25 Gambling Etiquette Tips You Need To Know When Playing Your Favorite Casino Games

• Every casino game has its own etiquette to follow so you can communicate with the dealer and other players as well as keep the game fun.
• Gambling etiquette also prevents cheating and ensures that you don’t get accused of cheating.
• The most common gambling etiquette tip across game types is to generally not touch the cards, chips, or other elements of the gameplay unless you’re told to.

All casinos, whether they’re online or brick-and-mortar, have rules that all guests must follow. These rules include dress code, when at a land-based casino, and proper courtesy to casino staff and other players. But each casino game has its own etiquette rules you should follow so you blend in and do your part in making the experience fun for everyone.

Let’s look at some gambling etiquette that’s specific to table games, like poker, roulette, and craps, as well as the machines, including slots, video poker, and keno.

General Gambling Etiquette for Table Games

These gambling etiquette tips are generally for table games like roulette, poker, and blackjack.

1. Don’t Color Up Too Often

To “color up” means exchanging low-denomination chips for high-denomination chips. You color up when you want to cash out your chips, that way you’re not carrying a bunch of $5 and $10 chips back to the cage.

But you should avoid coloring up while you’re still playing at the table. Coloring up during a game can be a sign of a cocky player — they’re so confident that they’re going to keep their chips, they hoard high denominations and play with a stack of low denominations.

In reality, coloring up slows down the game for everyone. That’s because this player will likely have to keep getting change from the dealer as their playable stack dwindles and their high-denomination chips are at stake.

2. Learn the Signals

In general, you should always brush up on the rules of the game before you sit down and play. But another part of table game etiquette is knowing how to communicate your decisions to the dealer and other players. Determine if and when you need to use both hand signals and verbal ones, or if it’s more appropriate and clear to just use hand signals. Learning these nuances can help you better blend in with other players if you’re a beginner.

Here are some signals to use in poker:

• Check: Tap your knuckles on the table.
• Fold: Slide your cards, face down, toward the dealer. You can also say “fold” at the same time.
• Call: You can count up the chips you need to call and toss or slide them forward. Alternatively, you can say “call” and present your wager.
• Raise: It’s best to say how much you’re raising before or as you count up and present your wager.

Here are some signals to use in blackjack:

• Hit: Scratch or tap the table.
• Stay: In face-up blackjack, you wave a flat hand over your cards to stay. In handheld (face-down) blackjack, you slide your cards under your chips.
• Split: Point with two fingers, or flip over your cards (in handheld/face-down blackjack). Present your wager.
• Double: Point with one finger to double. Present your wager.

3. Don’t Touch the Cards Unless You’re Allowed To

In general, you shouldn’t touch the cards unless they’re right in front of you and/or face down. For example, your hole cards are dealt to you face down in poker, so you can look at them anytime they’re in front of you.

If the cards are face up, don’t touch them. For example, you’re generally not allowed to touch your face-up blackjack cards, and you’re definitely not allowed to touch the community cards in poker.

4. Don’t Touch Your Chips After You Bet

Here’s another rule about things you shouldn’t touch in a casino — once you surrender any amount of chips for a wager, whether that be in poker, blackjack, or otherwise, you’re not allowed to touch them.

5. Slide Your Money on the Table to the Dealer To Cash In for Chips

This is so the eyes in the sky at the casino can see the transaction take place. That way there’s no question how much you gave the dealer and how many chips (and in what amounts) they give you in return.

General Gambling Etiquette for Machine Games

You can use these gambling etiquette tips when playing slots, video poker, or video keno on a machine.

6. Don’t Sit at a Machine if You Aren’t Going To Play It

Sitting at a machine is a signal that you’re playing. But if you’re not playing, you’ll have to find somewhere else to sit. If you want to watch a friend or spouse while they play, you can stand next to them.

7. Properly “Claim” a Machine if You’re Taking a Short Break

You can lean the chair against the front of the machine or leave your player card. Both are signals that you’re taking a brief break. But don’t be gone too long. Even if you use these signals, other players may take your spot after 15 minutes, which is, generally, the maximum amount of time you can take a break from a machine before it’s considered discourteous.

Also, don’t leave important personal items at the machine. For instance, don’t leave a purse, wallet, or cell phone as someone may nab those.

This signaling tip works in the opposite direction, too — if you see someone’s player card on the machine or the chair is tipped forward, it’s likely been claimed and that person is taking a break.

8. Give a Player Space While You Wait Your Turn

A casino is not like the arcade where you can just slap your quarter down on the machine to claim the next turn. If you want to play on an occupied machine, it’s best that you ask them if you could play in a few minutes.

If they agree, just chill in the general area and avoid hovering behind them or staring at them while you wait.

If they say no, maybe because they’re on a lucky streak, find another machine and check on their machine occasionally to see if they’ve left. But try not to make it obvious.

9. Only Play on Multiple Machines During Slow Hours

There are a limited number of slot machines at a land-based casino. But you can play multiple machines at once if there aren’t a lot of people. When the crowd gets bigger, it’s best to stick to one machine so everyone has a shot.

