Crash games: how the multiplier, cash-out and RTP work

A crash game is a bet on a rising number. A multiplier starts at 1x and climbs. You can cash out at any moment and win your stake times the current multiplier. At a random point the multiplier stops, or "crashes", and anyone still in loses their stake. It is fast, simple and social, and its maths is easier to explain than most casino games.

Aviator: the best-known example

Spribe's Aviator was billed as the "world's number one crash game" in coverage of its Ontario launch. Players place a bet before each round; a plane takes off and a win multiplier rises as it climbs; players must cash out before the plane flies away, or they lose the stake (Canadian Gaming Business). It is multiplayer, with a real-time leaderboard and in-game chat (Gambling Insider). Spribe's chief executive, David Natroshvili, has said the game was "inspired by provably fair crash games, but adapted" for regulated markets (iGaming Business). See our Spribe page.

How a round works

1. Betting window. Before the round, you place one or more bets.
2. The crash point is set. The game draws a random crash point before the multiplier starts. Watching the animation does not change it.
3. The multiplier climbs. It rises from 1.00x, slowly at first and then faster.
4. You cash out, or you don't. Cash out at 2.40x and a £5 bet returns £12. Some games let you set an automatic cash-out target in advance.
5. The crash. When the multiplier reaches the crash point, the round ends. Bets not cashed out are lost.

The maths: why every target has the same edge

A crash game is typically designed so the chance of the multiplier reaching any level is the RTP divided by that level. The table uses an illustrative RTP of 97%; it is not Spribe's or any other studio's published figure for a specific game. Our calculation:

Every row returns 97p per £1 on average. Low targets win often and pay little; high targets win rarely and pay a lot. The 3% house edge stays the same. The 97% is illustrative only: check the RTP in the rules of the game you play, at the site you play it on.

Why auto cash-out does not change the edge

Auto cash-out is a convenience. It cashes out at your chosen multiplier so you do not have to click in time. It does not change the crash point, and the table above shows that no target, manual or automatic, has a better average than any other. What it does change is speed: rounds are short, and with auto settings you can play a lot of them quickly. Set a limit on the number of rounds and the total you will stake before you start.

The same goes for two-bet strategies, such as one bet cashed out early and one left to run. Each bet carries the house edge on its own, so two bets just double what you stake.

Provably fair, in plain terms

"Provably fair" is a method, borrowed from crypto gaming, that lets you check a result was not changed after you bet.

1. The server commits. Before the round, the game publishes a hash (a fingerprint) of a secret server seed.
2. Players add input. One or more client seeds, often from players, are combined with it.
3. The result is calculated. The seeds and a round number feed a formula that produces the crash point.
4. The seed is revealed. After the round, the server seed is published. You can hash it to check it matches the fingerprint shown earlier, then rerun the formula to confirm the crash point.

What it proves: the result was fixed before you bet and was not altered. What it does not prove: that the formula's built-in house edge is small, that the site is licensed, or that it will pay you. In regulated markets, a game also has to be approved before it goes live, as the Ontario and Panama examples below show.

Legality varies by market

Crash games are casino games, and whether you can play them legally depends on where you are and who licenses the site.

• Ontario. Spribe launched Aviator in Ontario in April 2023 after receiving a licence from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (Canadian Gaming Business).
• Panama. Spribe received approval from Panama's Gaming Control Board in January 2024 (Gambling Insider).
• Malta. Spribe told Gambling Insider it is licensed by the Malta Gaming Authority (Gambling Insider).

Many crash games are also offered by sites that hold no licence where the player lives, including crypto-only sites. Those sites sit outside your local player protections. We only list licensed sites; check our market pages for what is legal where you are.

Myths and systems

• "Signals" and predictor apps. The crash point is random and set before the round. Anything sold as a predictor is a scam.
• "After a few low crashes, a high one is due." Rounds are independent.
• Martingale. Doubling after each loss at a 2x target does not change the edge. It just turns small losses into rare, very large ones when a losing run comes, and it runs into maximum bet limits.
• "Cash out early to stay safe." Early cash-outs win more often but pay less; the average is the same.

Playing crash games online

• Check the RTP in the game rules at the site you use.
• Demo play. Many crash games have a demo mode. It shows the pace, which is useful to know before you play for money.
• Watch the pace. Rounds take seconds. A per-session budget matters more here than in slower games.

Where to play

We list licensed casinos only: Ontario casinos, UK casinos, New Jersey casinos, Pennsylvania casinos and Michigan casinos. Not every licensed site carries crash games. Related: Plinko and Mines and scratch cards.