Slot Machine Symbols Explained: From Cherries to Coin Symbols

Slot machine symbols are the images on the reels. Normal symbols pay when they line up on a payline or way, from low-paying card ranks to high-paying theme icons. Special slot symbols (wilds, scatters, and coins) trigger extra features.

 

This guide looks at common slot machine icons, what each one pays, and how to figure out what they pay from the paytable. BitSpinWin is a social online casino that takes crypto and gives you access to platforms such as Orion Stars, Game Room, and Fire Kirin.

What Are Slot Machine Symbols?

Symbols on a slot machine fall into two categories. There are regular symbols which pay when you get enough of them in a row. There are also special symbols which do something, whether that be substituting for other symbols or triggering a bonus round. The paytable determines the value of every symbol. Two games can have the same icon, and it can pay very different amounts.

Classic Slot Machine Icons

Classic slot machine symbols date back to the very first reel machines. Charles Fey's Liberty Bell used bells, horseshoes, and the card suits (diamonds, hearts, and spades). Later machines added fruit symbols for various gums and the stick of Bell-Fruit Gum, which became the BAR symbol.

 

These are the common slot machine symbols you'll still see today:

 

• Cherries, lemons, and other fruit: the gum flavors from the early fruit machines.
• Bars: single, double, and triple bars each with their own value.
• Lucky 7s: usually in a number of colors, each paying a different amount.
• Bells: a reference to the Liberty Bell.
• Diamonds: a card suit on Fey's machine, now normally drawn as a diamond (i.e., a gem).

 

On Fire Kirin, Lucky 777 uses only sevens and bars (all in red, silver, or blue). Its wild stands in for any 7, and bars have to line up on their own. Wins are counted in 9 ways (left to right on adjacent reels).

 

Combination in Lucky 777	Pays
Red 7, silver 7, and blue 7, in that order	x135
Three wilds	x20
Three silver 7s	x7.5
Three blue 7s	x5
Three triple bars	x2.5
Any mix of 7s	x2
Three double bars	x2
Three single bars	x1.5
A 7 with bars of the same color	x1
Any mix of bars	x0.5

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The exact same three 7s pay x135 in one order and x2 in any other. That's the gap that makes the paytable so important as opposed to the symbols themselves.

Classic Titles on BitSpinWin Platforms

BitSpinWin doesn't make these games, and lobbies change over time. These classic titles are listed on BitSpinWin platforms:

 

• Game Room: Classic 777 and Triple Sevens sit among the Game Room classic sevens.
• Orion Stars: Classic 777 on Orion Stars keeps the three-reel sevens layout.
• Lucky Stars: Classic 777 and Triple Sevens are both on Lucky Stars.
• Viva: Viva carries Classic 777 and Triple Sevens too.
• Mafia: Triple Sevens runs on Mafia.
• Fire Kirin: Lucky 777 is one of the Fire Kirin 777 slots.
• Cash Machine: Lucky 777 is also on Cash Machine.
• Lucky Fish: Lucky Fish has Lucky 777 and Sizzling Hot Deluxe.
• Riversweepsfun: Sizzling Hot Deluxe runs on Riversweepsfun.

Low-Pay vs High-Pay Symbols

Card ranks from 10 to A are the low-pay symbols in most video slots. The theme icons and the classic symbols are the higher-paying ones. Buffalo 777 on Fire Kirin is a good example of just how wide the gap can be.

 

Symbol (three in a line)	Pays	At a 0.10 bet
Money bags	250x	25.00
Triple bar	100x	10.00
Double bar	75x	7.50
Single bar	50x	5.00
Any bar	15x	1.50
Buffalo	10x	1.00
A	5x	0.50
K	4x	0.40
Q	3x	0.30
J	2x	0.20
10	1x	0.10

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The buffalo is the theme icon here, and it pays less than every bar. Other buffalo games use the buffalo icon in a completely different way, from buffalo symbols and stampedes to stacked reels.

