How to Increase Your Odds of Winning at Bingo

Like slots, bingo relies mostly on your luck. Sometimes the stars align and you get exactly what you want, and sometimes you can’t seem to get numbers to line up no matter what you try.

We’re going to be completely honest with you — there is no guaranteed way to win bingo. There isn’t a mathematical equation or a set of rules to follow that will ensure 100% success, and anyone who tells you otherwise is almost certainly lying to you. However, this doesn’t mean you can’t improve your chances and make smarter moves when playing the game.

Here’s what you can do to get better at bingo.

Bingo Basics

Before you begin building any kind of strategy, you have to learn how bingo odds are calculated in the first place. Don’t worry, you don’t need advanced math knowledge — to get the odds, simply divide the number of cards you are playing by the total number of cards in the game.

Here’s an example to illustrate this: If there are a total of 100 cards in the game and you play with 5 cards yourself, you have a 5 in 100 (or 1 in 20) chance of winning. Yes, understanding bingo odds is as simple as that.

How to Predict the Winning Numbers

You can’t. Don’t fool yourself into thinking there’s some way to predict which bingo numbers will come up, because there isn’t. If the bingo machine is loaded with a complete set of balls that no one tampered with, then there’s simply no way to know which numbers might get called.

If someone did tamper with the bingo machine, you’re playing at the wrong place and you should probably just take your money and go find a better, more honest place.

It’s really important not to fall into the trap of choosing tickets containing numbers that have been called several times. If you’re playing a two-hour bingo game and the number 61 gets called three times, you might think that you should get a ticket with that number because it’s likely to get called a fourth time as well. But there’s no guarantee that it’ll actually happen. All of the numbers have exactly the same chance of coming up as any other.

Buy More Cards

Let’s talk about how you can actually improve your chances of winning. It’s actually pretty logical — buy more cards. If you buy 5 bingo tickets in a game that has 100 tickets in total, you’ll have a 5 in 100 chance of winning. If you buy 10, you’ll have doubled your chances.

Bear in mind that you won’t be the only person buying multiple cards. Dedicated bingo players generally tend to buy more than regular players, so you might be competing with a lot of people who are just as determined as you are to win.

Choose the Right Room

Bingo games don’t stop until someone wins. The fewer players in a room, the less competition there is for the big prize. Finding less crowded bingo rooms might be tricky, especially if you play online, but if you do chance upon one you’ll be more likely to win.

You could try visiting local gambling houses on rainy days or choosing online bingo rooms with fewer players to enjoy a game in peace. You should also try going during odd hours of the day, especially late at night. Bear in mind that some bingo rooms won’t be well-populated because the winning jackpot is nothing remarkable, but you still might have a better chance of winning there than if you were to go for the crowded rooms with big jackpots.

One problem with this strategy is that the winning prize is often determined by the number of tickets sold. Playing in a room with fewer players gives you a bigger chance of winning a smaller prize.

What About Choosing Cards That Don’t Duplicate Numbers?

Mathematically, this won’t make much of a difference. Bingo cards never contain a single number more than once, and every card has the same odds of winning. Technically, if you have several bingo cards with the same numbers and you get a bad draw, you’ll ruin your chances of winning on all of them. However, a good draw could increase your chances of winning on all of those cards, so the effects kind of cancel each other out. Basically, choose tickets however you like.

Remember Why You’re Playing Bingo

Hopefully, it’s to have fun! Bingo is an exciting social game that gives you an opportunity to chat with people, make new friends, and earn some nice prizes. By all means, work on your strategy, but don’t forget to have fun in the process.

If you’re gunning for that huge jackpot, the best thing you can do is try these few strategies, and then order yourself a drink and relax with friends and other bingo-goers.