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One of the most debated topics regarding slot machines is max bet and whether or not your should always hit that bet max button. There is no definite answer to the question as it really depends on the game you are playing. In this article we take a comprehensive look at all of the game types and situations and give you recommendations on what is the best way to play.

What is Max Bet?

Just in case you are new to playing slots Max Bet or Maximum Bet is the highest amount of coins or credits you can play in a single spin. For example most classic slots let you play up to three coins per spin - a max bet of three coins. This gets a bit more complicated with video slots - see below for details.

Classic Slots

While max bet is not always necessary you will often find that there is a good reward for betting max. For example you might have a game that pays 1,000 for one coin, 2,000 for two coins and 5,000 for the max of three coins. In this case you get an additional 3,000 coins for just one extra coin bet.

If you are playing a game where all of the jackpots are in proportion then it is totally up to you whether you bet max. For example a game which has a top jackpot of 3,000 for three coin play (Max Bet), a 2,000 coin win for two coins and a 1,000 coin win for one coin. Each coin can win an additional 1,000 coins.

There is one type of classic slots that require max bet. These games are known as Buy A Pay slots. Quite simply they have two or three different pay tables. Each coin activates an additional pay table. If you play less than max bet you cannot win any of the top prizes even if you hit the right symbols.

Progressive Slots

There is one type of slot machine that makes playing max bet an absolute must - games with a progressive jackpot. Almost all progressives require that you bet the maximum number of coins to qualify for the top jackpot. If you play less than max you cannot win the top jackpot.

We don't recommend playing progressives unless you intend to play max. You are much better off going for a non progressive slots. This is because you can hit the top winning combo and in some cases get nothing because you are a few coins short. In other cases you will get a small consolation prize but this is always just a fraction of the main progressive jackpot.

Bonus Feature Slots

On slots with a bonus game there is no set rule as to what to bet. In some cases you will be required to play max to win the jackpot and in some cases you will not have to. Before playing any bonus game slot be sure to read the pay out table to find out if max bet is required.

Multi-line Slots

If you are playing a three reel game with more that one pay line then it is always a good idea to play max bet. This is because in most cases each additional coin activated an additional pay line. Quite often the highest jackpots are only available on certain lines. If you play less than max you cannot win them.

5 Reel and Video Slots

This is where things get interesting as there are so many variations. In general you do not have to play max bet on video slots unless there is a progressive jackpot involved. We suggest playing max lines but not necessarily max bet. This is because on many games you can bet more than one coin per line.

Slot Machine Bonus Max Bet

For example a 20 line slot with the option to bet 10 coins per line has a 200 coin max bet. Even at the penny coin size this turns into $2 a spin. In most cases you will be fine with just one coin per line and can therefore play for as little as 20 a spin. There is a minor catch - your jackpots won't be as big.

Macaw Money Slot Machine Max Bet

The reason for this is that wins are multiplied by your bet per line so a game with a 10,000 coins jackpot and a max bet of 10 coins per line can pay a 100,000 coins win at max bet. Playing just one coin per line will yield a 10,000 coins jackpot only. This is a trade off between low bets and bigger wins.

Conclusions

One of the most important tips we can give you is to always spend a moment reading the pay table of the game you are about to play. All pay tables indicate whether or not max bet is required for any jackpots or features. Another good tip is that if you find a game where playing max is needed and the game is too expensive for you try to find the same game with a lower coin size.

One of the most frequent questions I get asked by slot machine players is, “Should I play max credits?”

Years ago, anybody that had any knowledge about slot machines knew that you always play the maximum number of credits or coins. It was similar to video poker where you should never play without betting max coins because if you do, you won’t qualify for the bonus when you hit the royal flush. If you can’t afford to play max coins then you need to drop down in the denomination you are playing. In other words, if you can’t afford to play 5 credits on the dollar machine ($5 per spin) drop down to the 50 cent machine so you can play 5 credits ($2.50 per spin). This advice held true for slots as well because almost all slots offered a jackpot bonus.

Let’s first take a look at why that advice was so important. If you didn’t play the maximum coins on those machines you did not qualify for the bonus the machine gave you for the jackpot. By not playing max coins you were not receiving the maximum payback percentage from that machine. As I’ve talked about in the past, every slot machine is set to payback a certain percentage of the money it takes in. This percentage is set over a long period of time so it doesn’t mean that if you put in $100 on a machine that has an 88% payback, you would win $88. That wouldn’t make a whole lot of sense and wouldn’t be much fun. It is set for the long-term, but the casino is guaranteed to make money over the long haul on that machine.

By not betting max coins, you are lowering the payback percentage even more. Some slots have a low set payback percentage so you certainly don’t want to do anything to make it even worse. The best example is the large progressive Megabucks slot machine that I’ve posted about before. You should be shot if you are playing that machine without playing max credits. That slot machine already has a low payback, usually between 85-88%, and by not qualifying for the jackpot that payback is lowered even more. Not only that, but if you ever did hit the jackpot not playing max credits, you would probably want to jump off a bridge. NEVER play these games without max credits bet.

A common mistake that many people succumb to is when they are down to their last credits. Say they are playing a $1 Megabucks machine that requires three credits to qualify for the jackpot. They might put in $100 and when they get down to only $2 left, instead of going through the hassle of cashing out $2 or having to put in another $1 they go ahead and spin the reels with only 2 credits bet. DON”T DO IT. I’m saving you a life of psychiatric counseling if you ever hit the jackpot in this situation.

Slot Machine High Limit Max Bet Group Pull

With the introduction of video slots things have changed dramatically. This advice is no longer viable for many machines. In fact, you want to do the opposite for any machine that doesn’t have a bonus jackpot. As a player you are better off playing one credit on a dollar denomination machine than 4 credits on a 25 cent machine. The reason is the higher denomination machines are usually set at a higher payback percentage. In essence, the proper play on slot machines has reversed. However, there are some video slots that do offer large progressive jackpots or bonus jackpots so for those machines the old rule holds true. Always play maximum coins on those machines or play another machine.

The bottom line is as a gambler you need to understand what you are playing. I know it’s fun to put money in a machine you’ve never played before and just hope for beginners luck, but if you do that on the wrong machine and realize you could have won the million dollar jackpot, you will never forgive yourself.

Max Bet Jackpot Slot Winners

When this does happen people try to comfort themselves with the notion that the machine only let them hit the jackpot because they weren’t betting max credits. They tell themselves it would not have hit if they were betting maximum credits. That’s completely false. The RNG has no idea how many credits you play, and the RNG sequence for the jackpot is the same no matter how many credits you play. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news to anyone this has happened to, but as long as the machine uses a RNG it’s true.