Whether you choose to play casino games at an online casino or your nearest brick and mortar establishment, be prepared for some news that may be shocking to you. All casino games, regardless of the type or style, are designed for one single purpose, to make the casino that hosts them as rich as possible.
Now, if you already know a bit about the house edge and how it works, then this shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise. However, if you are new to casino gaming, or have held the misplaced belief that casinos possess an altruistic need to make you prosperous and happy, then what we're about to reveal could be the medicine you need to get on track with reality!
How the Casino Ensures That It Never Loses out on Any Game
Yes, it may be a somewhat bitter pill to swallow, but it really is for your own good! Every casino in the world, be it in the real world or the virtual, is designed to win all of your money eventually. While it is true that you can win on just about any casino gaming going, in the long run, you will ultimately lose to the house.
Now, you may be wondering at this point how this is even possible since casino games are ‘games of chance’. Well, to a certain extent they are in so far as the results of any legitimate casino game are random. However, a long time ago, casino owners decided that any 50-50 game simply would not guarantee that they made any profits, let alone stay in business. Which is why they came up with something called the house edge. The house edge ensures that the casino always makes a profit, even when you are winning!
How Does the House Edge Work?
The house edge is quite a simple concept and is highly effective in practice. Every casino game, from slots through to roulette, baccarat and blackjack, all have a house edge percentage sown into them. In basic terms, the casino house edge is the average profit the casino makes off of each player, represented as a percentage.
Let’s take roulette as an example. If you’re playing American roulette, expect a house edge percentage of 5.26% (which we’ll round off to 5% for the sake of this illustration). This means that for every dollar that you bet, you get back 0.95 cents as your winnings (if you win), while the casino keeps 5 cents as profit. This happens on every single bet that you place at the casino in ANY game that is on offer.
Of course, not all casino games have the same house edge percentage, it all depends on how the game is structured and what type of bets and odds are on offer. So, if the house edge is something that concerns you, try to mitigate its effects by choosing casino games with a lower house edge such as standard blackjack (around 0.5%) or European roulette (about 2.7%).