Caribbean Stud Poker Payouts

As Sklansky mentions in his post, Caribbean Stud Poker offers “bonus” payouts when your hand beats the dealer’s qualifying (A-K high or better) hand. These bonus payouts are attached to the “play” bet, which is more commonly known as the “raise” bet amongst regular players because you must double the Ante bet to force a showdown. CaribbeanStudPoker.org is a guide to the casino game Caribbean Stud Poker. Learn the rules, read expert strategy and find bonuses for real money online play. The origins of the game date back to a very similar offering called Casino Poker. This version had lower payouts.

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Caribbean Stud jackpots and payouts play a vital role in the appeal of this card game. While some casino patrons would happily play for free, most become involved due to the allure of what appears to be easy money. This can be misleading, though, as Caribbean Stud is a challenging game that forces players to make a single, critical decision without the benefit of receiving additional cards.

This page outlines various payouts for Caribbean Stud, including those found online and in land-based casinos. Jackpot payouts are also examined, and we’ve even included the basic rules for anyone who’s yet to experience the frustrating magic of this game.

What Is a Payout?

The first known use of the word “payout” occurred in 1943, and it’s since become an integral part of the gambling vocabulary. The dictionary defines it as “the act of paying out,” although casino gamers usually associate it with the amount of prize money offered for a specific casino game. A casino payout can be a flat amount, or it may be a ratio determined by the odds and the size of the player’s bet (for example, a 2 to 1 payout gives the player $2 for every $1 wagered). Caribbean Stud payouts function in the same fashion.

The Basics of Caribbean Stud Poker

If you needed the definition of a payout, then the rules of Caribbean Stud may be a complete mystery. Fortunately, this section covers the basics, so you’ll be able to quickly transition to a live or online version of the game with minimal difficulty (We prefer online gaming at Royal Vegas or Platinum Play).

Multiple players can participate in a game of Caribbean Stud, but they always compete against a dealer, not each other. To begin a round of gaming, each player places an amount of money known as an “ante” on the table. The amount of the ante is determined in advance by the casino.

Players may also choose to make an additional side bet for a chance to win the progressive jackpot. This traditionally costs $1 and pays a progressive sum if the player gets a royal flush. Other poker hands may also result in a payout, although these tend to be fixed amounts instead of an ever-increasing sum.

Once the antes have been made, the dealer gives each player five cards face down. The dealer also receives five cards, although one of their cards will be dealt face up for the players to see.

After examining their hands and placing them back on the table, a player can choose to fold or raise. If they fold, the player loses all wagers and must sit out for the rest of the hand. If they raise, they must now contribute a sum equal to twice their ante.

Once all players have made their decision, the dealer reveals his or her cards and compares them to the players (starting with the player farthest to the right). If the dealer has less than a king and an ace in their hand, they fail to qualify for this round and all players with superior hands are paid. If the dealer does qualify, the player’s hand must be superior to the dealer in order to warrant a monetary payment.

To complete a round of gaming, the dealer checks the hand strength of each player who made the progressive side bet. If their hand is good enough, they receive a bonus dictated by the game’s pay table. Otherwise, they receive nothing.

This completes a round of Caribbean Stud Poker. Once all steps have been completed, the dealer begins a new game by asking for antes to be placed on the table.

Caribbean Stud Payouts

In most cases, a winning ante in Caribbean Stud pays out even money. The raise is where profits start to add up, as players willing to risk extra money are awarded with payouts based on the individual game’s pay table. You can expect each casino to have a slightly different pay table, but the following are examples that we’ve encountered in the past.

