The Most Profitable Casino Games for Skilled Players

It is as low as 0.5% with perfect strategy.

With correct play, the house edge is extremely low, which makes your odds of winning about as close to even as you can get in a casino. Unlike games of pure chance, Blackjack rewards strategy—every decision you make (hit, stand, split, or double down) impacts the outcome. If you employ a mathematically proven basic strategy, you can make the optimal move for any given hand, cutting the house advantage to roughly 0.5%. That tiny edge makes a huge difference in the long term, and it’s why some blackjack players walk away winners more often than not.

There are also advantage play techniques that can actually swing the odds in the player’s favor. The most famous technique is card counting, which involves keeping track of the ratio of high cards to low cards left in the deck. When the deck is rich in tens and aces, the player has an edge and can raise bets accordingly. Proficient card counters can turn blackjack’s usual 0.5% house edge into about a 1% player edge in their favor. It doesn’t guarantee you’ll win every hand, but over lots of hands a 1% edge? That can equal consistent profits. Casinos do frown on card counting. Although it’s not illegal, if you’re caught at a gambling site or in a casino, you might be asked to stop playing blackjack and vacate the premises.

– Learn and Apply Basic Strategy: Know your way around a basic strategy chart—it tells you the statistically best move for every possible hand matchup. Like with 16 against a dealer 10, basic strategy says to hit, but with 16 against a dealer 6, it says to stand. Memorizing the charts shrinks the house edge. A lot of gambling sites and casinos even allow you to use a small basic strategy card at the table!
– Use Card Counting (Where Legal): If you’re playing in a setting that allows it (most online casinos shuffle so often that counting is rendered ineffective), card counting can actually flip the odds. By tracking high and low cards, you’ll know when the deck is favorable to you. At a true count of +1 (a common card counting metric), the odds tilt about 0.5% towards the player; at higher counts, you get an even bigger edge.
– Bankroll Management: Even with a slim house edge or player advantage, variance is a very real thing. You could lose a few big hands in a row, so plan your bets so that you can ride out a losing streak. Bet a small, consistent percentage of your bankroll on each hand (say 1% or 2%).

None against the player (you play against other players; the casino usually just takes a small rake).

Poker is in a class of its own because you’re not playing against the house at all—you’re competing with other players! That means that the best players will win money from the weaker players. Good poker players can consistently profit by making better decisions than their opponents, as a strong player will almost always come out ahead of those with less experience. Luck certainly influences short-term results (a bad beat can happen to anyone), but in the long term, poker is very much a game of skill.

What makes poker especially profitable for skilled players is the element of psychology and strategy that’s involved. It’s not just the cards you hold but how you play them. A master poker player can win with weak cards or lose minimum with second-best hands by reading the situation correctly. Bluffing is a prime example—an adept player might represent a big hand and force opponents to fold better cards. Reading opponents is another huge edge; noticing betting patterns or physical tells can give away the strength of an opponent’s hand.

– Learn Hand Rankings and Position Strategy: First, know your hand strengths by heart (e.g., a flush beats a straight, three of a kind beats two pair, etc.). Then, understand how your table position influences which hands you should play. You can play more hands on the dealer/button (last to act) because you have more info and are cautious in early positions. Position is a foundation of poker strategy because acting last enables you to see what others do before you decide.
– Master Pot Odds and Expected Value: Poker is a numbers game as much as a psychological battle. Pot odds tell you if a call is worth it based on the current pot size and the cost of the call relative to your chances of winning. If you need one card for a flush, the odds of hitting it might be about 4-to-1 against; if the pot is paying more than 4-to-1, a call is mathematically profitable. Good players are constantly calculating these probabilities. When they concentrate on expected value, they make decisions that will make money in the long run, even if they have some losing hands.
– Practice Bluffing and Reading Opponents: Bluffing is an art—the goal is to represent a strong hand when you sense weakness in your opponents. Effective bluffing can steal pots that aren’t rightfully yours. It’s super important to read your opponents: watch for betting patterns or timing tells. Does a player always bet big when they have a monster hand? Do they hesitate when they’re bluffing? In online poker on gambling sites, you can’t see faces, but you can still observe betting behavior (like someone who always check-raises the turn with strong hands). The better you get at reading others? The more you can capitalize on their mistakes!

As low as 0.46% (depending on the paytable and perfect play).

Video poker is basically a form of five-card draw poker that’s played on a machine, and you have the opportunity to make decisions that affect the outcome. Skilled play in video poker can dramatically improve your returns to the point where certain machines actually offer a positive expected value to experts. A “full-pay” Jacks or Better machine (the version with the best paytable) returns about 99.54% to the player with perfect strategy. That’s a house edge of only 0.46%, comparable to blackjack. And some rare variants like full-pay Deuces Wild can return over 100% (around 100.8% payout) with flawless play—meaning that a good player has a small edge over the casino in the long run!

