Top Casino Sites for Slots

This is the page where you can find the best information about online slots and the most reliable and entertaining casino sites where you can enjoy playing them slots. Our aim is to present to you the most useful tips and tricks about online slots and the highest quality online casinos where you can play your favourite casino slots.
The characteristics of the most successful online slots offered by casino sites:

• good eye catching graphics
• fast and snappy response times when spinning the reels
• good audio reproduction and sound effects
• free spins and bonus rounds
• extra features - more interaction between man and slot machine

The essential information about online slots on casino websites

Slots are probably the most common and most popular form of gambling in the world. They can be called slot machines, fruit machines, one-armed bandits or pokies. But everyone knows their familiar sight and sound, and understands the excitement of those spinning reels and the tantalising sound of coins clattering into the winnings tray. In this page we will tell you a little bit about them, their origin and development, how they work and the best way to play them and all you need to know before you try them out for yourself at a casino website.

How to play online slots at casino sites

The aim of playing on a slot machine is simple. You deposit your money, set those reels spinning enticingly, and if certain symbols come to rest on the payline then you collect your winnings. Each spin of a slot machine costs a set amount of money. This is a fixed cost, though depending on the slot machine you may then win bonus rounds or have an opportunity to bet more. The amount you can win may be fixed or, in the case of progressive slots, get bigger the more money that is deposited. Some jackpots can get up into the millions.

Slots are an easy casino game to play but don't let that relative simplicity fool you because it hides an awful lot of variation, and lots of fun and excitement. Casino sites slots are one of the most popular forms of gambling in the world for good reason!

The essence of playing slots at a gambling website is the exact same as it is for real world slot machines. You press a button and set the reels spinning and hope for the best. Usually you can choose whether you want to play for one spin or more, avoiding the need to keep starting again after every spin. In casino websites the reels are controlled by a random number generator which controls the chances of you hitting those magic slot symbols on the payline.

Choosing your online casino slots

Although everyone has it's own favorite slot games there are a few sectors where we can categorise the selection criteria for picking a slot to play on at a casino site:

• Theme: The main differences between online slots are in the theme, the amount of reels and paylines, and in the method of payout. Some slots have a classic feel with traditional symbols like bells and fruit, hence the colloquial name fruit machine in the UK. But there are endless exciting themes to choose from, from Iron Man to The Lord of the Rings.
• Winning ways: After choosing a theme you like the next thing to check for is the amount of reels and paylines. Online casino slots differ widely in this regard, with your choice ranging from the old 3-reel classic to the 25-reel epic. And often there is more than one payline, with many of them criss-crossing the screen in straight, diagonal and zig-zag lines. Sometimes it's nice to have more than one way to win and some casino sites have slot machines with more lines than you can imagine!
• Paying out: This is a major thing to look out for when choosing your slot. The two major differences are between fixed payouts, and progressive jackpots. As the names imply the fixed payout slots offer a set amount of money to be won, whereas the progressive jackpots will keep adding a bit of every bet to the jackpot until it is won. Although each online casino operator might have it's own private jackpots there usually are progressive jacckpots offered by a group of casino websites and as you can imagine it's possible for the winning amount to get very big indeed and run into the millions!

The origins of casino slots

The first slot machine was invented by Charles Fey in late 19^th century San Francisco. His invention proved so popular that it soon spread throughout America and to Europe. By the 1940s some casinos in Las Vegas were making half of their profits from slot machines.

Modern slot machines were originally mechanical, then they became electronic and now they are mostly computerized, driven by random number generators. They have moved easily into the world of online gaming and now are one of the most popular features of casino sites.

Variations

Although casino slots are based on a relatively simple concept, the best online casino sites have taken them to a whole new level allowing you to choose your desired level of simplicity or complexity. Some of today's casino slots variations are:

• Multiple line casino slots: This variation has multiple paylines, giving you many more chances to win with every spin.
• Multiple reel casino sltos: Originally slot machines had 3 reels, but now you can get 5-reel, 7-reel and even bigger numbers of reels. The chances of hitting the jackpot are diminished but the payouts tend to be much bigger.
• Progressive slots: In this version the jackpot keeps increasing as more money is wagered on the game. That is, until it is won! Some online jackpots have been in the millions.
• Skill stop slots: Very popular in Asia, this is a slot variation where you can stop the reels spinning yourself. Definitely worth trying if you have good hand-eye coordination.

Progressive Casino Slot Machines

The traditional slot machine was mechanical, operated by a lever. The amount of money you bet and the amount of money you could win was always fixed. When slots ventured into the best casino sites though it became possible to make this ever more interesting, as now the amount of money bet and won could be easily recorded by the online slot machine. And someone somewhere had a very clever idea...

The jackpots keep getting bigger...

Some of the bigger casinos in Vegas started offering jackpots that got progressively bigger if they were not won. Every time someone played on the machine, and didn't win the jackpot, a percentage of their bets were transferred into the jackpot, meaning it got bigger and bigger with every spin. Over time some of these jackpots got really huge. There were headline wins for slots players and a new craze was born – progressive jackpots!

And online jackpots they get bigger still!

Progressive online slots are the same as the ones you'll find in a brick and mortar casino. Every time someone plays on them and doesn't win the jackpot then a portion of their bet is added to the jackpot and it keeps getting bigger. The big difference with the internet though is connectivity. So, whereas in the real world the progressive jackpot is linked to one or a specific number of machines, online it can be linked to any number at all!

