This guide to online casino games in Pennsylvania is designed to introduce you to the options available to you within the Keystone State. There are numerous varieties of unique and exciting casino games to enjoy across the state, but it isn’t always easy to sift through everything to find what you want. The following is a general breakdown of the online casino games available in PA, along with where to find them and some basic information about the games themselves.
Our Top Picks To Play Online Casino Games in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania Slots 2024
Traditional video slots
Playing online slot machines is one of the most popular pastimes of many online casino players. Bettors in Pennsylvania will enjoy several different types of slots featuring various genres and payouts.
No matter which slot you play, the rules are always the same. Most slots feature five reels with three or four rows of symbols along with a payline. The payline is the line that runs down the center of the screen horizontally. The digital slots on your phone are identical to any you would find in a brick-and-mortar casino.
The end goal of video slot machines is to match as many symbols as possible across the payline. The payout you receive depends on the specific symbols you match and how many of those symbols come up. To win, players must match symbols next to each other along the payline.
The payouts vary wildly but can be reviewed by checking out the “fixed paytable” for that machine. All online slots in Pennsylvania have either a that you can access that lists all the possible combinations of symbols and their corresponding payout. The payouts on these games never change, so you won’t have to keep looking over the paytables whenever you play the same game. The one downside is that there is a fixed maximum possible payout you can receive.
Progressive slots
To solve the problem of maximum payouts for slot machines, casinos have added progressive slots to the mix. Progressives add a small amount of each bet to a combined jackpot that any player can win if they hit the correct symbols. This not only applies to bets you make but also bets that anyone makes on that machine or any connected to it. The total jackpot keeps rising until a winner comes along, and then the pool is reset.
Progressives also function as ordinary slot machines for those who don’t care about maximum payouts. Generally, players can trigger the progressive when they bet at the highest stake, and others feature a tiered system for progressive payouts.
Pennsylvania Table Games 2024
Blackjack
Online blackjack ranks among the most popular games in any online casino. The fast pace of play and skill required make this a go-to game for many across the Keystone State. Blackjack is also very easy to understand, which brings many new bettors to the tables.
The objective of blackjack is to beat the dealer’s hand without going over 21 points. At the start of a round of blackjack, all players at the table are dealt two face-down cards. The dealer deals one face up and one face down to themselves. Next, players review their cards and determine how good their hand stacks up against what they know about the dealer’s cards. Players then can “hit” and will be dealt an additional card or “stay” and stick with the cards they currently have.
When scoring a blackjack hand, all number cards from 2 to 10 keep their face value while Jacks, Queens, and Kings are all 10-point cards. The only “wild-card” is the ace which can either be one or 11 points and offers flexibility. If you are dealt 21 points in your first two cards, you win automatically with “blackjack.” If the dealer wasn’t dealt 21, the payout for blackjack is usually 3/2.
One thing to note is that there are rules the dealer must follow in regards to their hand. When the dealer is done allocating cards, they will flip their cards over for the table to see. If they have 17 or more points off the draw, they must stand. If the dealer has 16 points or under, they must hit until they have 17 or more points or they bust. Therefore, the dealers’ decisions are not their own.
Craps
Craps is a game that many shy away from because it looks pretty complicated. And while there is a bit of a learning curve, once you get the hang of it, the game is straightforward to play. In addition, Craps is one of the only games at a casino that draws a crowd because of how exciting it is to play and observe.
Excitement aside, the biggest reason to learn to play craps is that it has the lowest house edges in a casino. This means, in theory, it is the most straightforward game in the house to beat. However, craps is a game of chance which means there is no skill involved unless you are some type of dice mechanic.
The only difference between real-life craps and virtual craps is that physical dice are replaced with digital ones that function off a random number generator (RNG) system. This ensures that rolls are 100% randomized and cannot be predicted in any way.
A craps round can be one or multiple rolls. The player rolling the dice is known as the shooter, and the shooter’s first roll is called the come-out.
Before diving into a craps game, it is essential to examine the table and understand what exactly you are betting on. Craps offers dozen of different betting options, but we will stick to the more popular bets for this breakdown.
Pass Line: A pass line bet is the most common of the group due to how easy it is to understand. If a shooter rolls the dice and the result is a 7 or 11 on the initial roll, you win. If the come-out is 2, 3, or a 12, you automatically lose, unfortunately. Easy as that. If the shooter rolls any other number, that number becomes the point. If the shooter hits the point before a seven, you win, and if the shooter rolls a seven before the point, you lose.
