Most pokies tips for beginners found online are either useless or dishonest: "hot" machines, lucky times of day, betting patterns that supposedly crack the game. None of it works, because online pokies run on a random number generator and every spin is independent. This guide takes the opposite approach and tells you what genuinely makes a difference.
The short list: understand the house edge and RTP, choose volatility that suits your budget, learn how paylines and ways work, use free play, read bonus terms, and keep autoplay on a leash. We illustrate each point with named Fair Go pokies, using only the features the casino itself lists.
Tip 1: Accept that no strategy beats the house edge
Every pokie is built with a return-to-player (RTP) percentage below 100%. Whatever is left over is the house edge, baked into the game's maths rather than into any pattern you can read. Spins are decided by an independently tested random number generator, so this spin has no relationship to the last one. A game that has not paid in an hour is not "due".
Almost every bad beginner habit comes from believing otherwise: raising stakes after losses, switching games to find a "loose" one, or playing on because a win feels close. Once you accept that the edge cannot be beaten, you can focus on what you can control: how much you spend, how long it lasts and how much fun you have.
Tip 2: Understand RTP, and what a 97% average really means
Fair Go states an average pokie RTP of approximately 97% across its lobby. That is a long-run average over millions of spins: for every $100 bet, the expected return is about $97. Two things beginners get wrong about this figure:
- It is not a session promise. In 100 spins you could lose everything or triple your money.
- It is an average across games. Individual titles sit above and below it. We do not quote per-game RTPs because Fair Go does not publish them in the material we work from; check the game's info panel in the lobby.
Higher RTP means a slower drain on your bankroll. For the best odds on the site, Fair Go's video poker runs much higher: Aces & Eights at 99.78% and full-pay Jacks or Better at 99.54%, though those games reward correct play rather than luck. Our RTP and volatility guide explains the numbers in more depth.
Tip 3: Match volatility to your bankroll and patience
Volatility (also called variance) describes the shape of a game's payouts, not its average. Low-volatility pokies hand out small wins frequently; high-volatility pokies go quiet for long stretches and then pay large. Fair Go describes the volatility of several of its games, which makes choosing easy:
| Pokie | Stated volatility | Listed features | Suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dr. Winmore | Low | Cluster pays, cascading reels, multipliers up to x6 | Small budgets, long relaxed sessions |
| Kev's Bush Bonanza | Medium | 50 paylines, Fortune Link feature, Super Grand Jackpot, 50,000x top award | Most beginners |
| Devil's Jackpot | High | Nudging wilds, wild multipliers up to 20x | Bigger bankrolls, patient players |
A beginner with a $50 budget should start on Dr. Winmore or similar and only step up to Devil's Jackpot with a smaller stake and realistic expectations. Kev's Bush Bonanza, Fair Go's exclusive outback title, is a sensible middle ground. The higher the volatility, the smaller your bet relative to your budget.
Tip 4: Learn paylines, ways and cluster pays before you bet
Not all pokies decide wins the same way, and your bet per spin depends on the structure:
- Fixed paylines. Bubble Bubble 2 has 50 fixed paylines, so you always play all 50 and your coin value sets the total bet. Cash Bandits 3 runs 25 paylines, Panda's Gold 88 and Football Fortunes 50. Where lines are adjustable, playing fewer reduces the bet but also the ways to win.
- Ways to win. Halloween Treasures and Asgard both use 243 ways: matching symbols on adjacent reels pay regardless of position, and the total bet covers everything.
- Cluster pays. Dr. Winmore pays for groups of touching symbols rather than lines, with cascading reels dropping new symbols in.
Before your first real-money spin on any game, open its paytable and find three things: how wins are formed, what triggers the bonus or free games, and whether the top award requires a maximum bet. Our pokies hub links to individual guides for each title.
Tip 5: Use free play before real money
Fair Go lets you try its pokies in free-play mode, and this is the most underused tip on the list. Free play lets you:
- Learn a game's rhythm and how often its feature triggers, with nothing at stake.
- Test a bet size against a pretend budget and see how long it lasts.
- Decide whether you actually enjoy the game before paying for it.
