Comp dollars and tier credits offered through player reward programs at casinos may be one of the most overlooked aspects of gambling. These reward programs will be your key to unlocking exclusive offers such as slots dollars, comped rooms, free parking, dining credits, flights, contest entries and so much more.

Even though the sole purpose of a player rewards program is to get gamblers into the casino and spend money, if you use them correctly you will actually be able to get a great deal of value out of them – especially if you follow our free guide below.

When you first enter a casino – whether it be in Las Vegas, Atlantic City, or anywhere else in the world – there is usually a desk or electronic kiosk near the main entrance for the company’s players club. Every gaming company, from large conglomerates like Caesar’s Entertainment and MGM Resorts to smaller, local properties like Station Casinos each have some type of rewards program in place for their players.

I once won $6000 on a slot machine on my 6th spin of the reels. I immediately cashed out and set $3000 aside to make sure I could go home with a profit. (My bankroll for the entire trip was $1000, so I still had about $4000 to play with for the rest of my stay in Vegas.). Slot machines remain the most important money-making part of casinos in the United States. In many states, casinos make between 65 and 80 percent of their gambling income from slots.

To participate in any casino rewards program, you must first obtain a player’s card. This card is your key to earning comp dollars and tier points at the casino you will be playing at. There are many different ways to earn comp dollars and tier credits, but some will earn you points quicker than others. We have outlined (in full detail) the most effective ways to accumulate these points below, so you can get the most out of your next visit to the casino.

The Basics of Earning Reward Points & Comps

Let’s start off with the most basic way that players can earn comp points; gambling at the casino. When gambling, you should always make sure that you are using your player’s card – whether that means giving it to the pit boss at the tables or making sure it’s properly inserted into a slot machine. This will ensure that the casino can properly keep track of how much money you’re wagering at slots, video poker or table games. In turn, this will result in you being rewarded proportionately to your play.

If you’re playing slots or video poker, always make sure that your card is inserted correctly. Sometimes the machine will not be able to read your card on the first insert, and hence won’t be able to track your play. When this happens, the machine will usually display a red light around the card slot.

When playing slots or video poker, comp dollars and tier credits will be earned based on the amount of money you wager on the machine. A common misconception among players is that comps are awarded based on losses, while this is in fact not true in almost all cases. The amount of time you play at the machine also has no effect on how many points you will earn.

Most, if not all gaming machines in a casino will have a small electronic screen with a countdown towards the next point(s) that you will earn. The countdown will go down after every hand or spin you play, and will be based on the amount of money you wager for each hand or spin. Once the countdown hits 0 it means you earned points for your play, and it will restart again.

The process will continue in the same manner for the entire time you are playing. This should be your main focus if you are trying to maximize point earnings, and it will also give you a general summary of how many points you have earned on this session. The most common electronic machines that people play include slots, video poker, virtual blackjack and electronic roulette but there are some others as well.

The First Visit to a Casino is Key

The first day’s worth of play on a new rewards card can make all the difference when it comes to the value of the offers you receive from a casino. Most casinos will look at the action of all their new players and base the value of the promotions and offers on how much a person wagered to encourage them to come back. Some player reward programs even have “new player” promotions, where gamblers can earn comp dollars or tier points at an increased rate. A perfect example of this is Caesars’ Total Rewards Program, which offers new players the opportunity to earn 3x the normal rate on tier credits.

For this reason, we encourage players not to sign up for a new players card if they only plan on spending a few minutes giving action at a specific casino. We recommend waiting until you can get in a full day’s worth of play before signing up for a new players card.

The first mailer a player receives is often the best one they will ever receive. Mailers have historically been sent through the U.S. Postal Service, but today they may also be received by email or even text. The offer may include free slots play, table game bets, comped hotel rooms, and meals.

Playing Low House Edge Electronic Casino Games

One of best ways to earn comp dollars and give the casino a lower house edge is to play multi-hand blackjack machines. Not every casino will have this game, but if they do and you are trying to rack up points quickly, you should go fire away. The concept of multi-hand blackjack is fairly simple. You pick the denomination and credits that you want to play (similar to that of any machine), and then you play 7 hands of blackjack at once versus the dealer all in one dealt hand.

The aspect of this game that makes the casino edge relatively smaller than most other machine games is what it allows you to do. In multi-hand blackjack, one can split, double, and get paid 3-2 on blackjack, something that is a rarity even at the low limit blackjack tables themselves. On top of the reduction in casino edge, by playing 7 hands you are playing that much more money in the game. Because of this and knowing that multi-hand blackjack is a machine game, you will be raking in the additional comp dollars and tier credits, and possibly some profits too.

