Video Poker Strategy, Tips and Guide to Full Pay VideoPoker in 2023

For the online video poker player, there is something here for all. We feature the lowdown on 20 odd online video poker games with strategy, paytables, video poker odds, hints, and tips. Select your video poker game from the dropdown menu for more detailed info. New to online video poker?
You find the basics guide, comprehensive video poker dictionary, and reviewed online casinos with great free video game software to download and useful video poker links. Enjoy, and may the Royal Flush come your way soon!

What is Video Poker Games?

In essence, Video Poker is a machine version of poker’s popular table game, and it is about here any similarity ends. Video Poker has set paytables, and you are playing a machine, so there is no bluffing. Pairs are strong in almost every game type. The game’s set paytables give the knowledgeable player the advantage in forming a video poker playing strategy. More on that later. Playing the game is easy; playing well requires a little bit more. Here you will gain a basic understanding of developing a good video poker strategy. Learn the NEW Sportbetting Techniques today.

House Advantage in Video Poker

Video Poker has very high returns, in many cases, over 100%. How can this be? The house advantage in the game of video poker relies on player error. The more mistakes you make, the less chance you will have of reaching the expected payouts for a machine. It is as simple as that! We are not talking about any system here, just good old mathematical probability. If you play well over a period of time, you will be well on your way. We won’t blind you with science as the game’s focus is to have fun and lots of it. But hey, if you can win at video poker using a good video poker strategy too. Looking for the Best Casino bonuses today?

How to Analyze and Interpret VideoPoker Pay Tables

The paytable at the left is what you will see on a Jacks or Better 9/6 machine. The paytable is not just eye candy to show what you can win; it is, in fact, the key to determining how you would play any chosen game of video poker.

Other Jacks or Better games offer different payouts and lower percentages than 9/6 (= 9 coins for “Full house” and 6 coins for “Flush”). We are looking at the 9/6 game as it is the most popular of the Jacks or Better and offers a return of 99.5%. There are 32 ways to hold any dealt hand, and it is the probability of winning combinations that give us the return percentage for any given game.

Don’t worry about getting out your calculator as we have presented all the payout percentages, strategy and analysis for the various video poker games. So, in the above paytable, you could play $100 on a 5c machine at a 5 coin bet, giving you 400 hands of play. At 99.5% return, you would expect at worst to lose 50c. At best you might pull a Royal Flush. You now might be starting to see the attraction of video poker to the enthusiast! Always bet five coins (the maximum bet) is a golden rule of video poker, and it is the only way to reach the maximum payout of a chosen game. The aim here is for perfect play, no errors, and the budding video poker player’s goal. Playing online Card Poker? Visit the updated Poker Strategy and best Tips for 2023

Winning Video-Poker Hands

Royal Flush  ♣A ♣K ♣Q ♣J ♣10 Ace, King, Queen, Jack and 10 all of the same suit. Straight Flush  KQJ109 Five cards in numerical sequence and of the same suit. Four of a Kind JJ JJ Four cards of the same rank regardless of suit. Full House  QQQAA Three of a kind and a pair. Flush  859610 Five cards of the same suit. Straight  109876 Five cards in sequence. Ace considered to be high or low. Three of a Kind  77786 Three cards of the same rank. Two Pair  1010885 Two pairs. Jacks or Better  JJ9105 A pair of jacks, queens, kings or aces.

The above table shows the winning hands for the granddaddy of video poker, Jacks or Better.

How to Analyze and Interpret Video Poker Pay Tables

Coins Bet  >	1	2	3	4	5
Royal Flush	250	500	750	1000	4000
Straight Flush	50	100	150	200	250
4 of a Kind	25	50	75	100	125
Full House	9	18	27	36	45
Flush	6	12	18	24	30
Straight	4	8	12	16	20
3 of a Kind	3	6	9	12	15
2 Pairs	2	4	6	8	10
Pair of Jacks or Better	1	2	3	4	5

What Is Full Pay Video Poker?

