iGaming Glossary / Variance
What is Variance?
Variance is another word for volatility: how a slot spreads its wins between frequent small ones and rare large ones.
Variance is another word for volatility. It describes how a slot spreads out its payouts over time. A low variance game pays small wins often, while a high variance game pays rarely but can hand out much larger amounts when it does.
Mathematicians tend to say variance, while casinos and slot menus usually say volatility, but they mean the same thing. Neither tells you how much a game pays back overall. That figure is the return to player, and a game can have any RTP at any variance level.
Picking the right variance is about matching the game to your budget and patience. See volatility explained for a full breakdown.
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