Understanding Slots Paylines

When it comes to online slots, paylines are as confusing as they can be profitable. Profitable to casinos that is. When it comes to the payline, make sure to follow our tips below, so you know exactly what to expect.

The payline is usually drawn horizontally across the symbol display in a classic slot machine, you pull the lever or push the button, and if three matching symbols (i.e. three pears) are displayed on the same horizontal line, you have won something.

Three pears might be the smallest prize and three bananas might be the jackpot. The value of each symbol is usually displayed on the side of the slot-machine – this is called the ‘paytable’.

Some machines offer more than one payline, often running along the diagonal as well as the horizontal, and also many others which is fine, but caution must be applied. With some games offering 3 5 and even 50 paylines, it can be next to impossible to figure it all out.

Machines that allow you to play with small money, but multiple coins at once sound like good value, but beware. The deception is that you are only playing with nickels and dimes, but you are actually betting multiple coins at once – and it is difficult to keep track of how much you might be losing on each pull.

For instance, you might play 50 cents, which sounds small, but if you are playing over seven paylines, you are actually spending $3.50 on each play.

Machines like this make great money traps and that is why online casinos love them.

Beware of complexity, and try to play with small denominations at first, smaller coins, and look for machines that just have a single shot, one coin per play, single payline formula.