Poker / gambling chips (also known as tokens, checks, or cheques) are used to represent a fixed amount of money and are used when playing various forms of poker and other casino games.
The most common denominations of chips are 10, 25, 50, 100 and 500.
Poker Chip Construction and Design
Poker chips are designed to be difficult to counterfeit/fake using complicated patterns and designs. Poker chips are typically constructed using high-pressure molding machines. Casino poker chip construction is a very well protected trade secret.
It is often assumed that poker chips are clay based. Although clay is used in the construction, this is only used for added texture and weight. Poker chips are mainly made from a ceramic material which is not as breakable as the older clay chips designed in the 1960's and 1970's (these are no longer made).
Poker Chip Colours and Denominations
Poker chips vary in colour from casino to casino and country to country so there are no "standard" rules for determining the color and denomination of poker chips.
The most common colors and an example of their corresponding values / denominations are:
Poker Chip Colours & Values Chart
 |
White |
$1 |
 |
Green |
$25 |
 |
Red |
$5 |
 |
Black |
$100 |
 |
Blue |
$10 |
 |
Pink (or purple) |
$500 |
The values and colours will vary depending on the casino, but it gives you a good idea of the typical denominations you're likely to find at online and real-life casinos. Should you be lucky enough to get on to the high roller poker tables, you'll find chips ranging from $1,000 to $25,000 and sometimes even higher! The colour of these chips have been omitted from this page as they will vary.
Chip Security
Every casino has a unique set of chips that distinguishes its chips from that of another casino. In many cases, casinos are not allowed to honour the face value of another casino's chips (though this is not usually the case in Vegas). There are many complex casino chip security features. The edge patterns are often distinctly different colors to help distinguish them from another casino. The artwork on the chip is also very clear, almost photographic in quality. In some cases, certain chips will incorporate RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology. With casino chips using these new technologies with higher levels of security, counterfeit chips are rare.