Basic Video Poker Rules

Video poker combines the elements of slots and poker in a fast-paced game that challenges the mind and has big payoffs. This is not just a game of luck; the player's skill can greatly affect the length of play and the amount won.  It's also one of the best paying machines in a casino with returns, depending on which type of machine you play, of between 90% and 100%. 

Video poker follows the basic premise of draw poker. The player is dealt five initial cards. Immediately it's decision time. You may have been dealt a winning hand that can't be improved or a hand that needs a lot of help. You keep the cards you believe will help you win the most (by pressing on the hold buttons) and toss away the others. You can also throw them all away. If you discarded, new cards will replace your discards. Did you win, and if you did how much? That depends on what hand you made.

Here are the winning hands on a basic Jacks or Better video poker machine.

      

 A,K,Q,J, and 10 all of the same suit

    

Five cards in sequence and all of the same suit

    

Four cards of the same rank

    

Three of a kind, plus a pair

    

Five cards of the same suit

     

Five cards in sequence. (Ace can be high or low)

     

Three cards of the same rank

     

Two cards of one rank and two cards of another rank

    

A pair of Jacks or higher ranked cards - aces are high

If you have any of the hands above, you've won. How much you've won depends on the machine's pay table.  Below is a standard Jacks or Better pay table with the percentage of chances of a hand being made.  It is called a 9/6 table because a full house pays 9 coins and a flush pays 6 coins.  Jacks or Better video poker machines are based on a 52 card deck. Other video poker games may have deuces wild or add a joker or two. Whatever the game, the odds of certain hands appearing are mathematically fixed.

Pay tables are most often shown above where the cards are displayed.  If they aren't, press the help button to see what the machine pays.  Along with strategy, this is the most important thing to know when playing.  In fact, the pay table will often dictate which strategy to use.

In the early days of video poker it was simple to figure out which machines to play. The best machines in the house were 9/6 machines; they paid 9 coins on a full house and 6 coins on a flush and had an average payback of 99% when played with max coin in. There were also 8/5 machines (97% payback) and 6/5 machines (95% payback). Savvy video poker players read pay tables and played the 9/6 machines wherever they could and the others only when they were desperate.  In many areas you may not have the choice to play a 9/6 machine.  If you do, make sure the paytable looks like the one above.   Game makers have introduced many games that look like 9/6 machines, but have changed the two pair payout to 1 coin to lower the payout percentage.

Remember, the only way video poker machine makers can change the house edge is to offer different pay tables.  In the world of video poker today it's a minefield, and you must select your machine carefully. Even if you've picked the right machine, you need to know the best strategy for playing that type of game.  Be sure to check out our other areas of video poker including or jacks or better strategy and our Deuces Wild strategy.