Joker Poker video poker

Joker Poker rules in brief

Joker Poker follows the usual video poker routine: five cards dealt, hold what you like, draw once, get paid from a fixed table. What changes is the deck. A single joker joins the 52 standard cards and can become any card that gives you the best possible hand. With the joker, 7♥ 7♣ K♦ K♠ plus the joker is a full house, and 9♠ 10♠ J♠ Q♠ plus the joker is a straight flush (a king of spades would make it king high).

The most common version is called Kings or Better. A pair of kings or aces returns your stake, and lower pairs pay nothing. Compare that with Jacks or Better, where any pair from jacks up pays. The higher threshold offsets the extra help the joker gives you. Some other Joker Poker versions use a different minimum hand; if you see one, read its help screen carefully, because the figures on this page apply to Kings or Better.

Like Deuces Wild, the pay table includes a five of a kind (four of a rank plus the joker) and splits the royal into natural and wild versions. Unlike Deuces, there is only one wild card, so wild hands are much rarer and the table looks closer to a normal poker ladder.

The best Joker Poker pay table and hand odds

The table below is the highest-returning Kings or Better table listed by Wizard of Odds’ Joker Poker pay tables (opens in a new tab), with pays per coin at max coins, the chance of finishing with each hand under perfect strategy, and each hand’s share of the 100.64% return.

Two pair only returns your stake here, the same as a pair of kings, so the game leans heavily on three of a kind (paying 2) and four of a kind. Together those two hands supply almost 44% of the return. Wizard of Odds’ summary of video poker returns (opens in a new tab) rounds this table to 100.65%; the detailed table gives 100.64%, which is the figure we use.

Joker Poker RTP: how much each pay table costs

Joker Poker tables differ mainly in the four-of-a-kind line, with a few also changing the royal, five of a kind or full house. The returns below come from the same Wizard of Odds page. The cost column assumes £2 a hand (five 40p coins) and 1,000 hands, so £2,000 staked.

There is a neat rule of thumb hiding in these rows. Four of a kind lands about 0.86% of the time, so each unit you lose on that line costs about 0.86 percentage points. Cutting it from 20 to 18 should cost about 1.7 points, and the table shows 100.64% falling to 98.93%. The NetEnt version loses five units on quads (about 4.3 points) but gains one on full houses (about 1.6 points), which lands close to its listed 97.9%.

The joker in numbers

A 53-card deck gives 2,869,685 possible five-card deals. The joker is in 270,725 of them, which is 5 in 53, or about 9.4% of hands. So roughly one deal in eleven starts with a wild card, compared with about one in three in Deuces Wild, which has four.

The joker also changes draw odds. Hold four cards to a flush and 48 cards remain unseen: 9 of your suit plus the joker, so 10 in 48 (20.8%) complete it. In Jacks or Better the same draw has 9 outs from 47 (19.1%). It is a small lift on any one hand, but it repeats across thousands of draws, and the higher Kings or Better threshold is what pays for it. Our page on true odds versus payouts explains how game designers balance this.

How to play Joker Poker online

1. Check the minimum paying hand in the help screen: these figures are for Kings or Better.
2. Read the four-of-a-kind, full house and flush lines and match them to the returns table above.
3. Pick your coin value and number of coins; the top royal payout usually needs max coins.
4. Deal, and look for the joker first.
5. Hold the joker and any natural cards that make or build towards a paying hand.
6. Draw once; the joker is scored as whatever card gives the best hand.
7. Start the next hand manually, since UK-licensed games don’t allow autoplay.

If you are new to the hold-and-draw format, our guide to how to play video poker shows the screen layout and buttons in more detail.

Joker Poker strategy principles

Optimal Joker Poker strategy is a ranked list of holds, like other games, but it shifts more between pay tables than Jacks or Better does. A chart built for the 20-for-quads table can mislead you on a 15-for-quads table. Use a chart for your exact table where you can, and stick to these principles otherwise. Our general video poker strategy page explains how ranked lists are worked out.

• Never throw away the joker. It can complete any hand, so it is always worth more than the card it would be swapped for.
• Hold any made hand that pays. Kings or better, two pair and above give a return before you draw.
• Remember queens and lower don’t pay. A pair of queens needs improving, unlike in Jacks or Better.
• Don’t keep kickers. Extra unrelated cards take away draws without adding any pay.
• Value quads. Four of a kind supplies a large share of the return on the best tables, so draws that can make it matter more here.

Strategy narrows the gap between your play and the table’s listed return; it never puts the odds in your favour on a table below 100%, and even above 100% the swings are large.

Joker Poker myths and mistakes

• ‘The joker shows up more after a dry spell.’ It has the same 5 in 53 chance on every deal; there is no memory, as the law of large numbers page explains.
• ‘All Joker Poker is the same game.’ The rules match but the returns range from 100.64% to 94.00% on Kings or Better alone.
• ‘A bigger royal means a better table.’ The 1,000-coin royal table returns 98.60%, below the 800-coin best table, because quads pay 17 instead of 20.
• ‘Two pair is a strong hand here.’ It only returns your stake, the same as a pair of kings.
• ‘The game knows when you bet more.’ Licensed games must deal from a tested random generator, so stake size doesn’t change the cards. See are online casino games fair.

Joker Poker in the UK: what to know

Video poker at UK-licensed casinos runs under the Gambling Commission’s remote technical standards. Since 17 January 2025, autoplay is banned for all online casino games, games other than slots must take at least 5 seconds per game cycle (opens in a new tab), you can’t play several games at the same time, and your net spend and time played must be shown as you go. You must pass age and identity checks before you deposit.

We can’t confirm which Joker Poker pay tables are live at each UK casino, and the studio attributions above are Wizard of Odds’ notes rather than a current UK lobby check. If a game publishes its RTP, compare it with the returns table. If it doesn’t, the four-of-a-kind line is your best clue. Tools such as our session budget calculator help you set a sensible spend before you begin, and a time-out is there if you want a break.

Where to play Joker Poker

Our partners’ welcome offers are slot-based or carry game restrictions, so none is aimed at Joker Poker. 18+ and terms apply. Casumo: 50% bonus up to £100 on a first deposit of at least £20, opt-in required, 10x wagering within 7 days, £5 maximum bet, game, play and payment restrictions. 10bet: 100% match up to £25, wagered 10x on slots within 3 days, maximum bonus winnings £1,000, Skrill and Neteller excluded. Coral: deposit and bet £10 on slots for 100 free spins at 10p, accepted within 48 hours and valid for 7 days, no wagering on winnings, with certain payment methods excluded.

Bonuses frequently exclude video poker or weight it low, and a maximum bet rule applies while some bonuses are active. Check the lobby for Joker Poker and read our Casumo, 10bet and Coral reviews for licence and payment details.

18+. Every casino game has a built-in house edge, so over time you should expect to lose what you stake. Set a budget before you play and stop when it’s gone: safer gambling tools and support. Free, confidential help: National Gambling Helpline 0808 8020 133.