11 Reasons Jacks or Better is the Only Video Poker Choice

One great thing about video poker is that it offers well over a hundred different variations.

But odds are that you don’t want to sift through dozens of video poker games before finding one that you like.

That being said, what video poker variant should you choose first?

I’ll explain to you why Jacks or Better should be the first and only game you should play. And later, we’ll discuss tips for how you can beat Jacks or Better and hopefully earn profits.

Jacks or Better (JoB) is not only a high-paying video poker variant, but it’s also one of the best-paying casino games, period.

Using perfect strategy on the right version of JoB, you can achieve 99.54% payback. In other words, an expert player will only deal with a 0.46% house edge.

Let’s look at how other popular casino games compare to JoB in terms of house advantage:

• Jacks or Better = 0.46% (w / perfect strategy on 9 / 6 game)
• Online blackjack = 0.5% house edge (on average)
• Baccarat = 1.06% (w / banker bet)
• French roulette = 1.35%
• Craps = 1.36% (don’t pass line / don’t come bets)
• Pai Gow Poker = 1.46% (playing as dealer when possible)
• Pai Gow = 1.50% (playing as dealer when possible)
• Blackjack = 2.0% (land-based casinos usually have bad rules)
• Casino War = 2.88% (go to war on ties)
• Online Slots = 4.0% (on average)
• Casino Slots = 5.0% to 15.0%

These are just general examples, and certain online blackjack games can pay better than Jacks or Better. But you can see that JoB has the lowest house edge under normal circumstances.

The key is that you need to find a 9 / 6 version of JoB. This means that a full house pays 9 coins, and a flush pays 6 coins.

Contrast this to 9 / 5 Jacks or Better, which pays 9 coins for a full house and 5 for a flush. This doesn’t seem like a big difference, but 9 / 5 JoB increases the house edge from 0.46% to 1.55%.

That said, look at JoB’s pay table and check for the 9 / 6 combo so that you can achieve the best possible payback.

Casinos commonly refrain from offering the best-paying versions of games. After all, why would they want to give you a better chance to win when many players will settle for less?

But Jacks or Better differs because it’s easier to find the top version in both land-based and online casinos.

You’d be hard-pressed to find an online casino that doesn’t offer 9 / 6 JoB.

Not every brick-and-mortar casino will offer the 9 / 6 variant. But there are casinos in Nevada, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, and Oklahoma that have this game.

Remember, the key is to check the pay tables on games before you start playing. You can also visit VPFree2.com to find the best-available video poker variants in different towns / cities in the United States and Canada.

If you can’t find 9 / 6 JoB, here’s what to look for in descending order:

• 9 / 5 Jacks or Better = 98.45% payback
• 8 / 6 JoB = 98.39%
• 8 / 5 JoB = 97.30%
• 7 / 5 JoB = 96.15%
• 6 / 5 JoB = 95.0%

While I’ve built up Jacks or Better quite a bit, there are other video poker games that pay more. Some of these games include:

• Full-pay Deuces Wild = 100.76% payback
• Full-pay Joker Poker = 100.64%
• 10 / 7 Double Bonus = 100.17%
• 10 / 6 Double Double Bonus = 100.07%
• Triple Bonus Plus = 99.80%
• Super Double Bonus = 99.69%

This isn’t the entire list of video poker variations that pay better than JoB, but it gives you an idea of what else is available. And obviously we’d rather play these games when possible.

But the problem is that it’s hard to find these variations. Few places in the world outside of downtown and North Las Vegas offer video poker this good.

9 / 6 Jacks or Better is usually the top game that you’ll find at most casinos.

Again, most casinos don’t want to give players a great chance to win, which is why you’ll rarely find full-pay Deuces Wild, Joker Poker, 10 / 7 Double Bonus, and 10 / 6 Double Double Bonus.

But 9 / 6 JoB makes a suitable alternative thanks to its 99.54% payback.

If you’re new to video poker, Jacks or Better is the best game that you can start with.

The reason why is because there are no bonus payouts, multipliers, or multi-hand formats to worry about. Instead, JoB has a simple paying process, and you can check out the easy steps below:

• You start by betting between 1 and 5 coins. You should play all 5 coins if you want to qualify for maximum payback. The reason why is because the royal flush payout increases disproportionately when winning with 5 coins (4,000 credits), versus 4 coins (1,000 credits).
• When you’ve chosen your coin size, the next step is to click Deal to receive your hand.
• Decide what cards to hold and discard. Click Draw when you’re finished, and discards will be replaced with new cards.
• You’ll either receive a payout or lose your bet, depending on the hand.
• Click Deal to play another hand with the same number of coins. Or you can change your bet before starting a new hand. But if you’re wagering 5 coins, as recommended, you won’t have to worry about changing your bet.

