The following basic playing strategy will reduce the casino's edge and improve your chances of winning.You would let your first bet ride if your first three cards contain any of the hands listed below; otherwise you should remove your bet. Generally to let your bet ride you want a paying hand, or three cards to a royal or straight flush with the exceptions noted below.
 
First Three Cards-Let It Ride
* Any paying hand (high pair, three-of-a-kind)
* Any three cards to a royal flush (e.g. 10, J, K or clubs)
* Three consecutive cards to a straight flush (e.g. 4,5,6 of spades) with the lowest card a 3 or higher (i.e. do not let the first bet ride with A, 2, 3 or 2, 3, 4 suited)
* Three almost consecutive cards to a straight flush where there is a 4 card spread with at least one high card (e.g. 7, 8, 10 of clubs)
* Three almost consecutive cards to straight flush where there is a 5 card spread with at least two high cards (e.g. 7,10, J of hearts).

The 4 card playing strategy is straightforward. You generally need to have either a winning hand or close to a winning hand to let your second bet ride.

First Four Cards-Let It Ride
* Four cards to a royal flush
* Four cards to a straight flush
* Four cards to a flush
* Four-of-a-kind
* Three-of-a-kind
* Two pair
* A pair of 10's, J's, Q's, K's, or A's
* Four consecutive cards to a straight with at least one high card.

Expected Return: You can expect a return of 97.2% when you play Let It Ride. This means that per unit wagered the casino's edge is about 2.8%. For every $100 wagered, a player's expected loss is about $2.80.

Let it Ride poker is often compared to blackjack in certain terms of playing structure. The pace of the game is slightly slower than blackjack, averaging around forty dealt hands per hour. And as for strategy, Let it Ride, requires much less skill than blackjack. Using the most mathematically correct strategy for Let it Ride only requires about ten memorized actions, and will help to bring the online casinos edge down to 3.5%. All things considered, these odds are not too bad. The basis behind acquiring this low House Edge is knowing whether to take hands down or to "let 'em ride". It should be noted right from the start that the $1 side bet is a risky wager that returns a Casinos Edge ranging from 15% to 30%. Even though the bonus payoff may look tempting, these bets should be avoided when using mathematically correct strategy. The Bonus Pay Table ranges from casino to casino, although players can expect to see something like the following for payoffs:

Here is the basic paytable for Let it Ride found in the casino:

Now that you know the expected return on payoffs for Let it Ride, this is how you should play Bet #1 when using the best mathematical strategy possible:

• Let Bet #1 Ride only if you are holding a Pair of Ten's or Better, a three-card Royal Flush or a three-card Straight Flush.

There are more possibilities for Bet #2. This is how you play Bet #2 when using the best mathematical strategy possible:

• Let Bet #2 Ride only if you are holding a Pair of Tens or better, a four-card Royal or Straight Flush, a four-card Flush, four high cards, a four-card open ended Straight or a four-card open ended Flush.

This type of strategy can be used at either a land-based casino or online casino, who typically both offer the same payoffs for winning hands and bonus side bets.