How slots pay: paylines, ways, clusters and Megaways
Every spin of a slot answers one question: which of the symbols in front of you count as a win. The answer is the game’s pay system, and there are only a handful of them. Here is how each one works, with a free demo of each that you can open and play.
Why the pay system is worth checking first
Two games can share a theme, a grid size and even a bonus round, and still decide wins in completely different ways. The pay system sets how often something lands, what a near miss looks like and how the paytable should be read. Of the 476 games on this site, 446 list their pay structure, and seven systems cover all of them:
| Pay system | Games | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Paylines | 203 | 46% |
| Ways (243, 1,024 and others) | 147 | 33% |
| Cluster pays | 45 | 10% |
| Pay anywhere | 22 | 5% |
| Both-ways | 15 | 3% |
| Megaways | 13 | 3% |
| Connected ways | 1 | 0% |
The other 30 games do not have a pay structure we could confirm, so we have left them out of the count rather than guess.
Paylines: Hot Hot Fruit
15 paylines
Fixed routes across a 5x3 grid. The classic system, and still the most common one here.
Hot Hot Fruit demo →
Ways: Mahjong Ways
1,024 ways
No fixed routes. A match on each neighbouring reel counts, wherever it sits.
Mahjong Ways demo →
Cluster pays: Reactoonz
5+ touching symbols
A 7x7 grid that pays for groups of matching symbols joined side by side.
Reactoonz demo →
Pay anywhere: Gates of Olympus
8+ anywhere on 6x5
Position does not matter at all. Enough of one symbol, anywhere, is a win.
Gates of Olympus demo →
Both-ways: Starburst
10 paylines, both ways
Ordinary paylines that pay from the right-hand reel as well as the left.
Starburst demo →
Megaways: The Dog House Megaways
up to 117,649 ways
The height of every reel changes on every spin, and so does the number of ways.
The Dog House Megaways demo →Paylines: fixed routes across the reels
A payline is a fixed path across the reels, one position on each. A win needs matching symbols in a row along an active line, normally starting from the leftmost reel, and the paytable shows where every line runs. It is the oldest system and still the most common here: 203 games, close to half the catalogue.
The number of lines varies a great deal. Book of Dead and Big Bass Bonanza use 10, Hot Hot Fruit uses 15, Gonzo’s Quest 20, and Dazzle Me runs 76 lines over reels of different heights. More lines do not make a game more generous. The return is set separately, and extra lines mostly change how often a win of some kind lands.
Ways to win: any position on neighbouring reels
Ways games drop the fixed routes. A matching symbol anywhere on the first reel, then anywhere on the second, then anywhere on the third, makes a win, as long as the reels are next to each other and the run starts from the left. The number of ways is simply the count of possible routes. On five reels of three rows that is 3 × 3 × 3 × 3 × 3 = 243, and on five reels of four rows it is 1,024.
Mahjong Ways uses 1,024 ways on a 5x4 grid. Not every ways game lands on a round number, though: 5 Lucky Lions lists 88. There are 147 ways games on this site, a third of the catalogue.
Both-ways: wins from the right as well
Some games pay in both directions, so a run can start from the leftmost reel or the rightmost. It is a modifier rather than a system of its own. Starburst applies it to 10 paylines and Twin Spin to 243 ways. On this site 15 games pay both ways.
Cluster pays: groups that touch
Cluster games use a larger grid and pay for a group of matching symbols that touch each other across or down, wherever the group sits. Reactoonz pays for clusters of five or more on a 7x7 grid. In most cluster games the winning group is cleared and new symbols drop into the gaps, so one spin can turn into a chain of wins.
Sugar Rush 1000 and the newer Sugar Rush Super Scatter both use clusters on a 7x7 grid. 45 games here pay this way.
Pay anywhere: count, don’t connect
Pay-anywhere games ignore position entirely. If enough of the same symbol appear anywhere on the screen, usually eight or more on a 6x5 grid, they pay and then tumble away to make room for new ones. There is nothing to line up and no route to follow.
Gates of Olympus, Sweet Bonanza 1000 and the newer Sweet Bonanza 2500 all work this way. It is a small group here, 22 games.
Megaways: the reel heights change every spin
Megaways is a mechanic created by Big Time Gaming and licensed to other studios. Each reel shows a random number of symbols on every spin, so the number of ways changes from one spin to the next. On the common layout of six reels with up to seven symbols each, the maximum is 7 × 7 × 7 × 7 × 7 × 7 = 117,649 ways, the figure The Dog House Megaways and Extra Juicy Megaways both list.
Some versions add room for more symbols: Madame Destiny Megaways lists up to 200,704. There are 13 Megaways games on this site.
Connected ways: one game on this site
Nine Tails by Habanero uses what it calls Connected Ways: 259 ways on a 5x5 grid. It is the only game here with that system, and a good reminder that the paytable is worth a look before the first spin.
Does the pay system change your chances?
Not by itself. How much a game is built to pay back over the long run, its RTP, is set separately, and so is its volatility. The pay system changes the feel of a session: how often something lands, how wins are counted and what a near miss looks like. A 243-ways game and a 10-line game can be built to return exactly the same amount.
For what that return figure means, and why one game can carry several of them, read what slot RTP means.
Quick answers
- What is the difference between paylines and ways?
- Paylines are fixed routes across the reels, and a win has to follow one. Ways count any matching symbol on each neighbouring reel, wherever it sits, starting from the left.
- What does 243 ways mean?
- A grid of five reels with three rows each. Every combination of one position per reel is a possible route, and 3 × 3 × 3 × 3 × 3 = 243.
- Do more paylines mean better odds?
- No. More lines usually mean small wins land more often, but the overall return is set by the game’s RTP, not by the number of lines.
- What is a Megaways slot?
- A slot using Big Time Gaming’s mechanic, in which every reel shows a random number of symbols on each spin, so the number of ways changes from spin to spin.
How to check a game’s pay system
The paytable or information screen inside the game shows its lines or ways and the minimum match. On this site, the facts panel on each game page lists it under Ways / Lines wherever we could confirm it.
Every game here runs as a free demo on virtual credits, so the quickest way to understand a pay system is to watch a few dozen spins of it. The most recently added games are a reasonable place to start.