If you play online slots, consider only playing multiple games at once if you have a great internet connection, as these games can take up a lot of bandwidth on your computer or other device. Also, you may only be able to play multiple slots when you play on multiple devices, such as on the computer, on your phone, and on your tablet. But you may not be able to access games from the same account on different devices at the same time, so you may need to be playing at different casinos, which may not be ideal.

10. Review the Paytables Before You Play

Know what combinations you have to hit to win and how much you have to wager to make the most of your bet. It can be heartbreaking when you’re accidentally betting the minimum the whole time and find out that you could have 100x that (or more) if you had been more strategic with your bets.

This is true for both online slots and online video poker as well as real-life machines.

Poker Etiquette

There are many do’s and don’ts when it comes to poker, so here are just a few of the most important poker etiquette tips.

11. Don’t Play String Bets

A string bet is when you take multiple movements to make your wager. For instance, if you want to raise, you should count out all the chips you want to wager and then slide the entire amount forward, in one motion, to the dealer. Don’t add up and give your call and then add your raise to it.

Also, don’t say that you’re going to raise and then only put out enough chips to call. The dealer will ask you to add the required chips and make it clear by how much you plan to raise.

12. Keep Your Chips in Plain Sight

Don’t try to hide your chips with your body or personal belongings. For that matter, you should keep your phone and personal items off the felt, too.

Don’t make tall stacks of smaller denominations to hide bigger chips, either. You should have them well organized so the dealer and other players can more easily see how much you have.

13. Be Courteous of Others’ Time

Be cognizant of how much time you’re taking to make your decision. If you take too long, players may get frustrated and the dealer may ask you to make a decision, which may pressure you into a choice that’s not in your best interest.

Being courteous with your time is also true in online poker. But you’ll likely have a timeframe in which you have to make a move before the computer does it for you, such as if you’re idle for a long time. Or, you may get kicked from the game for inactivity.

14. Only Show Your Cards When You Have To

Don’t flip over your cards until you’re told. You could accidentally reveal your hand too early, giving opponents an edge for the rest of the hand, or spoil the fun of an intense showdown. However, you also shouldn’t make a scene of flipping your cards for dramatic effect.

You also shouldn’t show your cards when all the other players fold and you’re the last left alive. This rule goes the other way, too — don’t ask to see other players cards after the hand either. Both are against general poker etiquette.

Roulette Etiquette

There are some formalities in roulette, too, so here are the top roulette etiquette tips.

15. Don’t Reach Over Other Players To Place Your Bet

If you can’t reach where you want to place a bet, ask other players to give you some space. Or, ask someone who is closer to that end of the layout to place your bet for you. Just make sure to gather up all your chips ahead of time and communicate very clearly (and politely) where you want your wager to go. For instance, ask them this way: “Could you place these chips on 28?”

16. Communicate With the Croupier if You Need More Time To Wager

There may be a lot of bettors at the roulette table, but the croupier is always watching to make sure everyone has placed their bets. You can take more time to wager if there’s a lot of commotion at the table. Plus, there’s no time limit on placing bets. When they call out for last bets, be sure to let them know that you haven’t gone yet.

At an online casino, you may have a clock that’s counting down before the next spin just to keep things moving. So make sure to be courteous of other bettors’ time.

Blackjack Etiquette

Blackjack etiquette is mostly about knowing the type of blackjack you’re playing and what’s courteous to other players.

17. Pick a Table Where the Cards Are Currently Being Shuffled

Entering a new game of blackjack? Go to a table where the cards are being shuffled. Asking to be dealt in when players are already making moves on their cards can be frustrating. Some players may be counting cards, and adding you in could throw them off their count. Superstitious players may think that you joining could jeopardize their luck.

18. Ask Whether You Can Hold Your Cards With Both Hands

Face-down blackjack requires you to hold your cards after they’re dealt. Many casinos have a rule as to whether you can hold with both hands or if you have to use just one hand. So ask before you touch the cards to avoid being scolded.

19. Consider Getting Tips From the Dealer

In many casinos, blackjack is one of a few games where it’s appropriate to consult with the dealer before making a decision. Many will tell you the mathematical chance of you winning based on the cards on the table. This is a great way to get to know the game of blackjack for beginners.

Craps Etiquette

While casino movies make craps out to be a wild table game, there are still craps etiquette rules to follow.

23. Keep Your Hands Away From the Table When the Dice Are Rolled

Interference, either intentional or unintentional, is definitely frowned upon, especially by other bettors. The stickman will call “dice are out,” which is your signal to keep your hands at your side and watch ‘em roll.

24. Avoid Talking to the Shooter

Some craps players can be very superstitious, and when a shooter is on a roll, they usually don’t want to be bothered. It’s best to respect their process to avoid any animosity. You can start up a conversation after they’re done shooting.

25. Maybe Don’t Blow on the Dice

Even before COVID-19 was a thing, this “good luck” ritual was already toeing the line between weird and just plain gross. Some casinos have banned the practice, while others discourage it, especially in light of concerns around the pandemic. But maybe now is as good a time as any to toss this casino superstition out for good.

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