Progressive Jackpot: Hit it BIG in South Africa!
Playing online casino games is fun, and winning is the best part. But hitting a jackpot? That’s what we are all dreaming of. Many slots and other games have jackpots we can play for, but the pooled progressive jackpot is the one that can truly change your life. Here are the games that have them and you can play them at South African casinos.
South African Casinos with Progressive Jackpot
What Are Progressive Jackpot?
A jackpot is a special prize you can win at slot machines or other games. To hit the jackpot, you need a special combination of symbols on the reels, or to trigger a side game. Hitting a jackpot is not very common but the prize is usually worth the wait. Many casino games have jackpots. Their value usually depends on your bet - like, they can be 100 or 1000 times your total bet. But there is a class of jackpots that are special.
Progressive jackpots are called that because they progress - they grow. Every spin on a slot machine and every round played on a table game contributes a small amount to the total. These jackpots have values that are independent of your total bet. The most fabulous prizes are those offered by pooled progressive jackpots where multiple games in a single casino or all games in the network of an online casino game provider’s network contribute to the total.
The Most Famous Progressive Jackpots
Games Global's Mega Moolah and WowPot are perhaps the most famous progressive jackpots in online casinos. The reason: they made record-breaking payouts in the past. Mega Moolah’s Mega jackpot paid a record 19.5 million euros (around R380 million) to a lucky Belgian player in April 2021. WowPot made even bigger waves in December 2023, when it made Christmas unforgettable for a lucky player by paying a fortune - over 42 million euros, or R819 million.
Among the top jackpots available around the world, there are quite a few that made millionaires in the past:
- Jackpot Giant by Playtech
- Joker Millions by Yggdrasil Gaming
- Mega Fortune by NetEnt
- Jackpot King by Blueprint Gaming
- Dream Drop by Relax Gaming
How to Win a Progressive Jackpot?
There’s no one-size-fits-all recipe to win a progressive jackpot. It all depends on the game that you are playing. Some games require you to play at maximum bet to even get a chance to trigger the jackpot. Others will pay it out at completely random.
In most cases, you’ll need to trigger a side game to get a chance at winning a jackpot. It can be the game’s Free Spins feature or a different bonus game. Many games require you to collect symbols before you can trigger the jackpot game.
Common Progressive Jackpot Minigames
There are a few minigames that slots typically use for jackpots:
- Wheels of Fortune: You’ll need to spin a wheel that will stop at various prizes, and give you a chance to win the jackpot
- Guessing games: You’ll need to select matching symbols hidden under coins or cards. If you find three, for example, you win the respective jackpot.
- Scatter symbols: In some games, like RTG’s “Megasaur”, you need to collect scatter symbols within the game’s Free Spins bonus game to hit a jackpot
- Alternative wheels: In other games, the bonus game uses alternative reels that contain money symbols and jackpot symbols
What to Do When You Hit A Jackpot?
If you hit a progressive jackpot or win a prize in one of the network promotions, the first thing you should do is take a screenshot of your win. Next, you should contact the casino’s customer service to find out what to do next. The procedures can differ from one casino to another - it’s the customer support that can tell you exactly what to do in this case.
Which Progressive Jackpot Is Available in South Africa?
Even if a casino has games from a major jackpot provider in its library, the jackpots themselves may not be available at said casino. Although several of South Africa’s top casinos list games from NetEnt, Playtech or even Yggdrasil, their progressive jackpots are not always there. So, let’s take a look at which progressive jackpot slots you can play in South Africa that could one day turn you into an instant millionaire:
Realtime Gaming (SpinLogic) Jackpots
While SpinLogic (also known as Realtime Gaming) is not among the top casino game providers in the world, it does have quite a few generous progressive jackpot games - slots and others, too. Two RTG slots have truly exceptional progressive jackpots to go for:
Aztec’s Millions
Aztec’s Millions is a 5x3, 25 payline video slot machine by Realtime Gaming / SpinLogic with a theme inspired by (you guessed it) the Aztec civilization.
You can win the jackpot by having five "Aztec’s Millions" symbols on a win line.
The Aztec’s Millions Jackpot stands at R19.5 million at the time of writing.
Megasaur
Megasaur is Realtime Gaming’s popular dinosaur-themed video slot machine.
It is another 5x3 slot with 25 win lines. To win its jackpot, you need to trigger the game’s Free Spins, and then retrigger it from the inside.
Five Scatters will pay out the Megasaur Mega Jackpot which currently stands at R14.6 million.
Aside from the two big ones, Realtime Gaming has several more progressive slots:
- Jackpot Cleopatra’s Gold Deluxe
- Jackpot Cleopatra’s Gold
- Spirit of the Inca
- Jackpot Pinatas Deluxe
- Shopping Spree II
These all have jackpots of around R2 million at the time of writing. And if you don’t feel like trying your luck at a slot machine, here are some RTG table games with progressive jackpots:
- Caribbean Draw Poker
- Caribbean Stud Poker
- Caribbean Hold’em Poker
You can play Realtime Gaming’s progressive jackpot slots at these South African casinos:
Genii Progressive Jackpots
Genii may not be the first you think of when looking for jackpots. Think again: there are quite a few jackpot games you can play at ZAR Casino that you won’t find anywhere else. The jackpots may not be huge - but even a few hundred thousand rands can make a difference.
Look for these jackpot games at Genii casinos:
Mucho Mariachi Multipot
Mucho Mariachi Multipot is a delightful Mexican-themed video slot machine with a maximum win of 5,550 coins and four jackpots. To win them, all you need to do is trigger the game’s bonus feature.
