Are Bonuses the Key Criterion that Separates Online Casino Operators?
Many online casino players today who are looking for somewhere new to play will only look for online casinos with attractive bonuses, and they will avoid playing at online casinos that don’t have very many bonuses. Therefore, the types of bonuses and the value of these bonuses are one of the key measures that set online casino operators apart from each other.
What are the main types of online casino bonuses?
At most online casinos today, there are generally four main types of bonuses. These bonuses can be part of the welcome bonus for new players or part of an ongoing promotional offer for fully registered members who are no longer classed as new players. The most common online casino bonuses that you are likely to come across today are the following:
- Matching deposit bonuses
- No deposit bonuses
- Free spins bonuses
- Cashback bonuses
Some online casino operators are more generous than others, which means that the value of these bonuses can vary a great deal from one online casino to the next. Also, at first glance, the bonus may appear to be extremely generous, but upon closer inspection, you may find that it comes with relatively steep wagering requirements that could be worth 60x or 70x the bonus amount.
You may also find that depositing with certain methods may not qualify you for the bonus. For example, people who deposit with Visa might be able to claim the bonus, but if you deposit with NETELLER, you might not qualify for the bonus.
Wagering requirements explained
If you peruse trusted online casino reviews today, you will see a wide range of bonuses, and the one thing that they all have in common is that they come with wagering requirements (aka playthrough requirements or rollover requirements) attached. As a player, wagering requirements are something that you generally cannot avoid when accepting a bonus.
You would be very lucky to find an online casino bonus that doesn’t have any wagering requirements attached. It’s the amount of money you must wager after accepting a bonus before you can withdraw any winnings that you make from your bonus, and it can be as little as 10x times the bonus amount. Bonuses that come with 70x times or more wagering requirements are generally not worth claiming.
Let’s take a quick look at an example of how this works. If the casino you just signed up to is giving all new players 20 free spins to try an online slot machine, and you end up winning $/€/£50.00 (or equivalent currency value) from your free spins, you couldn’t simply withdraw your winnings straight away. You will need to wager your bonus winnings anywhere from 10x to 70x times before you can withdraw.
Therefore, if the bonus comes with a 25x times wagering requirement, you would need to wager $/€/£1,250 before you could withdraw ($/€/£50 bonus winnings X 25 wagering requirement). As soon as your wagering requirements have been completed, any winnings that you have left over in your account will be yours to withdraw with no further restrictions.
Remember that when a bonus sounds too good to be true, it’s generally not worth claiming. The most important thing you can do before accepting any online casino bonus today is to read through the bonus terms and conditions to avoid disappointment.
The good news is that online casino bonuses can be claimed by mobile/smartphone/tablet/laptop/desktop users. The games are fairly similar at most online casinos today, and you will find that only bonuses are the key criterion that separates online casino operators.
Are online casino bonuses worth claiming?
Yes. Online casino bonuses are definitely worth claiming. Don’t forget that you have a choice. If you were to sign up to an online casino today, you wouldn’t be forced to accept the bonus. You generally get the option to either accept or decline.
If you accept, then you would have to complete the wagering requirements before you can cash out, but if you decline, you won’t receive any bonus money or free spins, and therefore you wouldn’t have to worry about completing wagering requirements.
The best casino bonuses worth claiming are the ones with relatively low wagering requirements. Additionally, the best casino bonuses are the ones that come with clear, fair, realistic, and easy-to-understand terms and conditions.
What happens if I don’t complete my wagering requirements?
If you don’t complete the wagering requirements within the allotted time (it could be one day, one week, or even one month), you will simply lose any bonus winnings you made from your initial welcome bonus. Some of you may also get fed up with trying to complete your wagering requirements, in which case you could forfeit your bonus winnings, and you would be left with your initial deposit amount to play with and no restrictions on when you could withdraw.
If you’re having trouble finding how much money you have left to wager, or if you don’t seem to understand the bonus Ts and Cs, then you may want to contact a member of the casino’s player support to get them to either explain things more clearly for you. They will reveal precisely how much time you have left or how much money you have to wager to complete your wagering requirements.
The player support at today’s best online casinos will be more than happy to help point you in the right direction.
