Canada’s Best Online Casinos for Payouts

What is a Good Payout Casino?

An online casino’s payout rate refers to the proportion of wagers bet by players that the casino pays out in real money winnings. To calculate its own payout rates, a casino will aggregate the individual payout rates of all the games it offers on its site to arrive at an overall percentage. Typical payout rates at online casinos range between 94-96%. This means that, on average and over an extended period of time, the casino will return $94-96 in winnings per every $100 wagered on its games. An online casino with an average payout rate above 97% can be thought of as a high payout casino.

As part of the conditions of receiving and maintaining legitimate licences, the payout rates of individual games at Canadian casinos – also known as RTP or Return to Player rates – are published on their own sites. To make sure these are accurate, games are independently audited by regulatory bodies like eCOGRA. They’re responsible for first calculating the payout rates, and then for making sure they remain as advertised through regular checks. 

RTP and Variance Explained

You might be thinking that you’ve cracked the secret to beating the house – that all you need to do is play sensibly at a casino with the highest payout rates and you’ll be going home with significant winnings. This is unfortunately not the case. Although a casino’s payout rates are truthful, they encompass huge data sets and only give an average indication of returns. As such, the payout rate of any one individual’s gambling session can deviate massively from the specified figure. We can break this down further by looking in further detail at RTP and variance. 

Return to Player (RTP)

As we mentioned above, casinos will state the RTP percentages for games, so that players get an idea of what they can expect to win, on average, over an extended period of time. This means players can compare and select titles based on favourable RTP figures. Just remember that the RTP percentage is only a theoretical indication of average returns, and your actual winnings can be less or more in any session. Casino games with some of the highest RTP rates include single-deck blackjack (99.54%), baccarat (98.99%), French roulette (98.65%), craps (98.64%), and European roulette (97.30%).      

Variance

RTP rates are indicative of a game’s payout percentage over the long haul, but in the short term, variance is what fuels the thrill of casino games. Games with high variance are ones that payout infrequently but with larger returns; low variance games will do the reverse. 

A good example of high variance casino games are progressive jackpots – slot games that accrue wagers from players around the world and contribute to the same rolling jackpot. The odds of landing the jackpot are akin to winning the lottery, but the game will pay huge dividends to those fortunate enough to do so. Variance is what makes it possible to win $1 million from a $0.20 stake on a progressive jackpot. Players who prefer the chance to win smaller but more regular returns should choose low variance titles instead.

House Edge Explained

It’s a fact that the house always wins in the long term, and that’s because of the house edge. If a slot machine has an RTP rate of 96%, this means the casino’s house edge on that particular slot is 4%. In other words, the casino’s chances of winning money from a player’s wagers are 4% higher than the player’s chances of winning money from the casino. Let’s take a look at the house edge in relation to specific casino game examples.

Best Payout Casino Games

The house edge of a standard single-deck blackjack game is 0.46%, the lowest of all casino games. With just the one deck, the chances of hitting the best hand – an ace with a ten-valued card (ten, jack, queen, or king) – is relatively high. However, your chances are reduced when there are more cards in circulation. Single-deck blackjack still ensures the house edge through the rule that the casino wins if both player and dealer go bust.  

For some casino games, the house edge changes depending on the kinds of decisions players make during a round of betting. At the French roulette wheel, for example, the lowest house edge of 1.35% only applies to even money bets, such as red or black, thanks to the player-friendly ‘La Partage’ rule that applies to these bets. But if players decide to wager on inside bets (such as the ball landing on a specific number) then the house edge increases.

‘La Partage’ aside, both French and European roulette have lower house edges than American roulette. That’s because the former two games only have one zero pocket on their wheels, while American roulette has an extra, double zero pocket. This makes it that little bit less likely for a player to win any given spin.

Best Payout Casino Bonuses

The best payout casinos in Canada will offer their players a consistent string of bonuses throughout their time at the site, as well as a hefty welcome bonus when they first sign up. Here are some of the different forms these bonuses can take. 

Matched Deposit Bonuses

With matched deposits, online casinos equal a player’s deposit at a certain percentage and up to a set limit. These bonuses are often included as part of a welcome bonus, and a typical example would be a deal offering 100% up to $200. In this case, you’d end up with a bankroll of $400 from making a $200 deposit. 

Free Spins Bonuses

Another regular inclusion in welcome bonus packages, free spins bonuses can be a fun perk for slots sites fans. Away from any welcome bonus offer, free spins bonuses are typically dependent on a qualifying deposit, such as an offer of 50 free spins when depositing $25. 

No Deposit Bonuses

No deposit bonuses tend to be issued to players just for signing up to a new online casino. That’s really all there is to getting this particular type of bonus: you simply complete the registration process, and the bonus funds or free spins should land. Since there’s no financial commitment on behalf of the player, these offers will almost always be smaller than matched deposit bonuses.

The Developers Behind the Best Payout Games

The best payout online casinos in Canada will all host games from the following software developers. 

Microgaming

We’ve already discussed Microgaming’s Immortal Romance above, which is just one of this developer’s highest-paying titles. Others include Frozen Diamonds, Classic 243, and Reel Thunder. The Microgaming slot with the highest RTP is Couch Potato, but this was developed back in 2003, so players might want something a little more modern. Microgaming has been around since 1994, when it developed the world’s first online casino software.

NetEnt

Alongside Microgaming, NetEnt can be considered one of the founders of the modern online gambling industry. After all, it’s been creating casino games since 1996. Aside from Mega Joker, its best payout slots include Blood Suckers, Secrets of Atlantis, and Jack Hammer 2. NetEnt is now owned by live dealer experts, Evolution Gaming. 

Playtech

At 99.3%, the legendary title Goblin’s Cave tops Playtech’s RTP charts. This is a true cult classic, and while it’s still worth playing, its gameplay is a little tired. For other high payout Playtech slots, check out Ugga Bugga, which we talked about above, along with Golden Tour, 8 Treasures 1 Queen, and Halloween Fortune. 

Pragmatic Play

Founded in Malta as recently as 2015, Pragmatic Play has quickly established itself as one of the iGaming industry’s top producers of best payout slot games. Among its best payout slots are The Catfather, which has a staggeringly high RTP rate of 98.1%, and the hugely popular Big Bass Bonanza. That said, Pragmatic Play isn’t limited to high-RTP slots. It is also responsible for a number of top-quality table games like blackjack, roulette and baccarat, as well as a whole host of live dealer titles.

Relax Gaming 

Relax Gaming is another Malta-based software developer that produces slots, table games, bingo and poker titles. When it comes to the best payout slots, they don’t get much better than Relax’s Book of 99 title, which boasts an excellent RTP rate of 99% with a maximum jackpot of  5,000x your total bet.