What is video poker?
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19 Sep 2025 •
Reading time: 3 minutes Video poker is an electronic casino game inspired by five-card draw poker, but played on a machine resembling a slot machine.
The origins and rise of the game
Video poker first appeared in the 1970s, when it became economically viable to combine a television-style screen with a solid-state processor. The first machines appeared at the same time as the first personal computers, although they were very rudimentary by today’s standards.
The game really began to gain commercial popularity when Si Redd’s Coin Machines (SIRCOMA), later International Game Technology (IGT), introduced Draw Poker in 1979. During the 1980s, video poker gained recognition in casinos, mainly because it seemed less intimidating than table poker for many players.
How does video poker work?
The player receives five cards. They can keep some, discard others, and then receive new cards to complete their hand. After this draw, the card combinations are compared to the pay table, and if the hand is among the winning combinations, a prize is paid out.
The possible hands are similar to those in classic poker: a pair, two pairs, three of a kind, straight, flush, full house, four of a kind, straight flush, royal flush. What distinguishes certain variants are the ‘joker’ or ‘wild’ cards (such as the two in Deuces Wild) which can replace other cards to make a stronger hand.
Variations
Video poker is not a single game: there are many variations. Among the best known are:
- Jacks or Better, the most classic version, with winnings as soon as you have a pair of jacks.
- Joker’s Wild, with a joker as a wild card.
- Deuces Wild, where all twos are wild.
- Other forms such as Bonus Poker, Double Bonus, Double Double Bonus, etc., each modifying the winnings (especially for rare hands such as four of a kind or a royal flush) to attract different types of players.
The pay table is crucial: it determines how much each hand is worth based on the bet. The more ‘generous’ the table, the higher the return to player (RTP) percentage.
Return, strategies and challenges for the player
The theoretical return, i.e. what you can expect to get back in the long term if you play perfectly, can vary greatly depending on the variant and the pay table. In some ‘full-pay’ games, the theoretical return can approach or even exceed 100%, which means that, in certain betting configurations and with optimal strategy, the game can be virtually neutral for the house.
But beware: ‘playing perfectly’ means knowing the best decisions to make at each draw — which cards to keep and which cards to discard. Amateur players may lose this advantage. In addition, casinos often adjust pay tables to reduce this return, which increases the house edge.
What is the difference between poker and video poker?
Poker is a card game played between several people, where strategy and bluffing are essential to beat your opponents. Video poker is played alone against a machine.
What is the difference between video poker and slot machines?
Unlike slot machines, video poker leaves some decision-making up to the player. The choice of which cards to keep influences the outcome.
What are the most popular video poker variants?
The best known are Jacks or Better, Deuces Wild and Joker’s Wild. Others, such as Bonus Poker and Double Double Bonus, offer different pay tables that change the winnings.
What is the rarest hand in video poker?
The most sought-after combination is the Royal Flush (ten, jack, queen, king, ace of the same suit). It appears on average once every 40,000 hands and offers the maximum jackpot.
What is the best strategy for video poker?
The strategy depends on the variant chosen.