Playing Low House Edge Table Games

Other than playing electronic machines at a casino, you can also play table games (such as blackjack or roulette) in order to earn comp dollars and tier points. However, the difference between the two is the number of factors involved with how many points you will earn. For table games, the amount you buy-in for, the time you play at the table, and your average bet size per hour all have effects on the points you earn while gambling, with the latter two being the most important.

Your Fate is Decided by the Pit Boss

When you go to sit down at a table game, you will always start off by buying in and giving your player’s card to the dealer who will then hand it off to the pit boss (manager of the table games). The pit boss will then enter into the system the amount of money you bought in for, and continue to update your average bet size during your time playing at that table (which will lead to you earning both comp dollars and tier points).

This is all very important if you are trying to earn points, since your fate is in the pit boss’s hand. He or she will not be able to watch every bet you make, so the average bet they enter into the system for you may not be accurate. There is usually just one pit boss on duty, and he must keep track of players at several tables.

Checking in with the Pit Boss

It does not hurt to get friendly with the pit boss since he/she can sometimes be on the generous side when entering your average bet into the player reward system. Regardless, you should always be checking from time to time what he/she has for your average bet, especially if you are altering your sizing.

On top of the average bet, the time you spend at the table is crucial for earning points. The longer you stay the better, as points are increased in exponential form based on time. In fact, certain casino companies will reward you with a higher status if you earn enough tier points during a 24 hour period, which generally means for you to have a reasonable average bet, along with playing for at least 4 hours at once, usually more.

Getting a VIP Host

The policy on VIP hosts changes from one casino to another. Some set a specific players club tier where a host becomes the reward. Others wait for a player to ask for it. Some casinos have hosts scour through data to determine if a player’s action warrants special attention. Once a serious player is identified, a host will introduce himself to the gambler.

What Does The Casino Host Do?

A host gives players a personal experience while in the casino. They also give players a reason to visit when he may not otherwise. This includes special perks like a limo ride from the airport, hotel room upgrades, show tickets, and visits to resort amenities on the house.

It never hurts to ask a pit boss or slot attendant to call a VIP host after a big session. This can include large wagers, long playing times, or a big win or loss. At the very least, the host will simply say no. There is nothing to lose.

Earning Points and Comps Without Gambling

Besides gambling, there are other ways to earn points. Those include staying at the hotels themselves, dining or shopping at places inside of the casino properties while using your player’s card, and more. In addition, if you have gambled in the past and used your player’s card, you may get promotions for free comp dollars and tier points that you can earn without having to gamble.

So if your goal is to earn comp dollars and tier credits in the best way and as quickly as possible, make sure to carry around your player’s cards and use it whenever possible. One note if you are trying to save up your comp dollars. Certain casino properties have stipulations where you must gamble at least once in a certain period of time to continue to keep your current comp dollars earned, and some also have it so your comp dollars will expire in a certain time period. In order to avoid having the casino take away your unused comp dollars, make sure to see what the casino policy is first.

Make sure to read our article on how to get Diamond in a Day at Caesar’s properties.

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During my years as a blackjack and roulette dealer I watched a lot of people lose a lot of money. I also saw a few players win money — I’ll get to that in a moment.

Oddly, most of my coworkers loved to gamble. You would think they’d know better, since all of their wages (and all those pretty buildings) are paid from gambling losses.

I didn’t (and still don’t) share their gambling habits. On the other hand, it can be fun to hang out in a casino, especially if they have free drinks.

So I understand why people might budget a little bit of money to lose at the slot machines or table games.

Of course it would be even more fun if you could do better than limit your losses, right? It would be great if you could make money at casinos.

Well, you can! And 44 states have casinos!

Here are ten ways to make money at casinos, along with some ways to save money by going to a casino, and — in case you need to satisfy your inner gambler — a way to risk a little money to win big.

1. Become a Card Counter

Regular blackjack gives the “house” (the casino) an edge of about 0.5% to 3.0% depending on the rules and how well you play. However, at times the game is in your favor as a player.

Specifically, you have an advantage when the remaining cards include more aces and face cards than normal.

To know when this situation has developed you can track the cards using a simple plus-or-minus count, and then bet more when the count is right.

You can learn card counting in a few hours, but to be proficient while playing at a busy blackjack table takes many more hours of practice.

Keep in mind that casinos can ask you to leave, even though card counting isn’t illegal. Where I worked management tolerated small-time card counters.

