Do you dream of winning that life-changing jackpot? Do you think about all the cool things you’d buy if you won the lottery? If so, then progressive jackpot slot games are for you!
The biggest payouts in casinos come from progressive jackpots, so these should be on your to-play radar. Here, we’ll answer some of the most common questions we get asked about these coveted games, like What is a progressive jackpot?, and How to win a progressive jackpot. We’ll also explain how to find this feature in casino games and give you a few recommendations of our favorite online slots with progressive jackpots.
Progressives are an important piece of overall casino gameplay strategy, but there’s much more to learn about than just jackpots. To read up on how to hone your casino gaming skills, be sure to check out our comprehensive online articles section, including an online slots guide and table games guide.
What is a Progressive Jackpot?
Progressive jackpots are most commonly found in slots, which include standard payouts in addition to the big jackpot. Standard payouts are a fixed amount; they won’t get any higher or lower than what’s advertised on the paytable. On a progressive game, however, the jackpot keeps growing as casino players put more and more coins in the machine. A small percentage of each coin is added to the jackpot every time the reels spin. The progressive jackpot will keep growing until someone finally hits that big payout.
Once someone triggers the jackpot, the casino reseeds it to a starting amount; it could be reset to a base amount of $5,000, for example. This gets the jackpot started and attracts players, who fund the rest of the jackpot with a percentage of all of their bets. In our casino, progressive jackpots are most commonly found in slots, but can also be found in certain bingo and table games.
How Progressive Jackpots Work
Progressive jackpots work in one of two ways: they are either randomly triggered, or they are awarded as the prize for landing the best winning combination in the game. Knowing the difference between these two types is important because one has eligibility requirements, while the other generally doesn’t.
Random Progressive Jackpots
The majority of the progressive jackpots found in our slot games are random progressive jackpots. A Night With Cleo, Caesar’s Victory and Cyberpunk City are just a few examples of the many Cafe Casino slots containing random online progressive jackpots.
Just as the name suggests, random progressive jackpots are triggered randomly with the use of Random Number Generator technology. At the end of any given spin, the jackpot could be triggered, based on a complex set of algorithms, and then added to your bankroll. Unless specified in the game rules, betting minimums are not required with random progressive jackpots, but as a rule of thumb, always read through the rules online before playing for real money.
Progressive Jackpots
The opposite of a random progressive jackpot is simply a standard progressive jackpot that is offered as a payout for landing the top winning line in a game. For example, in Shopping Spree, the online progressive jackpot is awarded for landing five diamond rings when players bet the max.
These types of progressive jackpots usually require players to bet the maximum number of coins possible to be eligible for the jackpot; however, there are often no stipulations for the coin denomination. As a result, the best strategy for these types of progressive jackpots is to bet the maximum number of coins, while configuring the denominations in order to stay within your bankroll budget. Be sure to read the game information to be sure you’re following the betting requirements so you don’t miss out.
How to Win a Progressive Jackpot on Slot Games
There’s no secret system or strategy for winning a progressive jackpot, but there are a couple of important things to keep in mind. First, progressive jackpots don’t become “due.” The chances of winning are the same no matter the jackpot size. It is possible for a casino jackpot to keep growing and not hit for a long time. (And we mean really long time! Take, for example, the $2.4 million MGM Grand Hotel and Casino jackpot that finally hit after sitting on the floor for almost 20 years!)
Secondly, when playing online slots with progressive jackpots, you’ll want to read the rules very carefully, as certain machines require the player to make max play bets in order to be eligible to win the real money jackpot. The best way to increase your odds of winning a progressive jackpot is to make sure you’re eligible for it every time you play.
How to Win a Progressive Jackpot on Table Games
Three of our poker-based table games have progressive money jackpots. Caribbean Stud, Caribbean Hold’Em and Let ‘Em Ride (both new and classic versions) all include a jackpot that pays out entirely if you land a Royal Flush, although with Caribbean Hold’Em, only the flop and your two hole cards count towards the progressive jackpot. In order to be eligible for the progressive jackpot, you must wager $1 on the Progressive side bet at the start of the round. If you land anything between a Flush and a Straight Flush, you get a portion of the progressive jackpot based on the following paytable:
• Royal Flush: 100%
• Straight Flush: 10%
• Four of a Kind: $500
• Full House: $100
• Flush: $75
The progressive pays out regardless of whether or not you beat the Dealer.
How to Find the Biggest Progressive Jackpot at Cafe Casino
At Cafe Casino, we make it easy to find and compare casino games with progressive jackpots. All of our progressive jackpot games have banners on the game card displaying the current jackpot amount. This is the case for slots, table games, and Bingo, and is a great benefit to playing online as opposed to at a brick-and-mortar establishment where it would take a long time to compare all the jackpot amounts.
Since we have a lot of slots, we’ve created categories for ease of sorting through them: Most Popular, New Games, Slots, and Jackpots. Use the “Jackpots” category at the top of the page to populate only slots and other casino games that feature progressive jackpots.
3 Popular Online Progressive Jackpots:
Now that the basics have been covered, here are our top 3 progressive jackpots to play today:
- Shopping Spree is one of the most sought after online slot games to play. The progressive jackpot is often in the MILLIONS, and is awarded when you hit 5 diamond rings on maximum bet. Think of the shopping you could do with that jackpot!
- Speaking of diamonds… In Gold Rush Gus, you need two Key symbols on reels 1 and 3 to trigger the Treasure Chest. Inside, you’ll score 1 of 4 prizes; if you see the blue-white diamond, you’ve hit the progressive jackpot!
- Reels and Wheels XL usually has a progressive jackpot in the hundreds of thousands! You need to trigger the Jackpot Wheel via the Bonus Wheel Feature to score 1 of 5 progressive jackpots!