Video poker is one of the few casino games where the player's input has a major effect on the outcome of the game. Every time you push Deal you receive five new cards and have a total of thirty-two ways to play the hand. To be a successful video poker player, you have to make the best choice out of those thirty-two options as often as possible.

1. Strategy For Video Poker
2. Video Poker Tips And Strategies
3. Perfect Video Poker Strategy Against

Since computers can mathematically analyze all thirty-two ways to play any given hand, it is possible to figure out the absolutely correct decision for every hand you receive. However, most players don't carry around high powered computers when they are in the casino, so how is this useful?

Well, fortunately for us, some video poker experts have taken it upon themselves to analyze every single hand that can come off the deck, and assemble their findings into easy to read charts that teach players how to play. Below we have strategy charts for the most common video poker games:

Where to Play Video Poker Online

Free Video Poker Strategy Chart. To succeed in video poker you have to play perfectly. You can find strategy tables online that will tell you exactly what to do in every situation. You should have the strategy guide open while you play online. Print out a copy and take it with you, as the strategy. Reading a video poker strategy chart is far easier than many beginner players anticipate. To put it simply, strategy charts will show you various possible hands you could be dealt in the game. The list will always place the best possible hand at the top, then second best and so on and so forth. Play perfect Basic Strategy and suddenly you’re in the driver’s seat. A variation is an 11/4 machine, also a nice option for good players — with a miniscule house edge of only.004 percent. Six-time Poker World Series winner Daniel Negreanu has spent decades honing his poker strategy, which includes everything from value bets to how to avoid tilt and proper bankroll management. Advance your poker game from Daniel Negreanu’s MasterClass and make every hand your best hand. Steve and Matt Bourie, from the American Casino Guide, give their five best tips for winning at video poker. Topics covered include: getting a player's club.

Most of our pages above list just an expert-level strategy chart that will get you to within 0.1% of the maximum payout percentage for the respective game. Some of the pages also list a beginner-level strategy chart that isn't as accurate, but is easier to follow. If you want to play video poker on your PC check out our guide here. Alternatively, you can also have a look at this site's list of ipad video poker app for real money.

How to Use a Video Poker Strategy Chart

The strategy charts on our site are actually very simple to understand, but to a beginner they may be a bit overwhelming at the start. To use a chart you follow these steps:

1. Analyze your hand. Make sure you look at all five of your cards before looking at the chart.
2. Start at the top of the chart and work down. You are looking for any spots on the chart where your hand matches up. For example, if you had four hearts in your hand as well as a pair of Kings, it would match up with 'Four to a Flush' as well as 'High Pair'.
3. Once you find a couple matches for your hand, observe which one is highest on the chart. Hold the cards indicated by the highest match.

If you still are a little confused, check out the below example to clear things up:

An Example Hand Analysis

Imagine you are playing a normal Deuces Wild video poker machine. You push 'Draw', and are dealt the hand below:

Ok, so what do we have here as far as options? Well, first of all, we have a Pat Straight, Seven to Jack - a made hand. We also have four clubs, so we have Four to a Flush. If we look at the chart below (a condensed strategy chart for Deuces Wild), we can see that a Pat Straight is just above Four to a Flush, so the Pat Straight is the better hand of the two.

But wait! Since all we need for a straight flush is the nine of clubs, we also have Four to a Straight Flush. Because Four to a Straight Flush is higher on the chart than both a Pat Straight and Four to a Flush, the correct play here is to hold the four clubs and discard the nine of spades in hopes of hitting the Straight Flush.

See - it really isn't bad at all, as long as you pay attention to all the cards in your hand.

How Accurate are Strategy Charts?

Another intelligent question to ask is how accurate are these charts? If you find a game that returns 100.5%, but your chart has 0.6% error in it, then you are actually only playing at a 99.9% return - also known as a losing gamble.

Well, the charts on our site are on roughly accurate to within 0.1% of perfect play. So, if you find that game that returns 100.5%, you would be actually earning about 100.4% with our charts - not too bad. Not many charts get much closer than 0.1% because they would have to be extremely long and complicated to explain the subtle differences in rare hands.

