What does RTP mean?

Have you ever encountered the letters RTP while playing a slot game? You'll sometimes see them on the paytable, or while reading a review of a game. It's vital to know what these letters stand for, so you know how they affect a game and how they come into play.

RTP stands for return to player. It refers to the amount of cash a player can reasonably assume will be returned to them from the bets they place on a slot. It is always shown as a percentage. The higher the percentage is, the better the deal is for the player.

How it works

Let's say a slot game has an RTP of 92%. This means for every $100 you place in bets, you can expect to get $92 back. Meanwhile, if you choose a slot with a 97.2% RTP, you should expect to receive $97.20 back out of every $100 you wager.

Points to note

With that said, the percentage is calculated over a long period. It is also an average, and considers all the bets placed by all the players taking part in that slot. That means you could play $100 and get back just a few dollars if the luck goes against you. It could also mean you might wager that $100 and end up winning the progressive jackpot.

So, while the RTP is important to know (you should always go for games offering the highest RTP possible), it probably won't reflect what you can expect to win from a game while playing it for a short time.

Is the RTP affected by the presence of a progressive jackpot?

Yes. Whenever a progressive jackpot is included in a game, a small portion of every bet taken goes into that pot. There are a few games that have two versions running - one with a progressive jackpot and one without. In these instances, the one with the jackpot will have a lower RTP than the other one.

It pays dividends to understand how the RTP of a slot game works, because it will help you figure out which games to play and what to expect. You could still wager just a few cents and get lucky and win hundreds or even thousands of coins, of course. But you might equally wager a lot of cash and win very little in return. That's why it is always very important to know your limits, and only to bet what you can afford to lose.