Sometimes we want to go to the casino, but can’t necessarily bring with us a large budget. That’s OK – there’s still fun to be had at the casino on a small budget! But it’s smart to calibrate your plan to ensure the fun is maximized.
So today, let’s talk through some tips to make your budget work hard for you while at the casino and ensure a fun trip with your entertainment budget!
Set the Proper Expectations
If you’re going with a small budget, setting a goal of hitting a handpay may be a challenge that is just a bit too far out of reach. But you can still make a plan to play some games and have a good time!
You can set a goal for the day, or per machine, that works within your budget, but it’s important to set realistic ones. Playing until you get a bonus, double or nothing with $20, and so on can still work out just fine at that budget level!
Calibrate Your Bets
If you’ve got $100 and want to have a fighting chance at sticking around for awhile, you can’t starting swinging at $5 spins, especially out of the gate. You’ll probably want to aim for 50 cents and under bets to start, with the ability to recalibrate if you get ahead or get a really good win.
That might put some games out of reach, but there will be plenty on the casino floor that offer some really good value at those bets. Examples can include Ultimate Fire Link (50 cent minimum bet), Lightning Link (50 cent minimum bet), the original Buffalo (40 cent minimum bet) or even Goldfish Classic (30 cent minimum bet).
Seek Out Lower Volatility Games
Elsewhere on the site we get into a bit of how to tell a game is a lower volatility game, and a lower budget is a good time to select these type of games. You won’t have to chase the next big hit as hard on a lower volatility machine, with more frequent smaller pays keeping you going.
It’s more likely to help you sustain yourself to play awhile vs. chasing a big win with little runway to do so. In the process, you’ll be more likely to get a good afternoon out on that budget.
Limit How Much Goes Into Each Machine
It may be tempting to throw the $100 into the first machine and just swing for a win, but it can also be easy to spend through that $100 and be done before the day has really gotten going. Instead, consider breaking the bill down into smaller increments, putting $10 or $20 into each machine.
If you run out of that money, it forces a decision: Should I keep going or do I want to play something else? This will also encourage slowing down play a bit so you can have more time on the machines which, let’s face it, is part of the goal anyway!
Set Aside Some Winnings
Even on a smaller bet, it isn’t the worst idea to set money aside if you have a win so you can take some money home. You can put money in a Winners Bank that you can’t unlock until you get home, or if you’re disciplined just set it aside to encourage a trip where you return with part of your bankroll (or, if things go really well, a winning trip altogether).
I love this information about playing machines with $100. I myself cant afford to bring very much. Although i have won good on just alittle money. Watching Brian playing at different casinoes makes me want to do the same thing. I have won on his strategy.
We appreciate your reading, and your comment! We definitely want to help everyone, no matter what their budget, so we hope you can make these tips work for you on your next visit!
I love the information. I have in the passed put $100 and win some petty good money and I also lost some too. Thank for the Information.
You’ve pretty much summed up the slot machine experience, but it’s great to still be able to have fun even with a small budget! Thanks for your comment!
This was definitely helpful, as I’m new to slots and on a small budget. Nice to know I can still have fun like everyone else. I would love a article on slot terminology.
Hey Rosalind! We will be posting a series of articles under the Slot Definitions category, where we’ll share terms and what they mean. Look for a new post once a week in that category!
Anything over $50.00 dollars I put in my pocket to use when I return the next time. It,s a great habit to get into. There was a time I would double my money and could stay longer the next time.
That’s a nice approach – lock in some budget for next time!
Great article with helpful information. Thank you. An article with superstitions would be interesting too… lol… thanks I look forward to future newsletters
Hey Raquel – we’ll be covering casino myths and superstitions quite a bit around here. We’re fascinated by some of the ones out there, and have even asked some of the makers of slots about some of them. Stay tuned!
I love you so much. I would learned how to gamble watching you online. I would go in the pass and not know anything about any machines. Now, I know what it takes to get a bonus and what a line hit is. Thank you and your team so much.
We’re happy to help! We hope you keep reading as we’ll have a lot more helpful resources to come!
Thanks for the advice. This will help me on my next trip!!
Excellent Cindy! We wish you the best of luck on your next outing!