Free play uses the same maths as real play, with the caveat that your brain treats pretend losses very differently from real ones, which is why the bankroll rules below still apply. Browse what is available on our free pokies page.
Tip 6: Read the bonus terms before you take the bonus
Bonuses are not free money; they are extra play with conditions. At Fair Go the welcome bonus (code WELCOME, 100% up to $200, five times, $20 minimum) carries 30x wagering on deposit plus bonus and has no maximum cash-out. No-deposit offers, such as the 15 free spins on Bubble Bubble 2 with code BUBBLE15 at the time of writing, carry 60x wagering on winnings and a cash-out cap. Koala's Diary free chips are typically capped at $180.
Three rules keep bonuses from becoming a trap: calculate the turnover before entering a code ($20 plus $20 at 30x is $1,200 in bets), check the maximum bet allowed while wagering, and remember Fair Go allows one bonus at a time. If that sounds like homework, play without a code; a busted deposit of $10 or more can then qualify for 25% cashback through support. Full detail in our wagering requirements guide.
Tip 7: Set a budget and be careful with autoplay
Decide how much a session can cost before you log in, and consider that money spent. A simple structure is a fixed session budget with bets around 1% to 2% of it, so $1 to $2 on a $100 session. When the budget is gone, so is the session. Never deposit again the same night to win it back; chasing is how a small loss becomes a large one. Our bankroll management guide covers this in detail.
Autoplay deserves its own warning. It removes the pause between spins, and that pause is where decisions get made. A hundred automatic spins at $1 can empty a $100 budget while you are looking at your phone. If you use it, set a small number of spins and any available loss-stop to your session limit; if sessions still feel like they got away from you, do not use it.
Tip 8: Know how progressive jackpots work
Progressive jackpots grow as players bet and reset when won, and the rules differ by game. Aztec's Millions is listed as winnable at any bet level, so you are not forced to max bet to be eligible. Plentiful Treasure carries eight progressive jackpots with a Hold and Spin feature, Achilles Deluxe has Minor and Major progressives, and Halloween Treasures offers Mini, Minor, Major and Grand tiers.
Separately, Fair Go's Lobby Jackpots are an opt-in overlay costing $0.01 per spin on top of your bet. For any jackpot game, check whether a minimum or maximum bet is required for eligibility, expect higher volatility because part of the return is reserved for the big prize, and never raise your stake to "qualify" beyond what your budget allows. Play at Fair Go
Responsible gambling
The best pokies tip of all is to know why you are playing. If the answer is fun, these eight tips will make it cheaper and more enjoyable. If the answer is to win money you need, or to get back money you have lost, please stop and call Gambling Help Online on 1800 858 858; it is free, confidential and open 24 hours a day, with online support at gamblinghelponline.org.au. Pokies are for adults 18 and over only.
Frequently asked questions
No. Online pokies use a random number generator and every spin is independent, so no betting pattern, timing or machine selection changes the house edge. What you can control is how much you spend, how long it lasts and which volatility you choose. Treat strategy claims that promise otherwise as a warning sign about the source.
Fair Go states an average pokie RTP of approximately 97%, which means that over a very large number of spins the games return about $97 for every $100 wagered. It is a long-run average, not a session promise, and individual pokies vary. Short sessions can swing far above or below it in either direction.
Start with a low or medium volatility game. Fair Go lists Dr. Winmore as low volatility, with cluster pays and cascading reels, and Kev's Bush Bonanza as medium volatility with 50 paylines and a Fortune Link feature. Try both in free play first, then play the one you enjoy with a small stake relative to your budget.
No. Max betting only matters where a top award or jackpot requires it, and Fair Go lists Aztec's Millions as winnable at any bet level. Check the paytable for eligibility rules on the specific game. For most beginners, a bet of 1% to 2% of the session budget gives far more play and a better chance of seeing the features.
Not inherently, but it removes the natural pause between spins where you decide whether to continue, and that makes it easy to spend a session budget without noticing. If you use it, set a small number of spins and any loss-stop to your session limit. Many experienced players avoid it entirely for exactly this reason.