If you’re ready to start spinning the reels and hunting for jackpots, you’re in the right place. Our guide to playing online pokies will cover:
Whether you want to play pokies online for real money or practice for free, these are our favourite sites for Australian players:
Online pokies are bright, flashy and fast – but that doesn’t mean they’re confusing. Online pokies are just as simple as they are in physical casinos.
The goal in online pokies is to spin the wheel until you find enough matching winning symbols on-screen.
There are differences per game variation, but your goal always remains the same: match winning symbols on screen to win jackpots.
Choose a casino using our reviews and sign up.
Make a deposit at your casino account, and if you’ve used one of our recommended sites, claim your bonus.
Pokies are the most popular online game, so each casino has several options. Choose a game type and a theme that interests you and start spinning.
Whether you’re playing for real money or playing free online pokies, there is a wide variation of games that you’ll find.
You can choose by theme (the game might be based off a movie, a holiday, a band, etc.), but we recommend choosing by game type. There’s a wide variety here as well, but there are three types that are the most popular in US online casinos: 5-reel pokies, 3-reel pokies, and progressive jackpot pokies.
As the name suggests, 3-Reel Pokies have 3 reels (columns). Players win big by getting three identical symbols lined up on those reels.
Given the recent popularity of 5-Reel Pokies, 3-Reel Pokies are now slightly less common at online casinos, but definitely still have their place, especially for purists.
Given the evolution of online pokies, there are now multiple ways to win, including betting on multiple paylines and wild symbols.
These games – as you might expect – have 5 reels (or columns) that players can spin. 5-reel pokies offer players hundreds of ways to win, literally.
5-reel pokies generally come with multiple paylines (winning combinations), often more than 25. It’s with these pokies games that you’ll typically see the most bonus features, like free spins, wild symbols, scatter symbols, etc. (more on bonus features later).
Another game type that’s appropriately named, progressive jackpot pokies are games where the jackpot grows each time a player spins.
As each player – those playing for real money, at least – spins the reel, a small portion of his or her spin contributes to the overall jackpot. Given the popularity of progressive jackpot pokies, these jackpots can grow quite large, and quite quickly.
The jackpots continue to grow until somebody wins, and then it starts all over again.
Big wins on progressive jackpot games have paid millions of dollars.
Ready to start playing? The team at Gamble Online has reviewed hundreds of pokies so you don’t have to. Here are the most popular online pokies for Australian players:
Button: See All Pokies Reviews
As you may have noticed, there are a variety of in-game features that you will see in nearly every online pokies game available. Each symbol changes the game in a different exciting way.
Typically unlock free games and don’t have to follow paylines.
Usually activated by a scatter symbol, bonus games can be variations of the current game, or new games altogether.
Activated by symbols or part of a bonus game, free spins cost you nothing but still allow you to win.
Exactly what they sound like, these features multiply your win by whatever number they represent.
Just like in a card game, wild symbols can count as any symbol (except scatters/bonuses).
There is no “winning strategy” for online pokies – play for fun. Choose a game with a theme that interests you and just enjoy spinning the reels.
You’re going to want to play for a while. Manage your bankroll and make wagers that will allow you to continue playing for a significant period of time.
All pokies are tipped in the casino’s favour, but not by the same amount. Our pokies reviews all include the Payout Percentage – the higher the better.
The ability to play these pokies online for real money is made possible by the huge variety of software provides in the market. There are a large number of software companies in the space, which can make it difficult to know which are reputable, and which aren’t.
Luckily for you, the casinos we recommend at Gamble Online are all thoroughly vetted, and have partnered with the best software providers on the market to provide Australian players an excellent variety of games.
If you’re an Australian pokies player, we’d recommend looking for titles from the following software providers:
An industry-leader in the casino games space, Real Time Gaming offers over 300 new and classic games in multiple markets.
With over a decade in the space, Betsoft is known for their wide variety of 3D games and various independent certifications.
Founded in 2005, Rival has steadily licensed their games to more and more casinos, eventually becoming an industry leader in the space.
Action or Play – Action or play is the total amount of money wagered on a slot machine in a session or over a given timeframe.
Betting Units or Credits – A betting unit or credit is based on the size of coin you’re using and how much money you have in the machine. If you have $100 in the machine and are using a quarter coin size you have 400 betting units or credits.
Bonus Feature – A bonus feature is one of the new things that became available after the introduction of video slot machines.
Bonus Multiplier or Bonus Modifier – A bonus modifier or multiplier is a symbol or series of symbols that multiply a win by a certain amount. Common multipliers are two times (2X) and three times (3X) but they can be any amount the game is programmed for.
Cash Back – Cash back is exactly what it sounds like. Some player’s clubs offer cash back on slot machine play.
Cold Pokies – A cold slot machine is one that hasn’t paid out in a long time. Many players believe machines run hot or cold, but mathematically machines simply pay out the percentage that they’re programmed to pay out over time.
Fixed Value Pokies – A fixed value pokies machine has only one size bet available. You can’t pick how many lines, coins per line, or the coin value.
Hit Frequency – Hit frequency is how often a slot machine pays out a winning hand.
Line or Pay Line – A line is usually from left to right and is the plane or area where you need to line up matching symbols to win a pay out.
Loose Pokies –A loose slot machine is one that is paying out more often than normal, or one that appears to be doing so
Nickel Pokies – Nickel slot machines are ones using a 5 cent coin size.
Payback Percentage – Payback percentage is the amount of money the slot machine pays back as a percentage of the amount wagered trough a machine. This is also known as the Return to Player Percentage.
Pay Table – The pay table is the screen or card that explains which matching symbols pay and how much they pay.
Return to Player – the percentage of total wagers in a given machine or game that are returned to players. Also known as the payback percentage.
Secondary Jackpot – Some pokies machines have more than one jackpot. The highest jackpot is called a primary and all of the others are called secondary jackpots.
Wild Symbols – Wild symbols, usually found on video slot machines, are used in place of other symbols to help you form winning pay line combinations.
Spin the wheel & predict where the ball will land.
Wager on the outcome of a roll of the dice.
Find your new favourite game here.
How much money can you win playing pokies?
You can win millions of dollars playing pokies. The biggest win to date is $39.7 million, which was won after a player put $100 into the Megabucks pokies machine at Excalibur.
Which online pokies machines have the best odds?
This depends, as the online offering changes regularly. Our pokies game reviews cover the newest games, and include the payout percentage. The higher the payout percentage, the more favourable the game’s odds are for the player.
Are online pokies as good as brick and mortar pokies?
Yes. You have just as much, if not more, variety and can generally play all of the same pokies titles. Most importantly, you can win just as much money.
Plus, depending on your temperament, you don’t have to deal with smoky casinos, drunks, crowds or have to wait your turn to play your favorite pokies machine.
Can Australians play pokies online?
Of course. Most casinos powered by Real Time Gaming, BetSoft, or Rival software’s accept Australian players. You can always check our recommendations to find the best sites for Australian players to play online pokies.
