TITO slot machines pay you with a printed, barcoded ticket instead of coins, and accept that ticket back as credit on any linked machine in the venue. Here is how ticket-in, ticket-out works step by step, where it came from, the UK rules that still apply to ticket play, and how it differs from arcade prize tickets.
A TITO machine prints a barcoded ticket for your credit; a central system records its value until it is cashed or played.
Tickets can be exchanged at a cash desk or kiosk, or inserted into another linked machine in the same venue.
UK payment and committed-play limits apply to tickets just as they do to cash.
Debit and credit cards still cannot be used directly on UK gaming machines.
Arcade 'ticket-out' redemption machines that give prize tickets are a different thing altogether.
Stands for
Ticket-in, ticket-out
Replaces
The coin hopper for payouts
Key parts
Ticket printer, barcode reader, central system
Nevada approval
IGT EZ Pay, announced 29 September 2000
UK arcade rollout
First major one reported February 2015
UK limits
Same deposit and committed-play limits as cash
What TITO slot machines are
On a traditional slot machine, pressing collect sends coins clattering from a hopper into the tray. On a TITO machine, pressing collect prints a small paper ticket instead. The ticket carries a barcode, the amount, the date and usually the machine or venue details. Until it is cashed, it is effectively a receipt for money held on the venue's system.
The 'ticket-in' half means the same ticket can be inserted into another TITO machine on the same system, where its value appears as credit. So you can move from one machine to another without ever handling cash, and cash out once at the end. TITO is now standard in many casinos worldwide, and trade press reports it spreading into British arcades and adult gaming centres (AGCs). Wikipedia's ticket-in, ticket-out article (opens in a new tab) gives an overview of the technology.
TITO is a payment method, not a different type of game. The reels, the random number generator and the payout percentage work exactly as on any other machine. For the wider picture of how gaming machines take and pay money, see our how slot machines work hub and our page on how slot machines take payment.
How TITO slot machines work, step by step
You insert cash, usually a banknote, through the note acceptor, or a TITO ticket from another machine. The machine's reader checks the note or scans the ticket's barcode.
For a ticket, the machine asks the venue's central system whether that barcode is valid and unpaid. If it is, the system marks it as used and the machine adds the value to your credit meter.
You play as normal. Stakes come out of your credit and wins are added back, within the machine's category limits.
When you press collect, the machine tells the central system the amount, the system records a new ticket number, and the built-in thermal printer prints the ticket.
You take the ticket to a cash desk or redemption kiosk, which scans it, checks it with the system and pays out cash. Or you insert it in another linked machine and keep playing.
The central system is what makes the ticket trustworthy. A photocopied ticket would show the same barcode, but the system will only honour it once. The same records also give the venue an audit trail of every ticket printed and paid, which is one reason operators like it. Wikipedia lists the main benefits for venues as almost no hopper refills, fewer waits for attendant hand pays, multi-denomination machines and simpler cash accounting.
Inside a TITO machine: printer, reader and system
The main TITO components
Component
What it does
What it replaced
Thermal ticket printer
Prints the barcoded payout ticket when you press collect
The coin hopper and payout tray for most payouts
Barcode reader in the note acceptor
Reads tickets inserted into the machine
Separate coin and token slots
Network interface
Links each machine to the central ticket system
Stand-alone machines with their own coin store
Central ticket system
Records each ticket's value and whether it has been paid
Manual counting and attendant pay slips
Cash desk or redemption kiosk
Scans tickets and pays cash
Change booths and coin-counting machines
Some machines run a mixed setup, paying small amounts in coins and printing a ticket only above a set level, where a hand pay by staff would otherwise be needed. The note acceptor that reads tickets is usually the same unit that validates banknotes, which is explained on our page about bill validators and hoppers. The money on screen is shown on the credits meter, and the collect button is what triggers the printout.
Where TITO slot machines came from
TITO grew out of casino operators' wish to stop handling tonnes of coins. Wikipedia records that MGM, while building a major Las Vegas resort, formed a 'Cashless Casino' consortium with manufacturers including Bally Gaming, IGT, Sigma Games and Universal, with the first trial at the Desert Inn. On 29 September 2000, IGT announced that its EZ Pay ticket system had completed a field trial at the Fiesta casino in Las Vegas and gained approval from the Nevada Gaming Control Board for use across the state.
