Video poker is a five-card draw against a pay table. You are dealt five cards, hold the ones you want, draw once, and the machine pays according to the final hand. Unlike a slot, the return depends on your decisions, and unlike a table game, the casino's edge is printed on the screen.
This page explains how to read that screen. The returns quoted are the standard results for each pay table with perfect strategy.
Hellspin
4.6/5- Licence
- not stated · Operating company not stated
- Coins
- 5: BTC, ETH, LTC, XRP, USDT
- Withdrawal cap
- €4,000 per day (clause 15)
Operating since 2021.
iWild Casino
4.9/5- Licence
- Curaçao OGL/2024/758/0228 · Goodwin N.V.
- Coins
- 11: BTC, ETH, USDT, USDC, LTC, DOGE
- Withdrawal cap
- $1,000 per day (clause 7.15)
Operating since 2021.
Slotsgem
4.2/5- Licence
- Curaçao OGL/2024/1676/0905 · Latcas B.V.
- Withdrawal cap
- not stated
Operating since 2024.
Ordered by year of launch, longest-running first.
On this page
Reading the pay table
Every Jacks or Better machine pays the same for most hands. What casinos change are the full house and flush lines, and those two numbers move the return a long way:
| Full house / flush | Name | Return with perfect strategy |
|---|---|---|
| 9 / 6 | full pay | about 99.54% |
| 8 / 6 | about 98.39% | |
| 8 / 5 | about 97.30% | |
| 7 / 5 | about 96.15% | |
| 6 / 5 | about 95.00% |
The gap between the top and bottom rows is larger than the gap between European and American roulette. Our arithmetic: CA$2,000 played on 9/6 costs about CA$9 in expectation; on 6/5, about CA$100.
Other variants worth knowing
| Game | Full-pay version | Return with perfect strategy |
|---|---|---|
| Deuces Wild | full pay | about 100.76% |
| Double Double Bonus | 10/6 | about 100.07% |
| Double Double Bonus | 9/6 | about 98.98% |
| Bonus Poker | 8/5 | about 99.17% |
Returns above 100% assume flawless play over a very long run and are rare online. Treat any machine showing a full-pay table as one of the cheapest games in the casino, not as a way to earn.
Strategy is part of the return
The returns above assume you hold the right cards every time. A player who keeps a kicker, chases inside straights or breaks a made flush for a royal draw gives back a percentage point or more. A strategy chart for your exact pay table fixes most of that. Play slowly at first; the machine will not rush you.
Open the casino and play with a balance you funded by Interac.
Video poker and bonuses
Casinos know video poker returns more than most slots, so they weight it low in bonus wagering or exclude it. At Hellspin, table and live games count 0% (bonus terms 2a); the contribution of video poker is listed in the same section. If you play mainly video poker, play without a bonus and every win stays withdrawable.
Paying for a session
Video poker is played in small units, so the Interac minimums matter more than the maximums: the Terdersoft casinos give a typical minimum deposit of $30, Hellspin 10 EUR or USD. See minimum deposit casinos and how Interac deposits work.
Our take
Find the pay table first and the casino second. Where you find 9/6 Jacks or Better or a full-pay Deuces Wild, you have one of the lowest-cost games online. For the house-banked poker tables, see casino poker; for the full ranking, see the best Interac casinos in Canada.
Questions and answers
- What is the best video poker game?
On return, full-pay versions: 9/6 Jacks or Better returns about 99.54% with perfect strategy, full-pay Deuces Wild about 100.76%, 10/6 Double Double Bonus about 100.07%. Online casinos often offer reduced pay tables, so check the screen.
- What does 9/6 mean?
The payout per coin for a full house (9) and a flush (6) on a Jacks or Better machine. Lower numbers, such as 8/5 or 6/5, mean a lower return for the same game.
- Does video poker count towards a bonus?
Often only partly or not at all. The contribution table in the bonus terms decides; at Hellspin, table and live games count 0% (2a), and video poker is worth checking separately.