NetEnt

Starburst

50,000
Max Win
10
Paylines
5×3
Reels
Real Money
Starburst Slot Game

The demo runs on exactly the same maths as real money play. Same RNG, same wild expansion frequency, same win potential. What you see here is what you'd get with cash on the line.

No card details asked. No registration. No deposit buried in small print. You get fun money credits, and when they're gone, you refresh the page. That's it.

It's proper testing ground. You can try £0.10 spins to see how the feature triggers, or max bet to clock potential wins. Test whether both-ways pays actually make a difference. The demo doesn't limit your bet range or rush you.

Starburst's been live since 2013 - this isn't some new release where demo and real versions might drift. It's the same certified build that's had millions of spins logged. NetEnt doesn't run separate "generous demo" versions. The random number generation is identical.

One honest note: demo mode can't teach you bankroll pressure. Hitting a cold stretch with fun money feels different than watching your real balance drop. But for understanding the game itself? It's the full thing.

There's a reason Starburst appears in practically every UK casino welcome offer - and it's not the feature list. NetEnt's 2013 cosmic gem slot has exactly one mechanic: wilds expand on the middle three reels and trigger a re-spin. That's it. No free spins, no bonus rounds, no progressive jackpot. Just expanding wilds, both-ways wins, and a 10-payline grid that's processed more welcome bonus wagering than perhaps any slot in history. A decade on, with XXXtreme and Galaxy variants chasing volatility and bigger wins, the original's low-variance simplicity remains the default introduction to online slots - the training wheels every casino puts you on first. Whether that makes it brilliant or just ubiquitous depends entirely on what you want from a slot.

How To Play Starburst

Starburst uses NetEnt's classic two-part betting system, so you'll need to understand how these work together before your first spin.

Setting Your Bet

Your total bet comes from two controls in the bottom panel. Bet Level (left side) determines how many coins you wager per line—you can set this from 1 to 200 using the green plus/minus buttons. Coin Value (right side) sets what each coin is worth, ranging from £0.01 to £10.00. The game always plays all 10 paylines, so your total bet equals: Bet Level × 10 × Coin Value.

For example, if you set Bet Level to 5 and Coin Value to £0.20, you're betting £10.00 per spin (5 × 10 × 0.20). The minimum possible bet is £0.10, whilst the maximum reaches £20,000.

The BET display on the left shows your current total, so you'll always know exactly what you're wagering.

Spinning the Reels

Hit the large green circular SPIN button in the centre of the control panel to start each round. Alternatively, you can enable spacebar spinning through the settings menu (click the spanner icon at the bottom) and press your spacebar instead.

Be careful with the MAX BET button—it doesn't just set your bet to maximum. It immediately sets Bet Level to 200 (keeping your current coin value) and spins the reels in one action.

Autoplay Options

Click AUTO PLAY to select how many spins you want to run automatically—options include 10, 25, 50, and more. Use the arrows to scroll through choices. The Advanced Settings section lets you set stop conditions: you can halt autoplay on any win, if a single win exceeds a certain amount, or if your balance changes by a specified value. These controls give you proper oversight during extended sessions.

Game Speed Settings

Access the settings menu (spanner icon) to enable Quick Spin, which speeds up the reel animation. This feature isn't available at all casinos, so you might not see it depending on where you're playing. You can also toggle the intro screen and spacebar functionality here.

The INFO button (green circle with 'i' on the far left) opens the paytable, where you'll find symbol values and detailed feature explanations across multiple pages. Navigate using the arrow buttons at the bottom.

All your key information—current balance, bet amount, and wins—displays along the bottom status bar throughout gameplay.

Symbols and Payouts

Starburst keeps things straightforward with seven paying symbols plus a special Wild. You'll need at least three matching symbols in succession on one of the 10 fixed paylines to land a win.