Full pay video poker offers the best payout schedule for any particular game.

For example, 9/6 Jacks or Better as opposed to 8/6-Jacks or Better, or any other game supporting a full pay video poker schedule plus a progressive jackpot. The Full pay video poker machine offers a maximum average payback close to 100%.

A Full Pay Jacks or Better poker machine has an Average Maximum Payback of approximately 99.5%, and a Full Pay Deuces Wild poker machine has a maximum average payback of roughly 100.7%

Ready for a game of Video Poker?

Where to Start to play Poker Video online?
As a video-poker rookie, a smart poker variant to start with will be the good old “Jacks or Better video poker” as the strategy in this video-poker version is straight forward with a great return. You can download and play any poker casino software for free when plying in learning mode. Play a couple of hundred hands of JOB video poker and see how you go. You will soon get a feel for the game. RTG software is a favourite among players for the sheer volume of games on offer, but you should also check out the Microgaming software as a lot of players prefer that. Ready for a game of Live Poker?

21 Video Poker Game Types

There has been an explosion of game variations. On this site, we feature 20 plus variations of the game. There are Jacks or Better video poker, Bonus video poker games and the Wild Card type games like Deuces Wild video poker and Jokers Wild video poker. The Bonus games offer payouts for additional hand types displayed in the payout tables.

For example:

Bonus Video Poker offers additional payouts for Four Aces, Four Deuces, Threes or Fours.
Double Bonus Video Poker has some exciting bonus payouts for Four Aces, Four Deuces, Threes or Fours and Four Fives through Kings.
Double Double Bonus Video Poker has special bonus payouts for Four Aces, Four Aces with a Deuce, Two, Three or Four kicker*, Four Deuces, Threes or Fours with an Ace through Four kicker*, Four Deuces, Threes or Fours – and Four Fives through Kings.

The Double Double Jackpot Video Poker has special bonus payouts typically for;

• Four Aces.
• Four Aces with a King, Queen or Jack kicker*.
• Four Kings.
• Four Kings with an Ace, King, Queen, Jack kicker.
• Four Queens.
• Four Queens with an Ace, King, Queen, Jack kicker.
• Four Jacks.
• Four Jacks with an Ace, King, Queen, Jack kicker.
• Four Deuces through Tens.

*A Kicker in video poker is the 5th card when you have 4 of a kind; it will affect the payout. Eg. In double double bonus video poker, when you have 4 Aces, deuces, threes or fours, the fifth card must be an Ace, deuce, three or four to receive the bonus payout. The same applies to 4 Jacks, Queens, Kings or Aces if the kicker is a Jack, Queen, King or Ace in the double double jackpot.

The Wild Card games such as the popular Deuces Wild have the Deuces (Two’s) as the Wild Card. Put, If I drew a pair of Seven’s and a Deuce, this would be counted as Three Of A Kind. There are also Jokers WildGames, Seven’s Wild and other variations.

Multiplay, Triple Play and Power Poker

Increasingly popular are the multiplay video poker games (triple play, power poker etc.). These are standard video poker game types that allow you to play multiple hands at once, up to 10 hands in some cases. Casinos with multiplay video poker and triple play video poker you find listed in the reviews section.

Double Up or Not To Double Up?

Some video poker games also feature a Double Up option. This double-up feature allows you to draw a single card against the video poker machine on a winning hand to double your winnings. The dealer draws first, player second. Highest card wins. You are allowed to double up as many times as you like until you lose that is. There are as many opinions on whether you should double up or not as there are poker players. (it’s an individual choice.)

Build your Video poker Strategy

By now, you should have an understanding that it is the different winning hand combinations and variations that create the video poker strategy you would use and determine from the paytables for any chosen game. It is also these different combinations that determine the probability and payout percentages for any given game. Find the video-poker game you wish to play, become familiar with the paytables that will be the basis of your video poker strategy. Have fun and may the Royal Flush come your way.

LEGEND

Hand: is the video poker hand dealt or held.

