New gamblers frequently enter casinos without any strategy or direction, which is precisely what casinos hope for since it makes it easier for them to win money.
Real money casino games are fundamentally based on mathematics, strategically designed to give the house an advantage over time. If beginners don’t follow a casino strategy, they only increase the casino’s advantage.
Even the best casino strategies can turn the odds against the house. While card counting is too advanced for beginners, skilled card counters and advantage players can shift the odds in their favor.
Before diving into advanced gambling techniques, it is crucial for beginners to master the best basic casino strategies.
Life’s best lessons often come from our mistakes, so don’t be concerned if you make errors early in your gambling journey. This is part of the learning process. However, by following our helpful casino strategy guide, achieving success at online casinos or your favorite land-based establishments can become much easier.
How To Win At The Casino
The primary reason we gamble is to win money at the casino. However, for many gamblers, especially beginners, winning can be challenging. The aim of this casino strategy guide is to enhance your chances of success by reducing the house edge, identifying the best bets, and teaching you effective money management.
Before implementing your casino strategy, make sure you are in a good mental state. In other words, avoid gambling if you are angry, upset, sad, or under the influence. Only gamble when you feel mentally sound.
Additionally, ensure you are financially prepared to gamble. Never gamble with money you cannot afford to lose. With that in mind, let’s delve into the essentials of this guide.
Our casino strategy guide includes the following tips:
- Bet a Small Percentage of Your Bankroll Per Wager
- Play Games with the Lowest House Edge
- Play at Tables or Machines with the Best Rules
- Use a Basic Blackjack Strategy Cheat Card
- Never Take Insurance or Side Bets in Blackjack
- Bet on the Banker in Baccarat
- Stick to the Pass Line and Don’t Pass Bets in Craps
Remember, you can select one of these strategies or combine a few to develop your own optimal casino strategy.
1. Bet a Small Percentage of Your Bankroll Per Wager
Bankroll management is the cornerstone of your casino strategy. If you don’t plan to follow a bankroll management strategy, then it’s best not to play at real money online casinos.
Gamblers who don’t manage their money properly are essentially the house’s best friends. That’s why we’re issuing a public service announcement on the importance of bankroll management.
What does this mean?
For instance, in sports betting, bettors should only wager 1% to 3% of their bankroll per bet. This same principle applies to casino games.
For casino table games, we recommend betting 3% of your bankroll per wager. If you want to play $5.00 blackjack, roulette, craps, and so on, you should have a bankroll of around $170.00.
The 3% rule ensures you can withstand the game’s volatility. There will be ups and downs, and having the right bankroll allows you to navigate these fluctuations effectively.
2. Play Games with the Lowest House Edge
One of the worst mistakes beginners can make is choosing games with a high house edge. Many beginners are attracted to the flashy lights of slot machines. While slots can be entertaining, they do not belong in a beginner’s best casino strategy guide.
Slot machines have a high house edge, sometimes as high as 15%, which is not conducive to a winning strategy.
Other casino games with a high house edge include in-person and online Keno and the Big Six Wheel, both of which are poor bets with no strategic value. Sic Bo, a popular Asian table game, should also be avoided.
What Casino Games Have the Best Odds (Lowest House Edge)?
- Blackjack
- Spanish 21
- Blackjack Switch
- Baccarat
- Craps
- Video Poker
- Pai Gow Poker
3. Play at Tables or Machines with the Best Rules
Once you have identified the games with the lowest house edge, it’s crucial to choose tables that offer the best rules.
This is particularly important for blackjack. The rules can vary significantly from table to table. For beginners, whether playing in person or online, look for tables that pay 3:2 for a blackjack.
The fewer decks in the game, the lower the house edge. A single or double-deck 3:2 blackjack game is the ideal scenario.
Avoid 6:5 blackjack whenever possible. These games often use a six or eight-deck shoe, which is not favorable for beginners.
If you can’t find 3:2 blackjack, consider playing Spanish 21 or Blackjack Switch instead. Even Double Exposure Blackjack is a better option than 6:5 blackjack.
Our preferred online gambling site for blackjack is BetOnline, which offers over 20 different blackjack games, including Blackjack Switch, Spanish 21, and Double Exposure. Most importantly, BetOnline also features single-deck 3:2 blackjack.
You can begin your blackjack experience at BetOnline with excellent casino bonuses, such as a 100% matching welcome bonus for first-time players and a 100% crypto bonus for those making their first deposit with cryptocurrency.
Run Away from Triple-Zero Roulette
For roulette, one of the best strategies is to avoid double zero (American) roulette and steer clear of triple zero roulette. If you wish to play roulette, whether online or in person, single zero (European) roulette offers the most player-friendly rules and better odds, as there’s only one green zero on the wheel.
