Should You Always Play Max Coins on Video Poker?
3 minutes
Last Updated: September 23, 2022
When you look at the paytable for any video poker variation, you’ll see that the maximum bet pays out significantly better than a bet of only one or two coins.
Moreover, many gambling experts often advise you to bet the max amount, and doing so undoubtedly has several big advantages.
However, it’s not fair to advertise the advantages while sweeping the disadvantages of this strategy under a rug.
In this article, we’ll directly look at both the benefits and drawbacks in order to provide you with a logical answer on whether or not you should play max coins on video poker.
Playing Max Coins Promises the Largest Payout
Let’s start with a simple and obvious advantage. When playing video poker with a maximum coin bet, you’re putting yourself into the position of striking a huge win if you get a royal flush hand.
There’s no arguing that this is the main selling point of video poker and the thing that draws in most gamblers after a successful fairplay login India to try video poker games.
On the other hand, it’s also important to consider that the odds of landing a royal flush hand in video poker are about 1 in 40,000.
This means that you can expect a royal flush every 50 to 100 hours, more or less, depending on how fast you play. That is, if you’re lucky.
Not Every Bankroll Can Support Max Coins For Every Hand
This is another one that most players can easily understand and stick by. If you’re playing video poker on a relatively tight bankroll, betting the max amount of coins is simply not a very smart strategy.
Whether you have a small bankroll to begin with or have deflated it by going through a prolonged losing streak, lowering the number of coins you bet per hand is the best decision.
It might not be as exciting to play with fewer coins, but sometimes it’s primarily about conserving money and making the best of what you have.
Hourly Costs Are Crucial to Consider
If you decide to play one of the most popular video poker games, Jacks or Better, you’ll be betting with a 0.46% house edge.
This sounds amazing compared to any other casino game, but it’s essential to go beyond these percentages and calculate your hourly costs.
With that in mind, let’s say that you’re playing max coins on every video poker hand and playing 500 hands per hour at a maximum amount of $1.25 for every hand.
In this scenario, you’re losing around $3 per hour.
If you decide to bet just one coin instead of the max five, you’re betting $0.25 per hand. This puts your hourly losses closer to $2.
And, while this $1 difference per hour doesn’t seem like much, if you’re in it for the long run, it can significantly affect your bankroll.
Your Level of Experience Also Plays a Role
While similar to slots in many aspects, video poker is a much more challenging game. It involves more complex strategic elements and even a solid degree of decision-making.
And, when there are decisions involved, the house edge increases considerably when you’re making less than optimal choices.
Considering this, if you’re a new video poker player, betting max coins right off the bet is counterproductive.
That said, if you feel that you’ve honed your video poker skills a bit, playing max coins can be beneficial.
Should You Bet The Max When Playing Video Poker?
After examining both the good and the bad of such a video poker strategy, it’s safe to say that you should most likely not bet the maximum amount of coins when playing video poker.
In most cases, the potential payout you’re hoping for doesn’t justify all the extra money you’ll be putting in per hour when betting on max coins.
This is especially important to consider if you’re a beginner or a casual gambler. Betting the max amount will just end up eating your bankroll more quickly.
If you’re a professional gambler with a large video poker bankroll, it might be worth trying. But, in most other cases, you can’t beat playing video poker with a single coin.