Payout: is the number of coins for the winning video poker hand. Based on a 5 coin max bet. Always max bet to achieve payout percentages!

Frequency: is the number of times that the hand will occur in video poker.

Probability: is the contribution of the video poker hand to the total payout percentage.

Occurs: is the chance of the hand occurring (once every, so many video poker hands played.)

Return: is the percentage of the total return that the hand will contribute to the overall return in the particular video poker game.

Variation: is the deviation of the game from expected play. The higher the variation, the more volatile the video poker game and lower variance lends more to expected and stable video poker play.

Deuces Deluxe Video Poker

Deuces Deluxe Video Poker has many decent bonus payouts with reasonably low volatility and good payback. Minimum payout hand is 3 of a kind. A quick look at the below Deuces Deluxe paytable will show bonus payouts for four deuces (dueces), a natural straight flush, royal flush with a deuce, five of a kind, wild straight flush and a wild four of a kind (4OAK)

Loose Deuces Video Poker

Loose Deuces Video Poker (sometimes misspelt as dueces) has no Jacks or Better type of payout so don’t leave your hat at the door. Loose Deuces Video Poker payouts are excellent, and variation is almost over the top! Serious players only, please. Ok, we all like to live dangerously on occasions, and Loose Deuces Video Poker fits the bill. Pairs are strong, hold only the wild(s) in any rubbish hand. An ace in a rubbish hand will do you no good. Let it go. Now, go get those four deuces!

Where to play Loose Dueces?

Loose Deuces 100.97%

All American Video Poker

All American Video Poker is also a kind of basic version of Jacks or Better Video-Poker game, but don’t make the mistake of following the regular JOB strategy. Don’t be fooled by the same payouts for Jacks or Better or Two Pair here. You would always hold two pairs no matter what, unlike Double Double Bonus where you would hold a pair of aces if dealt a pair of aces and a pair of jacks because there are fewer kickers. Spend a lot of time drawing for straight flushes as there is a 1/64 chance in All American as opposed to 1/90 in Jacks or Better. All American pays out 1000 credits! Although All American Video Poker’s volatility is in the higher range, the payout ratio is tempting for this game. All American Video Poker is a challenging poker game for Medium to advanced players.

All American Video Poker 100.72%

Joker Poker (Jokers Wild) Kings or Better

Joker Poker Kings or Better Video Poker (Jokers Wild) has pairs strong, and you can play a Jacks or Better strategy with kings as high cards safely, hold your royals of the same suit unless you have a pair. The volatility of the variation in Jokers Wild should be taken into account. High payout and average variance make this an excellent intermediate game. There are variations, but Kings or Better is the highest payout game. Joker Poker has a 53rd card in the deck.

Jokers Poker (Jokers Wild) Kings or Better: 100.65%

Double Double Jackpot Video Poker

Double Double Jackpot Video Poker can be a little tricky initially, especially if you try to follow a double-double bonus strategy. Here, In Double Double Jackpot Video Poker if you have two pairs and one pair is aces you hold both pairs. The payoff is in the bonus hands, so use a basic Jacks or Better strategy and keep an eye out for possible bonus hand combinations.

Where to play Double Double Jackpot Video Poker?

Double Double Jackpot Poker: 100.35%

Double Bonus Video Poker

The Double Bonus Video Poker variant has a good payout percentage with average volatility. Always hold your pairs and examine the payout table to take advantage of the bonus hands. A quick look at the below paytable for Double Bonus Video Poker will reveal the nice Double Bonus hands for 4 Aces and 4 deuces through fours.

Where to play Double Bonus Video Poker?

Double Bonus Poker: 100.17%

Deuces Wild Video Poker

Deuces Wild Video-Poker can seem a little daunting when you first look at the paytables. Deuces Wild Video Poker game is loads of fun if you enjoy the wild card games. The 100%+ payouts of deuces wild make this an attractive game along with medium volatility. Keep a pair over a flush or straight draw and when drawing two pair of anything but deuces, throw one of the pair away in Deuces Wild. You should see four of a kind (4OAK) once every 15 hands or so in Deuces Wild. Don’t discard a Deuce, even if you have a draw to a Royal Flush!