Video Poker with the Best Pay Tables
Lastly, video poker players should seek out machines with the best pay tables. These pay tables are displayed on the machine, above the cards. The best Jacks or Better paytable is a 9/6 game, followed by 9/5 and 8/5. When looking for the best video poker app, ensure it also offers the best pay tables.
4. Use a Basic Blackjack Strategy Cheat Card
There is nothing against the rules about using a blackjack strategy card. In fact, land-based casinos allow you to use a basic strategy card at the tables.
If you feel intimidated using a cheat card inside a casino, there’s no pressure when playing at online casinos. Keep the strategy card in front of you or open in a browser while playing blackjack online.
What is a basic blackjack strategy card?
Simply put, the card informs you of the statistically correct move to make, whether to hit or stand. It also suggests when to double down or split.
Basic strategy does not give the player an advantage over the house, but it ensures they are playing as close to the house edge as possible.
Blackjack has a relatively low house edge compared to other casino games, putting you well ahead of most players. Playing without following basic blackjack strategy significantly skews the odds in favor of the house.
5. Never Take Insurance or Side Bets in Blackjack
Your casino strategy should avoid taking insurance or side bets at the blackjack table. Side bets with jackpots can be tempting, but the odds strongly suggest passing on all side bets and insurance.
Casinos do not offer these side bets for your benefit. Similar to introducing 6:5 blackjack tables, side bets are designed to increase the house’s advantage.
For bonus side bets, the house edge can exceed 2%. Taking insurance is even worse for blackjack players.
In an eight-deck blackjack game, the house edge rises to over 7.5% when you opt for insurance. The odds are not significantly better for single and double-deck blackjack either.
6. Bet on the Banker in Baccarat
Beginners might shy away from baccarat because it isn’t the most mainstream casino game, despite its frequent appearance in James Bond movies. However, the game is simple to learn and play. It is one of the best casino games based entirely on luck, without the need for a complex strategy like blackjack.
Both in-person and online baccarat are akin to a coin flip, making it an excellent choice if you prefer minimal thinking while gambling.
There are three bets available in baccarat:
- Banker
- Player
- Tie
The Banker bet has the lowest house edge at 1.06%, followed by the Player bet at 1.24%. Never bet on a Tie, as it has a house edge ranging from 10% to 14.36%, making it a terrible wager. We have a comprehensive baccarat strategy guide that further details these bets and odds.
Our favorite place to play baccarat is WildCoins Casino. They offer various baccarat games, all providing an exciting gaming experience. WildCoins Casino is also one of the top live dealer casinos for baccarat, with multiple live tables available.
WildCoins Casino offers new players a 100% welcome bonus of up to $5,000, a generous crypto bonus matching up to $9,000, weekly rebates, free spins, and much more. These bonuses will significantly enhance your baccarat experience at WildCoins Casino.
7. Stick to the Pass Line and Don’t Pass Bets in Craps
Craps, whether played online or in person, can be quite intimidating for beginners due to its seemingly complex layout.
However, beginners should focus on only two bets in craps:
- Pass Line
- Don’t Pass
The Pass Line is arguably the most popular craps bet. If you hear cheers and excitement at a craps table, it’s likely because players are on a hot streak with the Pass Line. The house edge for the Pass Line is 1.41%.
The Don’t Pass bet is the opposite of the Pass Line bet. While this bet won’t make you many friends at the craps table, it has a slightly lower house edge of 1.36%. Most players prefer the Pass Line to win, but statistically, the Don’t Pass bet is a better choice.
Avoid the Exotic Craps Bets
The goal of this casino strategy is to avoid the exotic bets scattered around the craps table. These bets generally come with terrible odds.
For example, the Any Craps bet has a house edge of 11.11%, and a hard 4 or 10 craps bet has the same edge. A hard 6 or 8 bet has a house edge of 9.09%.
The worst craps bets are the 2, 12, all hard hops bet (with a 13.89% house edge) and Any Seven, which is the absolute worst with a house edge of 16.67%.
Keep It Simple When Playing Craps
The simplest way to play craps is by sticking to the Pass and Don’t Pass bets. This simplicity also extends to choosing 1win as your site to play craps. 1win is ideal for beginners, as it allows users to play for free. You can practice as much as you want before playing for real money.
The craps game at 1win simplifies the layout and provides details on the odds for each type of bet. 1win also lists the rules and includes a payout table that shows how much you can win on any craps wager.
If that’s not enough to convince you, 1win also offers a welcome bonus of up to $3,000. Additionally, 1win is one of the top online sportsbooks, so you can play craps and wager on your favorite sports games or events.