The Mucho Mariachi Mega Jackpot is the biggest of the four, currently standing at R685,000
Other Genii jackpots:
- Legends of Avalon
- Dragon Rockets
- Big Game Multipot
- Dream Wheel
- Prince of Fortune
You can go for Genii’s jackpots at these South African casinos:
- Unique game library
- Live Dealer Games
- Generous welcome bonus
- EFT support
- Crypto deposits and withdrawals
- Frequent promotions
- Small number of games
- Many games don't work with bonus funds
- Some unclear bonus terms
- Self-exclusion only possible via support
- No ownership or license information available
Habanero Jackpots
Habanero is the best if you are looking for games that are both fun to play and can also put money in your pockets. And many of their games also come with jackpots. Most of them are linked to the bets you place - not really progressive but still nice to win.
Habanero’s jackpot games are available at several top South African casinos:
- Large collection of “Spina Zonke” (slot machines)
- Good variety of live casino games
- Attractive casino tournaments and sweepstakes
- No-deposit free spins
- Licensed in all major jurisdictions
- Exclusive slots, card games, and crash games, including Shova 52
- No deposit matches listed
- Focus on betting bonuses
- No major progressive jackpot slots
- Some responsible gaming tools are missing
- No useful game categories
- Top-rated slot machine providers
- Useful game categories
- Amazing live dealer games from top providers
- Live games for every budget
- Pragmatic Play network promotions
- Cashbacks for Lucky Numbers
- A limited number of slot machines
- A low number of promotions
- High wagering requirements for casino players
- Welcome bonus favours sports betting
Network Promotions
Network promotions or network jackpots are progressive jackpots available across a large number of casino games from the same provider. To win these jackpots, all you need to do is play the participating games when the promotion is active.
Drops and Wins
Drops and Wins is a network promotion run by Pragmatic Play. It is a promotion that consists of two parts: a tournament and a jackpot, with a total prize pool worth over R500 million!
You can play Drops and Wins games at these South African casinos:
Drops and Wins Tournaments
The Drops and Wins tournaments take place each week. You need to play a participating game at the minimum bet that’s specified when you opt-in. Your goal is to accumulate the highest wins proportional to your bet - not the highest win value. For example, an R50 win on an R0.5 bet is 100x your bet, which is worth more than an R500 win on a R50 bet (10x). Each week, the winners of the tournament are selected and the prize pool of the tournament is distributed among them.
Drops and Wins Prize Drops
This is the part of the promotion which qualifies as a jackpot. When you play any of the participating games, you qualify for random prize drops. These can happen at any time and put money in your pocket. The prizes are in cash, so you can withdraw them immediately.
Jackpot Race
The Jackpot Race is Habanero’s network promotion. It is a progressive jackpot that’s not only built using the contribution of a large number of players playing a variety of games but one that’s distributed among a large pool of winners. You can play Habanero’s participating games at these South African casinos:
- Large collection of “Spina Zonke” (slot machines)
- Good variety of live casino games
- Attractive casino tournaments and sweepstakes
- No-deposit free spins
- Licensed in all major jurisdictions
- Exclusive slots, card games, and crash games, including Shova 52
- No deposit matches listed
- Focus on betting bonuses
- No major progressive jackpot slots
- Some responsible gaming tools are missing
- No useful game categories
- Top-rated slot machine providers
- Useful game categories
- Amazing live dealer games from top providers
- Live games for every budget
- Pragmatic Play network promotions
- Cashbacks for Lucky Numbers
- A limited number of slot machines
- A low number of promotions
- High wagering requirements for casino players
- Welcome bonus favours sports betting
The Jackpot Race has three phases:
- The “Accumulation phase” where the contributions of the slot games are pooled
- The “Race Phase” in which the jackpot is actually paid out. The winners are the players who play real money spin the closest to the time when the jackpot is triggered. This phase has a duration that changes from one casino to another.
- Finally, the jackpots are paid out in cash to the winners.
Progressive Jackpot FAQ
What is a progressive jackpot?
A progressive jackpot is a prize that increases every time a game is played but the jackpot is not won. These jackpots can reach substantial amounts, often millions of rands.
How do progressive jackpots work?
Each time you play a game with a progressive jackpot, a small percentage of your bet is added to the jackpot pool. This continues until someone wins the jackpot, after which it resets to a predetermined base amount.
Can I play progressive jackpot games at any online casino in South Africa?
No, not all online casinos offer progressive jackpot games. It's essential to choose a reputable casino that has these games available. Popular South African casinos offering progressive jackpots include Punt Casino, Springbok Casino, and ZAR Casino.
Are progressive jackpot games fair?
Yes, progressive jackpot games are fair. They are powered by random number generators (RNGs) that ensure each spin is independent and random. Reputable casinos and game providers are regularly audited to maintain fairness.
Do I need to bet the maximum to win a progressive jackpot?
This depends on the game. Some progressive jackpots require a maximum bet to qualify for the jackpot, while others do not. Always check the game rules to understand the requirements.
Can I win a progressive jackpot on a mobile device?
Absolutely! Most online casinos offer mobile-friendly versions of their games, and progressive jackpots can be won on smartphones and tablets just like on desktop computers.
Are winnings from progressive jackpots taxed in South Africa?
Yes, gambling winnings, including those from progressive jackpots, are subject to tax in South Africa. It's advisable to consult a tax professional to understand the implications.
What should I do if I win a progressive jackpot?
First, take a screenshot of your win and ensure your account details are up to date for withdrawal. Contact the casino's customer support to initiate the withdrawal process. It's also wise to seek financial advice on managing your newfound wealth.