Pick me bonus slots hand you a screen of boxes, chests, jars or cards and ask you to choose; each choice reveals a cash prize, a multiplier, extra picks or a different feature. The round looks like a test of judgement, but the random number generator and the game's maths set what it is worth, so no choice is cleverer than another.
A pick me bonus is a second screen where you choose hidden items to reveal prizes or features.
The prize pool is set by the game's maths and RNG; which item you tap does not change the long-run return.
Feature-choice picks (spins versus multiplier) usually change volatility, not the RTP.
UK rules still apply: no autoplay, 2.5 seconds per base spin, £5 stake cap (£2 for 18–24s).
Pick rounds are paid for by the base game, so treat them as part of the slot's normal cost.
Feature type
Bonus round (second screen)
Also called
Pick and click, pick bonus, pick'em
Usual trigger
Three or more bonus or scatter symbols
Does the choice matter?
Not to the long-run return
Effect on volatility
Usually lower than free spins
Fruit machine cousin
Feature trail and box-pick games
What pick me bonus slots are
A pick me bonus is a bonus round that swaps the reels for a set of hidden items. You tap one, it opens, and it shows a prize; depending on the design you keep picking until a set number of picks is used or until a 'collect' item ends the round. It is one of the oldest kinds of slot feature, and it sits alongside free spins, hold and win respins and bonus wheels in the menu of things a modern online slot can do. Our slot features hub lists the others.
Players search for these games because the round feels interactive. That feeling is real in the sense that you press the buttons, but the money it pays is fixed by the game's mathematical model. Understanding that difference is the most useful thing on this page.
How a pick me bonus really works behind the screen
Developers build pick rounds in one of two ways, and both produce the same outcome for the player in the long run.
Pre-drawn pool. When the round triggers, the random number generator selects the full set of prizes behind the items. Your taps only decide the order in which they are shown. Items you didn't pick may be revealed at the end to show what 'might have been'.
Draw on tap. Each tap triggers a fresh RNG draw from a weighted table. The prize is decided the instant you tap, not by where you tap.
In both designs the expected value of a pick is identical whichever item you choose. The game does not know or care that you always go for the top-left chest. That is why a pick bonus is classed as chance, not skill, and why it sits inside the same published RTP as the rest of the game.
Seeing the unpicked prizes revealed afterwards is presentation. It can make a modest result feel like a near miss, but a near miss tells you nothing about the next round.
A worked pick me example at a £1 stake
The numbers below are invented to show the maths; they don't describe a real game. Imagine a round with 12 face-down tiles and three picks, played at a £1 stake.
The average tile is worth £97 ÷ 12 = about £8.08, so three picks are worth about £24.25 on average. Picking tiles 1, 2 and 3 or tiles 10, 11 and 12 gives exactly the same average, because each tile is equally likely to hide any prize. Half the tiles hold £2, so about nine rounds in ten include at least one of them, and the £50 tile turns up in only one round in four (3 picks out of 12 tiles).
Now suppose, again for illustration only, that the round arrives once every 150 spins on average. At £1 a spin that is £150 staked for a round averaging £24.25, so roughly 16p of every £1 staked is returned through this feature, and the base game and any other features must deliver the rest of a 96% return. This is how the maths model budgets every feature.
Types of pick bonus in online slots
Pick screens come in a handful of standard formats. Each changes how lumpy the payouts feel, not the long-run return.
Common pick me bonus formats
Format
How it works
What it changes
Fixed picks
You get a set number of picks, each revealing a prize
Fairly steady results
Pick until collect
Keep picking until you hit a 'collect' or 'end' item
Wider spread: some rounds end at once, others run long
Match three
Pick until three of the same prize appear, win that prize
Feels tense; the result is still drawn from weights
Feature pick
A pick decides which bonus you play next (spins, multipliers, modifiers)
Changes the shape of the next round
Upgrade pick
Picks add extra spins, multipliers or modifiers before free spins start
Spreads value into the following round
Ladder or trail
Picks move you along a trail toward bigger prizes
Closest to a fruit machine feature board
Pick me bonus slots you may know
These games use a pick round as a main feature or as the gateway to their free spins. RTP figures are the published defaults recorded in our slot facts; operators can run lower versions, so check the help screen.
Barcrest's Rainbow Riches Pick 'n' Mix builds its whole identity around choosing between bonus games, a habit that runs back to the brand's pub-machine roots. You can read more about that heritage under Barcrest.
