Slot Tips
Play any slot. Just don’t forget to win.
Many slot influencers push their viewers towards “low-volatility” slots such as Double Diamond Deluxe or Cherries Jubilee to build their bankroll. We disagree. A boring slot only serves to remind us that we’re paying a robot to take our money. As you can see from our videos, we play whatever we want and still return home with a profit.
Most slots are incredibly entertaining. They tease, they trickle wins, and they pile on animation and sound effects. All of this is designed to make you forget that your money is dwindling away to zero.
Consistently winning means that you can play FOREVER on the same bankroll.
Most Influencers Give Bad Advice
What slot influencers don’t tell their viewers is that their main goal is to record a 22-30 minute video for as little money / effort as possible. Search for “slots” on YouTube and look at the video durations. It’s not a coincidence.
Slot influencers will sit on the same machine—even if it’s not paying—make bad bets, and burn through their bankroll just to meet that goal, then wrap up the video with “It was fun even if I didn’t win.”
If your driving instructor sped through a red light, crashed your car into a tree, and then said the same thing, we doubt you’d be as understanding.
The SlotBears M.A.D. Method™
A simple slot method that works. Our videos are the proof.
Move, Adapt, or Die
Slot machines don’t reward loyalty. They don’t “owe” you a win because you’ve fed money into them.
The M.A.D. Method is easy and many people fall into it naturally: if you’re not winning on a slot machine, you have three choices…
M – MOVE to a new game, machine, or casino
A – ADAPT your bet (denomination, multiplier)
D – DIE, lose all of your money
It’s that easy. Slot machines are designed to distract you from noticing your shrinking bankroll. And, they’re really good at it.
Slot Machines are Fun; Winning on Slot Machines is Even More Fun
It’s easy to confuse firecrackers, fat chickens, etc. with winning, and the same goes for tiny kickbacks (tiny wins, 10%-20% of your bet). Playing for fun is fine, but having that money paid out 100x is more fun. Large wins can pay for a fancy dinner. “Fun” doesn’t pay for anything.
There are really only three rules when it comes to playing slots:
1. The money that you gamble should be money you won’t miss
2. Always focus on winning
3. If you aren’t winning, make a change
We kept the M.A.D. Method simple because most “methods” are cumbersome (the 5-spin method), unrealistic (the $1 method), or just another way of describing what you’re probably already doing.
FYI: The M.A.D. Method builds on a 2018 Danish biology study on how coral reef ecosystems respond to climate change. In gambling terms, “climate change” is the loosening or tightening of payouts and the slots introduced each year.
Think of Slots Like Stocks™
If you start from $100, hit a bonus, and wind up with $110, many people will consider that mediocre or even a failure. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
The Slot Stock Market Analogy
If you bought a stock and saw a one-day gain of 34%, you’d be overjoyed. People would call you an investment genius.
Playing the stock market IS gambling, just with more data and better tools. If you look at the disclaimer for a stock trading website, they’re almost identical to a casino disclaimer. You’re putting your money at risk, and there’s the chance you will lose it all.
Any Win is a Win
You’ll sometimes see us pocket a $110 pay slip—a 10% gain—and it’s for this exact reason.
DO NOT set arbitrary milestones for cashing out (up 50%, up 100%, up 200%, etc.). If you’re done playing a slot, pocket that TITO and thank us in the morning. Slots typically return between 90%-96% of the money that goes into them, so a $10 win on $100 is a better rate of return than the best saving account (4.56% APR as of March 2025).
The High-Limit Slot Distortion Zone
Watching only high-limit slot influencers is the gilded entry to a reality distortion zone. They measure wins in thousands of dollars, which is exciting and fun to watch, but for many also unattainable. Copying their behavior can make a trip to Vegas miserable if you don’t have a large bankroll to support it. Watch young men at a roulette table and this will become crystal clear.
High-limit slot influencers typically don’t win very much on a percentage basis. I watched one handpay video recently: the influencer started with $5,000, gambled down to $850, then won a $2,000 bonus. That’s still a loss. Why would anyone want to copy that?
Start with $100
Track your progress the easy way
We always start with a $100 bill when we start playing a slot so we can easily tell exactly what percentage we’re up or down. If we get to $132, that’s 32% profit. If we’re down to $72, that’s a 28% loss. Easy.
This also discourages you from gambling away your white pay slips, also called a “TITO” (Ticket In Ticket Out). Getting back to your hotel room with a wallet full of TITOs should always be your goal. When you run out of $100 bills while playing slots, it’s time to tally your TITOs. This gives you a clear idea of your win/loss.