In Britain, TITO came first to casinos and later to the high street. A February 2015 press release from note-acceptor and printer maker JCM described the supply of its Ticket2Go retrofit system to Luxury Leisure's adult gaming centres, part of Novomatic UK, as the first major TITO rollout in the UK arcade market, following new UK TITO protocol standards. Trade press has since described TITO as moving from a casino-only feature towards the norm in arcades and AGCs.
TITO timeline
Date
Event
Source
Undated (before 2000)
MGM 'Cashless Casino' consortium; first trial at the Desert Inn
Wikipedia
29 September 2000
IGT EZ Pay completes Las Vegas field trial; Nevada approval statewide
Wikipedia
18 February 2015
JCM announces Ticket2Go rollout to Luxury Leisure AGCs, described as first major UK arcade TITO rollout
JCM press release
17 May 2021
Gambling Commission first publishes cashless payment guidance, which names TITO
A ticket does not get round any of the rules on how money goes into a British gaming machine. The Gambling Commission's cashless payment technologies guidance (opens in a new tab) names TITO among the ways funds can reach a machine and says a customer must only be able to deposit and commit funds within the legal limits, whatever the payment method.
Those limits come from the Gaming Machine (Circumstances of Use) Regulations 2007. The figures below are from the current text of regulations 7 and 9 on legislation.gov.uk; each applies to a single action, so a series of separate actions can add up to more.
Single-action payment limits on UK gaming machines
Limit
Categories
Amount
Money paid in by one action
A, B and C
£20 (some older machines have different rules)
Money paid in by one action
D
£2
Committed to play by one action
A, B1, B2, B3, B3A
£10
Committed to play by one action
B4 and C
£5
No cards at the machine. The same regulations bar machines designed to take debit or credit card payments. The government decided in May 2024 to lift the debit card ban once new protections are in place, but that change was not in force at 21 October 2026. See cashless payments on machines.
A break before new money. The Commission expects players to stop and physically leave the machine before reaching new funds wherever possible; ticket redemption and re-insertion fit that pattern.
Collecting larger wins. Under regulation 14, money prizes over £50 on Category A to B3A machines, over £10 on B4 and C, and any money prize on Category D cannot be added straight back to the credit you can play with until you have had the chance to collect.
TITO tickets versus arcade prize tickets
The word 'ticket' causes real confusion around British arcades. TITO tickets represent money and come from adult gaming machines in casinos, AGCs, bingo halls and some other venues where Category B and C play is 18+. Arcade redemption tickets are something else: strips of tickets from some Category D machines, swapped for goods at a prize counter.
The government's 2024 response on land-based gambling drew the same line. It treated 'ticket-out' Category D machines, with a 30p stake and prizes up to £8, separately from 'cash-out' Category D slot-style machines. The industry has had a voluntary 18+ policy on cash-out Category D slot-style machines since 2021, and the government has announced it will make it an offence to let under-18s use them, but that offence was not in force at 21 October 2026. Our pages on what slot machine tickets are and Category D age rules cover this in detail.
TITO compared with coins and online balances
Three ways a slot holds your money
Point
Coin hopper machine
TITO machine
Online slot
How you cash out
Coins drop into the tray
Ticket printed, cashed at desk or kiosk
Withdrawal to your payment method
Move to another game
Carry coins
Insert ticket in another linked machine
Balance follows you
Shows your position
Credit meter only
Credit meter only (net position display due on new B machines from 30 June 2027)
Balance and net position on screen since 31 October 2021
Card payments
Not allowed
Not allowed
Debit cards allowed; credit cards banned since 14 April 2020
The online column reflects the separate rules for online slot machines, where the Commission's design rules have required the balance and net position to be visible since 2021. Our comparison of online vs land-based slot machines goes further.
Pros and cons of TITO for players
Advantages
No waiting for coin refills or attendant hand pays on most wins.
Easy to move between machines without carrying coins.
Each ticket is recorded, so a dispute about a payout has a paper and system trail.
Machines can offer several stake levels without separate coin types.
Drawbacks
A ticket can feel less like real money, making it easier to spend more than planned.
Paper tickets are easier to lose than coins, and a lost ticket may be hard to recover.
Re-inserting a ticket into the next machine is quicker than walking to the cash desk.
Redemption may depend on desk opening hours or a working kiosk.
Wikipedia's article notes the same concern: some players may stop thinking of tickets as cash. Planning a spend in pounds before you start, and cashing out rather than re-inserting, keeps that link clear.
