What pokies are and why Australians call them pokies
A pokie is a gambling game where you bet a set amount per spin, symbols land on a screen, and the game pays according to a table of winning combinations. The word is Australian shorthand for the poker machines found in pubs and clubs, and online casinos use it for the same kind of game in video form.
Where the name comes from
Australians use “pokies” the way other countries say “slots” or “fruit machines”. The same word covers a coin-fed cabinet in a club and a game on your phone, which is why searches for “what are pokies” and “how do pokies work” come from both kinds of player. The mechanics below apply to online games, which is what this site tests.
Online pokies versus venue machines
An online pokie is a piece of software from a studio such as Pragmatic Play, BGaming or Play’n GO, hosted by the casino. Venue machines are regulated by each state, and the minimum return for pub and club machines is set by law: for example 87% in Victoria and 85% in Queensland. The online games we list show RTPs of roughly 94-97%, but they are offshore products, which we explain in our legal guide.
How a spin is decided
A spin is decided by a random number generator, and the result is fixed at the instant you press the button. Everything you watch afterwards, the spinning reels, the near misses, the slow reveal of the last symbol, is animation of an outcome that already exists.
The result is fixed when you press spin
The generator runs continuously and produces numbers far faster than any human can press a button. The number it lands on at your click maps to a symbol position on every reel. Stopping the reels early, using a turbo mode or pressing at a particular moment changes the animation, not the result.
Why no machine is ever due
Each spin is independent of the last. If a pokie has gone 60 spins without a feature, the next spin has exactly the same chance of triggering one as it did on spin one. The belief that a cold machine is due comes from how we expect coin flips to even out, but a pokie has no memory to even out. This is the single most useful thing to understand before you stake real money.
Reels, paylines, ways and scatter pays
The layout of a pokie decides which symbol patterns pay. Most modern games use one of three layouts: fixed paylines, ways to win, or scatter pays.
Paylines
A payline is a line across the reels, straight or zigzag, where matching symbols pay. A classic 3-reel pokie may have one to five lines. A video pokie may have 20 or 25. You usually bet across all lines, and your stake per spin is divided between them.
Ways to win and Megaways
Ways-to-win games drop the lines: symbols pay when they land on adjacent reels from the left, in any row. Megaways is a format where the number of rows changes on every spin, so the number of ways changes too. Lady Wolf Moon Megaways from BGaming, for example, is listed at 96.75% RTP with a very high volatility.
Scatter pays and tumbles
In a scatter-pays game, symbols pay anywhere on the grid once enough of them appear, with no lines or reel order. Gates of Olympus uses a 6x5 grid with tumbling wins and random multiplier orbs, and Sweet Bonanza pays on scatters with tumbles as well. After a win the paying symbols disappear and new ones drop in, which can chain several wins from one bet.
Reading the paytable
The paytable is the rulebook of a single game, and reading it takes two minutes. Open the info or menu icon inside the game and look for four things.
What to check before you bet
- Symbol values: what each symbol pays, as a multiple of your bet.
- Special symbols: wilds that substitute, scatters that trigger features.
- Feature rules: how many scatters start free spins, and whether multipliers stay or reset.
- RTP and volatility: some games show the RTP on this screen, and some list more than one version.
The paytable also tells you the maximum win, written as a multiple of the stake. Bonanza Trillion lists a 5,000x maximum, so a A$1 bet can pay at most A$5,000 on a single round. That is a ceiling, not an expectation.
RTP and volatility with a worked A$ example
RTP and volatility describe a pokie over thousands of spins, and they answer two different questions: how much the game keeps, and how bumpy the ride is.
RTP: what the game keeps
RTP (return to player) is the share of all money bet that a game pays back over the long run. A pokie at 96.50% RTP keeps 3.50% as the house edge. Over A$1,000 of total bets, the long-run expected return is A$965, so the expected cost is A$35. A real session swings widely around that figure: you can finish up A$200 or down A$500 on the same game. The number only becomes reliable across a huge number of spins, far more than one evening.
A lower RTP raises the cost. At 94%, the same A$1,000 of bets has an expected cost of A$60. Our best paying pokies guide lists the highest-RTP games we track.
Volatility: how bumpy the ride is
Volatility (also called variance) describes how wins are spread. A low-volatility game such as Starburst pays small amounts often. A high-volatility game such as Gates of Olympus pays rarely but can pay large amounts when a feature lands. Both can share the same RTP.
Here is what that means for a A$100 session at A$1 per spin. On a low-volatility game you may see your balance drift slowly and last most of the 100 spins. On a high-volatility game you may lose A$60 in 30 spins with nothing, then hit a feature that returns A$150, or never hit it at all. Neither outcome is more likely to be “yours”. If your budget is small, lower volatility gives you more time on screen for the same money.
Bet sizing and a session budget
Your bet per spin should come from a budget you set before you deposit, not from how you feel after a win or a loss. The simplest rule is to decide the session budget first, then divide it by the number of spins you want.
A worked budget
Suppose you set a session budget of A$100 for entertainment money. At A$1 per spin you have 100 spins. At A$0.50 you have 200 spins, and at A$2 you have 50. At A$1 per spin and 96.50% RTP, 100 spins is A$100 of turnover and an expected cost of A$3.50, but the real result could land anywhere from a full loss to a profit. Stakes at the casinos we list start at A$0.05 on several sites, so small bets are possible.
