About Casino Deposit Bonuses

For those regular casino gamers, you’ll be fully aware of the promotional offers that are usually provided by platforms. These usually start from offering newcomers a welcome casino bonus in order to attract them to the casino website and continue on with regular daily, weekly, monthly and exclusive offers throughout your gaming journey there. And while these are all fine and dandy, providing you with extra bonus funds for playing the selection of games with, there are also some other additional features of any new casino bonus that you need to be aware of as well.

While they are available at most online casinos, it’s almost certain that a platform won’t give you totally free funds on the whole. Like any business or company, nothing is provided totally for free, so you need to be aware of the additional terms and conditions behind receiving a 1st deposit bonus and how you’re able to use it fully.

Best Casino Bonuses of March 2023

What are Casino Deposit Bonuses?

So, if you’re a regular gamer, you’ll already know the answer to this question, but if you’re still considered a newbie, you might want a little bit more information on what exactly a casino deposit bonus is. Well, they are as they sound – a casino bonus on top of a deposit you have made. And whether this is provided on top of your initial deposit to welcome you, or as part of a regularly received bonus on top of a deposit, the premise behind it is exactly the same. Often, this will be added to your account automatically once your deposit has processed through, and other times you will need to either input a bonus code or contact the support team instead.

Then, you’re basically free to play with the bonus funds. Do be careful to read through any other small writings related to the casino bonuses as well, because sometimes, on rare occasions, there are restrictions on the selected games that you can use the funds on. However, for most of the time, you can use it as you please, on slots, table games, video poker, keno, you name it. These funds are separate to the deposit you make, so usually, you will find that a casino bonus offer will be displayed as something like; 100% up to a maximum of £300, for example. Simply put, in this particular example, should you deposit £100, you will receive a further £100 on top, meaning that you will have £200 in total to play the casino games with.

Wagering Requirements

Should you opt to receive an online casino bonus on top of one of your deposits, the likelihood is that it will also come with something known as wagering requirements. These basically also determine the amount of funds you need to have wagered on games before you’re able to make a withdrawal of any bonus funds. It sounds more complicated than what it actually is, but let’s try to make it a little simpler for you. Let’s say that you take the deposit bonus mentioned earlier, 100% on top of £100. This sees you start your gaming journey with a total of £200. So that’s £100 of your own money and a further £100 in bonus money. Wagering requirements usually relate solely to the bonus funds, but can also incorporate the deposited funds as well. Terms and conditions will often state something like, ‘bonus funds need to be wagered a total of 35 times over‘.

In order to figure out the sum of the wagering requirements for you, you simply need to multiply your casino deposit bonus by the requirements. In our example, you received a deposit bonus of £100, so essentially, 100 multiplied by 35 equates to a total of £3,500. This is not an amount that you need to win, or an amount that you need to lose either, it is simply the total amount in bets that you need to place before you can withdraw any bonus funds or winnings. Every wager you place on a game will count towards this total, so you could place a wager of £50 on a game, win the round and receive a profit of £50 on top. You could then place a wager of the same amount and lose it, before going for a third game of the same amount, and win another £30 on top. Despite the fact that you’ve won £80 and lost £50, you’ve still placed three separate bets of £50, equalling £150 in total. Therefore, if your wagering requirements stand at £3,500, as in our example, a total of £150 will be deducted from this.

Wagering Requirements are like the Safety Net for Online Casinos

Why do casinos have wagering requirements? They are a way of protecting themselves financially and come on the back of every single bonus offered. From the free trial casino bonuses to free spins, wagering requirements will be mentioned within those specific terms. Imagine a casino offering all new players £100 for signing up with no hidden catches – they’d all be cashing out. Wagering requirements are in place to stop the loss of huge sums of money on the casinos part – they were brought in when bonus whoring began a few years back.

If you’re wondering what bonus whoring means, it’s a term to describe players signing up to casinos using multiple accounts, just to make ‘free money. It was a disaster for the online gambling industry. With tougher regulations on casino bonus offers over the last couple of years, those loopholes used by those looking to gain and not spend have been closed. But, at the end of the day it means you could be spending a shedload of cash just try and make a withdrawal.

Game Restrictions

Not all casino games will count towards your wagering requirements. Slots generally tend to count to it 100% of the time, but others, such as blackjack or roulette will only either offer up a small percentage towards it, or nothing at all. It’s often the case that playing blackjack, for example, will only contribute 10% towards your wagering requirements, meaning that if you place a wager of £50 on a round of blackjack, your contribution to the wagering requirement will only be £5 of this. This is due to the low house edge that games of this nature incorporate.

Each different casino will have different wagering requirements for their casino deposit bonuses, and these will also sometimes differ between the casino bonuses in specific as well. Furthermore, each different casino will have their own rules surrounding how much of a percentage table games and others will contribute towards completing your wagering requirements. Details of these requirements should always be able to be found displayed on a casino’s bonus promotions page, or via their terms and conditions.

One final thing of note is that some casinos have certain policies towards being able to withdraw bonus funds as well. For example, once wagering requirements have been fulfilled, some casinos enable you to withdraw whatever bonus funds you may have left alongside winnings, while others will only provide the possibility of being able to withdraw winnings, rather than any bonus funds at all. Again, the bonus details should be provided in the terms and conditions of the website.

Types of Best Casino Bonuses

First Deposit Bonus and Reload Bonuses

Some online casinos reward layers who regularly visit with additional bonuses. This means every time you make a deposit; you should see some bonus funds making their way to your bankroll. As the name suggests, a deposit is required to trigger them.

