How to Play Scratch Card Games Online

Perhaps the most obvious point to make is that when playing scratch cards for real money online casinos, there's no physical scratching involved. So put that coin down and step away from the screen!

In lieu of scratching off panels, scratch card players must click panels or buttons to reveal whether they've won any money. To speed up the process, most instant win scratch cards online have a button marked 'Reveal All' or 'Scratch All'. This will uncover all the relevant information at once.

The process is usually much quicker than scratching off and checking lots of panels on a physical scratch card. For that reason, it's common for many players to work their way through multiple real money online scratch cards in a single session.

Players should check the variance of a specific online scratch card before making any purchases. If a scratch card has low variance, it pays out often, but the sums are usually small. On the other hand, the jackpot of a high variance scratch card game will typically be much more impressive.

As a result, the main question all scratch card players should ask themselves is this: would you rather experience regular smaller wins or risk disappointment to chase a much larger sum of money?

Winning real money with online scratch cards is entirely down to chance. The only real 'strategy' scratch card players can make in this online casino game is to decide whether they play with low variance/low jackpot scratch cards or high variance/big jackpot scratch cards.

Best Scratch Card Games

People who have never tried real money or free online scratch cards are often surprised by the sheer variety offered within the genre. There are hundreds of different titles, themes and types of scratch card games out there. Most however, fall into one of the following categories:

• Instant Win Scratch Cards Online – Like the name suggests, these games involve clicking a panel to see whether or not a player has won. There are no second chances or retries; it all comes down to that one result. These scratch cards are the least complicated type of online gambling on the market today.

• Multiple Chances – Again, its name makes this scratch card game easy to understand. The game offers players multiple chances to win. In most instances, that means a winning symbol being displayed and various opportunities for players to try to match it with their own.

• Lines – This type of game is best compared with online slots, in that you need to match multiple symbols (e.g., in a row or column) in order to trigger a payout. It's very common to see 'near misses' (e.g., three matching symbols followed by a different one) in these games to build suspense.

• Casino Games – If slots don't interest you, some real money online scratch cards of this variety employ a mechanism that copies casino games like roulette, poker or blackjack. You might, for example, scratch off cards to see if your hand beats that of a blackjack dealer's.

Which Scratch Off Tickets Have the Best Odds?

We mentioned variance above, and this is closely tied with a game's odds. The lower the variance, the better the odds of winning for online scratch card players (but the smaller the typical prize). This chart outlines the relationship between the cost of tickets, potential jackpots and the odds of winning a prize:

Let's be clear about the following: there's nothing players can do to improve the odds of a certain scratch card. What they can do, however, is search for games that match their desired level of risk.

In the chart above, a $4 ticket has the same odds of winning any prize and the same odds of winning the top prize that a $6 ticket does. The difference lies in the value of the top prize – $50,000 vs. $300,000. The question is, would you rather have three $4 tickets or two $6 tickets?

In general, a player's odds of winning any prize increase substantially when they spend more on an individual scratch card. Therefore, players might prefer to save up their cash and spend it on a $15 or $20 ticket with odds of 1 in 3 or 1 in 2 respectively.

Real Money Scratch Cards

For most real money scratch card players, the biggest draw is the array of large jackpots available. In many cases, like £100,000 Cash or Instant Millionaire, a game's potential winnings are highlighted in the name. Some casinos will offer these as no deposit scratch cards online to encourage new players to sign up.

That doesn't mean, however, that players should discount games with smaller jackpots. 33 Chances is an example of such a game, with a comparatively low jackpot of £20,000. But with one card costing just £2 – and featuring a huge 33 chances to win cash – it offers a great way for players to get more opportunities to win for their money.

Other games, such as Fruity Flurry, Full Bloom and 777, contain clues in their name as to what you can expect from their themes. Picking online scratch cards based on similarities with slots that you're a fan of is as good a way as any to narrow down which games to try next.

If you're not sure where to start, we've listed some of the top online scratch cards that we've found below. They represent a great starting point for players to figure out their appetite for risk, desired ticket cost and preferred theme/game type:

• Chris Tarrant's Millions

• 33Chances

• £100,000 Cash

• Instant Millionaire

• Full Bloom

• 10 Lucky Years

• Raid The Piggy Bank

• Fruity Flurry

• 777

Free Scratch Cards Online

Although top casino sites usually let players try out most of their casino games for free (excluding progressive slots), we're sad to say that none of the winnings players rack up in practice mode can be cashed out. Well, at least any losses aren't real either!

With that said, there is a way to win when you're scratching for free. Bonus online scratch card winnings can, once you've cleared wagering requirements, be withdrawn as real cash. So how exactly do players claim a bonus like this?

Even the best online casinos are always eager to attract new players, and one way to do this is by offering no deposit bonuses. Straightforwardly enough, these are bonuses that can be claimed without the need to make a deposit first. Once players have one of those, they're just one step from enjoying a free bonus online scratch card.

No deposit bonuses are usually modest – in the region of $10-$20 – but offer a great opportunity to get an idea of games on offer at a casino site without players risking any of their own cash. Just be aware that winnings must be wagered many times over before you cash out.

National Lottery Scratch Cards

In addition to their extensive (and ever-growing) range of physical scratch cards, which most players have seen in their local newsagent or supermarket, the UK National Lottery also offers around 50 online scratch cards to buy.

With odds ranging from 1 in 2.28 to 1 in 4.99 and jackpots ranging from £50 to £4 million, and costing anywhere from 25p to £10, it's difficult to imagine a more varied selection of games than those available on the main website.

Just like with an online casino, National Lottery players must open an account (to prove your age, among other things) before they can play. Unfortunately, those that do decide to enjoy National Lottery's instant win scratch cards online won't find any welcome promotions or no deposit bonuses to take advantage of.