Jackpot Contribution

The jackpot contribution is the slice of every stake that is diverted into a progressive pool instead of being paid out through the game's ordinary paytable. It is usually a small percentage of each bet, and it is what makes the counter climb. The part that matters is where it sits in the published return. A progressive game's advertised RTP normally includes the jackpot, which means part of the number describes money that reaches only the handful of players who win the pot. Strip the contribution out and what remains is the base-game return — the figure that describes what everyone else actually experiences. Worked example: a game published at 96 percent with a 1 percent jackpot contribution returns about 95 percent through the base game, and the missing point sits in a prize the overwhelming majority of players will never collect. Two games at the same headline RTP, one progressive and one not, are therefore not the same offer for a player who is not chasing the jackpot. The other detail is eligibility. Many progressives only qualify a spin for the jackpot at or above a stated bet level, or scale the chance with stake size, so a player betting under that level pays the contribution on every spin while remaining ineligible for the prize it funds. The bet requirement and the contribution rate are both stated in the game information panel.