Free Spins/Free Bets

Free spins are one of the most popular bonuses to claim online. Players will be granted a set number of extra spins to use on specific slots. You won’t be able to play numerous slots with the free spins as a carry-over is impossible.

Free bets are commonly associated with online bookmakers; a free bet to get a taste of what to expect when you switch to real play mode.

Welcome Bonuses/Packages

Welcome bonuses are the very heart of the UK online casino industry. Every casino offers them, it’s just down to you whether you take them up on their offer. There are differences between the two; the former offers an online casino bonus on your very first deposit whilst the latter offers bonuses on more than one deposit. These are time limited. You can’t sign up to a casino and not make a deposit, then go back a year later expecting to claim the welcome offer.

Social Media Promos/Refer-a-Friend Bonus

Look out for links to social media channels on your favourite online casino website. Getting to know the brand better on Facebook and Twitter etc can open up additional bonuses. There may also be competitions and prize draws to take part in, depending on who you follow.

Loyalty Bonus

This one does exactly what it says; rewards you for being loyal. This means you need to be gambling regularly to receive additional perks and fringe benefits. Free spins, cashback, birthday bonuses, exclusive promotions and sometimes real money bonuses are offered.

Online Casino Bonuses FAQs

Types of the Best Casino Bonuses

The answer to this one lies with the casino player. There are many to choose from; free spins, a deposit bonus, a deposit package and even a free no deposit bonus – all designed to get you gambling. The best bonuses would come with low or no wagering requirements.

Can I Use Multiple Bonuses at Once?

The majority of online casinos offer deposit packages which allow you to simultaneously use your bonuses. When you have used one, the other should kick-in. However, the operator has the final say on how these work.

What Should I Look for In the Terms and Conditions?

Wagering requirements first and foremost! This alone will determine whether you will be able to cash out from the bonus. Hefty wagering requirements will make it impossible to win and withdraw, remember that. Sometimes referred to as turnover terms, these will be represented as multiplier. Detailed information on wagering can be found within the conclusion.

Second thing to look for in the terms is the fees. You may find you need to pay fees on withdrawals and by using certain deposit methods (Boku via mobile almost always incurs fees). There are many important sections hiding within the blurb – max win is another. Nektan powered casinos stipulate that the maximum win from a non-progressive game is £250K. Should you win more than that, you won’t be getting it. Always check to see which payment methods are exempt from the bonuses. Usually, it’s Neteller and Skrill, but this could change depending on the casino. Last but not least is processing times; nobody wants to wait a week for the winnings do they.

Is There are Limit to How Much You Can Deposit at a Casino?

Deposit limits are in place, the value of these will be shown at the online casino in which you’re playing at. Some, however, allow VIP players (those playing high roller stakes), to deposit more than the casual visitors. Always check with the support teams as to how much you can play with at any one time.

Can I Claim Bonuses on Mobile?

All bonuses can be claimed on mobile. Whether you’re playing on the latest smartphone or a dated tablet, you’ll be eligible to claim the casino bonuses.

Responsible Gaming

It’s important to remain in control of gambling. If gambling is taking over your life, it’s time to stop. If you’re worried you may be developing a problem, there are government funded organisations out there that can help. But how do you know you have a problem? There are a few tell-tell signs to look out for. BeGambleAware, the leading charity in the UK committed to minimising gambling related harm have created a list of signs to look out for. If you find yourself answering ‘yes’ to one or more of the signs below, maybe it’s time to get some help.

• Spending more money and time on gambling than you can afford.
• Finding it hard to manage or stop your gambling.
• Having arguments with family or friends about money and gambling.
• Losing interest in usual activities or hobbies like going out with friends or spending time with family.
• Always thinking or talking about gambling.
• Lying about your gambling or hiding it from other people.
• Chasing losses or gambling to get out of financial trouble.
• Gambling until all of your money is gone.
• Borrowing money, selling possessions or not paying bills in order to pay for gambling.
• Needing to gamble with larger amounts of money or for a longer time to get the same feeling of excitement or buzz.
• Neglecting work, school, family, personal needs or household responsibilities because of gambling.
• Feeling anxious, worried, guilty, depressed or irritable.

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) are cracking down on problem gambling and in an effort to reduce the problem gambling figures even further, they announced that there would be a ban on using credit cards to gamble with in 2020. Also, a system will be in place to allow players to remove themselves from gambling altogether; instead of one-by-one. Up until recently, if players were wanting to take a break from gambling, they would need to set this is motion by making use of the online casino’s safer play options. Imagine being a member of twenty casinos – you would need to do this at every single one. Shortly, you’ll be able to do it with just the one command.

Conclusion

Read everything! There are no one-cap fits all terms when it comes to online casino bonuses; just because they may look the same and offer the same games, doesn’t mean you’re getting the same deal. Terms and conditions are the backbone of online casino bonuses and they can either make you or break you – literally. Sometimes those lavish bonuses are just wolves in sheep’s clothing, and you should treat them with caution. Only when you are happy with the ts and cs associated will you understand how they work.

There are casinos with no wagering requirements out there – this means you get to keep absolutely everything you win with no exception, but there are others with extortionate turn over terms and this will only mean one thing – you’ll almost never be able to cash-out from the bonuses. Take a £10 bonus for example; the casino requires you to play through that £10 a total of 35x. Do you know how much you need to spend in order to keep your winnings? £350! That’s not all – some operators have a stipulation to how much you can win too, which is why you should always read before accepting.

If the wagering is high, you can opt-out of those bonuses. Contact support who will automatically remove you. What’s better? Playing with your own cash and no bonuses to keep 100% of your winnings, or a boosted bankroll making it almost impossible to cash out? We’ll let you decide that one.