Pick bonuses, RTP and volatility
A classic pick round pays a prize from a short, bounded list, so it tends to be one of the calmer parts of a slot. That is why older and lower-variance games lean on picks, and why a 'big' pick prize is usually tens of times the stake rather than thousands. Free spins rounds with multipliers, by contrast, carry most of the volatility in modern high-variance titles.
Feature-choice picks are different. When a game lets you choose between, say, more free spins with small multipliers or fewer spins with large ones, each option is normally balanced to the same average value. The choice only moves risk around: the high-multiplier option produces more blank rounds and a few far larger ones. If the help screen gives an RTP for each option, it will show you whether that balance holds for that game.
What a session on a pick bonus slot costs
The pick round is funded by the spins that lead up to it, so the honest way to judge cost is the stake you put through the game. This table uses a 96% RTP, close to most titles above. It shows the long-run average, not what will happen in any one session, which can be far better or far worse.
Average cost per 100 spins at 96% RTP
Stake per spin
Total staked
Average cost (4%)
Typical minimum time (2.5 s per spin)
10p
£10
40p
About 4 minutes
50p
£50
£2
About 4 minutes
£1
£100
£4
About 4 minutes
£2 (cap for 18–24s)
£200
£8
About 4 minutes
£5 (cap for 25+)
£500
£20
About 4 minutes
Our slot cost calculator runs the same sums for any stake and RTP.
Pick me bonus myths, checked
'Corners hide the big prizes.' Position has no effect. Every item is equally likely to hold any prize.
'Picking fast or slow changes the result.' The timing of a tap does not shift the odds in a certified game.
'If I'd picked the other chest I'd have won £50.' The unpicked reveals are display. Under a draw-on-tap design, the other chest held nothing until you chose.
'Pick bonuses are a skill round.' Online pick rounds are chance. See is stopping the reels a skill? for the same point about reel stops.
'A poor pick round means the next will be better.' Rounds are independent; nothing is due.
Pick features on UK fruit machines and pub machines
Long before online slots, British fruit machines used board features where you chose a box, stopped a spinning lamp or moved along a feature trail to a cash pot. These look like picks, but the machine's payout is still controlled by its programme. A pub machine is normally Category C, which the Gambling Commission's gaming machine categories (opens in a new tab) cap at £1 a play and a £100 top prize, and it is 18+ only.
Fruit machine features can include genuine timing elements such as holds and nudges, and using an offered nudge sensibly avoids missing a win the machine has offered. No technique beats the machine's built-in payout percentage, though, and a box-pick on a Category C machine is no exception. Our fruit machine features guide covers the board in detail.
UK rules that shape pick me bonus slots
Online slots supplied to Great Britain follow the Commission's game design rules, in force since 31 October 2021: no autoplay, at least 2.5 seconds per base-game spin, no turbo or slam-stop, and no celebrating a return that is equal to or smaller than the stake. The Gambling Commission's announcement of the game design rules (opens in a new tab) sets these out, and our slot game design rules page explains each one.
That last rule matters for pick rounds. A pick that reveals 40p after a £1 trigger spin should not be dressed up with fanfare as a win. Stake caps apply to the trigger spin: £5 per spin for players aged 25 and over and £2 for 18–24s, under the online slot stake limits. UK versions do not offer a bonus buy that jumps straight to the pick round, which is how games are supplied here rather than a dated rule; see bonus buy in the UK.
How to check a pick bonus in the game's help screen
Open the slot and find the 'i', '?' or menu icon; this opens the game help screen.
Find the section on the bonus or pick feature and note what triggers it and how many picks you get.
Look for the list of possible prizes or multipliers; some games show the range, some don't.
If there is a feature choice, check whether each option lists the same RTP.
Find the RTP line, usually near the end, and confirm the version you're playing.
Try the free demo (free play after age verification) to see the round before staking money.
None of our partner offers is tied to a pick bonus game, and lobbies change, so search each casino for titles such as Blood Suckers II or Action Bank rather than assuming they're there. All three offers below are for new customers aged 18+, and full terms apply.
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Coral and Ladbrokes are both run by LC International Limited (Entain), so read the terms before joining both. Set a deposit limit before you start, and if you want a break from every site at once, GAMSTOP (opens in a new tab) is the free national self-exclusion scheme.
Coral and Ladbrokes are both run by LC International Limited (Entain). If you already hold an account with one Entain brand, you may not be able to open a new account with another; check the terms before signing up.
