How to Win Deal or No Deal

PDF download Download Article
PDF download Download Article

Every player on the show Deal or No Deal has a chance to win $1 million, but the frustrating part about this game is that it’s mostly based on chance. Since there isn’t a surefire way to know which briefcase has the highest amount and which will send you home with just a penny, you’ll have to guess at random, narrowing the briefcases down throughout the game. You can play a game of Deal or No Deal well by keeping an eye on the board, but ultimately, winning this game is about luck and luck alone.

Method 1
Method 1 of 2:

Playing a Basic Round

PDF download Download Article
  1. To be considered for a spot on the show Deal or No Deal, head to NBC’s website and click on their casting page. Then, apply with your name, contact information, and the reasons why you’d like to be on the show to have a chance at getting a spot on TV. [1]
  2. Initially, you will be asked to choose 1 briefcase out of the 26 that you believe has the highest amount of money in it (in this case, $1 million). The briefcase will be brought over to you, but you won’t get to see what’s inside of it just yet. You’ll get to switch this briefcase out after every round, or you can choose to stick with your original pick. [2]
    • There’s no way to know which briefcase has the highest amount of money yet, so you’ll have to choose at random.
    Advertisement
  3. In the first round, you’ll be asked to pick out 6 of the briefcases on the stairs to remove them from the board. Since there’s no way to know the money amounts in each case, you can pick these at random, going for your favorite numbers or choosing them completely on a whim. The aim is to pick briefcases with low amounts in them because once they get removed from play, you can’t win that amount anymore. [3]
    • The cases range in amounts from $.01 to $1 million.
    • The cases that you choose to be removed from the play will be opened up as you pick them, so you’ll be able to see which ones you’ve removed.
    • In each round, you’ll be asked to remove fewer cases from play, so pay attention!
  4. After you pick out your cases, the “banker” will send you an offer to purchase your cases from you. Initially, the banker will probably try to throw you some pretty bad deals, so don’t expect a lot of money in the first couple of rounds. [4]
    • The banker bases their offer on what amounts have been removed from play and what amounts are still on the board.
    • The banker has the same information as you do, so they don’t know what briefcase has which monetary amount.
  5. If you believe that the banker’s offer is more than what you would win by opening up the briefcase that you picked initially, you can say “Deal.” This will end the game and you’ll get to take home the amount of money that the banker offered to you. [5]
    • Remember, the banker’s role is to get you to leave the game with the least amount of money as possible.
    • Make sure you don’t accidentally say “Deal” when you mean “No Deal.” It sounds silly, but it does happen!
  6. If you think that the banker is offering less than what is in your current briefcase, say “No Deal.” This will keep you in the game so you can play more rounds, continuing to remove briefcases from play until the end. [6]
    • If you do decline the offer, you’ll be able to switch out which briefcase you’re keeping for yourself if you’d like to. Or, you can hang onto the same one you picked originally.
    7. Advertisement
Method 2
Method 2 of 2:

Using a Strategy to Win

PDF download Download Article
  1. Each time you remove a briefcase from play, the monetary amount gets taken off of the giant board in the center of the room. Keep an eye on this board as you keep playing so you know which amounts you still have left so you can try to guess which amount is in your briefcase. [7]
    • Keeping an eye on this board is the best way to track your progress as you remove briefcases from play.
    • For example, if you knocked off the $5, the $100, and the $0.01, there’s a pretty good chance that you have a briefcase with a high amount in it.
    • However, if you’ve removed the $1 million, the $50,000, and the $100,000, it may be time to accept the banker’s offer.
  2. Although it isn’t typical, you can bring a bingo cage with you to pick out briefcase numbers at random. This will help you randomize your briefcase numbers completely to make sure you don’t have any amount of bias when you pick the ones to remove from play. [8]
    • Tony Oriente, the contestant who brought a bingo cage to the show, said it helped him at first, but ultimately, he should have gone with his gut.
  3. If you notice that there are only 1 or 2 high values left on the board, you may want to take the banker’s offer so you can walk away with a good amount of money. The more low values are on the board, the higher the chance is that your briefcase is a low amount. [9]
    • Remember that the banker is seeing the same information you are, so if they see that there aren’t many high values left, they may offer you a lower amount of money.
  4. The expected value of the game Deal or No Deal, or how much you would win if you played the game an infinite amount of times and averaged out your results, is $131,477. This means that if you leave the game with more than that, you’ll have done better than average. [10]
    • You can calculate the expected value by adding up all of the potential values and then dividing that number by 26, or the number of briefcases in the game.
  5. If you are consistently seeing low values being removed from the board after each round, keep playing the game. Chances are, you may have a high value in your briefcase that’s much better than what the banker has to offer.
    • Games like this are hard to quantify, and even statistics can’t fully predict what amount is in your briefcase. Ultimately, it’s up to chance.
  6. Although it can be tempting to play all 10 rounds in hopes of getting the $1 million, your odds of choosing that amount is less than 4%, or 1/26. Don’t be afraid to “settle” for an amount of less than $1 million. Since you don’t have to pay to sign up for the show, you aren’t losing anything! [11]
    7. Advertisement

