Slots are fun, fast-paced games that can bring you huge payouts. However, they can be addictive and you may want to set limits before you start playing them.

The best way to know which slots are worth playing is to look at the paytables. These are often posted on the rules or information page for the game, or as a list on the casino’s website. They should include symbols, pay lines and matching bonuses. You should also read about how the games work, including what special symbols can trigger a bonus feature.

You should also find out what the payout percentages are for each type of slot machine. This is important to know because it can help you decide which machines are more profitable than others.

Myths about Slots

Many people believe that slot percentages are changed on the fly and that machines are susceptible to cheating. This is incorrect, however. Most machines are programmed with payback percentages before they are installed. In addition, the chips that govern these percentages are sealed inside of the machine and are not a good place to change them.

It is also a myth that slot heads are easily replaced by fake coins or that slots can be hacked using ordinary magnets. These types of tricks were a real problem in the past, but more secure coin acceptance devices made them impossible.

The most common ways to cheat a slot machine were to use magnetic devices that would cause the reels to move freely instead of stopping, or by putting counterfeit money on the head. These cheats were difficult to spot from a distance, but they were a big problem for casinos and the law.

These cheats often involved a group of people crowded around the machine and blocking the view. In some cases, teams would rig the machine so that it paid out more than usual.

Cheating on slot machines became a serious issue in the 1960s and 1970s. In Nevada, a woman was caught with a brightly colored piece of yarn that she used to attach a coin. She was caught by a security guard who then arrested her.

Another common slot cheat was to use fake coins or slugs. These were round pieces of metal that looked like slot tokens, but were not made of the same metal as a real coin. These were usually made in the eastern U.S., but they were also made in other parts of the world as well.

Slugs were not only a gambler’s annoyance, they were also a problem for the casinos that rented out their slot machines. They caused delays, which were a cost to the casino.

Fortunately, casinos began to add bill validators and credit meters to their slots. This helped players avoid the inconvenience of dropping coins into slot machines. It also made it easier to think of slots as credits rather than cash. This also made it more difficult to cheat on slot machines, as it was much harder to know where the coins were coming from or how many had been deposited.