How to Play Video Poker – A Complete Starter’s Guide

Over the decades, software companies have developed a range of versions that build on the traditional game. The main gameplay remains the same, but modern variants offer extra features and more betting options, depending on the type.

Here are the most popular video poker variations available at Aussie online casinos:

This is the defining and most popular video poker game, and it serves as the basis for many other variants. It’s a five-card draw game where you need at least a pair of Js or a stronger hand to qualify for a payout.

Depending on the provider, Jacks or Better is available in single-hand and multi-hand versions. Both typically offer a high RTP of 99.5% and identical paytables.

The main difference is that multi-hand play lets you play up to 50 hands at once. Playing more hands increases your total bet, while also giving you more chances to land one or more winning hands and earn bigger payouts.

This is one of the most common versions of video poker seen in online casinos, and unlike standard 52-card deck variants, it essentially uses a 53-card deck with an extra joker card. The joker makes all the difference, acting as a wild card, similar to the Deuces in Deuces Wild, to replace other card values for the most favourable hand.

Deuces Wild is as basic as video poker gets, except that the Deuce (the #2 card) acts as a ‘Wild’ card. That means it can act as any card to give you the highest possible payout combo.

The trade-off is that in standard Deuces Wild games, you need at least three-of-a-kind to qualify. You are dealt five cards and have the usual poker combinations to create winning hands with your current cards.

Video poker developers have created several versions of this game, including classic Bonus Poker, Double Bonus, or Triple Triple Bonus Poker. Regardless of the version, the games offer the same bonus-style payouts on specific hands, like four of a kind. Payouts are the biggest for four Aces of a kind, usually 80:1, and from 20:1 to 40:1 for 2s through Ks.

This rendition of Jacks or Better offers multi-hand gameplay with a twist. Four-of-a-kind Aces and face cards (K, Q, J) offer boosted payouts, averaging around 80:1 for Aces and 40:1 for face cards in most variants. The rest of the paytable and gameplay is identical to classic video poker.

If you have a basic understanding of the value of poker hands, you’ll learn the ropes of video poker in no time. There are certainly tips and moves to improve your gameplay, but I’ll explain those in a bit. For now, let’s go over the essential gameplay rules and bet types.

You are playing a very basic five-card draw, so your betting options are limited to standard play or using the ‘Gamble’ feature. Apart from this, you can only customise the number of hands you play in multi-hand video poker and the size of your bet.

You are playing a very basic five-card draw, so your betting options are limited to standard play or using the ‘Gamble’ feature. Apart from this, you can only customise the number of hands you play in multi-hand video poker and the size of your bet.

• Standard Bets: This is your usual bet after the cards are dealt. Set your bet amount, tap the ‘Deal’ button, and pick one, two, or more cards to hold before revealing the new cards. Depending on the version, you can play five, ten, or more hands at once.
• Double Up/Gamble Bet: If you win a hand, some video poker variants offer a gamble bet that lets you double your payout and wager by picking whether a face-down card is red or black. The version from Platipus also lets you choose a suit (spades, hearts, diamonds, or clubs), and if you guess correctly, it quadruples your payout (4x).

The paytable directly affects the RTP and, with it, the payout rate over long sessions. The best option for many popular video poker variants like Jacks or Better and Deuces Wild is to choose a 9-6 paytable, which pays nine credits for a full house and six for a flush.

This offers the lowest house edge of 0.46% when using the right video poker strategy, but some providers and casinos can set the payout lower at 8-5, which automatically reduces the RTP. Below, I will present a graphic of the most common payouts for each hand based on the 9-6 Jacks or Better paytable:

The video poker variant directly affects your entire gaming session: everything from potential payouts to expected win rates. Yet, the game itself is only part of the equation. Finding a trustworthy casino matters just as much, but you should consider a few other factors before placing your first bets.

