Fat Santa slot review

Fat Santa slot at a glance

Fat Santa came out in 2018 from Push Gaming, the London-based studio better known for Jammin’ Jars and Big Bamboo. It uses a square 5×5 grid with 50 fixed paylines, which gives a growing wild plenty of room to spread.

Push Gaming holds a Gambling Commission licence under Push Gaming Holding Limited and has been majority-owned by LeoVegas Group, part of MGM Resorts, since a deal announced in May 2023. More of its games are on our Push Gaming slots page.

How the features work in Fat Santa

Fat Santa has one base-game feature and one bonus round. Both rely on mince pie wilds, which is the thread that ties the game together.

Santa’s Sleigh

At random during the base game, Santa’s Sleigh can trigger and drop mince pie wilds onto the reels. Those wilds lock in place while the reels respin, so the respin is played with extra wilds already fixed on the grid. Because it is random, there is nothing you can do to make it appear.

Free games and the growing Santa

Free games start when a Santa wild lands on the same spin as a mince pie wild. You begin with 5 free spins. Santa then becomes a moving wild that eats mince pies as they land. Eating pies makes him bigger, starting at 1×1 and growing up to a full 5×5, and each increase in size adds extra spins.

In practice, the round has two aims at once: Santa needs pies to grow, and each size increase extends the round. A big Santa covering much of the 5×5 grid acts as a wild across many of the 50 lines at the same time.

Fat Santa RTP: 96.45% or 94.15%?

Push Gaming supplies Fat Santa at two RTP settings. The game looks and plays identically; only the long-run return changes. That makes it worth a minute to check before you play, because no amount of in-game choice changes the house edge.

Figures are rounded to the nearest penny. They come from stake × house edge, which is standard game maths rather than a prediction for any one session.

1. Open Fat Santa in your casino app.
2. Tap the game’s information or help button, often shown as “i” or a menu icon.
3. Find the line on return to player (RTP) or theoretical return.
4. Check whether it shows 96.45% or 94.15%.
5. If no figure is shown, ask the casino’s customer support which version it runs.

Fat Santa volatility on a £20 budget

Medium to high volatility puts Fat Santa between steady and swingy. Results will be uneven, but not as extreme as the highest-volatility games in our reviews. A £20 budget gives 200 spins at 10p, 40 at 50p or 20 at £1 if nothing came back, and in reality small returns stretch it a little further.

The random Sleigh feature helps fill the gaps between free games, but most of the game’s value still sits in the bonus round. At higher stakes, a run without free games can use up a budget before the round arrives. Lower stakes give more chances at it for the same money, though the expected cost per pound staked is unchanged.

Gambling is entertainment that costs money, and the house edge means losses are likely over time. If you are setting money aside for Christmas, keep any gambling budget separate and small. Our page on budgeting for casino apps has practical ideas.

Playing the Fat Santa slot on your phone

Fat Santa is an HTML5 game, so it runs inside casino apps and mobile browsers without a separate download. Push Gaming does not state whether it is built for portrait or landscape. On a 5×5 grid, symbols are smaller than on a 5×3 game, so a larger phone or tablet makes the mince pies and Santa’s growth easier to follow.

• Stick to the official app stores for casino apps. Our iPhone download guide shows how to check the publisher.
• Search the lobby for “Fat Santa”; we cannot confirm which apps stock it.
• Open the paytable to see symbol values; no maximum win figure is published.
• If your connection drops during free games, the casino’s server holds the result. See what happens if your app crashes mid-game.

If seasonal marketing messages are unwelcome, our guide to turning off casino app notifications explains how to switch them off on iPhone and Android.

UK rules for the Fat Santa slot

British versions of Fat Santa run under rules introduced after the game launched. The main ones come from the Commission’s responsible product design standard (opens in a new tab) and its online slots stake limit guidance (opens in a new tab).

• Maximum stake of £5 per spin if you are 25 or over, and £2 if you are 18–24. More on our slot stake limits page.
• At least 2.5 seconds per spin, with no autoplay, turbo or slam-stop.
• No celebrating a return that is equal to or less than your stake.
• Your net spend and time played shown as you play.
• Credit cards cannot be used to gamble, including via e-wallets funded by a credit card.

Fat Santa vs Fat Rabbit and Fat Banker

Push Gaming has several games with “Fat” in the name. Their published figures show how they differ.

Fat Rabbit shares the grid, line count and RTP settings but is rated higher volatility. Fat Banker uses a larger grid and publishes a 25,000× ceiling. Fat Santa is the gentlest of the three on paper.

Other Christmas slots to play on mobile

If you want another seasonal game, Big Bass Christmas Bash from Reel Kingdom has a 96.71% RTP, high volatility and 10 fixed paylines on a 5×3 grid. It belongs to Reel Kingdom’s Big Bass series and plays very differently from a growing-wild game. For more choice, browse all our mobile slot reviews or see which apps feature in our best slot apps list.

Fat Santa review: pros and cons

Where to play Fat Santa with a casino welcome offer

We do not have an offer tied to Fat Santa, and we cannot confirm which partner apps carry it. The offers below are general slot welcome offers for new customers aged 18+, and terms apply.

• PlayOJO: first deposit of at least £10 for 80 free spins on Big Bass Bonanza at 10p each. No wagering; winnings are cash. UK only, excluding Northern Ireland.
• Coral Casino: a qualifying deposit and £10 of slot bets get 100 free spins at 10p on selected games, accepted within 48 hours and valid for 7 days, with no wagering on winnings.
• Ladbrokes Casino: spend £10 on slots to receive 50 free spins a day for 10 days (up to 500), 10p each on selected games, claimed by 23:59 each day and valid for 7 days, no wagering.

If gambling starts to affect your health or money, the NHS gambling support page (opens in a new tab) and the National Gambling Helpline (0808 8020 133) can help.

18+. Every casino game has a built-in house edge, so over time you should expect to lose what you stake. Set a budget before you play and stop when it’s gone: safer gambling tools and support. Free, confidential help: National Gambling Helpline 0808 8020 133.