Along with being easy to play, Jacks or Better also features simple strategy when compared to most video poker games.

We’ll cover the exact strategy that you should use later. But what makes JoB strategy easy is the fact that it features less payouts than most variants. The end result is that you have fewer decisions to make in terms of strategy.

What’s nice is that you can also use both a basic and advanced strategy chart to achieve nearly the same payback – the difference is only 0.08%.

Earlier, I mentioned that Jacks or Better is void of the bonus payouts seen in many other video poker variants. This is a definite plus for anybody who wants to avoid a complicated pay table with 4-5 bonus payouts.

Below you can see a pay table for 9 / 6 Jacks or Better, which only includes basic poker hands:

As you can see, payouts start with a pair or Jacks or Better and progress from there.

You can also see the royal flush’s disproportionate payout increase from a 4 to 5-coin bet.

The 3,000-coin difference on royal flush payouts is why you want to play all 5 coins on every hand.

7- Other Games are Based on Jacks or Better

The pay table above is important because it forms the basis for many other video poker games.

Of course, the difference in video poker variants comes from the pay tables. But if you fully understand the JoB pay schedule, then you’ll have an easier time adapting to other games.

Let’s look at the pay table from 9 / 6 Double Double Bonus for an example:

If you’ve never played video poker before or seen a pay table, then Double Double Bonus’ payouts can look like an intimidating mess.

But if you know JoB well, you only need to sort out the 5 bonus payouts for four-of-a-kind hands.

This brings us back to point #6, in that JoB has a simpler pay table than most video poker games.

Some video poker players think that the only different variations of Jacks or Better come through the pay tables (i.e. 9 / 5, 8 / 6, 8 / 5). But the truth is that JoB also offers some variants that add new and interesting elements to the mix.

Below you can see different JoB variations from IGT that I’ve played.

• Multi-Hand -Most of IGT’s different Jacks or Better variants are multi-hand. This particular one is a simple version that lets you play 3, 5, or 10 hands per turn. Discards are made in a single hand at the bottom, and changes are reflected in all of the other hands.
• Good Times Pay – You activate multipliers on wins by betting 5 coins per hand in this game.
• Hot Roll Video Poker – If you bet 10 coins per hand, you activate a Hot Roller multiplier. The Hot Roller feature sees dice randomly roll on the screen, and you get a multiplier equal to the value of the dice. Multipliers range from 2x to 12x your win.
• Hyper Bonus Poker – Hyper Bonus also includes multipliers ranging from 2x to 12x. But the difference is the absence of dice. I personally like the dice better.
• Multi-Strike Poker – You can play up to four hands, which are stacked on top of each other. Each time you win, you’ll move up to the next level / hand. Level 2 offers a 2x multiplier, level 3 has a 4x multiplier, and level 4 delivers an 8x multiplier.
• Multi-Strike Poker Super Times Pay – This game is just like Multi-Strike, except that you can bet an extra coin and activate the Super Times Pay feature. This offers random multipliers on wins worth up to 10x.
• Peek and Play Poker – Betting 2 extra coins activates the Peek and Play feature, where you see your first replacement card before making discards. I find this game to be especially unique among IGT’s JoB games.
• Pick and Pair Poker – Four cards are dealt, including two on the left and two on the right. You have to use the two cards on the left, but you choose which card you want from the right-hand side. The unchosen card disappears, and you’ll receive two more cards to complete your hand.
• Triple Play Poker – This is just like multi-hand video poker, except that you’re limited to three hands per turn.

As we covered before; 9 / 6 Jacks or Better offers 99.54% payback when you use the perfect strategy. And while this is great when compared to other casino games, it still doesn’t give you an edge over the house.

This is where comps come in because they can boost your chances of winning even more.

Now, I’m not saying that casinos will give you enough comps to push your payback rate over 100%. But you can potentially reach 99.80% payback or higher if you use perfect strategy combined with freebies.

Las Vegas casinos like Eureka, Palms, South Point, and the D all offer 9 / 6 JoB combined with good comp programs. You may find even better deals elsewhere, but these casinos are good places to start.