Come Bet: Serving as a variation of the pass line, the come bed replaces the come-out with the second roll or “next roll.” The same numbers win or lose you the round, but the come-out is skipped over.
Don’t Pass Line: The opposite of a bet on the pass line. This is a bet against the shooter’s chances of rolling the point before a 7. Rolls of 2 or 3 are automatic winners on the don’t pass line, while 7 and 11 become automatic losers. If the shooter rolls a 7 before the point, you win. If they roll the point first, you lose.
Roulette
Roulette is popular due to its face-paced gameplay and easy-to-understand rules. Few other online casino games offer the same thrill as roulette.
The most common style of roulette you will encounter is “American Style.” The game wheel is made up of numbers that run from 1 to 36 along with a 0 and 00 slot. French Roulette and European Roulette eliminate the 00.
No matter which version you play, the goal remains the same. To pick the number, or range of numbers, that the ball will land on when spun on the wheel. While many bet specific numbers due to the large payout, this is not the only way to win at roulette. Players can also bet on red/black, odd/even, or high low. These are referred to as “outside bets,” while betting on specific numbers is an “inside bet.”
A roulette round is straightforward and consists of players putting chips on the table where they think the ball will land. When all player bets are in, the dealer will spin the wheel and introduce the ball. Whatever slot the ball lands in determines who, if anyone, wins that round. Multiple players can place bets on the same number or outside bet, so multiple winners are common in roulette.
Live Dealer
For those that want to bring the experience of playing at a real-world casino table into your own home, live dealer games are for you! Live dealer games mimic the look, feel, and social aspects of playing at a physical casino by adding a real-life dealer to the mix. The dealer sits at a real table, using real cards or dice, and the other players are all humans digital sitting at the table.
The ability to play against other humans with a dealer running the show is the primary draw for this type of online casino betting. While the most popular live dealer game by far is poker, games like roulette, blackjack, and baccarat are also available. There are currently 7 different casinos that offer live dealer games:
- BetRivers Online Casino
- DraftKingsCasino
- FanDuel Online Casino
- BetMGM Online Casino
- Caesars Casino
- Unibet
- Hollywood Casino
You can find all these PA Online Casinos 2024 here.
Video Poker
Video poker offer players the opportunity to play their favorite game but with less pressure than being at a table. Most casinos offer video poker on the floor and online as a way to mix up your poker playing experience. Video poker online is the same game as many know well from their time spent at Casinos.
The basic version of the game sees the player dealt five cards to try and make the best five-card hand they can. After being dealt the five cards, players can choose which to keep and which to toss back. The ensuing draw determines your final hand and applicable payout.
The payout is another area that differs from other poker games. Instead of betting in between draws, all payouts are predetermined based on your final five-card hand. The highest payout you can get is a Royal Flush, while the lowest is a pair. There are some video poker variations, such as jacks or better, which give a win if you have any face card and deuces are wild.
Poker
Classic Online Poker
The term “classic” when referring to online poker is a mix that takes the community feeling of video poker but serves it up in a more relaxing platform. Online poker has been around for decades and saw a sharp rise in popularity in the early 2000s when platforms like PokerStars and PartyPoker blew up. The popularity of online poker has taken a hit in the last decade but is making a big comeback.
The rules of playing online poker are no different from live poker, with the only difference being that the dealer is AI and the cards are digital. Online poker attracts many because it moves fast and often offers cheaper buy-ins for players looking to have some fun on a budget. In addition, games are easy to find and run 24/7 in the Keystone State.
There are currently four platforms that offer online poker games in Pennsylvania.
- WSOP.com
- PokerStars
- BetMGM Poker
- Borgata Poker
For reference, there are two main versions of online poker that you will likely encounter and therefore should learn about. The most popular variation is Texas Hold ‘em, which exploded in popularity when the Word Series of Poker began gaining steam on ESPN. The goal, as with most poker variations, is to create the best five-card hand you can.
In hold’em, players are dealt two face-down cards followed by a round of betting. Then, three community cards are dealt face-up, followed by another round of betting. This is called the flop. Next, two more cards are dealt face up with betting in between until there are five community cards. Players then must use a combination of their two cards and the community cards to beat the others at the table.
Another popular variation is called Omaha Poker. It is similar to Hold ‘em with a few crucial differences. The most significant difference is that players are dealt four cards instead of two to start the round. Omaha also features five community cards for a total of nine. However, players must use precisely two of the four cards in their hands to complete a five-card hand. So, while Omaha gives players more cards to work with, the flexibility on what they can use is different than Hold ‘em.