The token meaning in slots is a coin-like disc, or a unit of credit, that stands in for real money: you either play with it or win it as a prize. In Britain, tokens were once a legal prize type on pub fruit machines; today printed tickets and on-screen credits have mostly replaced them.
A token is a stand-in for cash, used to play a machine or paid as a prize.
UK fruit machines used to offer token prizes worth more than the cash prize.
Tickets, credits and cashless systems have largely replaced metal tokens.
A token has whatever value the venue gives it: check what it can be swapped for.
Means
A substitute for cash on a machine
Two uses
Playing currency or prize
UK history
Token prizes on 1968 Act fruit machines
Today
Mostly replaced by tickets and credits
Online
Not a standard slot term
What a token means on a slot machine
A token is anything a machine accepts or pays in place of legal tender. In a casino or arcade that usually means a metal disc bought at a counter and fed into the coin slot. On older British fruit machines it also meant a prize paid in tokens that could only be spent on the premises, rather than in coins you could take home.
The word sits close to other terms in our glossary. A credit is the unit your balance is counted in once money is inside the machine, and a denomination is the value of one credit. Think of the token as the physical version of that idea: a piece of metal or plastic with a value set by the venue, not by the Royal Mint.
How token slot machines work
Token play works much like coin play. The difference is that the coin mechanism is set to recognise the venue’s own discs, and the hopper pays prizes back in the same discs.
Swap cash for tokens at a change desk or token machine.
Feed tokens into the machine, which adds credits to its meter.
Swap leftover tokens back for cash, or for goods where the venue only pays prizes in kind.
The token does not change the odds or the return. It changes only what you hold in your hand at the end.
Token prizes on UK fruit machines
Britain had a specific legal use for tokens. Under the Gaming Act 1968, pub and arcade fruit machines (amusement-with-prizes or AWP machines) had separate limits for cash and token prizes. By the time of a 2001 review, an AWP took a 30p stake and could pay £5 in cash or £8 in tokens, so a token prize was the bigger of the two.
Modern rules talk about money prizes and non-money prizes rather than tokens. The clearest example is Category D, the lowest category. According to the Gambling Commission’s gaming machine categories guide (opens in a new tab), a non-money prize machine (other than a crane grab) has a 30p maximum stake and an £8 maximum prize, while a money-prize machine is capped at 10p and £5.
In casinos and larger venues the token’s job has passed to ticket in, ticket out. The machine prints a barcoded ticket instead of paying coins, and you cash it at a kiosk or put it into another machine. A ticket is really a paper token with a value printed on it.
Tickets and tokens are still money for the purpose of your budget. Count them as cash spent, not as play money.
Worked example: what a token is really worth
Say a venue sells tokens at 10 for £1 and you play a machine that takes one token a game. 200 games therefore use 200 tokens, which is £20. If the machine’s label shows a return of 85% (an illustrative figure), the long-run average is that you get back 170 tokens’ worth, an average cost of £3 for those 200 games. Any single session can land well above or below that.
The catch is the exit. If tokens can be swapped back for cash at face value, they behave exactly like coins. If they can only be swapped for goods, the real value depends on the price of those goods. Check before you buy, and use our slot cost calculator to work out a budget in pounds.
Do online slots use tokens?
Not in any standard way. UK online slots work in pounds and pence, and the game help screen shows stakes and prizes in money. Some games show a coin value or bet level, but those are just ways of splitting the stake, and since 9 April 2025 the total is capped at £5 per spin for adults aged 25 and over (£2 for 18–24s from 21 May 2025).
You may also see “tokens” on social casino apps, where they are bought with real money but can’t be cashed out, and in crypto gambling, which falls outside this page. Neither is the same as a licensed UK slot, and a demo game at a UK casino is only open after age verification.
Slots in pounds, not tokens: our partner offers
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Both are run by LC International Limited, so you may not be able to take both welcome offers. Terms apply. Read how to play online slots first, and keep to a limit you set in advance.
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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Read the Coral reviewLicence: LC International Limited, UKGC account 54743. Offer checked 5 October 2026.
Significant terms: 18+. New customers only, from 14/11/25 until further notice. Certain deposit methods excluded. Deposit and spend £10+ on slots for 50 free spins a day during the first 10 days after first deposit and registration (max 500, £0.10 each, selected games, claim before 23:59 each day, valid 7 days). No wagering. Prepaid cards, PayPal, Paysafe, Neteller, Skrill and Moneybookers deposits do not qualify. Restrictions and T&Cs apply. GamCare.org.uk
Read the Ladbrokes reviewLicence: LC International Limited, UKGC account 54743. Offer checked 5 October 2026.
18+. Gambling should be entertainment that costs money, not a way to make it. Decide a budget before you play: plan a slot budget. Free, confidential help: National Gambling Helpline 0808 8020 133.
Frequently asked questions
What is a token on a slot machine?
Tokens are coin-like discs or other stand-ins for cash that a machine accepts to play or pays out as a prize. Venues sell them at a counter and set their value, so they work like coins inside the premises. Results are still decided by the game’s random number generator, so tokens don’t change your odds. For related terms such as credit and denomination, see the slot glossary.
What was a token prize on a fruit machine?
A token prize was a win paid in tokens that could only be spent in the venue, allowed on British fruit machines under the Gaming Act 1968. The token limit was higher than the cash limit: at the 2001 review an AWP machine could pay £5 in cash or £8 in tokens on a 30p stake. The Gambling Act 2005 replaced this with today’s categories. Our fruit machine history has the background.
Can I swap slot tokens back for cash?
Usually yes in venues that sell tokens for play, but it depends on the house rules. Where tokens are bought with cash, most venues will exchange unused ones at the counter at face value. Where tokens are prizes on a non-money machine, they may only be swapped for goods. Ask before you buy, and treat tokens as money already spent in your session budget.
Are tokens the same as credits?
They’re related but not the same. A token is a physical object you hold, while a credit is the unit the machine counts your balance in after money goes in. A machine might turn one token into one credit, or into several, depending on its settings. On UK online slots there are no tokens, only credits and stakes shown in pounds, which our guide to slot machine credits explains.
Do UK casinos still use tokens?
Most UK casino slot floors have moved to tickets and cashless systems rather than metal tokens. A machine using ticket in, ticket out prints a barcoded ticket instead of paying coins, which you can cash at a kiosk or use on another machine. Some arcades still use their own tokens or cards. Whatever the format, the stake and prize limits for each machine category still apply.
Do tokens make slot machines cheaper to play?
No. Tokens are just cash in another form, so the cost of play depends on the stake per game and the machine’s return, not on what you feed in. If 200 games at 10p each cost £20 and the machine returns an illustrative 85%, the average cost is £3, whether you paid in coins or tokens. Use the slot cost calculator and our bankroll guide to plan.
Are under-18s allowed to play token machines?
It depends on the machine’s category, not on whether it takes tokens. Category B and C machines are for adults aged 18 and over. Category D machines have no legal minimum age at present, although the industry has run a voluntary 18+ policy on cash-paying slot-style D machines since 2021. Our page on Category D age rules sets out what is in force and what has only been announced.
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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