Online video poker for real money combines the speed of a slot machine with the decisions of draw poker. It is also one of the few casino games where you can see the exact odds before you play: the pay table on screen tells you the game’s return. Full-pay Jacks or Better returns about 99.54% with perfect strategy, far better than most slots. This guide explains how video poker works, how to read pay tables, the best games, core strategy and where to play legally in the US.
Casino Funk does not run games or take bets. This guide is educational, and video poker still has a house edge on most pay tables.
Key takeaways
- 9/6 Jacks or Better returns 99.54% with perfect strategy; 8/5 drops to 97.30% and 6/5 to 95.00%.
- Always check the pay table: the same game name can differ by more than 4% in return.
- Bet max coins: the royal flush pays 4,000 coins at 5 coins versus 250 per coin with fewer.
- A royal flush hits about once every 40,390 hands in 9/6 Jacks or Better.
- Real-money online video poker is legal in NJ, PA, MI, WV, CT, DE and RI for players 21+.
Online video poker at a glance
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Goal | Make the best five-card poker hand after one draw |
| Most popular game | Jacks or Better |
| Best common pay table | 9/6 Jacks or Better: 99.54% return with perfect strategy |
| Common weaker pay table | 8/5 Jacks or Better: about 97.30% |
| Key tip | Always bet max coins for the royal flush bonus |
| Legal US states | NJ, PA, MI, WV, CT, DE, RI |
| Age | 21+ |
How video poker works
- Choose your coin size and number of coins (usually 1 to 5).
- You are dealt five cards.
- Choose which cards to hold. The rest are replaced in a single draw.
- Your final hand is paid according to the pay table.
Each hand is dealt from a freshly shuffled 52-card deck (53 in Joker Poker). Unlike live poker, you are not playing against other people. You win if your final hand appears on the pay table.
How to read a video poker pay table
Video poker games with the same name can have very different returns. The quickest check in Jacks or Better is the payout for a full house and a flush, per coin. “9/6” means a full house pays 9 and a flush pays 6.
| Hand (per coin) | 9/6 Jacks or Better | 8/5 Jacks or Better |
|---|---|---|
| Royal flush | 250 (4,000 for 5 coins) | 250 (4,000 for 5 coins) |
| Straight flush | 50 | 50 |
| Four of a kind | 25 | 25 |
| Full house | 9 | 8 |
| Flush | 6 | 5 |
| Straight | 4 | 4 |
| Three of a kind | 3 | 3 |
| Two pair | 2 | 2 |
| Jacks or better | 1 | 1 |
| Return with perfect play | 99.54% | 97.30% |
That one-unit difference on full houses and flushes costs more than 2% of return. Always look for the full-pay version of a game.
Best online video poker games
| Game | Full-pay return | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Jacks or Better (9/6) | 99.54% | Best starting game; simple strategy |
| Bonus Poker (8/5) | 99.17% | Bigger pays for four of a kind |
| Double Double Bonus (10/6) | About 100.07% | High volatility; rare at full pay online |
| Deuces Wild (full pay) | About 100.76% | Very rare at full pay; most versions pay much less |
| Joker Poker (Kings or better) | Varies by pay table | 53-card deck with one wild joker |
Returns above 100% assume perfect strategy and a full-pay table. Most online versions pay less, so always check the pay table in the game’s help screen.
Jacks or Better strategy basics
Perfect strategy depends on the exact pay table, but these priorities cover most hands in 9/6 Jacks or Better. Hold the first option on the list that applies to your hand:
- Any four of a kind, straight flush or royal flush.
- Four cards to a royal flush.
- Any three of a kind, straight, flush or full house (keep a straight or flush unless you have four to a royal).
- Four cards to a straight flush.
- Two pair.
- A high pair (jacks or better).
- Three cards to a royal flush.
- Four cards to a flush.
- A low pair (2s through 10s).
- Four cards to an outside straight.
- Two suited high cards.
- Three cards to a straight flush.
