When you play a slot game, the rules and payouts are shown in a small window called a pay table. Typically, the pay table fits in with the theme of the slot and is easy to read. You can find it by clicking on an icon on the game screen or via a menu on the left of the screen.
When playing slots, you need to understand how the symbols fit in to form a winning combination and the paylines on which they land. Many modern online slots also have bonus features that can add to your chances of winning. These are called side games and can often be triggered during the main game.
To win a jackpot on a slot machine, you must have all five matching symbols in a row on a payline. The number of symbols is limited, however, by the fact that there are only 22 positions on each reel. This is why it was important for the designers of slot machines to weight particular symbols in order to maximise the odds of them appearing. The term ‘weighting’ refers to a mathematical process by which a symbol is assigned a value relative to its frequency on the reels. A high weighting means that a particular symbol will appear on the reels more often than others and therefore increase the chances of hitting the jackpot. This method of determining a winning combination is known as a slot machine strategy.