How to Play Let It Ride Online in Indiana

Once online casinos become legal in the Hoosier State, players will have many ways to play Let It Ride online in Indiana. Let It Ride is a terrific card-based table game that is easy to learn and fun to play.

Here’s everything you need to know about how to play online Let It Ride, including:

Playing Let It Ride poker online vs. live

When you play Let It Ride poker online, you’ll find the rules and payouts are usually the same as when you play live. Also, there is usually the same Let It Ride 3 Card Bonus bet available both online and live (discussed below).

Sometimes the live version will have additional side bets too, including progressive jackpot bonus bets. That said, for the most part, the online casino version of Let It Ride is much the same as what you’ll encounter in a retail casino.

There are a few differences between online Let It Ride and the live version worth noting, however. These include:

  • Let It Ride online for real money usually features much lower minimum bets when compared to live. You’ll see online casinos typically allow bets as small as $0.30, whereas in a casino the minimum is more likely to be $10 or even higher.
  • Let It Ride hands play at a faster rate online versus live, allowing you to play many more hands per hour online.
  • When playing live Let It Ride, you have to learn how to signal your bets to the dealer (e.g., sliding cards under chips to show your intention or scratching the table with your cards), whereas the online game does not require you to learn such actions since everything is automated.
  • Some retail casinos may only have one or two Let It Ride tables, and if they are fully occupied, you may not be able to get a seat. With online Let It Ride, there is always a game available with no waiting.
  • When you play Let It Ride live, you are seated with other players. While your first three cards are distinct, the last two are “community cards” you share with the rest of the table. Online, you are the only player, so all of the cards are yours alone.
  • Playing Let It Ride online also means missing the social aspect of playing in a casino. That said, you are able to enjoy the game from the comfort of your own home or on the go when using a mobile casino app in Indiana once legal.

As noted, though, even when accounting for those differences, the online version of the Let It Ride casino game plays very similarly to the in-person game.

Expected casinos with online Let It Ride in Indiana

Indiana has yet to authorize real money online casinos, although you can play casino games online in Indiana at social and sweepstakes sites that use virtual currencies. While sweepstakes sites typically do not have Let It Ride, the real money online casinos typically do. That means when they launch in Indiana, there will be a nice selection of places for playing Let It Ride online in Indiana.

Here are a dozen online casinos currently operating in other states, all of which feature Let It Ride among their table games:

Each of these online casinos have the same version of online Let It Ride powered by Scientific Games, a subsidiary of Light & Wonder.

If you visit the sites, you’ll discover many of them allow you to play free demo versions of Let It Ride. At last check, Caesars, DraftKings, Golden Nugget, Hard Rock and Unibet all have demo versions you can try online. Still, keep in mind you have to be at least 21 years old to play.

While all of these sites feature live dealer casino games like blackjack, roulette and Three Card Poker, none of them have Let It Ride as a live dealer option.

How to play Let It Ride online

Like many other table games, Let It Ride is based on poker, although unlike traditional poker it involves you playing against a dealer (the house).

The object of the game is to make the best five-card poker hand you can. You win money based on your hand strength with different hands earning different payouts not unlike in video poker. You have to make at least a pair of 10s in Let It Ride to win anything.

A look at Let It Ride table from BetMGM Casino.

Here are the steps for playing a hand of Let It Ride:

  • Step 1: Place three bets of equal value on the 1, 2 and $ spots on the table. You can pick how much you want to wager (within the table limits), but all three of these bets will be the same amount. You might later withdraw one or two of these bets, depending on how well you like your hand. Before the hand starts, you also decide whether to place a 3 Card Bonus side bet (which can be a different amount than the primary bets).
  • Step 2: Receive the first three cards of what will eventually be a five-card hand. Here’s hoping they’re good ones!
  • Step 3: Decide whether to “let it ride” and leave your three bets out there, or you can “pull” one of them back if you don’t like how your hand has started. (See below for some strategy tips.)
  • Step 4: Receive the fourth card and again decide whether to let it ride. Now you have four of your five cards, and you get one more chance to pull a bet if you wish.
  • Step 5: Receive your fifth card at which point your bets are settled. You will at least have one bet in play at this point, or you might have two or three bets still out there. However many are still in play (including the 3 Card Bonus side bet), you will either win money with a strong enough hand or lose what you’ve wagered.

That’s how a hand goes. Read on for more particulars about odds, payouts, that bonus bet and strategy.

Online Let It Ride payouts and odds

In Let It Ride, you aren’t competing against another player or the dealer (who doesn’t receive a hand). You’re simply trying to make the highest-ranking possible five-card poker hand. Here’s a table showing the payouts you win for various hands, with the odds of making those hands also noted.

Let It Ride HandPayoutsOdds
One Pair of 10s or Better1-to-1 (even money)3-to-1
Two Pair2-to-120-to-1
Three of a Kind3-to-146-to-1
Straight5-to-1254-to-1
Flush8-to-1508-to-1
Full House11-to-1693-to-1
Four or a Kind50-to-14,164-to-1
Straight Flush200-to-172,192-to-1
Royal Flush1,000-to-1649,739-to-1

Those payouts are for whatever wagers you leave on the table. If you have let it ride and kept all three of your bets on the table and you hit a winning hand, you get paid for all three bets. But if you’ve pulled one or two back, you get paid only for the wagers still in play. Meanwhile, if you pull bets back and lose, you lose only what is left on the table.

