RTP and house edge, the two numbers behind every wager.
Return To Player (RTP) and house edge are the same coin from opposite sides. RTP is what the game pays back over the long run. House edge is what the operator keeps. Together they decide what every euro of wagering actually costs you on average.
the relationship
House edge = 100% − RTP. A 96% RTP slot has a 4% house edge. A 99.5% blackjack table has a 0.5% house edge.
why it matters
Long-run expected loss = wagering × house edge. Halve the house edge, halve the cost.
common range
Online slots run 92% to 98% RTP (2% to 8% edge). Optimal blackjack runs 99.5%. European roulette runs 97.3%.
What RTP actually means
Return To Player (RTP) is the percentage of total wagering that a game pays back to players, averaged over the long run. A 96% RTP slot pays out €96 for every €100 wagered. The other €4 is the operator's revenue from that wagering.
The number is a theoretical average across hundreds of millions of spins, not a prediction of any single session. You can sit at a 96% RTP slot and lose your deposit in 50 spins. You can also hit a bonus round and walk away with five times your deposit. The 96% is what the casino sees, averaged across every player on that game.
RTP is a population statistic. House edge is the population statistic from the operator's point of view. Both are real over time. Neither is a session prediction.
House edge, the same number flipped
House edge is the percentage the casino keeps. It is one minus the RTP. The two always sum to 100%.
conversion
house edge = 100% − RTP
low edge
Blackjack with optimal strategy: 99.5% RTP, 0.5% house edge. European roulette: 97.3% RTP, 2.7% edge. Best-RTP slots: 98% RTP, 2% edge.
high edge
Most slots: 95% to 96% RTP, 4% to 5% edge. American roulette: 94.7% RTP, 5.3% edge. Side bets on table games: often 5% to 10% edge.
The difference between 2% and 5% edge sounds small. Across €3,500 of wagering on a typical 35x bonus, it is the difference between €70 and €175 of expected loss. That is the whole margin between a fair bonus and an expensive one.
Turning RTP into expected loss
The reason RTP matters for bonuses is one formula, the same one that drives the EV calculation.
long-run cost
expected loss = total wagering × house edge
same wagering, different game
€3,500 of wagering, two different games
96% RTP slot. Expected loss = €3,500 × 4% = €140.
99.5% RTP blackjack (optimal play). Expected loss = €3,500 × 0.5% = €17.50.
Same wagering total, 8× difference in expected cost. This is exactly why operators restrict wagering requirements to slots (and exclude blackjack). The restriction is not a usability choice; it is a margin protection.
The multi-RTP trap
Most popular slots ship in multiple RTP configurations. The same game, marketed under the same name, can run at 96% in one casino and 88% in another. The operator chooses which version to deploy. You do not.
A 96% slot dropped to 88% has its house edge tripled (4% becomes 12%). On a €3,500 WR, that turns €140 of expected loss into €420. The game looks identical: same theme, same animations, same paytable layout. The math is unrecognisable.
how to check
Open the game info panel (usually accessible from the spin screen). Look for the RTP line. If it shows a range ("RTP: 88% to 96.5%") instead of a single number, the operator is running a low version. Walk.
RTP is not volatility
A 96% RTP describes the long-run average. It says nothing about how bumpy the ride is. Two games with identical RTP can have very different volatility profiles, which changes how the bankroll moves session to session.
low volatility
Frequent small wins. Bankroll moves slowly. Sessions tend to end near the expected loss line. Easier to clear a WR without busting.
high volatility
Long dry spells punctuated by big wins. Bankroll swings wide. Most sessions end below the expected loss line; a few end far above. Higher chance of busting before WR clears.
For clearing a wagering requirement, low-volatility games are usually safer. You are more likely to still have a bankroll at the end of the WR window. The expected loss does not change, but the chance you survive long enough to collect the bonus does.
Where to find the RTP
Three places, in order of trust.
- The game info panel inside the casino. The most reliable source for the version that operator is running. Open the game, find the info or paytable button, look for "RTP" or "Return To Player".
- The provider's published spec. Game studios (NetEnt, Pragmatic, Play'n GO) publish RTP for their default configuration. Useful as a baseline but not a guarantee for any specific operator.
- Third-party trackers. Slot databases that aggregate RTP reports. Helpful for spotting multi-RTP games, but only as a cross-check.
For the bonus calculations we publish, we default to the provider spec unless an operator has clearly deployed a lower version. The methodology page documents the assumption per casino.