Your Comprehensive Guide to Online Slots 2023

There are many basic terms you should know before beginning to play online slots. It is worth noting that while new terms have been introduced during the online slots era, much of the vocabulary has its roots in the world of land-based slot machines.

Bet: The amount of money wagered on a slot.

Bonus Feature: Bonus features have become commonplace in online slots. These can include everything from Wilds to Free Spins and extra jackpot opportunities.

Free Spins: Many online slots offer free spins as part of a bonus feature. Today, players can expect to win up to 15 or 20 free spins in one go.

Gamble Feature: This is exactly what it sounds like. It is usually a bonus feature in which players can gamble their winnings on doubling, tripling, quadrupling or losing all their spins.

Jackpot: The maximum prize a player can win on a slot.

Max Bet: The maximum number of coins you can play per spin. On progressive slots, the max bet must usually be played in order to qualify for the jackpot.

Multiplier: Each machine has payouts for certain symbols, which it multiplies based on the number of coins payed. Online slots commonly feature multipliers of 3x, 4x or 5x, meaning they multiply your winnings three-fold, four-fold or five-fold.

Payline: The line at which the symbols must line up to deliver a win. Traditionally, slot machines had less than 10 paylines, but with online slots they can reach to 25 and sometimes even 100 or more.

Payout Percentage: Also known as payback percentage, this is a term that describes the amount of money a slot should return to players over the long-term.

Progressive Jackpot: Progressive slots have a jackpot that continues to grow until it is won. Once it is won, it resets back to its minimum jackpot and starts growing until it is won again.

Reels: These are the rotating barrels on which symbols appear. Most land-based and online slots have 3-5 reels on them. The basic aim of slots is to match the symbols on the reels.

Scatters: A payout common video slots that triggers a win without having to line up on the one payline. In online slots, the scatter symbol often activates a bonus feature or game.

Wilds: A symbol (similar to the joker in a pack of cards) that acts as all other symbols to complete a winning combo on a payline.

Winning Combinations: The amount of wins. These days, this can reach as high as 243 (see Microgaming's 243 Ways to Win series).

To begin a slots game, the player selects their bet amount and clicks "Spin". The other basic rule of slots - whether we're talking about online slots or land-based slots, is to check the paytable - this will tell you how many paylines there are and what they offer. Because there are such a wide range of slot types, dependent on the amount of reels, paylines and a host of other features, the rules vary.

The aim of the game is to match up symbols that appear on the paylines. The payline is a straight or diagonal line that crosses the reels, including a single symbol on each reel, which form combinations. If the highlighted symbols for a winning combination, the player wins cash. Of course, with the introduction of wilds, scatter and bonus games, online slots offer more than one way to form a winning combination.

It is worth knowing the differences between each type of slot before you begin. Remember, one slot can often incorporate more than one type of slot - these days a game can be a 5-reel slot that combines elements of 3D technology, bonus features and more. Therefore, it is worth reading up on each game before trying it out.

3-reel or classic slots are the type of online slot that most closely resembles the original machines that rose to popularity in the first half of the 20th century. They generally have as many five paylines.

5-reel slots are based on the video slots that emerged later in the 20th century, and increase your chances of winning. These slots contain a number of sub-categories, including 3D reels and most progressive slots.

Multiline slots can fall under the two previous categories but include more paylines than usual. Be aware that while the prizes are larger for a game with 25 or 30 paylines, they also tend to be more expensive to play.

Progressive slots, as seen in the terminology section, are slots in which the jackpot keeps growing until it is hit. This category of game has continued to develop over the past few years, with the introduction of multi-jackpot games - there are now games with up to four types of jackpot, ranging from the smallest jackpot of just a few dollars (and growing) up to a large jackpot that resets at $1 million.

Because slots are completely random, there is no real strategy to playing them. Maths is not relevant in slots as it is in poker, blackjack or even roulette. Having said that, there are some basic strategy techniques you can follow in terms of choosing which online casino to register at and which online slots to play.

Picking the right online slot game is important. Obviously, it is better to play something that is interesting - if you like movies, then a specific movie-themed slot could be for you. If you want to reminisce about the fruit machines you played at the pub all those years ago, there are online versions of those games.

Once you have picked a game that interests you, it is important to look at the payout percentage, minimum and maximum bets and possible jackpots. You should decide on a budget and stick to it, and choose your games accordingly.

Picking your online casino is just as important as deciding which game to play. All online casinos offer bonuses for slots play, but which of them offers a package that suits you? Are you a high-roller or do you just like playing the occasional slots game in between games of bingo or sports betting? Shop around between the top online casinos - you will find all of them on our site, with news and updates about their latest slots promos and bonuses.