Here's what each symbol pays, based on bet level 1 (multiply by your actual bet level for your win):

BAR symbol - Golden metallic BAR

BAR

Golden metallic BAR with glossy three-dimensional appearance and dark outlines

5× 250 4× 200 3× 50
Lucky Seven symbol - Red and orange gradient number 7

Lucky Seven

Red and orange gradient number 7 inside a blue crystalline circular frame with ice-crystal texture

5× 120 4× 60 3× 25
Yellow Diamond symbol - Brilliant-cut diamond

Yellow Diamond

Brilliant-cut diamond in bright golden yellow with multiple faceted planes and white sparkle stars

5× 60 4× 25 3× 10
Green Cube symbol - Three-dimensional hexagonal cube gem

Green Cube

Three-dimensional hexagonal cube gem in lime green, showing three visible faces at different shades

5× 50 4× 20 3× 8
Orange Hexagon symbol - Flat hexagonal gem

Orange Hexagon

Flat hexagonal gem in fiery orange-red with amber tones and geometric internal pattern

5× 40 4× 15 3× 7
Blue Cube symbol - Square cube gem in cyan-blue

Blue Cube

Square cube gem in bright cyan-blue, ice-like appearance with three visible faces

5× 25 4× 10 3× 5
Purple Diamond symbol - Four-pointed diamond gem

Purple Diamond

Four-pointed diamond gem in rich purple-violet with symmetrical points extending in all directions

5× 25 4× 10 3× 5

All symbols have white sparkle effects at their tips or corners, making them catch the light against the dark space background.

Starburst Wild Feature

Starburst Wild - multicoloured eight-pointed star

The Starburst Wild – a multicoloured eight-pointed star with a white pearl centre and points alternating in green, blue, purple, pink, red, orange, and yellow – only appears on the middle three reels (2, 3, and 4). It substitutes for all other symbols.

When a Wild lands, it immediately expands to fill the entire reel vertically, covering all three positions. That reel then locks in place whilst the other reels re-spin once at the same bet.

Wild expansion feature demonstration

If another Wild lands during that re-spin, it also expands and locks, triggering a second re-spin. A third Wild landing gives you one more re-spin. That's your lot – three re-spins maximum if you're lucky enough to fill all three middle reels with expanded Wilds.

The feature ends when a re-spin finishes without any new Wilds appearing.

Win Both Ways

Win Both Ways feature diagram

Unlike most slots, Starburst pays winning combinations from left to right and right to left on the same spin. This means five Blue Cubes reading from reel 1 to reel 5 pays out, and five Orange Hexagons reading from reel 5 to reel 1 also pays out – even on the same spin if they're on different paylines.

If the same payline has winning combinations in both directions, you'll only receive the higher of the two payouts, not both.

Gaming's Most Famous Relic

Pros Cons
  • Both-ways wins across all 10 lines → effectively 20 directions paying, hits land constantly
  • Explain it in one sentence → wild lands on reel 2/3/4, expands, re-spins, done
  • Everyone's already played this → zero learning curve, you know exactly what you're getting in for
  • 10p to £20,000 bet range → works whether you're testing waters or pushing limits
  • Quick spin and spacebar shortcuts → blast through at whatever pace suits you
  • Clean interface with proper keyboard support → works smoothly on phone, tablet, or desktop
  • Released in 2013 and it shows → visuals look flat and dated next to anything from the last five years
  • One trick and you've seen everything → no free spins, no bonus round, just expanding wild re-spins
  • Maximum three re-spins → feature's over in seconds, no extended sessions possible
  • Wilds locked to middle three reels only → can't fill the screen, caps your best-case scenarios
  • 50,000 coin max win feels quaint → modern slots regularly offer five to ten times that potential
HTML5 Browser Gaming

Apps & Platforms

Starburst runs directly in your web browser on any device—desktop, tablet, or mobile—without requiring any downloads or installations. The slot uses HTML5 technology, so it adapts responsively to your screen size whether you're playing on a computer, smartphone, or tablet. There's no NetEnt-specific app to download; simply load the game through your browser and it's ready to play.