Some Jacks or Better games offer progressive jackpots, which are exciting because you can win more money than the standard 4,000-coin royal flush payout.

The jackpot size depends upon several factors, including how popular the casino is, what the jackpot is seeded at, and how long it’s been since the jackpot was won.

But in most cases, you can win a progressive jackpot worth $1,500 (6,000 coins) or higher.

The majority of progressive Jacks or Better is found in land-based casinos. But you can also find some of these games in certain online casinos.

While Jacks or Better has been in casinos since the 1970s, it actually has a much-richer history than this.

The game’s origins can be traced back to the early 1800s, when poker was widely played on Mississippi riverboats.

Author J.H. Green was the first person to coin the term Jacks or Better, doing so in 1834.

During his riverboat travels, Green wrote that Jacks or Better has fair rules, versus the cheating-prone Three-Card Monte. Aside from Green’s reference, it’s unclear when JoB originated.

The most-accurate timeline of Jacks or Better’s history begins in the 1970s, when the game first appeared in casinos. Despite its popularity today, JoB originally bombed on casino floors.

The big reason why is because Jacks or Better – like other video poker games – was nothing more than a TV monitor mounted on a central processor.

Another reason for JoB’s original failure is that players were just starting to trust video slots at this point, and didn’t want to try a new style of video gaming.

It wasn’t until Si Redd came along in the mid-1970s that JoB became a popular game.

Redd’s company, SIRCOMA (Si Redd’s Coin Machines), had mild success with Draw Poker. But the problem with this 5-card variant is that players must get a two pair or better to win.

Redd changed the lowest payout to a pair of jacks so that players would win with greater frequency. The move was a genius decision that helped video poker’s popularity immensely.

Again, one of my favorite aspects of video poker is that it gives you a strong chance to win.

But what strategy do you use to achieve 99.54% payback? How can you get the best comps and get even higher payback?

Let’s look at everything you need to know about winning in Jacks or Better, from basic strategy to how you can get the top comps.

In order to maximize your chances of beating JoB, you definitely need to find a 9 / 6 pay table.

This is really easy at online casinos because they all offer 9 / 6 JoB. But you may have more difficulty with land-based casinos, especially when dealing with small regional venues.

Again, I suggest that you look at VPFree2, which lets you search different areas of the US and Canada to find 9 / 6 JoB and other high-paying games.

While achieving high video poker payback sounds like a great idea, there’s just one problem: you have to know how to play nearly three dozen situations.

If you’re a video poker beginner, this is an intimidating process and not one that you want to jump into right away. That said, I recommend a basic strategy chart in the beginning.

What’s great about the basic version is that you can still earn 99.46% payback, which is just 0.08% off optimal payback.

Here’s a look at the basic chart that shows which hands you should value first in 9 / 6 Jacks or Better:

• Royal flush, straight flush, 4 of a kind
• 4 cards to a royal flush
• Full house, flush, straight, 3 of a kind
• 4 cards to a straight flush
• Two pair
• High pair (As to Js)
• 3 cards to a royal flush
• 4 cards to a flush
• Low pair (10s to 2s)
• 4 cards to an outside straight
• 2 suited high cards
• 3 cards to a straight flush
• 2 unsuited high cards
• Suited K 10, Q 10, J 10
• One high card
• Discard everything

Once you’ve mastered the basic strategy chart, you may want to achieve the extra 0.08% payback that we discussed.

Unfortunately, this also means remembering more hand combinations, notably ones involving suited and non-suited cards.

But if you’re up for the challenge, take a look at this advanced strategy for 9 / 6 JoB:

• Royal flush, straight flush, 4 of a kind
• 4 cards to a royal flush
• Full house, flush, straight, 3 of a kind
• 4 cards to a straight flush
• Two pair
• High pair (As to Js)
• 3 cards to a royal flush
• 4 cards to a flush
• Unsuited K Q J T
• Low pair (10s to 2s)
• 4 cards to an outside straight w / 0 to 2 high cards
• 3 cards to a straight flush
• Suited Q J
• 4 cards to an inside straight w / 4 high cards
• Suited K Q, K J
• Suited A K, A Q, or A J
• 4 cards to an inside straight w / 3 high cards
• 3 cards to a straight flush
• Unsuited K Q J
• Unsuited Q J
• Suited J T
• 2 unsuited high cards w / king high card
• Suited Q T
• 2 unsuited high cards w / ace high card
• Jack only
• Suited K T
• Queen, king, or ace only
• 3 cards to a straight flush

Even if you have your mind set on playing land-based JoB, it’s a good idea to start with the online version.