The profitability in video poker comes from two factors: the paytable and the strategy. The paytable (the machine’s payout scheme for various hands) determines the game’s odds. Small changes in the paytable can turn a profitable game into a mediocre one. And using the correct strategy (which cards to hold or discard for each deal) guarantees that you achieve that high return. Every time you make a suboptimal hold/discard decision, you’re effectively giving back some of that edge to the house. The game is less about reads or psychology and more about math and consistency, so if you’re the type who loves numbers and a methodical approach, video poker can be a steady earner.

– Choose Machines with the Best Paytables: Video poker machines are different! Jacks or Better is usually found in versions like 9/6, 8/5, etc. The “9/6 Jacks or Better” (full-pay) means a 9 to 1 payout on a full house and 6 to 1 on a flush, and it has that ~99.5% return. But if you find a machine that’s “8/5 Jacks or Better” (8 to 1 on full house, 5 to 1 on flush), the return drops significantly, and now the house might have a 2% or higher edge. Always look up paytables and favor the machines that are labeled as “full pay” or known for high returns. Most gambling sites with video poker list the paytable info, so take advantage of that to pick the most favorable game.
– Follow Perfect Video Poker Strategy: For each video poker variant (Jacks or Better, Deuces Wild, Double Bonus, etc.), there is an established optimal strategy chart that tells you which cards to hold and which to discard for every possible hand you’re dealt. You can start with the basic rules (like “always hold a pat Royal Flush or straight flush; for Jacks or Better, break a flush if you have four cards to a Royal Flush,” etc.) and build up your knowledge. There are also strategy cards and training apps that quiz you on the right play. By playing every hand correctly, you make sure that you’re getting that 99%+ return that the machine offers.
– Use Bankroll Management to Handle Variance: Video poker has less variance than slots, but there will still be swings, and you might hit a royal flush (big payout) or go long stretches with just small wins, so manage your bankroll to survive the dry spells! A common approach is to have at least five to ten times the bankroll you’d need for a similar slots session since you want to be able to play long enough to realize the high return. Also, always bet max coins (usually 5 coins) if you can afford to, especially on Jacks or Better, because the royal flush payout is much higher with max bet—this affects the overall return percentage. If the max bet is too expensive, think about playing a lower denomination machine so you can still bet 5 coins per hand without stressing your bankroll.

It differs based on odds and betting markets.

Sports betting isn’t a casino table game, but it’s a form of gambling where skill and knowledge can absolutely lead to profit. Unlike a slot machine spin, a sports bet’s outcome isn’t random – it’s based on the real performance of teams and athletes. This opens the door for research, data analysis, and strategy to give you an edge. Skilled sports bettors study statistics, team dynamics, injuries, weather, and more to find bets where the odds offered by the bookie are out of line with reality. If you can consistently identify bets that have a higher chance of winning than the odds imply, you’ll make money in the long run. In other words, successful sports betting is all about finding value bets and beating the bookmaker’s odds.

One way skilled bettors increase profitability is through line shopping and arbitrage. Line shopping means checking multiple sportsbooks or gambling sites to find the best odds for the bet you want to make. If one site offers +150 and another offers +160 for the same outcome, the latter is more profitable to bet on. Over time, always getting slightly better odds greatly improves your bottom line. Arbitrage betting goes a step further – it involves placing bets on all outcomes of a game at different odds in such a way that you lock in a profit no matter who wins (these opportunities are rare and require quick action, but they do exist when bookmakers’ lines differ significantly). Skilled players also understand the concept of the house edge in sports betting (the vig) and look for markets with lower vig or use reduced-juice sportsbooks to minimize the built-in cost of each bet.

– Understand Moneylines, Spreads, and Totals: A solid grasp of how betting odds work is fundamental. Moneyline bets are straight-up picks to win, with odds telling you how much you win relative to your bet (e.g., +200 means you win $200 on a $100 bet; -200 means you must bet $200 to win $100). Point spreads level the playing field between favorites and underdogs (e.g., -6.5 means the favorite must win by 7 or more points to cover). Totals (Over/Under) involve betting on the combined score being over or under a set number. Each type of bet has its nuances, and smart bettors know when one type of bet has more value than another.
– Use Data and Analysis to Find Profitable Bets: Treat sports betting like it’s an investment and go deep into statistics, like team performance metrics, player stats, and advanced analytics. It’s available for virtually every sport, no matter how niche. Use this info to handicap games yourself before seeing the sportsbook’s odds. If your analysis says Team A has a 60% chance to win a game, but the moneyline odds imply they have only a 50% chance (which would be +100 odds), then betting on Team A is a smart play because you’ve found a discrepancy.
– Practice Bankroll Management and Staking Plans: Just like with casino games, managing your bankroll is a must in sports betting. Upsets happen, and even the best bettors will hit rough patches. Decide on a unit size (a fixed percentage of your bankroll, say 1-2%, as one “unit” per bet) and resist the temptation to go all-in on a “sure thing”—there’s no such thing in sports. Most professionals use flat betting (betting the same amount each game) or a slight variation based on confidence levels, but they don’t chase losses with bigger bets, and you shouldn’t, either!