Lost, damaged or expired TITO tickets
Because the central system holds the record, the ticket itself is mainly a key to that record. What a venue will do if a ticket is lost, smudged or old is set by its own house rules, which vary. Many tickets print a validity period or terms on the back. If a ticket will not scan or you think a value is wrong, the practical steps are:
Keep the ticket, even if damaged, and note the machine number and time.
Ask a member of staff at the cash desk to look it up on the system.
If you are not satisfied, use the venue's complaints process and ask for the outcome in writing.
If it is still unresolved, ask which alternative dispute resolution (ADR) provider the operator uses.
TITO removes the natural pause of collecting coins, so it helps to build in your own. Decide a budget in pounds before you go, cash your ticket out when it is spent rather than feeding it into another machine, and avoid using cash machines on the premises to top up. Category B and C machines are for adults only, and venues run self-exclusion schemes if you want to stop.
Online slots have no tickets: your balance sits in your casino account and moves between games automatically, with the balance and net position always shown. The casinos in the offers below are licensed by the Gambling Commission and offer deposit limits, time-outs and reality checks you can set before you play. Game availability varies, so search each lobby.
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Frequently asked questions
What does TITO mean on a slot machine?
TITO stands for ticket-in, ticket-out. Instead of paying winnings in coins, the machine prints a barcoded ticket showing your credit, and it accepts those tickets back as credit. The ticket's value is held on the venue's central system until it is cashed at a desk or kiosk, or inserted into another linked machine. The games themselves are unchanged. Our what are slot machine tickets? page explains the different kinds of ticket you may see.
Where can I cash a TITO ticket?
You can usually cash a TITO ticket at the venue's cash desk or at a redemption kiosk on the gaming floor, which scans the barcode and pays out cash. You can also insert it into another TITO machine on the same system to keep playing. Tickets are tied to the system that printed them, so they only work in that establishment. Check the back of the ticket or ask staff about any time limit. Our guide to playing slots in a UK casino covers cashing out.
Are TITO slot machines used in the UK?
Yes. TITO is used on many British casino machines, and a 2015 press release from JCM described the first major rollout in UK adult gaming centres, at Luxury Leisure venues. Trade press reports that TITO has since become increasingly common in arcades and AGCs. The Gambling Commission's cashless guidance names TITO among the payment methods machines must handle within the legal limits. Our adult gaming centres page explains what those venues can offer.
Can I use a debit card on a UK slot machine instead?
No, not directly. The Gaming Machine (Circumstances of Use) Regulations 2007 bar machines designed to take debit or credit card payments, and contactless phone payments count as card payments. The government announced in May 2024 that it would lift the debit card ban once new protections are in place, but that was not in force at 21 October 2026. Our do slot machines take cards? page explains the current position.
Is there a limit on how much I can put in a TITO machine?
Yes, the same limits apply as for cash. Under the 2007 regulations, a single action can pay in up to £20 on most Category A, B and C machines and £2 on Category D, and a single action can commit up to £10 to play on Category B1 to B3A machines or £5 on B4 and C. Separate actions can add up to more. The Commission's guidance says these limits apply whatever the payment method. See cashless payments on machines.
What happens if I lose a TITO ticket?
It depends on the venue's house rules. The ticket's value is recorded on the central system, so staff may be able to trace it if you can give the machine number and time, but the paper ticket is normally what proves you own the credit, and anyone holding it could cash it. Treat tickets like cash. If you cannot resolve a problem with the venue, our slot complaints and ADR page explains how to escalate it.
Is a TITO ticket the same as an arcade prize ticket?
No. A TITO ticket represents money from an adult gaming machine and is cashed or replayed. Arcade redemption tickets come from some Category D machines and are swapped for goods at a prize counter. The government's 2024 land-based response treats 'ticket-out' Category D machines, with a 30p stake and prizes up to £8, separately from cash-paying ones. Our are arcade 2p machines gambling? page covers the arcade side.
Do TITO machines pay out less than coin machines?
No. TITO only changes how credit goes in and out; it does not change the game, its random number generator or its target payout percentage, which UK machines in Categories B1 to B4 and C must display. A TITO machine and a coin machine running the same game have the same return. Our page on slot machine payout percentages in the UK explains how those figures work.
Why do venues prefer TITO slot machines?
Mainly cost and control. Wikipedia lists the main benefits as almost eliminating hopper refills, cutting waits for staff to hand-pay large wins, allowing machines with several stake levels, simplifying cash accounting and enabling ticket-based promotions. Each ticket is recorded centrally, which gives an audit trail. For players the convenience is real, but tickets can also make spending feel less like cash, so set a budget first. See slot machine safety tools.
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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