Video Poker Strategy
Deuces Wild turns every 2 into a wild card, and the full-pay version returns 100.76% with perfect play — one of the only games in the casino where the math favors you. This strategy chart is organized the way every serious player uses it: by the number of deuces in your dealt hand. Every expected value below was computed by our combinatorial engine for the example hand shown.
Full pay is identified by the 15 / 9 / 5 line: five of a kind 15, straight flush 9, four of a kind 5. If any of those three numbers is lower, you are on a short-pay machine and giving back the player edge.
| Hand | Pays (per coin) |
|---|---|
| Natural Royal Flush | 800 |
| Four Deuces | 200 |
| Wild Royal Flush | 25 |
| Five of a Kind | 15 |
| Straight Flush | 9 |
| Four of a Kind | 5 |
| Full House | 3 |
| Flush | 2 |
| Straight | 2 |
| Three of a Kind | 1 |
Notice what is missing: pairs and two pair pay nothing. Roughly a third of the return arrives through quads and better, which makes Deuces Wild far more volatile than Jacks or Better — see the bankroll calculator for what that means for your session.
Count your deuces, go to that section, and hold the highest line your hand matches. This is the complete full-pay Deuces Wild cheat sheet; EVs shown are engine-exact for the example hand (close calls can shift slightly with different discards — the trainer resolves every hand exactly).
| Hold (first match wins) | Example hand | EV/coin |
|---|---|---|
| Four deuces (hold all five) | 2c 2d 2h 2s 9c | 200 |
| Hold (first match wins) | Example hand | EV/coin |
|---|---|---|
| Pat wild royal flush | 2c 2d 2h Ah Kh | 25 |
| Pat five of a kind, 10s or better | 2c 2d 2h Jc Jd | 15 |
| Three deuces only (with 5oaK 9s or lower, draw) | 2c 2d 2h 9c 9d | 15.0574 |
| Three deuces only (draw two) | 2c 2d 2h 9c 5d | 15.0518 |
| Hold (first match wins) | Example hand | EV/coin |
|---|---|---|
| Pat wild royal flush | 2c 2d Qh Kh Ah | 25 |
| Pat five of a kind | 2c 2d 9c 9d 9h | 15 |
| Pat straight flush | 2c 2d 7h 8h 9h | 9 |
| Four of a kind (draw one) | 2c 2d 9c 9d 5h | 5.8511 |
| Four to a wild royal | 2c 2d Jh Qh 5c | 4.8298 |
| Four to a straight flush (6-7 up) | 2c 2d 7h 8h Kc | 3.3404 |
| Two deuces only (draw three) | 2c 2d 9c 5d Kh | 3.2556 |
| Hold (first match wins) | Example hand | EV/coin |
|---|---|---|
| Pat wild royal flush | 2c 10h Jh Qh Ah | 25 |
| Pat five of a kind | 2c 9c 9d 9h 9s | 15 |
| Four to a wild royal | 2c 10h Jh Qh 5c | 3.9574 |
| Pat straight flush | 2c 6h 7h 8h 9h | 9 |
| Four of a kind (draw one) | 2c 9c 9d 9h 5s | 5.8511 |
| Pat full house | 2c 9c 9d 5h 5s | 3 |
| Four to a straight flush | 2c 6h 7h 8h Kc | 2.2553 |
| Pat flush | 2c 4h 7h 9h Kh | 2 |
| Pat straight | 2c 6h 7d 8s 9c | 2 |
| Three of a kind (deuce + pair) | 2c 9c 9d 5h Kc | 2.0176 |
| Three to a wild royal | 2c Jh Qh 8d 5c | 1.2211 |
| Three to a straight flush | 2c 7h 8h Kd 4c | 1.0953 |
| Deuce only (draw four) | 2c 5d 8h Jc Ks | 1.0308 |
| Hold (first match wins) | Example hand | EV/coin |
|---|---|---|
| Natural royal flush | 10h Jh Qh Kh Ah | 800 |
| Four to a natural royal | 10h Jh Qh Kh 5c | 19.8511 |
| Pat straight flush | 5h 6h 7h 8h 9h | 9 |
| Four of a kind (draw one) | 9c 9d 9h 9s 5c | 5.8511 |
| Pat full house | 9c 9d 9h 5c 5d | 3 |
| Pat flush | 3h 6h 9h Jh Kh | 2 |
| Pat straight | 5c 6d 7h 8s 9c | 2 |
| Three of a kind (draw two) | 9c 9d 9h 5c Kd | 2.0176 |
| Four to a straight flush | 6h 7h 8h 9h Kc | 1.6596 |
| Three to a natural royal | Jh Qh Kh 5c 8d | 1.3765 |
| One pair (never hold two pair) | 9c 9d 5h Jc Ks | 0.5602 |
| Three to a straight flush (no gaps) | 7h 8h 9h Kc 4d | 0.5199 |
| Four to a flush | 3h 6h 9h Jh Kc | 0.5106 |
| Four to an outside straight | 6c 7d 8h 9s Kc | 0.5106 |
| Two to a natural royal (J/Q/K high) | Jh Qh 5c 8d 3s | 0.3517 |
| Nothing: draw five | 3c 6d 9h Js Kc | 0.3226 |
Never discard a deuce. A wild card is worth more than any draw it could become part of. Never hold two pair. It pays nothing here; hold one pair and draw three (0.5602 vs 0.5106 EV per coin). Never hold a kicker. Extra cards next to made hands only block your draws.
Dealt three deuces and a pat five of a kind? Most players hold everything. The exact answer depends on the pair: with 10s or better, hold the pat 15 (drawing yields 14.94). With 9s or lower, break it and draw two to the three deuces — EV 15.0574 vs 15.0000 — because discarding low cards costs you nothing toward a wild royal, while every possible draw still leaves you with at least five of a kind equity. It is a tiny edge, and it is exactly the kind of play that separates a 100.76% player from everyone else.
Most machines labeled Deuces Wild are not full pay. The two common downgrades, with engine-computed optimal returns:
| Version | 5oaK / SF / Quads | Return |
|---|---|---|
| Full pay | 15 / 9 / 5 | 100.76% |
| Not So Ugly Ducks (NSUD) | 16 / 10 / 4 | 99.73% |
| Short pay | 15 / 9 / 4 | 94.34% |
The quads payout is the tell: quads arrive so often in this game that dropping them from 5 to 4 costs over six percent of return. Check the pay tables guide for how to read a machine before you sit down.
Reading strategy is not playing it. The free trainer now includes Full-Pay Deuces Wild — every hold you make is graded against the exact optimal play, with the EV cost of every mistake. Deuce-count thinking becomes automatic after a few hundred hands.
Deuces Wild strategy is its own world. For the games where pairs still pay, start with the 9/6 Jacks or Better strategy chart, then 8/5 Bonus Poker, 10/7 Double Bonus, and 9/6 Double Double Bonus. Or compare everything on the best games page.