What is RTP? | Use Payout Percentages To Help Choose Which Casino Games to Play in SA

To better understand casino games, it's important to know about RTP works. You might be surprised to hear that every casino game has a different payout percentage and this information can be easily found for any game.

Put simply, the higher the payout percentage, the more likely you are to win when you play!

So, what is RTP in casino games and how does it work?

RTP stands for Return to Player, and is the payout percentage you can expect to get back from the casino as an average. So if a game has an RTP of 97%, it means that for every R100 that you bet, you will get R97 back on average. By taking R3 from every R100 you bet, the casino makes a profit of 3%.

But this doesn’t mean you will always lose R3 of every R100 when you bet. Some players will make a small profit, others will win big, and some punters might end up losing everything. 

The RTP of any game is just the average you can expect over millions of spins or rounds played. So your hope when playing any casino game is always to be one of those people walking away with a profit. Whether that person is you comes down to plain and simple luck!

Why does RTP matter when choosing a game to play?

As we explained, the higher the RTP of a game, the more winnings it pays out in the long run. This doesn't mean you're guaranteed to win more on a game with a higher RTP than a lower RTP, but choosing High RTP games does improve your overall chances of making a profit. 

The more often you play High RTP games over Low RTP games, the better your chances of doing better overall. Knowing the RTP of any casino game can decrease the risk of losing and helps you to spend your money more wisely.

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How is the RTP of casino games calculated?

The RTP of any casino game is calculated by dividing the total amount won by the total amount bet. Unfortunately, payout percentages only reflect reality over millions of spins or game rounds.

So even if you try to make these calculations based on your own play, the maths won't work out exactly because you inevitably wouldn't have played enough times.

RTP = TOTAL AMOUNT WON / TOTAL AMOUNT WAGERED

How do you find the RTP of a casino game?

Finding the RTP of any casino game in South Africa is usually quite easy. You'll need to load the game and look for the Information or Help section to find the RTP for the casino game you're playing.

If you can't find the RTP listed anywhere, try typing into Google the name of the casino game you're playing followed by "RTP" (e.g. "Wealth Inn RTP").

For Habanero Spina Zonke games, find the RTP by clicking the Information button ('i') at the bottom right of your screen. Then select the "Help" tab in the top right and scroll to the bottom of the page. The RTP will be shown under a heading called Return to Player (RTP).

What is a good RTP for casino games?

The good news for casino players in South Africa is that the average RTP for games has been slowly creeping upwards over the years. The basic rule of thumb is DO NOT play casino games with an RTP below 96%, which is about the average RTP.

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Which casino games have a high RTP?

There are just too many games to list here. We suggest you check out the RTP for specific slots or casino games so you can compare them and see which ones are the highest-paying games. 

Generally, table games have a higher RTP than slots across the board. So if you want to maximise your profits over the long run, stick to these kinds of games. For example, the Evolution game Cash or Crash has an RTP of 99.59% and No Commission Baccarat is 98.94%.

There are no slots anywhere that come close to an RTP this high! 

RTP can vary depending on how you choose to play

The RTP of a casino game is not always set in stone. RTP can vary depending on how you choose to play the game. In other words, the types of bets you decide to place or features you buy will sometimes change the RTP of a casino game.

For example, in the game Dragon Tiger, RTP depends completely on which type of bet you place in any round (see below):

The RTP for Orbs of Atlantis, a Habanero slot game, depends on whether you choose to Buy Features and how many you choose to buy. As you can see below, the RTP for normal play in Orbs of Atlantis is different when buying features and changes according to how many features you buy.

Is the RTP of online games the same as playing at a land-based casino?

Not at all. For example, slot games at land-based casinos have an average RTP of 70-74%. In an online casino, the RTP is much higher at around 94-98%. This means your chances of winning when playing casino games online can be more than 20% better than playing at a brick-and-mortar casino!

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For more about online sports betting, casino games and lotteries in South Africa, visit the Betting Guide homepage to find bookmaker reviews, promotions, betting tips and more.