What this means is that some jackpots can get really big. A particular jackpot can be run across a number of different online casinos, usually managed by a third-party software producer. So you can be trying for the same massive jackpot as people all over the world, playing in many different casino sites. As you can imagine, some of these jackpots can get to huge proportions, into the millions. Progressive Jackpots from the online slots Beach Life regularly reach a few million dollars!(Even the best UK casino sites show jackpot payouts in dollars and not pounds GBP).

These huge jackpots are a real draw for online casinos and the current, ever-increasing, jackpot totals are generally featured prominently on their home pages. So do keep an eye out for them, and try the odd spin, because who doesn't want a chance to win that sort of money!

Plan your gaming strategy

Slots are great fun, but ultimately your chances of winning are dependent on the RNG (random number generators) which drive the casino software. There are a few things to look out for though, which will help you form a casino gaming strategy and will potentially maximise the balance between enjoyment/frustration and your chances of winning on casino slots:

• Payout percentage: Different casinos will have different payout percentages for their slot games, and it’s worth checking these. You should be looking for a score of about 95% or above to ensure your money lasts and you have a greater chance of winning the jackpot.
• Bankroll: Luck by its nature is variable, and you should be prepared for this. Make sure you have a sufficient bankroll to see you beyond any temporary losses at the start.
• Winning streaks: When you do find yourself on a winning streak it’s a good idea to periodically cash out with some of your winnings, thereby always ensuring you have some profit if your streak comes to an end.

Managing your bankroll

Once you've decided on the slot you want to play it's really all about enjoying the fun. But you do want to maximise your chances of winning and stay in the game for as long as possible, so it's advisable to adopt a small amount of bankroll strategy. Decide how much you want to bet and stick to this, and be prepared for ups and downs. Online casino slots are a game of random chance but you will find yourself on the odd winning streak, and you want to make sure your bankroll is sufficient to give you the opportunity win!

Why Play Slot Machines on casino sites?

Gamblers who are used to playing at live casinos may wonder why they would want to play slot machines on online casinos. After all, isn’t part of the point of playing a slot machine the physical experience of pulling the lever? It is quite a satisfying sensation, especially when it results in a payout and you get to listen to all those coins falling out. So what can online slot machines offer you that the old-fashioned experience can’t? At first glance, it may seem like the answer is, “Not a whole lot.” In fact, it may seem like online slot machines would be inherently inferior. This is not the case, though. There are plenty of reasons to play slot machines online, plenty of benefits which they offer above and beyond slots in traditional casinos. A few reasons to play slot machines on casino websites:

• Exciting sounds and graphics. Video slot machines (link to: What Are Video Bonus Slots?) online have a lot of awesome special effects thanks to evolutions in computer graphics.

• More variety in the games available. You will never find a selection in a land-based casino to compare with the vast selection of online slot games. That means not only is there a lot of variety when it comes to game themes, but there is also a lot of variety when it comes to pay lines, bonuses, coin sizes, and other mechanics that may impact outcomes.

• You are playing from the comfort of home. Yes, the casino ambiance can be a lot of fun, but it can also be distracting, and plus, sometimes you just don’t feel like climbing into your car and driving all that way back. You can gamble in your pyjamas with online slot machines, eat whatever is in your fridge, and just relax and have a good time.

• Playing at home can save you money. Getting in your car isn’t just annoying—it is also expensive. Playing at home means you do not have to pay for petrol or gasoline. You do not need to spend money on food, drinks, or anything else. You may also find less expensive slots games to play at an online casino. And for some people, self-control may be easier. When you drive to the casino, you may feel obligated to keep playing even when you are through your bankroll, because you drove all that way. That pressure is gone when you are playing at home. You can quit anytime you need to.

As you can see, there are a lot of great reasons to consider playing online slot machines! If you have never tried it before, then give it a go. You will probably be surprised by just how fun it is, even without that lever to pull. There are so many games to try that you won’t know where to begin or when to stop. And along the way, you may just win big; online progressive slot machines pay out some of the most impressive jackpots on the planet to the lucky winners!

Are There “Loose” Online Casino Slot Machines?

If you played at brick-and-mortar casinos before switching to casino sites, you might have searched around for the best slot machines in the casino. Typically “best” here is defined to mean “loosest”. A loose casino slot machine is one that seems to pay out more liberally than others—for reasons which are not deliberate on the part of the casino. Seems is very much the key word here. Oftentimes, gamblers also believe that how they treat the machine matters. Anything from the temperature of the metal to how the lever is pulled might compel a given machine to “loosen up.”

You may be wondering whether there is such a thing as a “loose” slot machine at a UK gambling site. The answer is clear and simple, and that is, “no”. Why not? Well, consider the following:

• first off that the idea of a “loose” casino slot machine on the floor of a brick-and-mortar casino is already something of a myth. It’s like hunting around for a unicorn.
• secondly, think about how online slot machines actually work; they are not really machines, just computer programs and they are run by random number generators (RNGs) which generate the results. These programs truly are random.

All of that having been said, you can still look for the best casino sites slot machine to play. Instead of looking for a machine that simply happens to pay out more over time, look for an online slot that makes it easy to manage your money. You want to be able to choose your coin size, and preferably pick smaller coin sizes without a penalty. You also want to steer clear of machines which add in pay lines as you add in more coins, reducing your odds of winning.

Finally, one more tip is to look for casino websites with high frequency online slot machines. These machines will produce smaller payouts than low frequency slots, but they will do so more often. This increases your chances of winning. What you win may not seem like a lot, but it is better than winning nothing! This is probably the only kind of real “loose online casino slot” you are going to find!