House Edge, Volatility, and RTP

Casinos have an edge over you, ensuring they make money over time. This truth allows your favorite games to be available. These concepts are true for all games at any crypto casino, including crash games, slots and games like blackjack and roulette.

The casino’s advantage comes from the game’s rules and how much you win when you bet correctly. Over thousands or even millions of rounds, the casino ends up ahead. So, you can expect to lose more money than you win in the long run.

But, you can still win against the casino in short play sessions. When you play at a crypto casino, you’re not making millions of bets. You’re likely making just a few dozen or hundred bets at a time.

At this short distance, the casino doesn’t have a big statistical lead. So, the outcome of a single play session is more about luck than the casino’s edge. That’s why sometimes, you can win big at crypto casinos.

House Edge, Volatility, and RTP illustration inspired by the minimalistic style of Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres

Understanding Volatility and RTP

When playing at a crypto casino, you want to boost your chances of winning. So, focusing on two key game features is important: how often you can win (RTP) and the game’s risk level (volatility).

Crypto Casino Games and Your Winning Chances

Your winning chances, or Return to Player (RTP), tell you how much you might win back from your bets. Think of RTP as the flip side of the casino’s edge. For example, if the casino has a 3% edge, then you get a 97% RTP, meaning you could win back 97% of what you bet.

Crypto Roulette Winning Chances

In European roulette, if you bet on red, you have 18 chances to win out of 37 slots. Winning doubles your bet.

So, your chance to win back money, or RTP, is about 97.3%. This means the casino’s advantage is just 2.7%. But remember, this is for European roulette only. American roulette has an extra slot, the double zero, which lowers your winning chances and increases the casino’s edge.

Your Winning Chances in Crypto Blackjack

In classic blackjack, if you use the right strategy, you can get close to a 99.5% chance of winning back what you bet.

But, blackjack is different from roulette because your chances can change based on the cards left in play. Usually, you’ll see your chances range from 95% to 102%. Players used to have the upper hand by keeping track of the cards left. Nowadays, crypto blackjack games use multiple decks and shuffle often, so counting cards doesn’t really help.

Your Winning Odds in Crypto Slots

Crypto slots usually give you a 92-99% chance of winning back your bets. Your chances depend on the reel symbols, how much you can win, and the game’s specific rules.

Understanding Volatility in Crypto Casino Games

Volatility affects how quickly your money goes up or down.

  • Low volatility slots offer smaller wins more often. Your money changes gradually;
  • High volatility slots mean you might lose a lot, but the big wins are impressive.

Think of volatility like the ups and downs of game payouts. For example, betting on color in roulette is less risky and doubles your bet. Betting on a single number is riskier but pays out 36 times your bet.

Figuring out slot volatility is tricky, depending on many winning combinations. Usually, game creators will tell you if their slots are low, medium, or high in volatility.

The Appeal of High Volatility Crypto Games

Imagine a game where, for every $1 bet, you get back 98 cents every time. With no chance to win big, such a game wouldn’t attract many players. Yet, this highlights that there’s more to game choice than just the Return to Player (RTP) rate.

High volatility games are a favorite for many reasons:

  • They offer the thrill of possibly winning big in just one round;
  • These games mean you can win big or lose fast, which actually lets you bet less overall, softening the casino’s edge. The RTP, which is based on a single round, tends to stretch further because you’re not betting winnings over and over;
  • You can place smaller bets but still aim for big wins, like in lower-risk games but with higher bets. This strategy lowers your total bets and the casino’s edge. Since each bet has an expected loss, betting less minimizes what you’re likely to lose to the casino’s advantage.

This might make it seem like the best tactic is to bet everything until you win big. While that can work, most people play for fun, not just the win. Small bets in a low volatility game might let you play longer, but they rarely lead to large wins.

So, if you’re after both enjoyment and the chance for a significant payout, high volatility games at moderate bets might be your best bet.

Remember, this is just one approach to playing at crypto casinos. The most important thing is to have fun in a way that suits you. After all, the joy of casino games is in the experience, and no one can tell you the best way to enjoy your game!

Scroll to Top