If you walk through any casino, past the flashing modern video slots, you will inevitably find rows of old, blocky Video Poker machines.

Because you can see the cards and know a standard 52-card deck is being used, you can mathematically calculate the exact probability of every draw.

Reading the Video Poker Paytable

The most common and foundational variation is "Jacks or Better," where the lowest paying winning hand is exactly a pair of Jacks.

If played perfectly, a 9/6 machine returns a staggering 99.54%, meaning the casino's mathematical edge is a microscopic, nearly invisible 0.46%.

• Progressive Video Poker machines often feature weaker base paytables to compensate
• Online casinos usually offer the absolute best, highly favorable Video Poker paytables
• Never play a machine where a Flush pays only 5 coins if better options exist

Why You Must Always Bet Max Coins

Almost every machine accepts between 1 and 5 coins per hand, and the payouts for most hands scale linearly based on your bet.

But if you bet the maximum 5 coins, the Royal Flush payout jumps exponentially to an incredible 4,000 coins (800 to 1).

Playing Like a Video Poker Robot

You must completely eliminate human emotion; never hold a "lucky" card or chase an inside straight if the math dictates otherwise.

You can legally print a strategy card from the internet and hold it right in front of the machine while you play in the casino.

By finding the correct paytable, betting the absolute maximum, and playing flawlessly like a robot, you can nearly eliminate the house edge.