Source: “Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas cru” (CC BY 2.0) by watts_photos We’ve all wondered at some point or another when entering a casino, if we were to place all of our money on a single winning bet, what might we see in return? On the other hand, if we were to play slowly on the game with the best odds, what sort of chances would we be looking at then?

Wonder no longer, here we take a look at the most profitable casino games and the odds you’ll be looking at if you dare to face them down.

Slot Machines

Slot machines are what many of us think of when casinos come to mind, and with good reason. These are everywhere, both in physical and online casinos, and they cover a huge variety of themes and price points. The physical variety originally came about all the way back in the late 1800s. Since then, their lights and sounds have proven too attractive to pass up, making them a staple on almost every casino floor and even in many pubs and bars.

The online variety, on the other hand, has considerably more flexibility, owing to their software-based design. These games often incorporate themes based on television, film, and sports, though the real range runs much deeper. In terms of payouts, these sit among the highest of the high. Progressive jackpot winnings here can pay off millions to one, making these the biggest payout machines on the casino floor and online.

Of course, this is countered by the odds, with the chances of winning these jackpots also sitting at millions to one. Instead, players are far more likely to win with regular bets or flat top jackpots, which can payout around 5,000-1. The return is generally around 85 to 98% on a regular bet with these machines which, as it turns out, is still really high.

Video Poker

Poker, with all the convenience of a machine; it’s little wonder these machines have proven so popular. Victory in video poker means understanding the odds, which can often come down to your personal understanding of mathematical chance. With a perfect strategy, this can be the casino game with best odds of winning, with a return that can exceed 100%. Of course, humans are not perfect strategy machines, which is part of the appeal. Few games are as much of a test of raw skill as video poker, and few offer a payout that directly reflects this skill.

Payouts for video poker will depend heavily on the machines, but can sit around 800-1 with some of the most fortunate bets.

Roulette

Most consider roulette as the biggest luck game of them all. Almost every time you see a character in a film or television show walk into a casino and make a single huge bet, it will be on roulette. The odds here are some of the simplest to see visually, so the appeal of actually landing in the right area for an unlikely bet becomes all the more enticing.

As for the actual payoffs here though, they aren’t actually as high as we tend to think. The biggest wins in roulette payoff around 35-1, which also stand as the odds. Not bad by any means, but these can hardly measure up to the winnings of slot machines and video poker.

Chances here depend on the type of table which is played on, with American casino-style roulette tables giving a house edge of 5.26%. European tables, on the other hand, only use a single-zero wheel, which decreases the house edge to 2.7%, making it even more likely that the player will come up lucky on regular bets.

Craps

Probably the trickiest game for beginners on this list, but one which stands as incredibly popular nonetheless. Odds again play a huge part here, so those with a keen statistical mind will come out ahead far more often than those relying solely on the hand of lady luck.

Craps comes with the lowest maximum payoff on this list, sitting at 2-1 in most circumstances. While this might seem unreasonably stingy, it should also be noted that craps has one of the lowest house edges at 1.06%.

Which is Right for You?

Choosing the right game based on odds alone is a sure-fire way to have a bad time. With casino games, just like any other, the best choice is whatever you personally find the most enjoyable. That said, those of us who prefer swinging for the fences are best off starting with the likes of slot machines and video poker.

What are the upper limits here? In 2003, a 25-year-old software engineer from Los Angeles managed to win $39.7 million off of a single slot machine spin. Chances are we won’t beat his record, but then again we’d be quite happy settling for half of that.