Community Q&A

Search
Add New Question
  • Question
    How do I go about filling out an application to be on Deal or No Deal?
    Community Answer
    Wait until the United States casting call is open. Then fill out the application when it is available.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
    Thank you for your feedback.
    If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
    Yes No
    Not Helpful 7 Helpful 39
  • Question
    What happens if the money I choose is too high?
    Community Answer
    The banker's offer will be lower, as he will use what you have left on the board to determine if it should be a few dollars or some big bucks.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
    Thank you for your feedback.
    If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
    Yes No
    Not Helpful 3 Helpful 30
  • Question
    How do I apply to be on Deal or No Deal in the United States?
    Community Answer
    Reference Apply for Deal or No Deal .
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
    Thank you for your feedback.
    If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
    Yes No
    Not Helpful 6 Helpful 38
See more answers
Ask a Question
200 characters left
Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.
Submit
      Advertisement

      Tips

      Submit a Tip
      All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published
      Name
      Please provide your name and last initial
      Submit
      Thanks for submitting a tip for review!
      Advertisement

      Warnings

      • The crowd will pretty much always tell you to say “No Deal,” but it’s not their money to lose! Make decisions based on your own thoughts, not the thoughts of the crowd.
        Thanks
        Helpful 2 Not Helpful 0
      Advertisement

      You Might Also Like

      Decision Making 101: A Simple Guide
      How to
      Make Better Decisions
      The Deal or No Deal Application Process: A Complete Guide
      Nailing Your 'Nailed It' Tryout: Eligibility and How to Apply
      How to
      Create an Object Show
      How to
      Get a Wheel of Fortune Spin ID Number
      Come on Down! (and Be a Contestant on The Price is Right)
      How to
      Be a Contestant on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire
      How to
      Get on Family Feud: Requirements, Applications, & More
      How to
      Be a Contestant on Wheel of Fortune
      How to
      Get on a Game Show: A Step-by-Step Guide
      An Easy Guide to Jeopardy! Rules and Gameplay
      A Complete Guide to Attending a Taping of Jeopardy
      An Easy-to-Follow Guide for Making a Game Show
      Advertisement

      References

      1. ↑ https://www.nbc.com/exclusives/pages/casting
      2. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KotVp7EDzcA&feature=youtu.be&t=26
      3. ↑ https://www.nbc.com/deal-or-no-deal
      4. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KotVp7EDzcA&feature=youtu.be&t=60
      5. ↑ https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/20/deal-or-no-deal-contestant-who-won-70-learned-a-valuable-lesson.html
      6. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KotVp7EDzcA&feature=youtu.be&t=89
      7. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KotVp7EDzcA&feature=youtu.be&t=53
      8. ↑ https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/20/deal-or-no-deal-contestant-who-won-70-learned-a-valuable-lesson.html
      9. ↑ http://datagenetics.com/blog/january12015/index.html
      1. ↑ http://datagenetics.com/blog/january12015/index.html
      2. ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/media/2006/mar/23/broadcasting.comment
      3. ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/media/2006/mar/23/broadcasting.comment

      About This Article

      Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 140,292 times.

      Reader Success Stories

      • Felicity Kotzee

        Jun 23, 2022

        "I agree if you start winning, stop for a while and start again later, because if you start to get greedy, that is ..." more
      More reader stories Hide reader stories
      Share your story

      Is this article up to date?

      Advertisement