Rules that keep the budget honest
- Decide the budget before logging in and treat it as spent money, like a cinema ticket.
- Do not raise the bet to chase a loss. A bigger bet only makes the same average cost arrive faster.
- Do not deposit again in the same session to “win it back”.
Pokie features: free spins, multipliers, Hold & Win and Bonus Buy
Features are the parts of a pokie that change the maths of a spin, and most of a game’s volatility lives in them. Knowing what each one does helps you read a paytable quickly.
Free spins and multipliers
Free spins are bonus rounds that run without costing a stake, triggered by scatters. Multipliers raise the value of wins, either as random orbs or bombs, as in Gates of Olympus and Sweet Bonanza, or as a progressive multiplier that climbs through the round, as in the free spins of Bonanza Trillion. Free spins from a casino bonus are different: they come with wagering rules, covered in our pokies bonuses guide.
Hold & Win
Hold & Win (also called coin-collect or hold-and-spin) locks special coin symbols in place and gives you a few re-spins to land more. 9 Coins from Voltent is a Hold & Win style game. WinCrown lists 240+ Hold & Win titles, and we cover the format in our jackpot pokies guide.
Bonus Buy
Bonus Buy lets you pay a multiple of your bet to enter the feature directly instead of waiting for scatters. It speeds up play and so speeds up spending: a feature that costs 100x the bet burns through a A$100 budget at A$1 base stake in a single purchase. WinCrown lists 2,200+ Bonus Buy pokies. Treat it as a high-volatility choice.
How to play your first real money pokie online in 5 steps
A first session is easier when you follow a fixed order: choose, fund, check, bet, stop. The steps below assume you are 18 or over and have read the legal position for offshore sites.
Step 1: Pick a casino and open an account
Choose a site from our ranking and read the review first. Our WinCrown review shows what a full test looks like. In our tests sign-up at WinCrown took 2.5 minutes, and live chat replied in 40 seconds. Registration asks for your details, and you must be 18 or over.
Step 2: Set a deposit limit and a budget
Before you pay in, decide the amount you can afford to lose and set a deposit limit in your account if the casino offers one. Write the number down. If it is A$100, that is the whole night.
Step 3: Choose a pokie and read the paytable
Open the game and its info screen. Check the RTP, volatility, maximum win and feature rules. For a first game, a game with one clear feature, such as Big Bass Bonanza at 96.71% RTP, where a fisherman collects fish money symbols in free spins, is easy to follow.
Step 4: Set your bet and spin
Pick a stake that gives you at least 100 spins from your budget. Press spin once, watch what the feature symbols do, and keep the bet constant while you learn the game.
Step 5: Stop at your limit
When the budget or the time is gone, leave. If you hit a win, you may withdraw it, and fast payout details are in our fast payout guide. Do not top up to continue.
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How to win on pokies: what is honest and what is a myth
There is no method that beats a pokie, because the result of every spin is random and the game keeps a margin. What you can influence is how long your budget lasts and how much you pay on average for that time.
What actually helps
- Choose higher RTP versions of a game. The gap between 94% and 97% is A$30 per A$1,000 bet.
- Match volatility to budget: lower volatility for small budgets, higher only if you accept long dry spells.
- Keep bets small relative to the budget so variance has room to work.
- Stop at a pre-set limit, win or lose.
Myths to drop
Betting pattern systems, “hot” and “cold” machines, the best time of day to play and the idea that a big loss makes a win more likely all fail for the same reason: each spin is independent. We do not publish systems because none exist. Anyone selling one is selling a story.
Can you know if a pokie will pay out?
No. A machine that has not paid in a while is not due, and one that has just paid is not drained. Searches such as “how to make a pokie machine payout” or “how to know when a pokie machine will payout” have no answer, because the payout is decided at random on each spin. The published RTP is the only guide, and it describes the long run. For the biggest prize formats see our jackpot guide.
Are online pokies rigged?
A pokie is not secretly adjusted during your session, but it is designed to keep a margin, and that margin is the point. Studios have their games tested independently, and the RTP is the average the game is built to return over millions of spins. The real risk sits elsewhere: a casino can run a lower RTP version of the same game. Book of Dead, for example, runs at up to 96.21%, and casinos can configure lower versions, with tables showing around 94-96%. Check the info screen, and note the casino’s licence line only states what its footer prints. We also test withdrawals ourselves, as set out in how we rate, because unpaid winnings are the real danger on offshore sites.
When to stop: limits, cooling-off and help
Stop when your pre-set budget or time limit is reached, and use tools to make that automatic. Pokies are paid entertainment, and the house edge means regular play costs money over time.
Limits and breaks at the casino
Use a deposit limit, a loss limit and a session reminder if the casino offers them, and set them before you play. A cooling-off period blocks your account for a short time. Self-exclusion blocks it for longer. Do these directly with the casino’s support, since each offshore site handles them on its own.
BetStop and what it does not cover
BetStop is the National Self-Exclusion Register. It covers licensed online and phone wagering providers in Australia, with exclusion running from 3 months to lifetime, and you can extend it but not shorten it. It does not cover offshore casino sites, so exclusion at an offshore casino has to be arranged with that casino directly.
Where to get help
Gambling Help Online is free and open 24/7 on 1800 858 858, with chat and email counselling at gamblinghelponline.org.au. Our responsible gambling page lists the tools in one place. If you are wondering how to stop playing pokies, set a limit today, use self-exclusion if limits fail, and speak to someone. Players must be 18 or over.