As low as 0% on odds bets (the catch-free portion), ~1.4% on the main Pass Line bet.

Craps is that fast dice game that looks like it’s all luck—you’re betting on the outcome of two dice! And while you can’t control the dice, you can control which bets you make, and that’s where skill and strategy come in. Craps has some of the best bets in the casino if you make the right ones. The basic bet, Pass Line, has a house edge of only 1.41%, which is quite low. Even better, when a point is established, the game lets you make an Odds bet behind your pass line—this bet has 0% house edge because it pays out true odds with no built-in advantage for the house. By taking maximum odds, you effectively dilute the house edge of your overall wager to something well below 1%.

Another reason craps can be profitable for knowledgeable players is the ability to avoid the “sucker bets.” Craps has a ton of betting options on the layout, and a lot of them have terrible odds for the player. Those one-roll proposition bets in the center of the table (like betting on a 2, 3, 11, 12, or any 7 on the next roll)? They carry house edges ranging from 5% to upwards of 16%, which is definitely not player-friendly. They pay out high odds, but a good player knows that they’ll drain your bankroll over time.

– Stick to Pass Line (or Don’t Pass) with Full Odds: The Pass Line bet (and its opposite, the Don’t Pass bet) is the core of craps. It’s easy to play and has a low house edge (~1.4%). When the shooter establishes a point, you’ll get the chance to take odds —always take the maximum odds bet you can afford. For example, if 3x odds are allowed and you bet $10 on the Pass Line with point 6, back it up with $30 odds. The odds bet pays true odds (6 pays 6:5) with no house commission, so it’s the best money you can have on the table. By combining the 1.4% edge on your $10 Pass Line and 0% on the $30 odds, your total $40 bet has an effective house edge that is much lower (around 0.35% in this case).
– Avoid High House Edge Proposition Bets: It’s hard in the excitement of a hot roll, but discipline is a must. Don’t throw chips on “Yo 11” or “Any 7” or the Hardways just because they pay 15:1 or 30:1. Those payouts are super tempting, but the house edge on these can be astronomical (10%+). A good rule of thumb: if the bet is resolved in one roll and has a high payout, it’s probably a bad bet.
– Manage Your Betting and Bankroll: Set yourself a plan for how much you’ll bet each round. Some players use a progression strategy where they press (increase) their bets slightly during a hot streak and pull back when things cool off. As always, have a session bankroll limit, and don’t chase losses by suddenly making bigger bets.

Edge: ~1.06% on Banker bets, ~1.24% on Player bets. Tie bets are much worse at around 14%, so stay away from those!

Baccarat usually flies under the radar for a lot of casual players, but it’s one of the simplest casino games to play and also one of the best in terms of odds! The game is basically a coin flip between two outcomes—Banker or Player—and Banker bets have a tiny edge (even after the small 5% commission on wins), making them the smarter choice. Specifically, betting on Banker carries a house edge of only about 1.06%, which is just about as low as it gets in a casino game without requiring any crazy strategy. Betting on Player isn’t far behind either, at about 1.24% house edge. The low edges mean that baccarat is a great game for those who want a low-risk, steady-chance gambling experience.

– Always Bet on the Banker: It’s been proven and widely published that Banker is the best bet in baccarat due to the way the drawing rules are structured. Despite the 5% commission on Banker wins, the Banker bet still wins slightly more often than Player (roughly 50.7% of non-tie outcomes vs 49.3%). This edge translates to that 1.06% house advantage, which is lower than the Player bet’s edge. So from a pure math standpoint, betting Banker is the way to go. A good baccarat player? They’ll basically treat Banker as their default every round.
– Avoid the Tie Bet (and Other Side Bets): The Tie bet in baccarat usually has big payout odds (8-to-1 or 9-to-1), but don’t be fooled—its house edge is one of the worst in the casino at around 14.4% (or 14.36% to be precise). That means you’re likely to lose money fast if you habitually bet ties. Side bets like Player/Banker pairs also have high edges (usually 10% or more). The mantra here is to keep it simple: stick to Banker or Player if you want a little more excitement at a slight cost in odds.
– Flat Bet and Manage Your Bankroll: Because baccarat has such a low edge, one viable strategy is flat betting, meaning that you wager the same amount each hand instead of increasing or decreasing bets arbitrarily. It keeps variance in check and makes it easier to see steady progress if things go your way. If you bet $10 on Banker every time, a lucky streak might net you quite a few units before a loss comes, and a bad streak won’t escalate since you’re not chasing losses by upping bets.