Methodology

Our tables record, for each live table, the rules that change what a bet costs, taken from the casino’s own published rules. This page explains which rules we record, where they come from, how we read them and how our calculations work.

What we record

Roulette: the table name, the provider where named, the casino, the wheel (single zero, double zero or other), any even-money rule (La Partage or En Prison), and the limits shown.

Blackjack: the table, provider and casino, the blackjack payout (3:2 or 6:5), what the dealer does on soft 17, the number of decks, the limits shown, and where published, doubling, splitting, surrender and whether the dealer checks for blackjack.

Baccarat and craps: the payouts on each main bet, the number of decks for baccarat, the published return where given, and the limits shown.

Where the rules come from

1. The casino’s rules document for the table. Loto-Québec and PlayNow publish a document for each live table, and some Ontario operators publish help pages per table. This is our primary source, because the table’s name is not reliable: a table called French Roulette may or may not apply La Partage, and two tables called Speed Blackjack may play differently.
2. The table’s public page or lobby tile, for limits, seats and the provider’s name where shown.
3. Regulators’ standards, such as the AGCO’s requirement in Ontario that rules or help pages show odds and payouts before a bet.
4. Other regulators’ published rules of play, only to describe a wheel or variant we did not find at a table in Canada, and labelled as such.

Which casinos we check

Three groups. The provincial sites that publish a rules document per table, Loto-Québec and PlayNow, give us most of the complete rows. Ontario operators in iGaming Ontario’s directory add help pages per table, such as BetMGM’s, or public lobbies that show minimum bets, such as 888casino’s and BetRivers’. Brands marketed to players in Canada are included where their live lobbies can be viewed without an account, even though their table rules usually open only after login.

What our tables leave out

Side bets, game shows and promotional variants are mentioned where they change a main bet’s payout, but they are not recorded row by row. A table that only appears after login is not listed at all.

How we read them

We read rules documents and public lobbies without logging in, from Canadian connections; Ontario lobbies from an Ontario connection. Many casinos open table rules and limits only inside the game after login; we do not create accounts, so those details are recorded as Not confirmed with that reason.

How we calculate

Where a page gives a house edge or a cost, it shows the formula and the inputs, for example 1/37 for the edge on a single-zero straight-up bet, or the chance of a blackjack from the number of aces and ten-value cards in the shoe. When we need figures that are not from a real table, we say they are illustrations. Calculations describe long-run averages, never what will happen in a session.

What “Not confirmed” means

A Not confirmed cell means the rule or limit was not available on a public page on the date in that row. It describes our evidence, not the table or the casino.

Limits and amounts

Limits are recorded as the casino displays them. They change more often than rules, and older documents may show older limits; where a limit comes from a dated document, the row says so.

Featured casinos are not a finding

The featured casino lists, the header button and the bottom bar are advertising for casinos that pay us commission. Commercial arrangements and the country of the reader’s connection decide which casinos appear and in what order; the rules we record play no part in it, and a featured casino’s tables are recorded like any other’s. A welcome offer in a list is shown as our affiliate partner listed it, with the date.

Dates

Each row shows when it was last checked. When a table’s rules document changes, the row is updated and its date changes with it.

Corrections

If a rule or limit has changed, send the page address, the table, the casino and where the current rule is published, through our contact page. We check it against the casino’s document, correct the row if needed and update its date. Our editorial policy covers the rest.