In this article we’re going to explain what a low variance slot is and in what situations you should be playing them. You can read our original article on slots variance in general by clicking this link but for the purposes of this post it’s enough to say that low variance games are those which pay out little and often while high variance ones pay rarely but generously.

It’s fair to say that low variance slots are played by those who value entertainment rather than in expectation of hitting a massive win. You don’t need lots of money to play – stakes will often be £/€/$0.01 per payline – and you should expect to hit lots of small wins to extend that playing time. The extra entertainment value also comes from being able to trigger the bonus features more often but with proportionately lower prizes.

How To Spot Low Variance Slots

1. Playing the game is a good place to start and twenty or thirty spins should give you a good idea of the variance. If you are struggling to hit any wins this is probably not a low variance machine.
2. Have a good look at the paytable – a good rule of thumb is if the biggest payout for five symbols is less than 3-4x the payout for four symbols than you have low variance.
3. You should be able to select the paylines to enable you to play low stakes with just one payline; a game which forces you to play with fixed paylines is usually medium to high variance.

Tips For Playing Low Variance Slots

1. Often players on low various machines are playing for the entertainment value; any wins are nice but in general we’d like to come out even and perhaps trigger a bonus feature or two. If the features are triggered by scatter symbols you don’t even need to be playing more than one payline for the same chance of hitting them.
2. If the machine has a gamble feature, don’t be tempted to use it because it will deplete your bankroll very quickly and you session will be over.

Try These Low Variance Slots

To save you the trouble of searching through hundreds of games looking for a low variance slot we have listed a few below so you can check them out.

Tomb Raider – this Lara Croft-inspired game is a little long in the tooth now but it remains popular at Microgaming casinos. Indefinite free spins can be won in the bonus feature. Click here for our review.

Blood Suckers – check out this vampire-themed Net Entertainment machine for a relatively easy-to-trigger bonus round and some funky horror graphics. Click here for our review.

Pink Panther – this good-looking Playtech slot not only has a low variance but also a hatful of bonus features so there’s no shortage of entertainment here. One of our favourites from Playtech. Click here for our review.