Almost all Online Video Poker machines use a Random Number Generator (RNG). The Players goal is to build the best hand possible starting with the first cards that are dealt. The opening hand dealt to the player is five cards. Then the player decides which ones to hold and which ones to discard. When the cards are discarded new cards are dealt to replace them bringing the hand total to five cards again.
The best way to decide which cards to hold and which to discard to build the best hand possible is to know the percentages, or odds of what the possible hands are that can be built from your starting cards. For instance, if you hold a pair of jacks, you automatically know it will be impossible to build a flush, straight, or royal flush. However, you have a chance to build three of a kind, two pair, four of a kind or a full house. What makes Video Poker such a good game to play is that many video poker machines pay out close to 100 per cent or more if you know how to play them. But casinos know most people won't bother to learn how to play the machines properly and that is how casinos make their money.

There are 2,598,960 possible hands that can be made with the 52 card deck that is used to play Video Poker. The RNG in machines is set to achieve that number of hands with the possible odds that number represents. Don't get nervous about big numbers. You really do have a very good chance to win because many of those hands pay off. And the payoff is where a little research before you play can really help to make you a winner. The odds of each hand occuring have already been set by the RNG so, the casino gets an advantage by setting the odds or payouts for each winning hand. That is where smart shopping will really pay off. Because if you can read the pay tables and understand them, you will know what your chances of winning are. This doesn't require any difficult math, it is really quite simple and that's why you should read the pay table before playing any video poker machine.

The table below shows how the pay tables are related to the overall return of the machine. Full House / Flush Return = Approximate Machine/Game Return. 9-1 for a full house and 6-1 for a flush = approximate machine payout of 99.5%
8-1 for a full house and 5-1 for a flush = approximate machine payout of 97.4%
7-1 for a full house and 5-1 for a flush = approximate machine payout of 96.3%
6-1 for a full house and 5-1 for a flush = approximate machine payout of 95.2%
It is almost always advisable to play the maximum number of coins on a good machine. This allows you to take advantage of bonus payouts for a royal flush etc. Playing progressive machines is also a good idea, simply because the payouts can be much bigger if you hit a royal flush. Try to find progressive machines that are showing approximately 80 per cent of the full payout amount.

Payout tables for each Online video poker game.

Jacks or Better Payout Percentages Royal flush 940 800 800 800 800 800 800 800
Straight flush 50 50 50 40 50 50 50 50
4 of a kind 25 25 80 20 80 25 80 25
Full house 9 9 8 9 8 8 7 7
Flush 6 6 6 6 5 5 5 5
Straight 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
3 of a kind 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
2 pair 2 2 1 2 1 2 1 2
Jacks/better 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Return 99.9% 99.54% 98.49% 98.25% 97.4% 97.3% 96.25% 96.15%

Deuces Wild Payout Percentages
Natural royal 800 800 800 800 800 800
4 deuces 200 200 400 500 200 200
Wild royal 25 25 25 25 20 25
5 of a kind 15 16 16 12 12 15
Straight flush 9 10 11 8 9 9
4 of a kind 5 4 4 4 5 4
Full house 3 4 3 3 3 4
Flush 2 3 2 2 2 3
Straight 2 2 2 2 2 2
3 of a kind 1 1 1 1 1 1
Return 100.76% 99.73% 99.62% 99.2% 98.94% 98.91%

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