They probably figured that having a few winners encouraged the less-disciplined players to keep trying. The edge from good card counting is only 0.5% to 1.0%.

So, for example, if you play at a table with a $5 minimum and alternate your bets between $5 and $50 (when the count is right), and there are 50 hands dealt per hour, you might bet a total of $700 per hour, for an expected profit of just $7 per hour (with a 1% edge).

Clearly, to make some serious money you have to be good and bet more.

By the way, having the odds in your favor doesn’t eliminate the ups and downs. I can tell you from experience that even the house, with a larger statistical edge, loses on some days.

So with bets of, say, $25 to $100, you may do well in the long run, but you have to stomach nights when you lose thousands of dollars.

Still, if you do it right, you’ll be ahead in the long run, so you’re working, or investing, not gambling.

2. Try Credit Hustling

Credit hustling is simply looking for leftover credits on slot machines. Players often forget and leave without cashing out.

On slow nights when I had no players at my blackjack tables, I used to watch credit hustlers checking the machines, and they sometimes found credits.

A Daily Mail article on people who live in the tunnels under Las Vegas reports on one couple that survives by doing this.

They once found more than $900 in a single machine, although finding a dollar or two is the norm.

While not illegal (if the credit have been truly forgotten and abandoned), casinos don’t care for credit hustlers, so you’ll normally try to keep a low profile.

3. Join A Players Club

Almost every casino has some sort of “players club” you can join for free.

Apart from earning points as you play, which can be redeemed for freebies of all sorts, you also usually get some rewards up front for signing up.

For example, many casinos offer “match play” money. That might be $5 coupons or chips, for example, but you have to bet $5 of your own along with each one.

You can lose, but when you win $10 for betting $5 of your own money the odds are with you even at the worst games.

If you round up enough of these deals you can be pretty sure you’ll make a profit playing just long enough to use up your match play.

Casinos may offer a free meal or other goodies for joining the club too, which at least saves you some money.

4. Take Advantage Of Promotions

The casino where I worked handed out out $10 in free play to everyone who walked in the door (for a while anyhow).

Some couples came every day to get $20, playing perhaps 50 cents each in the slot machines before leaving with the rest of the money.

When my wife and I lived in Florida we went to a casino where they gave us each $5 in free slot machine play, and a free dinner, and free wine.

The catch was we had to play at least 100 times, but at nickel machines with a 12% house edge the expected loss is only 60 cents (100 x 5 cents x 12%), so, by playing slowly, we left ahead (and full) every single time we went.

Watch for any promotions at casinos near you, and see if there is some way to turn a profit from them.

5. Become A Good Poker Player

When you play against the casino, the house has the edge, but when you play against other players, you can have the edge if you’re good.

There are plenty of online tutorials on how to win at casino poker, but keep in mind that the house takes a cut of every pot, so you have to be significantly better than the other players to come out ahead.

As someone who has won money at poker (and chess) without much skill, I can tell you that the key is to play against weaker players.

Going against stronger competitors might help you prove something, but if you want to make money, look for tables with weak players.

6. Play In Slot Tournaments

Slot tournaments usually involve playing to see who does best in a set time, using machines set up with fake credits.

These events encourage fast play and are meant to get people into the casino, where they might gamble their own money before and after the competition.

Googling “free slot tournaments vegas” turns up (at the moment) a couple options, including one tournament that cost nothing and has prizes of up to $500 in slot play (you may have to play it through a machine, and then you keep whatever you’ve won).

Even tournaments with an entry fee can be money makers, because the prize pool often significantly exceeds the total of the entry fees.

In other words, if you’re good, and you play in a dozen tournaments, you’ll probably win more than what you spent on entry fees.

7. Play A Biased Roulette Wheel

There are 38 pockets on an American-style roulette wheel, and a “straight-up” bet pays 35-to-1 when you win (plus you keep the bet). You can see that this is a losing proposition.

But what if, instead of each number coming up randomly 1-in-38 spins, some numbers came up more often than they should?

It happens.

When I ran a roulette table one of my customers made a profit of $80,000 over the course of 16 months or so. I met him at a coffee shop after I quit, to get the whole story. Here’s the short version:

He wrote down the winning numbers for 5,000 spins (it took weeks). The number 2 was winning an average of 1-in-28 spins.

He bet $5 repeatedly on that number. On average, he lost $135 for every 28 spins (27 losses), but won $175 (35-to-1 payout) when the number 2 came up, for a net profit of $40 per 27 spins.