Video Poker Strategy Software

There are quite a few programs out there than can develop custom strategy charts for all kinds of games with various pay tables. We have reviewed quite a few of these programs, here are links to our reviews:

So, you’ve decided that you want to get the most out of your casino visits and want to take up video poker. Excellent choice – when it comes to online poker versus online video poker, the latter is more likely to pay more. With perfect strategy, many video poker machines can pay play over 100 percent of the money they gamble, making video poker one of the most consistently lucrative games on the casino floor.

But before you hit the machines or begin the five steps to becoming a poker master, make sure to check out these video poker tips and tricks – they’ll help you get the most bang for your buck and keep your bankroll fat and happy.

Manage your budget

The number one tip for any gambler is to put on the line only what you can afford to lose. You want to make sure you can still pay your rent or mortgage payment and keep your car, so don’t gamble what you can’t spend at the casino. Keep your bills paid and your mind at ease by keeping essential money saved for essential things, and using your fun money to gamble.

The best way to follow this rule is to set both spending and winning budgets for each session and stick to them religiously. If you can only afford to spend $100 today, stop paying when you’ve hit that limit. That’s common sense.

But it sounds weird to set a winning budget – why would you want to stop when you’re ahead? Shouldn’t you continue playing? The problem with this mentality is that it always screws you over in the end. If you keep playing past your winning budget because you’re on a hot streak, the streak will inevitably turn cold, and you may sink even deeper trying to recover money lost. Winning is a good thing – winning and paying it all back to the casino is not.

Practice discipline and use your common sense. Never chase money, and don’t try to catch up when you’re falling behind. If things aren’t going so hot, walk away. And if you reach your winning budget, at least put away a large portion of your winnings before you continue playing. You want to end up in the black, not the red. Head over to CoolCat to play video poker for free and practice managing your budget.
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The perfect game

Video poker is the only game on the casino floor that tells you what you could earn by implementing perfect play. Sure, slot machines give you a variance number, but they’re also based on pure luck and not strategy. Video poker machines literally tell you how much they’ll pay based on how well you play.

One of the best video poker tips – shop around until you find the games with the best returns. The paytables are displayed on the game’s glass or they can be found in the help screens if you’re playing online. Some video poker games have been known to pay over 100 percent with perfect play, so look around before settling on one. Your wallet will thank you.
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Bet max coins

Always bet the maximum number of coins. It sounds counterintuitive after the first video poker tip was to set a budget and stick with it, but it’s the only way to get the highest rewards. Only the max bet gives you the best payout for a Royal Flush and other jackpots.

So don’t play the dollar video poker machine and bet one coin at a time. Instead, find a quarter game and bet the full $1.25 every spin. If your budget is smaller, find a machine with a lower maximum and play that one, but bet the max every time. Just make sure you factor that into your budget to see how long you could play. But if you bet the max and use proper strategy, you’ll make more money, be able to play longer, and earn more comps in the long run. Check out CoolCat’s video poker page and play your favorites now to see their maximum bets!

Strategy For Video Poker

Cool it on the booze

You might be an exception, but the general rule is that people make poor decisions when they’ve had too much to drink. You’ve followed all the video poker tips so far: you’ve made a budget, you’ve learned the proper strategy, and you’ve found the perfect machine to play. Don’t ruin it all by getting smashed on the cocktails the waitresses keep bringing by. If you do, you might go over budget, start making stupid mistakes, and be tempted to stay at the table longer than you should in an attempt to win back the money you’ve lost.

Serious video poker players who are looking to take full advantage of their casino visit do not get carried away with free booze, and neither should you. Have a drink or two – you’re supposed to be having fun, after all – but don’t go crazy if you want to walk away with anything in your pocket.
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Practice before you play

Along with reading about how old pai gow poker is and other poker information to learn more, you need to practice. Besides the video poker tip about sticking to a budget, this is probably the most important rule if you want to win any money. To get really good at video poker, you need to learn the right playing strategy for your favorite games. There are a multitude of books, strategy cards, and learning courses available to teach you how to become a professional video poker player, so take advantage of all the knowledge you can get ahold of.

Video Poker Tips And Strategies

Perfect Video Poker Strategy Against

Next, make sure you practice! You can play video poker for free at CoolCat Casino and implement that perfect strategy you’ve learned all about before betting a single penny. Then, when you’re confident in your gameplay, you can play the same game you already love and start winning real money.

Now that you know the tips and tricks of video poker, put it all to the test. Head over to CoolCat Casino and practice playing video poker today and who knows – you could be lining your pockets in no time!