ANECDOTE: We chose MGM Rewards specifically for their win/loss tracking tools. (THIS IS NOT AN AD. Ads are paid.) Why MGM? In near real-time, I can see exactly how much I’ve gambled by date and time. I can also track my tier credits if I’m trying for a tier accelerator. Advanced tools like these outweigh any perks, although we still gladly accept the free penthouse suites and never-ending coffee.
Casino Loyalty Programs
Play slots without breaking the bank
We highly recommend joining the casino’s loyalty program. We’re not being paid to say that; it’s based on experience. It’s also how we’re able to afford making slot videos. A slice of reheated pizza in Vegas can be $20. A nice hotel room can be $300 per night or more. Since our first Las Vegas trip, we’ve received heavily discounted or free hotel rooms from both MGM and Caesars. We also receive hundreds of dollars in freeplay and resort credit to pay for meals and incidentals.
We also want to kill the myth that using a loyalty card lowers your chances of winning. It doesn’t. If this were true, then all of the casinos we’ve ever visited must want us to reduce their profits. They don’t.
How to join a casino loyalty program
- Locate the rewards counter. You’ll be asked for your driver’s license. After your account is created, you’ll then be asked to enter a four-digit PIN (entered twice), which you’ll use from then on to log in to your account. DO NOT use your ATM PIN.
- A loyalty card looks exactly like a credit card and should be inserted whenever you play a slot.
- As you play, you’ll earn tier credits. If you advance to a higher tier, the benefits increase.
Casino loyalty benefits can include…
- Free credits that you can use to play slots (“freeplay”)
- Free or discounted hotel rooms and shows
- Transportation to the casino, including flights
Casino loyalty tiers
This is basically the same as any frequent flyer, hotel, or credit card loyalty program. Loyalty tiers (Pearl, Platinum, Gold, etc.) are achieved by gambling a certain amount of money every year. The amount varies by program, but the higher your tier, the better the rewards casinos will offer you. We recently stayed at the Sky Suites at Aria for free; our suite normally goes for $1,200 a night.
Tier benefits extend throughout the following year. If you advanced from MGM’s Sapphire tier to Pearl this year, you’ll need to accumulate the same number of tier credits the following year to remain Pearl.
Infinity Rewards (Sahara in Vegas, Grand Sierra Resort in Reno)
Club Cortez (El Cortez in Downtown Las Vegas)
Fontainbleau Rewards (Fontainebleau in Las Vegas)
Venetian Rewards (Venetian and Palazzo in Las Vegas)
Genting Rewards (Resorts World in Las Vegas)
Plaza Rewards (Plaza in Las Vegas)
Other Goodies
Free Coffee: Most casinos offer free coffee in the morning. The benefit: no waiting in long lines and it’s usually less acrid than Starbucks.
Free Cocktails: At one casino (that will go unnamed), the drinks served by the cocktail waitress were a) bigger, b) stronger, and c) arrived faster than waiting in line for $18 gin & tonics that were mostly ice. We tip $5 for coffee or cocktails (more if we’re winning).
Free Mobile Phone Charging: On newer slot machines, there’s a charger built into the cabinet. Caveat: If you have an iPhone 13 Pro, the magnetic charger often doesn’t work. I carry a USB-A to Lightning cable with me.
Clean Public Restrooms: A minor joy, but very much appreciated. Vegas gives Bucee’s a run for their money.
Free Shows: Playing slots pretty much guarantees you will witness human drama of some sort while you’re playing. We’ve seen everything from jackpot joy to bickering couples to screen smashing. Slots are meant to be fun; don’t be one of people.
Slot Myths
We’re working on videos to dispel slot myths that we’ve seen on YouTube.
We show the time we started playing, the denomination, and the bet amount. This extra work is intentional. We were told over and over again that slot pay or don’t pay at certain times during the day. The truth is that we win at midnight just as often as at 6pm.
We’re also tired of having to play machines damaged by people convinced that pounding the buttons or screen gives them an edge. It doesn’t.
Common Slot Myths on YouTube
- The time of day affects your odds
- Maxing out the the volume on a slot improves your odds
- Loyalty cards hurt your chances of winning
- You can only play reel-based slots to build your bankroll
- Rapid-fire tapping on a slot screen or beating on the buttons affects the outcome
- Fast spins (double tapping the play button so the reels stop) improves your odds
- Playing slots near a bathroom hurts your odds (or helps your odds; we’ve heard both)
- Slots in non-smoking areas have worse odds (Park MGM must really hate this one)
- And more!