How to Play Video Poker: Rules, Hands, Variants and Strategy

Video poker is a form of poker in which you draw replacement cards to try to make the best possible hand. Making a royal flush, the highest hand, earns a very large payout.

On a machine with a full-pay pay table, betting the maximum of 5 coins and playing with optimal strategy gives a return to player (RTP) of over 99% (99.54% for 9/6 Jacks or Better). Video poker combines high payouts with a high RTP.

What You Will Learn

• Once you learn the steps and the hand rankings, video poker is easy to pick up.
• Jacks or Better is the most common form of video poker.
• Following basic strategy lets you get close to the game’s full RTP.

This article takes about 11 minutes to read.

What Is Video Poker?

Video poker is a casino game based on poker hand rankings. In some places it is also found outside casinos, for example in bars with licensed gaming machines. Unlike conventional poker, where you play against other people, video poker has no opponents: the cards are dealt by a computer and you play alone.

Video poker does not use physical playing cards; the cards are generated by a computer and shown on the screen. Instead of a dealer dealing the cards, a random number generator (RNG) draws them at random from a 52-card deck (53 cards on machines that use a joker) and displays them. The deck is shuffled before every hand, so the cards dealt in one hand have no effect on the next.

You try to make a winning hand by holding or replacing the five cards shown on the screen. When you make a winning hand, you are paid according to how difficult that hand is to make.

In standard video poker, making a royal flush, the highest hand, with the maximum bet of 5 coins returns 800 times your bet.

Video poker also has one of the higher RTPs among casino games. Specific figures for each variant are given later in this article.

Because there are no opponents, anyone who knows the poker hand rankings can play easily, and this has made video poker very popular.

Basic Rules of Video Poker

Once you learn the steps and the hand rankings, video poker is easy to pick up.

This article uses Jacks or Better, the best-known variant, as its example, but the way to play is basically the same in every video poker game. The winning hands can differ, however, so always check the pay table.

How to Play Video Poker

The screenshots are from NetEnt’s Jacks or Better Double Up.

Three Steps to Play Video Poker

1. Set your bet and start the game
2. Choose which of the five cards dealt to hold
3. Receive replacement cards and get paid for your final hand

STEP1

Set Your Bet and Start the Game

In video poker, your total bet is the coin value multiplied by the number of coins.

You can choose any coin value, but always bet 5 coins. For example, with $1 per coin and 5 coins, your total bet is $5.

STEP2

Choose Which of the Five Cards Dealt to Hold

When the game starts, you are dealt five cards. As in five-card draw poker, you decide which cards to keep and which to discard.

Press the HOLD button under a card to keep it (if you already have a winning hand, the cards may be held automatically). When you have made your choices, press the DEAL button (labeled DRAW on some games) to replace the other cards.

STEP3

Receive Replacement Cards and Get Paid for Your Final Hand

The cards you did not hold are replaced. If your final hand is a winning hand, you are paid according to that hand. You can simply collect the payout, or you can use the double-up feature, which on many machines gives you about a 1 in 2 chance of doubling your winnings.

Basic Video Poker Hands

In video poker, you are paid according to the hand you hold after a single draw, so the first step is to learn the basic hands. Most of them are the same as in conventional poker, so anyone who already knows poker can play without difficulty.

Some variants, however, include special hands of their own. Examples are “jacks or better,” a pair that pays only if it is jacks or higher; five of a kind, made with four of a kind plus a joker; and four aces, which is listed as a separate hand paying more than other fours of a kind.

To avoid missing a chance at a large payout, always check the pay table before you start playing a machine for the first time.

The Double-Up Feature: A Chance to Increase Your Winnings

The double-up (Gamble) feature is common in video poker and is available on most video poker machines.

You can stake all of the winnings from the main game on a double-up game such as High or Low (guessing whether the next card will be higher or lower) or Red or Black (guessing whether the next card will be a red or a black suit).

If you win, your winnings are doubled. If you lose, they drop to zero.

