So you’ve seen the money that has been made from these best real money casino slot sites, what if that has you thinking about getting a slot machine for your business, bar, or other type of venue? It’s a very good idea if you’ve got enough of a customer base and passing trade to keep topping up the machine. What do you need to do to own a machine, how do you make money and is it possible to lose money on the machine?
How to obtain a slot machine
There are a few bits of admin to observe before simply buying and installing your slot machine. Check the local legislation on buying and operating a slot machine first. In the United Kingdom for example you’ve got to register as a slot machine owner first and pay a fee. In the United States, it varies greatly by state border, in Kansas, it is only permitted to own machines made in 1950 or earlier. Whether as in Indiana, it’s completely outlawed. In order to save yourself from any untoward attention from the local authorities, it’s best to comply with these rulings.
How much money can I make from owning a slot machine?
While we would love to give you a set figure, there are so many variables that it’s impossible to do so. If you want a set income stream, scroll to the last paragraph. Slot machines are said to have contributed around 60% to 80% of all income to your average casino (both online and land), making for big business.
However, does that mean that your newly acquired slot machine will start bringing you riches? Not exactly. It depends on how many people are visiting your establishment, whether they are spending excessively on the machine or simply putting in their loose change. Statistics from Nevada say that the average machine in Las Vegas can make up to $200 per day. That’s amazing! But, are you in Nevada? If so, please enjoy the spoils. If you’re in a sleepy Derbyshire village or a small outback town with Kangaroos for neighbors, it may be hard to replicate the same kind of revenue.
It’s also hard to put a number on how many customers you’ll need to make X amount of profit. That’s because no one customer or play session is the same. One person might burn through $200 in 30 minutes by putting coin after coin in the machine and spinning until the cows come home. On another day you might only get the old chap using it who is reluctant to spend more than $5 but wants to play on the machine all day.
You shouldn’t lose money on slot machine ownership…
Ok, so you’ve bought the machine and completed all the necessary paperwork, the rest of the journey is relatively downhill from here. The majority of slot machines work on a set RTP%. When the machine has enough funds to pay out the jackpot or a winning figure and the player strikes it lucky, it will pay out. The player will only ever get the set RTP back. This stands for return to player.
In a simple way, if the RTP is set at 95% and there’s $100 in the machine when a player wins, they’ll get $95. The other $5 is kept by the machine owner as their profits from owning the machine. For the most part, machines have a set RTP and cannot be changed.
There are very few overheads when it comes to owning the machine. The cost of the electricity to run the machine of course and a maintenance appointment might set you back a little bit but ultimately shouldn’t be a fortune. If nobody is putting money into the machine then you could lose but if you don’t have the customer base for a slot machine you probably shouldn’t own one in the first place.
Why Own the Machine Outright?
If this all sounds like too much aggravation for you, then there is another option. Instead of outright ownership of the slot machine, you can find a company that can rent you a machine. Or rather, they’ll rent a space in your venue and keep all the profits. This way you get another income stream at a fixed rate and have the attraction of a slot machine. Although, if business picks up you may end up with less money if the punters are queuing outside the door to play on the machine. Some companies operate a ‘shared profits’ deal, however, where you can get some of the machine profits back.
A good point about not owning the slot machine yourself is that if none of your punters take to using it enough, you can end the relationship and the renting company can just pick up the machine. If you own the slot machine and nobody plays it, you’ve got a rather expensive cabinet just sitting in your venue doing little else than collecting dust.