- Two unsuited high cards (keep the lowest two if you have three).
- A suited 10 with a high card (J, Q or K).
- One high card.
- If nothing else applies, discard all five cards.
Common mistakes include holding a kicker with a pair, breaking a high pair to chase a flush, and keeping three unsuited high cards. Many casino apps also show a free “hint” or trainer mode in demo play, which is a good way to practise.
Why you should bet max coins
The royal flush pays 250 per coin for 1 to 4 coins, but 800 per coin with 5 coins. Playing fewer than 5 coins lowers the return of 9/6 Jacks or Better by more than 1%. If max coins is too expensive, choose a smaller coin size instead of fewer coins.
Multi-hand video poker
Multi-hand games (Triple Play, Ten Play, Fifty Play) deal several hands from the same starting cards. The return per hand is the same as the single-hand game with the same pay table, but your total bet and volatility rise quickly. Budget for the total wager per round, not the per-hand bet.
Where to play online video poker legally in the US
Real-money online video poker is available only in states with licensed online casinos: New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Michigan, West Virginia, Connecticut, Delaware and Rhode Island. You must be 21+ and physically in the state. See our legal map.
Licensed brands with video poker include BetMGM, DraftKings, FanDuel, Caesars Palace Online, bet365 and Fanatics. Caesars Palace Online is a good starting point for video poker fans. Note that many casinos count video poker at a reduced rate toward bonus wagering; Caesars, for example, has used 30x on video poker versus 15x on slots. See wagering requirements explained.
Full-pay vs short-pay: return by pay table
The table below shows the long-run return with perfect strategy for the most common pay tables. The game name alone tells you very little. The same “Jacks or Better” title can return anywhere from 95% to 99.54%.
| Game and pay table | Return with perfect play | House edge |
|---|---|---|
| Jacks or Better 9/6 (full pay) | 99.54% | 0.46% |
| Jacks or Better 8/6 | 98.39% | 1.61% |
| Jacks or Better 8/5 | 97.30% | 2.70% |
| Jacks or Better 7/5 | 96.15% | 3.85% |
| Jacks or Better 6/5 | 95.00% | 5.00% |
| Bonus Poker 8/5 | 99.17% | 0.83% |
| Double Bonus 10/7 | 100.17% | Player edge in theory |
| Double Double Bonus 10/6 | 100.07% | Player edge in theory |
| Double Double Bonus 9/6 | 98.98% | 1.02% |
| Deuces Wild (full pay) | 100.76% | Player edge in theory |
| Deuces Wild “NSU” | 99.73% | 0.27% |
| Deuces Wild “Illinois” / “Airport” | 98.91% | 1.09% |
| Joker Poker, Kings or Better (full pay) | 100.65% | Player edge in theory |
Returns above 100% require flawless strategy for that exact pay table, and the full-pay versions are hard to find online. Treat any game above 99% as an excellent find and any game below 97% as expensive.
How to spot a full-pay game in seconds
- Jacks or Better: look for full house 9 and flush 6 per coin (9/6).
- Bonus Poker: full house 8 and flush 5 (8/5) is the common good version.
- Double Bonus: full house 10, flush 7 (10/7) is full pay; 9/7 and 9/6 return less.
- Double Double Bonus: full house 10, flush 6 (10/6) is full pay; 9/6 is the common version online.
- Deuces Wild: full pay reads 800, 200, 25, 15, 9, 5, 3, 2, 2, 1 per coin for natural royal, four deuces, wild royal, five of a kind, straight flush, four of a kind, full house, flush, straight and three of a kind.
Pay tables are always shown on the game screen or in its help panel. Check them every time, because the same casino may run several versions of one game at different returns.
What the return means for your bankroll
Say you play 25-cent coins at 5 coins, so $1.25 per hand, and you play 1,000 hands. That is $1,250 wagered. With perfect strategy, the expected cost is about $5.75 on 9/6 Jacks or Better, about $33.75 on 8/5, and about $62.50 on 6/5. Same game name, more than ten times the cost.