The double-up feature is notable for having an RTP of 100% on many machines. Even-money bets such as red/black in roulette or player bets in baccarat are designed to give the casino a slight edge, but on many machines the double-up feature gives you an exact 50/50 chance (except on machines that count a tie as a loss).

Because you can double up several times in a row, the payout for a pair can grow to dozens of times its original amount. Bear in mind, however, that an RTP of 100% only means your expected value does not fall; it does not rise either. The more times you double up in a row, the higher the chance that your winnings drop to zero.

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Types of Video Poker

Video poker covers many different variants. Each has its own rules and winning hands, so the optimal strategy also differs considerably from one to the next. We recommend starting with one game and trying other variants once you are comfortable with it.

Jacks or Better

Jacks or Better is the most widely available video poker variant.

The game is named after the hand “jacks or better,” which is a pair of jacks, queens, kings or aces. Because even a single pair pays, payouts come in small, frequent amounts.

With 5 coins bet, a royal flush returns 800 times your bet. On a 9/6 full-pay machine, the RTP is 99.54%, which gives Jacks or Better a low house edge (full-pay machines are explained later).

Its optimal strategy is also simpler than that of other variants, so beginners should start with this game.

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Deuces Wild

Deuces Wild is a popular video poker variant because winning hands are very easy to make.

Like Jacks or Better, it uses a 52-card deck without a joker, but in Deuces Wild every 2 is wild. A wild card can stand in for any other card, so even a royal flush becomes easier to make.

The royal flush in Deuces Wild is divided into two hands, however: the wild royal, made with one or more wild cards, and the natural royal, made without any wild cards. The natural royal pays far more.

The lowest paying hand is three of a kind, so how you use the wild cards is the key to this game.

Joker Poker

As its name suggests, Joker Poker is played with a 53-card deck that includes one joker.

A single joker is enough to raise the chance of making the higher hands. The lowest paying hand is a pair of kings or better (two pair or better on some machines), so the game strikes a balance between frequent payouts and the higher hands.

The special hand in this game is five of a kind, made with four of a kind plus the joker. The payout varies by machine: some return 200 times your bet, others 800 times. Along with the natural royal, it is one of the hands most worth aiming for.

Aces and Faces

Aces and Faces is a video poker variant that puts particular emphasis on four of a kind. “Aces” refers to the aces and “faces” to the face cards (J, Q, K), and these cards are the key to the game.

Four of a kind in face cards pays more than an ordinary four of a kind (2–10), and four aces returns 80 times your bet.

There are many games in which the payout for four of a kind depends on its rank. On a machine called All Aces, for example, four aces returns 400 times your bet.

The strategy changes considerably as a result, and because these games are difficult, they suit experienced players. The RTP depends on the pay table; full-pay Aces and Faces has an RTP of about 99.26%.

How Pay Tables and the Number of Hands Change the Game

As the previous section showed, the pay table design differs considerably from one variant to another, and the optimal strategy changes with it. The number of hands you play at the same time also affects how you approach the game.

In video poker, a game in which you play several hands at the same time is called multi-hand video poker.

In multi-hand video poker, you receive a single initial deal, and the cards you hold are kept in every hand you are playing.

In single-hand video poker, the most important skill is following the optimal strategy without mistakes. When you play 10–100 hands at once, the optimal strategy stays the same, but because the initial deal and your hold decisions apply to every hand, your results per round swing more widely.

Understanding these differences will help you choose a video poker game that suits your style.

How to Get the Full RTP from Video Poker

Video poker has a higher RTP than many slot machines. Once you learn the correct plays, you can keep your losses down for the same amount wagered.

Follow Jacks or Better Basic Strategy

Like blackjack, video poker has a basic strategy, which sets out in advance which cards to hold with each hand.

The basic strategy for Jacks or Better is one of the simplest to learn. To use it, work down the list from the top and hold the cards that match the first entry that applies.

For example, suppose you hold 9♠, J♠, Q♠, K♠, A♠.