Say you wagered $5 for all three initial bets and start out getting dealt 10♦️-10♠-K♣. You’ve already got a winning hand, so you let it ride. Your fourth card is the 5♠, and the fifth card is the 10♣, meaning you end with three of a kind. You get 3-to-1 on the $15 you’ve wagered, meaning you win $45.

Let’s say those cards came out a little differently. Say you started K♣-10♦️-5♠ and pulled back a bet. The 10♠ came next and you let it ride, and the 10♣ arrived to give you three of a kind. In this case, since you pulled back one of your bets, you have only $10 in play at the end, which means you’d win $30.

Let It Ride 3 Card Bonus payouts and odds

The 3 Card Bonus bet is a side bet you can make at the start of a Let It Ride hand. It is essentially a bet on your first three cards only. You win if those three cards create a high-ranking poker hand. In this case, you must make at least a pair (any pair) to win anything. Here are the payouts and odds for the 3 Card Bonus:

Let It Ride HandPayoutsOdds
One Pair1-to-15-to-1
Flush3-to-119-to-1
Straight6-to-130-to-1
Three of a Kind30-to-1424-to-1
Straight Flush40-to-1459-to-1
Mini-Royal (suited A,K,Q)200-to-15,524-to-1

Remember, this is a one-time wager on your first three cards only. Notice how you win more for three of a kind than for a straight or flush, because it is harder to make three of a kind than those hands with just three cards. You also win more for a straight than for a flush, because again it is harder to make a three-card straight than to get three cards of the same suit.

A Mini-Royal is like a three-card Royal Flush, e.g., A♥-K♥-Q♥. Note that when you play the live Let It Ride card game that payout for a Mini-Royal might vary, even sometimes being as low as 50-to-1. For online games, Let It Ride typically keeps the Mini-Royal payout at 200-to-1, though.

You’re noticing a difference — sometimes a big difference — between the payouts and odds in Let It Ride. Keep that in mind as we talk about strategy.

Strategy tips for Let It Ride

If you understand the rules, odds and payouts for Let It Ride, you are in a good spot to employ a smart strategy. Mainly, let’s focus on whether to pull back a bet or let it ride as the hand plays out.

Basic Let It Ride strategy

There are two instances where you have that choice. The first comes after receiving your first three cards. After getting those three cards, you should let it ride and keep all three bets in play when you have:

  • A pair of 10s or better (a winning hand already)
  • Three cards to a royal flush (such as K♦️-J♦️-10♦️ or A♠️-Q♠️-J♠️)
  • Any three consecutive cards to a straight flush down to 5-4-3 (10♠️-9♠️-8♠️, 5♥-4♥-3♥, etc.)
  • Three cards to a straight flush with one gap with at least one card 10 or higher (like 10♦️-8♦️-7♦️)
  • Three cards to a straight flush with two gaps with at least two cards 10 or higher (like Q♦️-10♦️-8♦️)

That means you are advised to pull a bet back with anything else. That might be a hard strategy to stick to, but it is the optimal way to play.

After you get your fourth card, you again get to choose whether to let it ride. At this point, let it ride if you have:

  • Pair of 10s or better (a winning hand already)
  • Any four cards of the same suit (four to a flush)
  • Four consecutive cards (drawing to an “outside straight”) with at least one of them 10 or higher

Again, it might be hard to stay disciplined enough to stick to that strategy, but the game’s probabilities suggest this is the best way to play. Doing this keeps you from wasting bets chasing unlikely hands and keeps you betting the maximum when you have the best chance of winning.

Strategy for the Let It Ride 3 Card Bonus bet

The 3 Card Bonus bet is on your first three cards only, so there is just one decision to make: bet or don’t.

When you play online Let It Ride, you might see the online casinos advertise the return to player (RTP) percentage of the game as 96.49%. That means that on average if you play a smart strategy, you can expect to win about $96.49 for every $100 you wager. That doesn’t mean you will win that amount, but over the long term, that is your expected win in the game.

Subtract the RTP from 100% and you see the “house edge” is just over 3.5%. That compares well to some games like roulette. Granted, games like blackjack and baccarat have lower house edges.

When it comes to 3 Card Bonus bet, the house edge is actually a little over 7%. In other words, that bet is much better for the house (and worse for the player) than the other bets. If you like to gamble and want to take a chance on a lucky payout, go for it. But know the 3 Card Bonus bet isn’t really recommended.

Get ready to play Let It Ride online in Indiana

As we say, when real money online casinos come to Indiana, you’ll have plenty of options when it comes to finding a place to play Let It Ride online.

FAQ for Indiana online Let It Ride games 

It is not currently legal to play Let It Ride for real money online in Indiana. But that may change soon when online casinos with Let It Ride launch in the state. Meanwhile, you can play free Let It Ride at a number of online casinos as long as you are at least 21 years old.

You are definitely more likely to find card-based table games like Ultimate Texas Hold’em and Three Card Poker than Let It Ride when you visit a casino in Indiana. Some casinos in Indiana do advertise the game among their regular offerings, but call ahead to see if any tables are running.

No, the odds for Let It Ride are the same whether you play online or live. The payouts might differ, but the odds don’t change. Some might think that if you are sitting at a table with other players with whom you share community cards the odds are different. However, the odds are still the same, and you don’t get any other edge from knowing others’ cards either. All players’ hands are dealt face down.