In my family, we carry an “experience wallet.” If the budget is $200, the wallet has 10 experiences. You play one, and it ends when you either lose the $20 or win at least 50% more, or the $20 turns into $30. Then that experience is finished, and the ticket goes into the wallet. At the end of the 10 experiences, tally up and go home. It makes for a shorter visit, but it is similar to the winner’s bank, in that some of the tickets remain at the end of the day.
This is a wonderful approach, Victoria! Locking in some wins and having decision points is a wonderful way to ensure casino trips can be both fun and encourage leaving with money.
I live in the Philippines, and we use paso, 5000 paso for $100 USD, so I use 1000 paso to start on a machine. With20-50 paso bet, Ans I do when more.
You sure had helped me a lot. Terry from the Philippines..
Thanks for sharing, Terry. That approach makes sense and it sounds like a nice way to pace yourself. We are so glad you’ve found our information helpful. Sending good luck all the way to the Philippines!
The Winner’s Bank paid for itself the very first time I used it!
We are so happy to hear that, Marjori! It’s a simple tool that’s incredibly effective!
Hi Brian…I’ve been following you since the beginning of BC Slots and was so excited to see you in person for the first time at the slots a few days before Christmas at Yaamava. My rule of thumb is: only take what you can afford to lose. This is my FUN DAY money. I don’t go with any expectations of winning big and bringing money home. I only go with the expectation of having a lot of fun, which I always do(win or lose). If I put in $100, I usually bet around $2. If my winnings put me ahead of the original $100 then I will usually up my bet a little. When I get back down to that original $100 I will go back to a little lower bet. This seems to work out really well for me and adds a little more excitement to the slots.
Thanks Margaret! I think there’s a lot of us who try bumping up their bet if they get ahead enough, so your system seems reasonable, with a good mindset at that!
I Read UR Article On Flip The Switch Very Very Good ,But I’m a little confused Are Those Instructions For Playing At HOme AlSO , BECAUSE I WON’T be GOING Out TO PLAY ANYMORE! AGE Problems , BUT Love 💗 THE ARTICLE! Where U Twenty Years Ago?Lol . Over and OUT
These tips are written with an in person visit in mind, but many of the same ideas (set budgets and time limits, set a limit per game, cash out when ahead) all can still make sense for online casinos. But we’ll think about if we have any other specific tips for a future post as well!
Why is it that when I play, say $5.00 each pull, I don’t win. Then I go down to less and I win. I go up again and no wins, but just as soon as I go low, I win. Something seems to be wrong and the machine only wants to pay out small amounts. Right? Also, say I put in a hundred dollars and win nothing, and have two dollars or so left and then I win. Is the machine feeling sorry for me and gives me a win knowing my money is almost all gone? It happens too often to be a coincidence. I love your shows … all of them.
What tends to be forgotten is that if your budget doesn’t change, but you’re betting more, you simply have less time to make something happen before you run out of money. Take $100 as an example – at your $5 bet level, you get only 20 spins for a bonus or a big win to come around. But on a $2 bet, now you’ve got 50 chances. With bonuses harder to achieve on the newer games than they used to be, that can make all the difference in the world. This is why we always encourage players to calibrate their bets based on their bankroll, and try to avoid overbetting, which can see a player run out of money before anything can really happen.
What’s important to know is casinos can’t control payouts on any specific bet level or player – they can only set the payout across a denomination over the long term. It’s not in the game maker’s or casino’s interest to reward lower bettors vs. higher ones because that would infer they’re over time going to chase high rollers away. It just sounds like an unlucky run, and we hope it turns around for you Ron!
Very interesting I like the advice I see people win big and don’t get excited I ask a lady why she wasn’t thrilled she said she was down a bunch of money! Budget is the answer good news!!!
Glad this proved helpful Chris! And yes, big wins can lose their thrill if it’s been a tough climb to get to one (although it’s better than not getting one at all).
I go with 5 20 dollar bills. If I win 50 or more I will cash out. I do this with all my machines that I play. 99% of the time I go home with at least what I came in with. I put that back for the next time.
We love seeing the various ways players keep track of their bankroll, Annette, and like the approach offered here! You get to play a few games, set limits that ensure the potential for cashing out, and still have fun!