds to pursue a hand but effectively, there's no value is holding cards that don't compete a made hand

YLAN · Apr 9, 2026

Played video poker long ago when can't find NLHE poker on casinos. Was not fun (nor profitable) but did not have tips or studied it either. Thanks Chris @CRStals for putting these tips & learnings together which gives us a reason to go back again to these video machines.

bablovod · Apr 9, 2026

Thanks Chris)))
I'll start testing now)

R.Holynskyi · Apr 9, 2026

I only play Jacks or Better. And so far the results are bad. But I don't spend more than $20-$30 a month, so it's not critical. Hopefully by the end of this year my statistics will tell me that I'm not wasting my time and money

Antonio777 · Apr 10, 2026

Great article. Going back to try some more Video poker today using some of the tips and ideas mentioned here. I have played 7 games Jacks or better and never profited over the 1000 chips I start with.

Peace
Tony

hobojim1247 · Apr 10, 2026

thehangdude said:
I would really like to see a more advanced version of this thread.
For example, what percentage to hit two pair or three of a kind if I have a small pair (under Jacks).
Should I hold a pair of nines, or go for an open ended straight (if I hold 9, 9, 8, 7, 6)? What about a gut-shot?
Should I hold a small pair if I have four to a flush?

Although I've never done well in 5-card stud, I think video poker would be way better for me than typical slots.
(And the payout at 9-6 seems sweet.)

the only Jacks or better game that I play has the 9-6 payouts for full houses and flushes. anything lower like 8-6 or 8-5 just increases your margin of loss. NEVER play them.

kunkgreen · Apr 10, 2026

Excellent introduction...

It seems to have simpler math than other casino games, which greatly helps with learning!

Looking forward to putting it into practice in some games, but unfortunately the games from the April promotion aren't available in Brazil (Red Rake Gaming), but I'll be checking with other developers.

Looking forward to part two to find out what else we'll have to explore.

rei signo · Apr 14, 2026

This game is very intuitive and offers great lessons for playing regular poker (played by multiple players at the table).

nasty bent gorilla · Apr 15, 2026

Very interesting, was not aware of this game. Will make sure to look for 9/6 machines if I dabble. This looks much preferable to a standard slot game. Thanks

RENEY444 · Apr 20, 2026

Though I dont play video poker often I've never seen so called 9/6 machines at the casinos I frequent , but i will keep looking . Perhaps they are available .

monkeytilter · Apr 20, 2026

It's ll about keep the house edge down and ours at a maximum!

Had a testing one today, incredibly close decision on what to hold.
Would you get this one right?

nabmom · Apr 20, 2026

monkeytilter said:
It's ll about keep the house edge down and ours at a maximum!

Had a testing one today, incredibly close decision on what to hold.
Would you get this one right?
View attachment 407452

I'll bite! I would assume that chasing the flush/straight flush is the wrong move since we only have 3 cards to it and not 4. Given that we have no made hand, I would probably save the J and K and hope to pair up. Is that the wrong move?

PS @CRStals this could be a fun idea for another part of this series. A series of "test" hands and we have to provide the correct strategy for what to pursue.

monkeytilter · Apr 20, 2026

nabmom said:
I'll bite! I would assume that chasing the flush/straight flush is the wrong move since we only have 3 cards to it and not 4. Given that we have no made hand, I would probably save the J and K and hope to pair up. Is that the wrong move?

PS @CRStals this could be a fun idea for another part of this series. A series of "test" hands and we have to provide the correct strategy for what to pursue.

You've got it right

, holding the KJ is correct - but by the tiniest of margins!
If the 2d was Ad for example then holding A35d is the best hold (the additional pair outs to AA swings it).

I think some test "hands" is a great idea. ranging from easy to "pro" based on the margins between options.

Talking of considering all the outs (not just the "nut" ones) you never got back to me @CRStals on this hand we were discussing , can you see the mistake now advising hold 4-flush over 3-royal draw?

Video Poker Strategy Explained: The Math Behind Every Decision

🎰 CardsChat Casino Learning Series Part 2 of 3 – Video Poker Strategy Explained: The Math Behind Every Decision Now that we’ve covered the basics of video poker and optimal strategy, it’s time to dig deeper into the why behind those decisions. In this lesson, we’ll break down the math behind...

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monkeytilter · Apr 21, 2026

Had one come up today that's easy to go wrong on but there is a clear favourite.
What would you hold here?

nabmom · Apr 21, 2026

monkeytilter said:
Had one come up today that's easy to go wrong on but there is a clear favourite.
What would you hold here?
View attachment 407528

I’m purely guessing here:
1. Hold the A only. No chasing 3 to a flush and no chasing gut shots. Or….
2. Hold all 3 spade because of flush and straight flush potential.

I’d probably go with #2.