With this hand, two entries in the Jacks or Better basic strategy apply:

• If you have four to a royal flush, hold those four cards and discard the remaining card. (Entry 2 in the Jacks or Better basic strategy chart)
• If you have a flush, hold all five cards. (Entry 3 in the Jacks or Better basic strategy chart)

Here the royal flush pays more, so follow the first play and discard the 9♠. Following basic strategy in this way brings your RTP close to the game’s theoretical value.

Bet the Maximum Number of Coins

As noted in Step 1 of How to Play Video Poker, your total bet is the coin value multiplied by the number of coins. You can set the coin value freely, but always play the maximum number of coins (5).

The top hand (usually the royal flush) pays 250 times your bet when you play 1–4 coins but 800 times when you play 5 coins. If you play 4 coins or fewer, the RTP of 9/6 Jacks or Better drops to about 98.37%.

If 5 coins makes your bet too large, lower the coin value instead.

The Double-Up Feature Does Not Lower the RTP but Increases the Swings

The double-up game works as explained in Basic Rules of Video Poker. Because the RTP is set at 100% on many machines, doubling up does not reduce your expected value. It does not increase it either; the only thing that changes is how widely your results swing. Decide in advance how many times you will double up, and never risk more than you can afford to lose entirely.

Play Machines with a Low House Edge (Full-Pay Machines)

Even among video poker games with the same rules, the payouts for winning hands can differ from machine to machine. The higher the payouts, the lower the house edge. Machines that keep the house edge low in this way are called full-pay machines.

In Jacks or Better, for example, a machine that pays 9 coins per coin bet for a full house and 6 coins per coin bet for a flush is called a full-pay machine. Its RTP is 99.54% (when you bet the maximum 5 coins and follow optimal strategy).

This pay table is often written as 9/6 Jacks or Better. Machines on which a full house returns 8 times or a flush returns 5 times are not full pay, so you should avoid playing them. Always check the payouts on the pay table before you play.

You Can Try Video Poker for Free

If you want to play video poker but are uneasy about betting real money right away, we recommend starting with free play. Many casinos offer video poker in demo mode, which is a good way to see how a round works and to learn basic strategy.

Frequently Asked Questions About Video Poker

How is video poker different from Texas Hold’em?

In Texas Hold’em, players compete against one another for the best hand. Video poker has no opponents. You choose which of the dealt cards to replace, and you are paid according to the hand you hold after the draw.

In conventional poker, reading and outplaying your opponents is what matters. In video poker, the result depends on whether you follow the optimal strategy.

What are the odds of getting a royal flush?

The probability of being dealt a royal flush in the first five cards is about 0.00015% (about 1 in 650,000).

There are 2,598,960 possible five-card combinations from a 52-card deck. Only one royal flush is possible in each suit, for a total of 4, so the probability is roughly 1 in 650,000.

Including the draw, the probability is about 0.0025% (about 1 in 40,000) when you play 9/6 Jacks or Better with 5 coins (the maximum bet) and follow optimal strategy. The probability differs in other variants, such as Deuces Wild.

What is Power Poker (multi-hand video poker)?

Power Poker is a name some game providers use for multi-hand video poker, which lets you play many hands at once (up to 100 on some games).

Because each round covers many hands, your results tend to move toward the expected value in fewer rounds, even though the amount won or lost per round is larger.

Summary: The Correct Plays Are Already Known, So You Can Get the Full RTP

Unlike conventional poker, where players compete for the best hand, video poker is a casino game in which a computer draws the cards and you are paid according to the hand you hold after the draw.

It is a low-key game compared with flashy slot machines and live games, but on a full-pay machine, betting the maximum number of coins and following optimal strategy gives you an RTP of over 99%. Losses are smaller than on many slots, and on full-pay machines the RTP is on the same level as blackjack played with basic strategy, so video poker remains popular, especially among experienced players.

Because you make the decisions yourself, the game can look difficult. The plays that keep losses down are already worked out, though, so all you need to do is follow basic strategy. Video poker offers both high payouts and a high RTP, so start by practicing the correct plays in demo mode.