Special Slot Symbols

This slot machine symbols list covers the special symbols, with one example title each:

 

Symbol	What it does	Example title
Wild	Stands in for other symbols to complete a line or way	Lucky 777 on Fire Kirin, where the wild replaces 7s only
Scatter	Counts anywhere on the reels and often starts free spins	Book of Wizard on Fire Kirin: three key scatters give 8 free spins, four give 10, and five give 12
Bonus	Starts a bonus round when enough land	Buffalo 777 on Fire Kirin: three coins start 10 free games with a special Bull symbol
Multiplier	Multiplies the value of a win	Lucky 777 on Fire Kirin, where the wild multiplies the win and multipliers from more wilds stack
Coin or cash	Locks in place during the respins of a Hold and Win round	Coin Strike 2 Hold & Win on Game Room
Sticky	Stays in place for one or more following spins	Rules vary by title, and the info screen lists them
Expanding	Grows to fill the whole reel	Book of Wizard on Fire Kirin: its red spell turns 1 to 4 whole reels wild during free spins

 

Each game has its own rules as to how the wilds work. Lucky 777's wild will only cover 7s. The four potion wilds in Book of Wizard will cover any symbol other than the scatter. For the full mechanics, see how wild and scatter features work.

 

A coin doesn't necessarily mean the same thing. In Buffalo 777, three coins start free games, while coin symbols in Hold and Win games lock in place for respins.

How to Read a Slot Paytable

These steps use Buffalo 777 on Fire Kirin:

 

1. Open the info screen. Press the menu button in the bottom left-hand corner and then select paytable.
2. Find the symbol values. Each row has three matching symbols and a number. In Buffalo 777, that number is a multiple of your bet, and the side panels will show the same values at your current bet.
3. Check the lines or ways. The bottom bar indicates how many lines are active. Buffalo 777 plays 1 line, and Book of Wizard has its 25 lines displayed on a separate Win Lines page.
4. Read the special symbol rules. Look for the symbols that start features. In Buffalo 777, three coins will start 10 free games.

 

New players can practice with sign-up free play and open these screens before adding their own funds. The $20 Free Play comes in after verification with no deposit, playthrough, or expiry.

How Many Symbols Are on a Reel?

How many symbols are on a slot machine reel depends on the game, and you only see part of it. Book of Wizard has four symbols on each of its five reels, Buffalo 777 has three, and Lucky 777 has two. There's a full strip behind them, which is a virtual reel that you can't see and can't count.

 

An RNG determines where each reel stops on every spin. A symbol landing just above or just below the line doesn't imply that the next spin will be close. The paytable values and the maths of the game are unchanged, as the guide to how slot RTP is set makes clear.

FAQ

What do the symbols on a slot machine mean?

The symbols on a slot machine are either regular paying symbols or special symbols with a job. Regular symbols pay when they line up; special symbols (e.g., wilds and scatters) complete a line or trigger a feature. The slot machine symbols meaning for each game are in its paytable, and the table above lists the special ones.

Which slot symbol pays the most?

The top-paying symbol is typically either the main theme symbol or the wild, though it's dictated by each title's paytable. In Buffalo 777 on Fire Kirin, the money bags are the top-paying symbol at 250x. The buffalo-themed symbol pays 10x, which is less than every bar in that same game.

What does BAR mean on a slot machine?

BAR on a slot machine comes from early fruit machines, where a stick of Bell Fruit Gum on the reels became the BAR symbol. Single, double, and triple bars all pay out at different rates, and the gap can be quite substantial. In Buffalo 777, a straight line of three single bars pays 50x your bet, and three triple bars will pay 100x.

Can you try slots to learn the symbols for free?

You can try the slot symbols for free on BitSpinWin via the sign-up Free Play: $20 after account verification, no deposit, no playthrough, no expiry. You play on the actual platforms themselves, no third-party demo apps. To cash out your Free Play, you need to make a first deposit of at least $10.

Responsible Gaming

Slot play at BitSpinWin is for entertainment, and every spin is completely random, with no symbol telling you what's coming next. Set a budget and a time limit before you start playing and stop when you hit either one. If it's no longer fun to play, then just call 1-800-MYRESET.