Given the similar process for earning slots and video poker comps, you might wonder if you’ll receive the same level of rewards for each game. The following guide discusses whether or not there’s much difference between video poker and slots perks.
How are Casino Rewards Determined?
Casinos use a mixture of betting volume and the house edge to determine how many comps you’ll receive. Simply put a higher house edge and larger wagering volume lead to more rewards. In contrast, a lover house edge and betting volume equal fewer comps.
Other factors can also weigh into the matter. If you’re at a high VIP level for example, you should rack up rewards points at a faster rate no matter how much you’re betting.
Scenario #1
- You bet $5,000 on a game with a 6.5 house edge
- The casino offers a 0.1% comp rate for games with a 5%+ house edge
- 5,000 x 0.01 = $5 worth of comps
Scenario #2
- You bet $5,000 on a game with a 1% house edge
- The casino offers a 0.02% comp rate for games with a 1% house edge or less
- $5,000 x 0.002 = $1 worth of comps
Reason Why Slots Comp the Best
Slot machines normally deliver bigger rewards. The following points provide in-depth reasons on why this is the case.
Higher House Edge
Slot machines aren’t exactly the most generous games in the casino. Some of them can carry as high as a 10% house edge. Luckily, most slots feature more along the lines of a 6% or 7% house advantage on average. Even these figures though, aren’t great in the overall scheme of gaming.
Unless you’re playing online slots, which average around a 4% house edge, you won’t have a great chance to win. Casinos try to reward you more as a result.
Players Lose Faster
Casinos don’t like bleeding gamblers dry immediately. After all, dissatisfied players may not come back to the casino. Some gambling establishments are willing to give big losers more comps. If a casino notices that a certain player loses rapidly, they might personally give them more rewards.
Additionally, some casinos may even weight their rewards system to account for these quicker losses. Give that slots players usually lose faster, they’d benefit from such a sysmte,
Tips for Going After Both Slots and Video Poker Rewards
You can see that slot machines normally provide more loyalty rewards on average. Of course, you can maximize your comps on both types of games with some strategy.
Choose Games Because You Like Them- Not because They Comp Well
You don’t want to pick a video poker or slot machines just because they offer lots of rewards. Instead, you should only choose games that you like and let the VIP perks some naturally. After all, the comps you receive are never going to offset higher theoretical losses. Casinos purposely program their systems to ensure that they don’t give out more rewards than incoming profits.
Here’s an example to highlight this point:
- You play a casino game with a 4% house edge
- You bet $3,000 total
- $3,000 x 0.04= $120 in the theoretical losses
- The comp rate is 0.1%
- 120 x 0.001= $1,20 in comps
- 120/1.20 = 100
- The theoretical losses are 100x higher than the rewards in this case
Don’t Chase Comps
One of the worst things you can do as a gambler is play casino games just to get rewards. As discussed above, the comps don’t counteract average losses.
Again, the best approach is to let comps come naturally. You should just play casino games and have fun.
Assuming you miss out on a steak dinner or hotel stay, you shouldn’t worry too much. After all, you can normally pay for these perks cheaper than you could earn them.
Work Your Way up the VIP Ladder
I’ve repeatedly stressed that you don’t want to force action for comps alone. However, you should still take advantage of the loyalty program within reason.
Many VIP programs feature multiple levels. Assuming you play long enough at a particular casino, you can advance one or more levels. Better rewards await at each new tier.
Much like with chasing rewards, you don’t want to chase higher tiers. If you can achieve them naturally, though, you’ll benefit through increased VIP perks.
Conclusion
The process for earning video poker and slots rewards is the same. However, you won’t get exactly the same rewards out of each type of game.
Slot machines tend to reward you better. They feature a higher house edge on average than video poker games and, thus, deliver more comps.
Of course, the upside to video poker is that you can enjoy more theoretical winnings. Therefore, you shouldn’t discount video poker just because it doesn’t offer as high of rewards.
The main key is that, no matter if you’re playing video poker or slots, you want to be sure and qualify for rewards. You should take any necessary steps to join.