There are various possible reasons for a bias, ranging from a sticky pocket (temporary) to manufacturing imperfections (a more durable bias).

The good news is you don’t need to know why a certain number comes up more often to take advantage. You just need to verify that it’s a true bias (which takes thousands of spins).

I’ll let others teach you more about biased roulette wheels, but I’ll warn you that it’s tedious work to find one, and even with an edge you’ll have losing nights (my customer sometimes lost over $700 in a night, even though he was far ahead in the long run).

8. Identify A Roulette Dealer Signature

Some dealers may habitually (unconsciously) repeat certain patterns when they spin the wheel and the roulette ball, which makes the winning pocket more predictable.

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My experience? On a slow night with no players a pit boss and I each chose a number and alternated spinning the wheel and dropping the ball, betting a dollar for each win

I came out $14 ahead in couple hours, meaning I spun my number 14 times more than he spun his.

So I strongly believe dealer signature is possible, and even gambling expert Frank Scoblete agrees, but how often it happens in real play, and whether you can take advantage of it… well, who knows? But here’s what you might look for…

Note the number passing by at the moment the dealer releases the ball, and note the winning number. After doing this many times (with the same dealer) look for a pattern.

For example, a dealer might be so consistent (in the speed of the wheel and the ball) that the ball lands in a certain “section” of the wheel (in relation to the release point) more often than it should.

If it lands in a section that covers a third of the wheel, but lands there half of the time, you have a signature.

Now it gets trickier. If the target section is, say, the 13 numbers starting 4 pockets to the left of the release number, you have to identify the release number and quickly place bets on as many numbers as possible in the target section, before betting is closed.

Could it work? If not casinos wouldn’t be so quick to change balls, change dealers, and move roulette wheels when it looks like people are winning. Where I worked they did all three often.

Good luck!

9. Use Casinos For Business Networking

I heard a lot of conversations at my tables. Sometimes they resulted in players getting new clients or developing new business relationships.

And I learned about how to make money from scrap metal from one such conversation.

It’s common for players to talk to other players at a blackjack or roulette table, which makes a casino a great place to network and find new ways to make money.

And watching how players handle those stacks of chips in front of them can tell you a little about whether you want to do business with them or not.

10. Get A Casino Job

In 1994 I was making $14 per hour dealing blackjack and roulette. A BLS inflation calculator tells me that’s the equivalent of $24 per hour in today’s dollars.

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And, in fact, a friend who still works at that casino says she makes over $20 per hour.

Dealing table games is just one of the many positions you might find at a casino near you. One of my coworkers started as a surveillance officer with no experience, and used the knowledge and experience gained to later build a successful business selling surveillance equipment.

Other positions include slot machine tech, bartender, waiter, cage worker (handling the money), and pit boss.

Also, working in a casino usually means you’re forbidden from gambling there, which might be a good thing for some readers.

Save Money By Taking Advantage Of Casino Freebies

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Some casinos have free events at which they put out snacks or even full meals. Other casinos offer inexpensive meals at their restaurants. Watch for these deals as a way to save money on a night out.

Even the free drinks offered by many casinos can make for a cheap night out if you know what you’re doing.

For example, my wife and I play 5-cent slot machines, set the speed to “slow” (keno machines usually have three settings), and, by the time we have lost a couple dollars we’ve had a few drinks and some fun.

Turn $60 Into $600 By Betting The Right Way

Maybe you like to gamble, and you’re smart enough to limit your losses. But how you play still matters.

For example, with a $60 bankroll, if you bet $5 per hand at a blackjack table you can often play all night, but you’ll never be very far ahead at any point.

That’s great if you want to sit there and enjoy the free drinks.

But to win big you need to make bigger bets at some point. For example, if you’re $20 ahead, bet $10 per hand, and if you get further ahead, bet $20 or $40 per hand. To summarize:

Bet the table minimum when you lose, and bet more and more when you’re winning.

Most of the time you’ll lose your $60 faster this way (because you’ll often those big bets), but it gives you a chance to win big from time to time.

I saw many people turn $60 into $600 over the years, and not one player did it by always betting the table minimum.

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You have to “press your luck” to win big. Just be sure to bring a limited amount of money, so your losses are not a big deal.

Final Thoughts

You may like to gamble, and if you limit your losses, it’s affordable entertainment. Even better, if you time your casino visits to coincide with promotional events you might get some free food and drinks.

And finally, if you’re willing to do the necessary work, you can even make money in a casino, and without really gambling.

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If you know other ways to make money in a casino, share your ideas below … and keep on frugaling!