• Pick a trusted video poker casino: Choosing a trusted and good casino matters. Say you’ve had a few solid rounds of Bonus Poker and now you want to cash out. Great casinos won’t give you any trouble cashing out your winnings fast, and may even offer loyalty points or a cashback bonus for your gameplay.
• Look at the paytable: Most standard video poker formats stick to the 9-6 paytable. This is the best payout table you can get, resulting in the highest RTP of 99.54%. Still, you will often find games that offer 8-5 rates, which are slightly less rewarding for players and reduce the RTP to about 97.3%.
• Pick games from top providers: Avoid black-market games at all costs. Many leading providers like Platipus, VoltEnt, KA Gaming and BGaming have their own versions of RNG or even live video poker, so make sure you play games from certified vendors.
• Go for multihand variants: Multihand video poker lets you play several hands at once, using the same initial cards for each hand. This gives you more chances to land a winning combination in a single round, but it also increases your total stake. Your results still depend on the cards dealt, and playing more hands doesn’t guarantee a bigger payout or a better return.

While video poker involves luck, strategy still plays an important role. Each game has a paytable that affects which cards you should hold or discard, and mathematically optimal strategies exist for specific versions and payout structures. Learning the correct strategy can improve your expected return over time, although it won’t guarantee a profit or prevent losing streaks.

This is the number-one rule for any casino game you play. You need a clear budget before you start to avoid spending money you can’t afford to lose. With gambling, you win some, you lose some, but losing money from a clearly designated budget is a calculated risk. To get this out of the way, you can use designated RSG tools.

Video poker offers high win rates, but mostly low payouts. It takes a solid budget and a bit of patience to try to land a high-paying combo like a royal flush or four Aces of a kind in Aces and Faces.

Some games, like Bonus Poker, include features like ‘Hint’ that tip you off about which cards to hold. Of course, you can make your own choice, but this tip is always worth considering, as it’s based on a more accurate mathematical estimate of the probability of winning.

Playing multiple hands at once lets you try more card combinations in a single round, but it also increases your total stake.

Even if you land a winning combination, the payout might not cover what you spent across all hands. For example, in Aces and Faces, a full house may pay less than the cost of playing 50 hands, while even four-of-a-kind won’t necessarily put you in profit. Focus on the paytable and your total bet rather than assuming that more hands mean a bigger win.

The ‘Gamble’ or ‘Double Down’ bet can be tempting when you want to boost a solid win or recoup a previous loss, and using it occasionally is fine. However, it is strongly recommended to avoid gambling your wins, even small ones, on every hand. This is a 50-50 probability, so you’re betting your money on pure luck.

The very basic Jacks or Better is okay, but versions like Bonus Poker, Deuces Wild, Joker Poker, or Aces and Faces offer better payouts on special hands, such as four-of-a-kind face cards. Plus, variants like Deuces Wild and Joker Poker provide more chances to hit a higher-paying hand with special wild cards that can maximise the payout.

What does that mean? If you’re playing Aces and Faces and you get a hand with two Ks and three cards of the same suit remaining, you can potentially win a four-of-a-kind or a flush payout.

However, in Aces and Faces specifically, the payout for four-of-a-kind Aces or face cards is usually between 80:1 and 40:1, respectively, and around 5:1 for a flush. In this example, the best move would be to stick to the Ks.

In addition to basic in-game mechanics and gameplay rules, real-money video poker at online casinos is subject to specific bonus and gameplay rules. Here are several key factors to consider before you start playing:

• Avoid reload bonuses: Video poker typically has low (1% to 5%) bonus contribution, so it’s one of the worst games to play with a reload cash bonus. Instead, you can opt for something more game-friendly, like cashback bonuses, which offer low wagering requirements.
• The paytables can vary: Whether it’s a 9-6 or 8-5 paytable, it depends entirely on the casino and the variant. You can compare several poker casinos in Australia and find the games that offer the most favourable payouts.
• Some casinos offer extra perks: For example, the live version of Jacks or Better from Pragmatic Play on Neospin offers jackpot-sized multipliers from 20x on a straight up to 20,000x for a straight flush.