Other questions: Does a 5h already out there change the odds For chasing a straight? Do video poker machines “use” a single deck of cards?

monkeytilter · Apr 21, 2026

nabmom said:
I’m purely guessing here:
1. Hold the A only. No chasing 3 to a flush and no chasing gut shots. Or….
2. Hold all 3 spade because of flush and straight flush potential.

I’d probably go with #2.

Other questions: Does a 5h already out there change the odds For chasing a straight? Do video poker machines “use” a single deck of cards?

Ooops! Told you this was a bit tricky

We should hold the pair of 4's here, don't be seduced by the pretty looking draws.

We are losing money on this board whatever happens, but the trick is to lose the minimum

Holding 44 gives us an expected return of 81% on our money
The draws A34s and A345 are bigger losers for us at only around 50 and 40% return - so it's worth getting this one right!

Just holding the A is horrible at 34% return

Incidentally if there was no pair to hold (say we change the 4 for a brick 7) then holding the 3 to the straight flush is the best option (48% return) - chasing two cards can be the best option in the right cases.

Yes VP "uses" one deck of cards, so we can calculate the chances of hitting our outs based on that.
(Multi hand VP still uses a separate single deck for each hand too.)

"Does a 5h already out there change the odds For chasing a straight?"
Not really, as we are holding A345 and drawing to a 2 for the straight?

If you mean does it affect out straight/flush draw then yes as we are holding A34s drawing to 2s5s for a straight-flush (unaffected) but also drawing to other 2+5 for a straight so there are only three 5's we can now hit (as the 5h does not go back into the deck).

nabmom · Apr 21, 2026

monkeytilter said:
Ooops! Told you this was a bit tricky

We should hold the pair of 4's here, don't be seduced by the pretty looking draws.

We are losing money on this board whatever happens, but the trick is to lose the minimum

Holding 44 gives us an expected return of 81% on our money
The draws A34s and A345 are bigger losers for us at only around 50 and 40% return - so it's worth getting this one right!

Just holding the A is horrible at 34% return

Incidentally if there was no pair to hold (say we change the 4 for a brick 7) then holding the 3 to the straight flush is the best option (48% return) - chasing two cards can be the best option in the right cases.
View attachment 407535

Yes VP "uses" one deck of cards, so we can calculate the chances of hitting our outs based on that.
(Multi hand VP still uses a separate single deck for each hand too.)

"Does a 5h already out there change the odds For chasing a straight?"
Not really, as we are holding A345 and drawing to a 2 for the straight?

If you mean does it affect out straight/flush draw then yes as we are holding A34s drawing to 2s5s for a straight-flush (unaffected) but also drawing to other 2+5 for a straight so there are only three 5's we can now hit (as the 5h does not go back into the deck).

This is excellent. Interested in starting a separate thread with scenarios? It might prove popular…

I actually thought about holding the pair as an option. Is that more often than not the correct move?

I guess one good thing is that there isn’t a clock on decisions so I could do some calculations on the fly when in tough spots.

monkeytilter · Apr 21, 2026

nabmom said:
This is excellent. Interested in starting a separate thread with scenarios? It might prove popular…

I actually thought about holding the pair as an option. Is that more often than not the correct move?

I guess one good thing is that there isn’t a clock on decisions so I could do some calculations on the fly when in tough spots.

I'll see where CR goes with this series - maybe they can conclude with a quiz.

I might start a thread with "interesting" spots I come across when I play (don't play a lot, just a few hands on Aces&Faces every day for a bonus on 888😉)

As a general rule yes holding any pair (even as low as 22) is a good choice if there is "nothing else going on".

I'm not sure about calculating, you can but it's quite demanding when you have a lot of outs and drawing to 2 or 3 cards on some of them, best bet is to have a list of preferred plays - these come in basic versions which are easy to follow and more advanced versions that layer exceptions on everything but eke out a few more fractions of a percent for the player. The other option is rote learning if you want to put the hours in😜

Ruslan L · Apr 26, 2026

"A 1-coin Royal Flush usually pays 250 coins
But a 5-coin Royal Flush pays 4,000 coins
That means betting the maximum greatly increases the payout multiplier. This matters a lot."
I think that's the most important thing about this game.
And I think it's also obvious that if you can't afford to play at the maximum bet, then you're obviously better off not playing at all.

tagece · Apr 26, 2026

It's quite interesting to realize how the difference between losing everything and having a chance to even make some money lies in the details. It's always good to acquire new knowledge.

skaterick · Apr 27, 2026

whenever i get some free play at our local brick + mortar casino i play jacks or better video poker ( and stop when i've run out of free spins ).

Video Poker Basics: How Pay Tables and Strategy Reduce the House Edge

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Video Poker Strategy Explained: The Math Behind Every Decision

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