Why this list matters
Every game in a casino — and every line on a sportsbook — has a built-in tax. It’s called the house edge, or in sports betting, the vig. The number isn’t hidden, but it isn’t advertised either. Every gambling product on the planet relies on you not knowing what your expected loss is per dollar wagered.
Two things are true at once: every honest casino game pays out eventually (that’s why winning is real), and over enough bets, the math wins. The whole point of this page is to make that math legible.
The ranking
| Game | House edge | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Blackjack (basic strategy) | 0.5% | Lowest in the casino — but only if you play perfect basic strategy. Most players don't, which is why the average blackjack player loses 1.5–2%. |
| Baccarat (banker bet) | 1.06% | Banker bet has the lowest edge; the tie bet sits closer to 14%. Easy to play, hard to chase. |
| Craps (pass / don't-pass with odds) | 0.6–1.4% | Taking the odds bet brings the effective house edge near zero — but only on a portion of the action. |
| Roulette (European) | 2.7% | Single-zero wheel only. American (double-zero) roulette doubles the edge to 5.26%. |
| Three-Card Poker | ~3.4% | Pair-plus side bet runs much higher. Side bets are where the house keeps the lights on. |
| Sports Betting (-110 / -110) | ~4.55% | The standard NFL spread vig. To break even, you need to win 52.4% of bets. The average informed bettor wins about 50%. |
| Slot Machines | 5–15% | The exact number is rarely published. Penny slots are typically the highest-edge games on the floor. |
| Keno | 25–30% | Casino-floor keno is one of the worst expected-value bets in the building. |
| Parlays (5-leg sports) | 20–30% house hold | Marketed as the "fun bet." They're the highest-margin product on the menu, which is why your group chat sees so many of them. |
Sports betting is a 4.55% tax
Standard NFL point spreads are priced at -110 on both sides. That means you wager $110 to win $100, on either side of the bet. The book pockets the difference — about 4.55% of total volume across both sides. To break even, you need to win 52.4% of your bets. The average informed bettor wins about 50%.
That’s the central design: even at perfect 50/50 picking ability, you lose 4.55 cents of every dollar wagered. Across 1,000 bets at $50 each, that’s an expected loss of about $2,275 — regardless of how well you know the sport.
Parlays look fun. They’re the highest-margin product.
Sportsbooks promote parlays heavily because they’re where the house edge is largest by far. A 4-leg NFL parlay has a true probability around 6%; books pay 12:1 when fair odds are closer to 15:1. House hold on parlays runs roughly 20–30%. They aren’t “more fun bets” — they’re the casino’s margin machine.
What to do with this
- Calculate the vig before every bet. If you can’t name it, the operator already won.
- Treat parlays as entertainment, not investment. The expected value is deeply negative.
- If you bet sports, track real ROI. Most informed bettors are surprised by what their actual win rate is.
For the psychological side of this — the cognitive biases that make a 4.55% structural tax feel beatable — read why gambling is addictive.
// FREQUENTLY ASKED
Frequently asked
▸What is the house edge in gambling?
The house edge is the percentage of every dollar wagered that the casino expects to keep over time. On a $100 bet at a -110/-110 sports spread, the sportsbook expects to keep about $4.55 per bet on average. The edge is structural — it persists no matter how skilled the bettor is.
▸What is the lowest house edge casino game?
Blackjack played with perfect basic strategy is typically the lowest, around 0.5%. The catch: most players don't play perfect strategy, so the realized edge for the average player is more like 1.5–2%. Baccarat banker bets and craps with full odds are also in the same low-edge tier.
▸What is the house edge in blackjack?
Around 0.5% with perfect basic strategy on standard rules. It rises sharply if you deviate from basic strategy, take insurance, or play in a 6:5 blackjack-payout game (which raises the edge to nearly 2% by itself).
▸Do parlays really have a higher house edge?
Yes — significantly. A four-leg NFL parlay has a true probability around 6%. Books typically pay 12-to-1; the fair payout is closer to 15-to-1. House hold on parlays runs roughly 20–30%, three to six times the hold on a single straight bet.
▸Can you beat the house edge?
On games of pure chance, no — the edge is mathematical. On games with a skill component (blackjack, sports betting, poker against other players), some players can get to roughly break-even or beat the rake. The number who actually do over the long run is very small. For sports betting, it's typically under 5% of informed bettors over a full year.