Question

Pokies vs live tables, where am i actually losing less?

ok so ive been mostly smashing the pokies online for the past year and honestly the money just vanishes. mate of mine reckons live blackjack and roulette have way better odds and im wasting my time on slots. is that actually true or is he just talking himself up? trying to figure out where my dollars last a bit longer cause im sick of being broke by friday lol

Best

▲ 241

your mate isnt wrong tbh. pokies usually sit around 90-96% rtp depending on the game but blackjack with basic strategy can get you up near 99% house edge wise. that difference adds up fast over a session. i switched to mostly live blackjack on Boomerang about 8 months ago and my bankroll lasts heaps longer than when i was just spinning reels all night. doesnt mean you win, just means you bleed slower. the trick is you actually have to learn basic strategy for blackjack otherwise youre throwing that advantage away

▲ 108

can confirm. i used to do nothing but pokies and id be done in 20 mins. moved to roulette and blackjack and i play for ages on the same amount now. blackjack especially if you stick to the strategy chart. pokies are basically just a slot machine for your wallet, theyre designed to take everything eventually

▲ 166

worth pointing out that not all table games are equal either. blackjack is the best for odds but stuff like american roulette with the double zero is actually pretty rough compared to european single zero. baccarat banker bet is also solid like 98.9% ish. so its not just pokies bad tables good, depends what table game youre on

▲ 75

idk about all this 99% talk. if blackjack was that good wouldnt the casinos just stop offering it? sounds like people convincing themselves theyre doing better when theyre still down at the end of the night

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▲ 65

nah the casinos still make bank on blackjack because most people DONT play perfect strategy. they hit when they should stand, dont double when they should etc. the 99% is theoretical for perfect play. add in everyone playing emotionally and the house still does fine. doesnt mean the math is wrong, just means most players dont use it

▲ 56

wait when you say basic strategy is that like a chart you memorise? do they let you have it open while youre playing online or is that frowned upon?

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▲ 73

yeah its a chart that tells you what to do for every hand combo. online nobody cares if you have it open next to you, i literally keep it on my phone. its not card counting or anything dodgy, its just the mathematically correct play for each situation. takes maybe a week of playing to get it second nature

▲ 35

fwiw the rtp on pokies is published for most games if you dig into the info section. some of the older classic ones are actually higher than the flashy new ones with all the features. the feature heavy slots tend to have lower base rtp because they pump it into the bonus rounds. so not all pokies are created equal either

▲ 30

honestly the odds talk is cooked because at the end of the day i still lose either way. did the whole blackjack strategy thing for a month and still ended down 600. better odds just means you lose money slower not that you make any. the house always wins thats literally the whole business model

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▲ 37

that sucks but to be fair blackjack isnt magic, you can still hit a bad run of cards over a month. the edge is small enough that variance smashes you in the short term. i had a rough patch too but over a longer stretch my blackjack sessions definitely lasted way longer per dollar than pokies ever did. its about expecting to lose slowly not expecting to win

▲ 28

one thing nobody mentioned is bet sizing matters too. you can have great odds on a game but if youre betting big relative to your bankroll youll bust quick regardless. flat small bets on blackjack will outlast big spins on pokies every time. the game choice and the bet size both play into how long you last

▲ 22

jumping in late but yeah i made the same switch as OP is thinking about. pokies were eating me alive, moved mostly to blackjack and roulette and even on losing nights i get way more play time. the entertainment per dollar is just better. not saying ill ever come out ahead long term but at least im not broke in 15 minutes anymore lol