Where to Play Deuces Wild Video Poker online?

Deuces Wild: 100.76%

Pick’em Video Poker

Pick’em Video Poker has a confusing variation over other games but has very low volatility and an excellent return. The fundamental difference is you are dealt 2 single cards, and 2 decks of 3 cards and only 4 cards are visible. Your job in Pick’em Video Poker is to pick one of the 2 stacked piles, and your strategy relies on comparing the visible cards to what may be contained in the 2 sets of hidden cards.
Confusing? Not really, use what you can see and use a basic strategy (taking 9’s as your high cards) based on what is visible. Nothing apparent? Take a stab! Play a few dozen hands, and it will become reasonably transparent on how to play Pickem Video Poker. As usual, pairs are strong.

Where to Play Pick-Em Video Poker?

Pick’em: 99.95%

Aces and Eights Video Poker

Aces and Eights is another game where a basic Jacks or Better video poker strategy will stand you in good stead. A pretty high payout percentage prevails in aces and eights video poker with fairly low volatility, making this a good medium level player game or a next game after mastering jacks or better video poker.
Where to Play Aces and Eights Video Poker?

Average Payout on Aces and Eights: 99.78%

Double Jackpot Video Poker

Double Jackpot Video-Poker can be a little tricky initially, especially if you try to follow a double-double bonus strategy. Here, if you have two pairs and one pair is an ace, you hold both. The payoff is in the bonus hands so use a basic Jacks or Better strategy and keep an eye out for possible bonus hand combinations in Double Jackpot Video Poker.

Where to Play Double Jackpot Video Poker?

Average Payout on Double Jackpot video-poker: 99.63%

Jacks or Better Video Poker

Jacks or Better VideoPoker – Full Pay 9/6
Jacks or Better is the father of the video poker phenomenon and is the best starting place for anyone beginning video poker. The jacks or better video poker strategy from the paytables is relatively straightforward. We have featured Jacks or Better 9/6 (9 coins for a Flush and 6 coins for a Straight) as it is the full pay version of the game.
The strategy is straightforward here, in Jacks or Better pairs are strong, hold an ace and a face (a royal card) of any suit in any otherwise rubbish hand. There are other payout variations for Jacks or Better, but 9/6 has the best payout ratio and is the mainstay of online Jacks or Better.

Where to Play Jacks or Better Video Poker?

Average Payout on Jacks or Better video-poker: 99.54%

Bonus Deuces Wild Video Poker

The Video Poker variant, Bonus Deuces Wild, can seem a little daunting when you first look at the paytables. There are many kickers in Bonus Deuces Wild, but this also raises the volatility into the upper echelons. I tend to double up if the option is available. Bonus Deuces can often pay off well, at least for me. Medium to advanced players.

Where to Play Bonus Deuces Wild Video Poker ?

Average Payout on Bonus Deuces Wild video-poker: 99.45%

Deuces and Jokers Wild Video Poker

Deuces and Jokers Wild is not for the faint of heart or beginner. Deuces and Jokers Wild is a very volatile game and offers a bonus payout of 10,000 coins for a 5 wilds hand. The variation is pretty daunting, but if you plan your strategy and gain familiarity with its quirks, it can sure add some excitement to the day.
There is no payout for Jacks or Better, and you will be discarding many cards you would be familiar holding if not used to Deuces and Jokers Wild.

Where to Play Bonus Deuces Wild Video Poker ?

Average Payout on Deuces and Jokers Wild video-poker: 99.07%

Bonus Video Poker

Bonus Video Poker – has a nice return with little variation and good kickers! Basic Jacks or Better strategy but learn the play well. Notice the bonus payouts for 4 aces. A good tip for the Bonus Video Poker is if dealt two pair and one is a pair of aces, you should hold only the aces to give it a try for the special bonus payout for 4 Aces.