Online casinos powered by Microgaming (including 7 Sultans and Royal Vegas) offer the following Caribbean stud payouts:

  • Royal Flush – 999 to 1
  • Straight Flush – 199 to 1
  • Four of a Kind – 99 to 1
  • Full House – 14 to 1
  • Flush – 9 to 1
  • Straight – 5 to 1
  • Three of a Kind – 3 to 1
  • Two Pair – Even money
  • Pair or Less – Even money

Caribbean Stud Poker Payouts Odds

Outside of Great Britain and other European nations, the U.S. version of Caribbean Stud Poker is most commonly played. Here are the most common payouts:

  • Royal Flush – 100 to 1
  • Straight Flush – 50 to 1
  • Four of a Kind – 20 to 1
  • Full House – 7 to 1
  • Flush – 5 to 1
  • Straight – 4 to 1
  • Three of a Kind – 3 to 1
  • Two Pair – 2 to 1
  • Pair or Less – Even money

Progressive Jackpot Payouts

Each casino differs when it comes to Caribbean Stud payouts, although most are similar in their design. The following list includes some of the most common payouts you can expect to find when choosing the optional $1 side wager.

Royal Flush – We’ve yet to find a casino that didn’t pay out 100% of the progressive bonus for a royal flush. Once this occurs, the jackpot will drop down to a predetermined amount and begin to climb once again.

Straight Flush – A few casinos offer a fixed bonus of $5,000 or $20,000 for a straight flush, while most pay out 10% of the current progressive jackpot.

Four of a Kind – $500 is a frequent bonus payout for four of a kind, although some casinos offer much less ($100 or $150).

Full House – A $100 bonus is the most common, although we’ve seen payouts as high as $150 and as low as $75.

Flush – Bonus payouts of $50, $75, and $100 all exist, but the most likely result of a flush is $50.

Straight – We’ve encountered bonuses of $30, $40, and $50, although most versions of the game don’t offer a payout for a straight.

Three of a Kind – The most common bonus for this hand is $0, although we did encounter one casino that awarded $7.

Caribbean stud jackpots and payouts vary from one casino to the next, but you can always count on hands like the royal flush and straight flush to provide sizable returns on your investment.

This is a large reason why the game is so popular with casino patrons, along with a fast-paced style of play and simple rule mechanics. If you’ve yet to experience the thrill of Caribbean Stud, there’s no time like the present (especially when online casinos are just a click away).

By Henry Tamburin
Ten years ago you couldn't find a Caribbean Stud Poker table in any casino in the USA. Nowadays, virtually every major casino has at least one Caribbean Stud Poker table and in fact, mostcasinos have two or more tables. What led to its explosive growth? First, it's based on the All-American game of five-card stud poker that is familiar to most players. Secondly, allplayers compete against the dealer which eliminates the intimidation of playing against other players that occurs in regular table poker. Thirdly, the game features a progressive jackpot thatsometimes reaches $100,000 and more. And fourthly, and most importantly, the game is easy to play.

Objective: To beat the dealer's five-card poker hand. There are no draw cards in Caribbean Stud Poker. Every player and the dealer are dealt five cards and if your five-card hand has ahigher poker rank than the dealer's five-card hand, you win.

Play of the Game: The game is played on a table similar to a blackjack table with up to seven player spots. One standard deck of 52-cards is used. The cards are usually shuffled byan automatic shuffle machine which speeds up the game (while one deck is being used, the other deck is being shuffled by the automatic shuffler). There are two betting areas in front ofeach player. One is labeled ante and the other is labeled bet. Above the ante bet is a slot where players can drop a dollar coin to become eligible for the progressive jackpot.
Play begins with all players making the mandatory ante wager and, if they wish, dropping a coin into the progressive jackpot slot. The dealer deals five cards face down to each player and tohimself, four cards face down and one card face up for all players to see. Each player then picks up his five cards and based on the strength of his hand and the value of the dealer's upcard,makes one of two decisions.

Decision one: If the player does not believe he will beat the player's hand, he can fold by laying the cards face down on the layout. When a player folds, he automatically loses hisante bet and the dealer will remove the cards from the layout (without facing them).

