What is Return To Player in Gambling?

In order to stay ahead of the iGaming curve, online casinos must offer their players in the market a vast number of most recent games. Not the only thing important to operators. Each game incorporates a parameter both beginners and seasoned players keep an eye on - this is the return percentage of the slot, or in casino parlance, the RTP parameter. The higher it is, the better players associate it with their chances of winning.

What Does RTP Mean in Gambling

RTP or Return-to-Player refers to the percentage of the total amount of bets in the slot, which returns to the player, whether in an online or offline platform, in the form of winnings. What is sometimes also referred to as player payout shows the percentage ratio of winning bets to total bets.

For instance, a slot machine has an RTP of 97%. So if a player makes a large number of bets, better yet for an amount like 1 EUR, on the average, it will come out that he will win for each one of the games, 0.97 EUR. The casino ends up with the remaining 0.03 EUR.

In practical terms, however, the theoretical RTP differs greatly from the actual one. Slot machines are made from various metrics such as hit frequency (the chances of winning on any given spin), bonus frequency, the maximum amount a player can win, variance, and volatility.

Thus, the payout percentage proposed is essentially a theoretical indicator of how much a slot machines or casino shall pay back to a player in the long run. Alongside RTP, there is also the notion of House Edge-a fact that is frequently misunderstood. So, what actually distinguishes them one from the other?

The Difference Between RTP and House Edge

High RTP slots online is the percentage of total wagers placed on a game that will be paid back to players by the casino in winnings. The House Edge is, essentially, the percentage of total wagers which will go to the online casino or be lost by the player. Simply put, if a slot has an RTP of 96%, the House Edge on it is 4%. Among other things, this came from the saying ''the house always wins''. Although in the short run, players sometimes come against an online casino, in the long term, the total amount they wager will always exceed what they win. An example could be the one where the player sequentially gathers their 96% winning in each game round. The player bets 100 EUR on an online slot machine with an RTP of 96%. He receives 96 EUR in return. Betting the 96 EUR in the next round returns to him the 96%, namely 92.16 EUR. The whole point is that the budget set aside by the player gets spent little by little while the casino collects its 4% from each and every bet.

Who Can Influence the RTP

The RTP modification is another commonly asked question by players and operators alike: does it depend on any given operator or stays unchanged? To clear up any possible misunderstanding, the RTP of a game is set by the developer. It therefore does mean that no one, including the player and the operator, can alter game payout specifications.

In such rare cases, the game maker will actually build the game with variable RTP settings. Although this is more common in offline slots and game cabinets, with the variable RTP set by the casino operator, in online games, the game provider is actually the main authority for that game RTP.

How to Calculate the RTP

To calculate the RTP, you take the player's total winnings; divide them by their total bets, and then multiply the result by 100 percent to get the RTP in percentages.

How to Find the Slot RTP

Whoever is wondering about the RTP of a particular game has the answer, and it's really very easy. At any online or land-based casino, the player can simply google the name of the machine they want to play, or the manufacturer or game studio, and add the RTP acronym to their search. They will find that generally, online RTP is higher than offline RTP. What is the reason behind this?

Online RTP Vs Offline RTP

Online slots generally have better RTP than offline slot machines because of the lower operating costs of the online casinos. Online slots have less overhead: if the operators have any costs to pay at all, it is generally a monthly royalty for the game or a commission calculated as a percentage of slots turnover paid to the game vendor.

Due to the fact that online casinos aren't restricted by the amount of space they have, there are hundreds or even thousands of online video slots. An offline casino can offer only a certain number of actual slot machines, which must be installed, regularly adjusted, repaired and maintained.

RTP and Volatility

As we pointed out previously, while playing slots, many factors influence the probability of winning. RTP is not the only contributing factor. Another significant aspect of a software game is its volatility.

For example, if the slot has a high RTP and high volatility, it may not be much favored over the one with high RTP and low volatility since the other case presents quite less hope of winning.

The term volatility, or sometimes called dispersion, refers to how often and how much a particular slot game can pay in winnings. Volatility can be low, medium, or high: low volatility slots are designed to pay smaller amounts frequently; high volatility slots, on the other hand, usually allow for higher winnings payouts but are quite rare to present with smaller and medium winnings.

Closing Word

From amateur to professional players, anyone who plays online slots must understand RTP percentages. If a gaming slot has clearly displayed RTP on its specifications, a player would have a better confidence level towards the online casino as this gives him an opportunity to judge his chances of winning. It is also the responsibility of the operator to provide an equilibrium between offering high RTP and low RTP games to their players.