Where to Play Bonus Video Poker?

Average Payout on Bonus Video-Poker: 99.17%

Aces and Faces Video Poker

Aces and Faces Video Poker has pairs strong, and you can play a Jacks or Better Video Poker basic strategy with safety while keeping an eye on the video poker payout table. With Aces and Faces, the high payout and average variance make this an excellent intermediate game, especially if you already have a good grasp of the video poker basics.
Players of Aces and Faces should note the higher payouts at the top of the table and lower for the more commonly hit hands.

Where to Play Aces and Faces Video Poker?

Average Payout on Aces and Faces Video-Poker: 99.26%

Double-Double Bonus Video Poker

The special variant, Double Double Bonus Video Poker has a good payout percentage with very high volatility. Practice on the free play games to get a feel for it. The kickers will bring it in. In this game, it is vital to keep a pair of aces over any other pair and in all cases an ace over any royal card if dealt only one Royal with an ace. The game has quirks but is a favourite if you only play 200-300 hands at a session. The Double Double Bonus paytable below reveals all the excellent payouts for bonus double double hands!
Where to Play Double Double Bonus Video Poker?

Average Payout on Double Double Bonus Video-Poker: 98.98%

Sevens Wild Video Poker – 7’s wild

Sevens Wild Video Poker – 7’s wild
Sevens Wild Video Poker has a reasonably high variation and is a sufficiently volatile game. Much like Deuces Wild, it takes some getting used to if you have a die-hard Jacks or Better strategy habit. The “habit” hands held in JOB would be discarded here as there is no payout for Jacks or Better. Not recommended for beginners as perfect play will take a little practice in Sevens Wild Video Poker.

Where to Play Sevens Wild Poker?

Average Payout on Sevens Wild Video Poker – 7’s wild Video-Poker: 98.80%

Bonus Video Poker Deluxe

Bonus Video Poker Deluxe has a reasonably volatile variation but offers a good return for any four of a kind.
Play your basic Jacks or Better strategy.
In Bonus Video Poker Deluxe All payouts for four of a Kind are 400 coins.
Take a look at the below Bonus Poker Deluxe paytable to get a better understanding of the variations.

Where to Play Bonus Poker Deluxe VidoePoker?

Average Payout on Bonus Video Poker Deluxe: 98.49%

Double Joker Video Poker

Double Joker Video Poker
Double Joker Video Poker can be a little tricky initially, especially if you are trying to follow a Jacks or Better strategy or are comfortable playing Joker Poker which offers a payout on Kings or Better. In Double Joker Video Poker, there is no payout for JOB type hands. For example, if dealt a hand that contains a face and an ace of only apparent value and not of the same suit, you would discard the entire hand in this game. Pairs are strong in Double Joker as in most games. You would, however, hold a face and a ten of the same suit. Learn to treat the Joker as a gold visa card. Wild cards are just that, wild.

Where to Play Double Joker Video Poker?

Average Payout on Double Joker Video-Poker: 98.1%

Tens or Better Video Poker

Tens- or Better video poker; should be played with Jacks or Better strategy holding the tens over jacks.
Tens or Better is a reasonably easy game to master if already familiar with “Jacks or better” poker. There is little variation in tens or better video poker and a good beginner game to master.

Where to Play Tens or Better Video ?

Average Payout on Tens or Better Video-Poker: 97.96%

Louisiana Double Video Poker

Louisiana Double Features very low volatility making it one of the most stable of the video poker variations. Consequently, this game’s return is not thrilling. But for the adventurous player, can gain the advantages of Louisiana Double Poker in the double-up option.
A 53RD card is known as the double card. A card which when held in a winning hand automatically doubles your winnings. A low payout on the Royal compensates for the higher payout on the Straight Flush and Four of a Kind. Louisiana Double requires a Jacks or Better Strategy.
Where to Play Louisiana Double Video Poker?

Average Payout on Louisiana Double Video-Poker: 94.08%

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