The reasoning is simple: online video poker is free.

This allows you to practice and develop repetition as you encounter the same situations over and over again. More importantly, you won’t pay for mistakes because you aren’t risking real money.

While I like online video poker because it’s free, the problem is that you don’t always know when you’re making mistakes.

This is where video poker trainers come in because they see you play like normal, and they point out your mistakes. Here’s an example:

You’re dealt: 7h, Kd, 3d, Qs, 9s

The correct move in this scenario is to keep both the king and queen because this move offers the highest expected return.

But if you make any other play, the trainer alerts you to the mistake and explains what you should’ve done instead.

You must purchase training software to be able to play some video poker variations. But the good news is that you can use free online video poker trainers for 9 / 6 Jacks or Better.

We all set out with the intention of winning in video poker. But sometimes luck doesn’t go your way, and you need a bankroll management plan to fall back on.

The first step is to divide your bankroll into units. Here’s an example of how to do this in land-based casinos:

• The coin size is $0.25, making a 5-coin max bet worth $1.25 per hand.
• You have $400 and choose to use $1.25 as your unit size.
• Your bankroll is now worth 320 units (400 / 1.25).
• You set a stop-loss limit of 75 units per session, meaning you’ll quit any time you reach this point.
• You also set a win limit of 200 units per session, allowing you to keep some of your winnings.

Online casinos are nice because they allow you to use an even smaller unit size. Let’s illustrate how this dynamic can change your bankroll management plan:

• The lowest coin size is $0.05, making a 5-coin bet worth $0.25 per hand.
• You have $100 and make $0.25 your unit size.
• Your bankroll is now worth 400 units (100 / 0.25).

Despite having a bankroll worth just $100, you have more units in this bankroll thanks to the nickel coin denomination. This example shows how online video poker is the best when you’re dealing with a limited video poker budget.

Another step to improve your odds of beating Jacks or Better is to pick up comps.

This is easy in online casinos because you’re eligible for rewards as soon as you make a deposit and begin playing for real money.

But at land-based casinos, you need to sign up for the slots club. You can do this through different ways, including the following:

• Asking an employee where you can sign up when you’re at the casino.
• Signing up online.
• Calling and signing up through phone (if possible), or asking how to sign up.

The key is that you join the slots club so that you’re earning rewards the entire time.

And what’s nice is that if you play at multiple properties owned by the same company (i.e. Boyd Gaming, Station Casinos, etc), you don’t have to join a new program every time.

Going back to online casinos, you should shop around for the best comp rate available. While many internet casinos offer roughly the same rewards, you may find more value at one casino versus another.

I can’t guarantee that you’ll find a comp rate that pushes your expected payback over 100.0%. But certain land-based casinos offer good enough rates that you’ll come close.

Along with comps, you should also be taking advantage of video poker promotions when they’re available.

Both online and land-based casinos offer video poker promos. Most of the time, these offers revolve around double or triple rewards points, which, in the case of 9 / 6 JoB, can help you overcome the house edge.

The key is that you have to watch for these promos and take advantage of them before they expire. Here are some good ways to stay connected with casinos and keep up on their promos:

• Social Media – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and more
• Email newsletter
• Mailers (sign up to receive offers)
• Contact casinos and ask about their next video poker promo

If you’re participating in land-based promos, be sure to visit the casino early so that you can find an available 9 / 6 JoB machine. These games fill up fast when extra rewards are on the line.

You won’t have any trouble finding lots of video poker variations to play. But if you want to save yourself some time and have fun immediately, then I fully recommend Jacks or Better.

My favorite thing about Jacks or Better is that it combines simplistic strategy with an easy playing process.

Sure, JoB’s strategy is more complicated than games like baccarat or craps, for example. But in the realm of video poker, it’s easier to learn than other variations.

Another reason to focus on JoB is because it forms the basis for most other video poker variants. Memorizing the JoB pay table allows you to quickly transition to other games when you feel like something new.

Of course, it’s hard to get tired of JoB when it offers multiple variations. Some of my favorites from IGT include Hot Roll, Multi-Strike, and Peak and Play.

Yet one more thing to love about Jacks or Better is that the 9 / 6 version offers 99.54% payback. Combine this with comps and / or promotions, and you have a great chance to win in this game!