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Frequently asked questions
What is a pick me bonus on a slot?
A pick me bonus is a feature round where the reels are replaced by hidden items, such as chests or cards, and you choose which to open. Each pick reveals a prize, a multiplier, extra picks or the next feature. It usually starts when three or more bonus symbols land in the base game. The amount the round pays on average is fixed by the game's maths, so the round is entertainment rather than a test of skill. Our slot features hub compares it with other bonus types such as free spins.
Does it matter which box I pick in a slot bonus?
No, the box you choose makes no difference to what the round is worth in the long run. Either the prizes were drawn by the RNG when the round started and your taps only reveal them, or each tap triggers a fresh random draw. In both cases every item has the same chance of holding any prize. The unpicked prizes shown afterwards are presentation. Our page on how slot machines decide who wins explains the RNG side in more detail.
Are pick me bonus slots more likely to pay out?
No, a pick round does not make a slot more generous. The game's published RTP covers the base game and every feature together, so a pick bonus is simply one place where part of that return is paid. Pick rounds often pay smaller, steadier prizes than free spins with multipliers, which can make a game feel friendlier on a small budget. To compare games properly, check the RTP and volatility. See what is a good RTP for a slot and our volatility explainer.
Which slots have a pick and click bonus?
Several well-known UK slots use a pick element. Blood Suckers II has the Hidden Treasure pick bonus, Action Bank has the Big Bank pick bonus, Rotten opens with a jar pick before its free spins, and Blood Suckers Megaways uses a coffin pick to add modifiers. Big Bass Secrets of the Golden Lake lets you pick a card to choose between two free spins rounds. Game availability varies by casino, so search the lobby. Our Blood Suckers II page and Action Bank page cover two of them in depth.
Is choosing more free spins or a bigger multiplier better?
Usually neither is better on average, because developers normally balance each option to a similar long-run value. More spins with smaller multipliers gives a steadier result; fewer spins with larger multipliers gives more poor rounds and a few much bigger ones. If the help screen lists an RTP per option, that tells you whether the balance holds. Pick the shape that suits your budget, not the one that feels lucky. 5 Lions Megaways is one example of this choice; see the 5 Lions Megaways page and our guide to slot volatility and budgets.
Can I play a pick me bonus slot for free?
Yes, many casinos and developers offer free demo play, but in Great Britain you can only play demos after age verification, a rule in place since May 2019. Demo mode uses the same maths as the real game, so it shows you how the pick round looks without risking money. It does not reveal when a bonus will trigger in real play, because every spin is independent. Our demo slots guide and the demo slot age verification page explain how it works.
Do fruit machines have pick bonuses?
Many UK fruit machines have features that look like picks, such as choosing a box on the feature board or stopping a moving light on a prize. On a pub machine, usually Category C with a £1 maximum stake and £100 top prize, the machine's programme still controls the payout percentage. Some features, such as nudges and holds, involve real timing, but none lets you beat the built-in return. Our fruit machine features guide and feature trail page explain the board.
Why does the slot show me the prizes I didn't pick?
Revealing the unpicked items is a design choice that adds drama. It can make you feel you narrowly missed a top prize, but that is a presentation effect, not information. If the game draws each prize at the moment you tap, the other items had no fixed value until the reveal. Either way, the next round is unaffected. The same idea lies behind reel near misses, which we cover in slot machine near misses and do slot machines remember past spins?
Can I buy a pick me bonus round in the UK?
No, slots offered at UK-licensed casinos don't include a feature buy, so you can only reach a pick round by triggering it in normal play. This is how games are supplied to Great Britain rather than a rule with a fixed start date. Versions sold elsewhere may have a buy button that UK players won't see. Our page on bonus buy in the UK explains the background, and what triggers a bonus round covers how features start.
How much do pick me bonus rounds usually pay?
There is no standard figure, because each game sets its own prize list. Classic pick rounds tend to pay modest multiples of the stake because prizes come from a short, bounded list, while picks that feed into free spins can lead to larger outcomes. Never rely on a quoted average from a forum; the game's help screen is the only reliable source for its prize range. Our paytable guide shows how to read it, and max win caps explains the upper limit.
Gambling can be addictive. Free, confidential help is available 24 hours a day from the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133. Visit GamCare.org.uk and GamCare, or block yourself from all UK-licensed gambling sites with GAMSTOP.
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