Decision two: If a player decides to play out his hand because he thinks he has a chance to beat the dealer, the player must make a call bet equal to twice the amount of the ante. Forexample, if your ante was $5, your call bet must be $10.
After all players have decided to either fold or call, the dealer exposes his cards on the layout. Now comes the most important rule in Caribbean Stud Poker. In order for players to winboth of their bets, the dealer's hand must qualify. This occurs if the dealer's hand contains at least an ace and king or better. This is an important rule because based upon whether thedealer's hand qualifies or not determines how the round is brought to closure.

If the dealer's hand does NOT qualify: Players who did not fold win even money on the ante bet. The secondary call bet is returned (a push). The dealer removes all the players' cardsfrom the layout without facing the cards. Essentially the dealer folds and there is no comparing of the dealer's hand vs. the player's hand to see which hand is the highest.

Caribbean Stud Poker App

If the dealer's hand does qualify: If the dealer's hand contains at least an ace and king, he will 'call' all the player's hands. Player's lay their cards on the layout and the dealercompares his hand with the players hands to determine which hand has the highest poker rank. If the dealer's hand is higher than the player's hand, the dealer wins both the player's ante andcall bet. If instead the player's hand out ranks the dealer's hand then the player wins even money on the ante wager and the call bet is paid according to the following payout odds.


Call Bet

Payoff Odds

Royal Flush

100 to 1

Straight flush

50 to 1

Four-of-a-kind

20 to 1

Full House

7 to 1

Flush

5 to 1

Straight

4 to 1

Three-of-a-kind

3 to 1

Two pair

2 to 1

One pair

1 to 1

Ace-king

1 to 1

Progressive Jackpot Bet: This optional bet is separate from the ante and call bet and independent of the dealer's hand. In other words, no matter what the rank of the dealer's hand orfor that matter even if he qualifies, you will be eligible for a payout if you make the optional dollar jackpot bet and are dealt one of these hands.

Caribbean Stud Poker Payouts Vegas World

Typical Progressive Jackpot Pay Schedule


Royal Flush

100% of jackpot

Straight flush

10% of the jackpot

Four-of-a-kind

$500

Full House

$100

Flush

$50

Please note the jackpot pay schedule may be slightly different from one casino to the next especially in the amount of the payoff for the four-of-a-kind, full house, and flush. The jackpotgrows as players feed coins into the jackpot slot (casinos put anywhere from 25 to 75 cents out of every dollar bet into the jackpot pool). The house edge for the Progressive Jackpot isroughly 25% and this bet should be avoided.

Playing Strategy: Two of the most common playing mistakes made by players is to fold when they have a small pair or to bluff the dealer by making a call bet when they have a weakhand.
First, never fold your small pairs. You will be dealt a pair about 42% of the times and you'll win more (or lose less) in the long run by making the call bet rather than to fold (the casino hasabout a 7% edge against players who fold on small pairs). Also, never try to bluff the dealer! Some players mistakenly believe they can win more hands by making the call bet when they have aweak hand. They figure that the dealer who doesn't qualify pays off the ante wager for player's who stay in (i.e. make the call bet) regardless if the player has a strong or weak hand. Theproblem with this strategy is that when the dealer does qualify (and he will about 56% of the time), the player loses not only the ante bet but also the call bet (which is twice the ante bet).Mathematically a player who bluffs with a weak hand will lose 25% more of his ante over the long run than if he folded. Bottom-line - don't bluff!
Here is a simple basic playing strategy to get you started.

Basic Playing Strategy

  • Fold if you have less than Ace-King.
  • Make a call bet if:
  • You have at least any pair or higher.
  • You have at least an Ace-King and one of your other cards is the same as the dealer's face card

The casino's edge is about 5.2% based on the player's ante wager (or 2.6% based on the ante and call bet).
If you want to play Caribbean Stud Poker, remember to play it smartly by following the basic playing strategy, avoid bluffing on weak hands & folding on low pairs, and do not make theprogressive jackpot bet unless the amount of the jackpot justifies it.

Caribbean stud poker payouts

Caribbean Stud Poker Pay Table

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