Gambling is a profit driven industry. All gambling activities offered by commercial gambling operators have some form of advantage built in that ensures they are profitable.
Return to player is the percentage of funds returned to players through gambling. The house edge is the name for the money that the gambling operator (“the house”) keeps.
The house edge is calculated as:
- Total wagered - return to player = the house edge.
Gambling venues are required to return the return to player percentage over time. Venues are not required to provide the minimum return to player for an individual gambling session.
How much is the house edge?
Pokies
Tasmanian pokies have a have a minimum return to player of 87%, leaving a house edge of up to 13%. The return to player includes jackpots and features like free spins.
The house edge affects how much money you can lose on pokies and how quickly you can lose your money. To find out more, you can try our interactive tools:
More information on return to player for pokies in Tasmania is available through the Department of Treasury and Finance.
Pokies have complex programming to make sure that the minimum return to player is met over time but also make sure that the results of individual spins are random. As a result, myths and beliefs about machines having hot streaks or being due to pay out are not true. You can find more information at Myths and Beliefs.
Keno
Keno in Tasmania has a return to player of 75% and house edge of 25%.
Casino games
The House edge for casino games in Tasmania are:
- big wheel – approximately 7.7%
- roulette – approximately 2.7%
- baccarat – approximately 1.2%
- blackjack – approximately 2.7% (can be lower for skilled players).
Sports and race betting
In sports and race betting, the term “margin” is used rather than house edge. This is because the odds are not set in the same way.
Betting companies use complex models to set and adjust betting market odds. The odds are built to make sure that the probabilities of a betting market add up to over 100%, leading to a profit margin for the company regardless of the result.
Sports betting can be attractive because gamblers may think of it as being more skill-based. This is reinforced by sports betting marketing that implies that people have more control over this betting. A greater feeling of control can lead to more risk taking.
It is important to remember sports or race betting can never be risk free. Your knowledge can only go so far when up against companies with specialist systems and data that are out of reach of the average bettor.
You can read more about the reality of sports betting systems on the myths and beliefs page.