Video poker is also volatile. In 9/6 Jacks or Better, a royal flush comes along about once every 40,390 hands on average, and a big share of the game’s return comes from that one hand. Between royals, most players are running below the theoretical return. Size your bets so your budget can cover long stretches without a big win.
More video poker mistakes that cost money
- Playing the first version you see. Short-pay tables are common; compare before you choose.
- Using the wrong strategy for the game. Deuces Wild and Double Double Bonus strategies are very different from Jacks or Better.
- Breaking a made hand to chase a royal. Keep a pat flush or straight unless you hold four to a royal flush.
- Holding three to a royal over a high pair. In 9/6 Jacks or Better, the high pair is the better hold.
- Underestimating multi-hand stakes. Ten Play at $1.25 per hand is $12.50 per deal.
- Playing bonus money without checking the terms. Video poker often contributes less to wagering requirements than slots.
How to practise video poker safely
- Use the free-play or demo mode that many licensed US casino apps offer for video poker.
- Turn on any built-in hint or “advice” feature and compare it with your own choices.
- Study one game at a time; 9/6 Jacks or Better is the best place to start.
- Track how often your choices differ from the correct hold. Fewer than one error per few hundred hands is a good target.
- Only move to real money once you are comfortable, and set limits in your account first.
Video poker glossary
- Full pay: the most generous standard pay table for a game.
- Short pay: a reduced pay table with a lower return.
- Return (RTP): the long-run percentage of wagers paid back with perfect play.
- Kicker: an unpaired high card; in most games, do not hold it with a pair.
- Outside straight: four in a row that can be completed at either end, such as 5-6-7-8.
- Inside straight: four cards missing a middle card, such as 5-6-8-9.
- Wild card: a card that can stand in for any card, such as deuces in Deuces Wild.
- Natural royal: a royal flush made without wild cards.
- NSU: “Not So Ugly”, a popular Deuces Wild pay table.
Why video poker is the most transparent casino game
With most slots, you can only trust the RTP figure the game provider publishes. Video poker is different. Because each hand is dealt from a standard shuffled deck and the pay table is shown on screen, the exact return can be calculated by anyone with the right software. That is why the returns in the tables above are known to two decimal places.
This transparency puts the decision in your hands. By reading the pay table, you know before your first bet whether you are playing a 99.5% game or a 95% game. By learning the correct strategy, you control how close you get to that return. Few other casino games give players that much information or that much influence over the cost of play.
More casino game guides: blackjack guide · baccarat guide · roulette guide · Mississippi Stud guide · slots guide.
Online video poker FAQ
What is the best video poker game?
For most players, 9/6 Jacks or Better: a 99.54% return with a simple strategy.
What does 9/6 mean?
A full house pays 9 and a flush pays 6 per coin. Lower numbers mean a lower return.
Is online video poker random?
At state-licensed casinos, yes. Each hand is dealt from a shuffled deck by a tested random number generator.
Is video poker better than slots?
In terms of return, usually yes. Full-pay video poker returns more than most slots, but only with correct strategy.
How often do you hit a royal flush in video poker?
In 9/6 Jacks or Better with optimal strategy, about once every 40,390 hands on average.
Are there video poker games with over 100% return?
Yes, in theory: full-pay Deuces Wild (100.76%), Joker Poker Kings or Better (100.65%), Double Bonus 10/7 (100.17%) and Double Double Bonus 10/6 (100.07%). They need perfect strategy and are rare online.
Information checked October 2026. Real-money online casino games are legal only in states that license them, and only for players aged 21+ who are physically located in those states. Gambling problem? Call or text 1-800-GAMBLER.
Sources and how we checked this guide
Odds and house-edge figures come from published mathematical analyses and state regulations, checked in October 2026. Online casino rules and pay tables vary by game and operator, so always open the game’s help or paytable screen before you play.
