Any online casino site worth their salt will give new customers a bonus when they first join. The most common type of offer is a matched bonus, where your first deposit triggers a bonus based on the amount you add to your account. Here we take a look at how such matched casino bonuses work and which sites offer them.
The world of online casinos is highly competitive and that’s why these sites offer new customers a welcome promotion. It’s an incentive to give them a try and acts as marketing.
What is a Matched Casino Bonus
A matched casino bonus, as said, is one where the value of the bonus depends on how much you deposit.
Many casinos offer 100% matches, meaning that if you deposit £50, they will match that value with a bonus of £50.
Some lesser online casino sites offer matches worth less than 100% but we only work with the best casinos. That means almost all of the promotions we feature here are 100% matches at the very least, with several of our favourite online casinos offering a lot more.
Some sites offer a 200% bonus, meaning that if you deposit £20, you’ll get a bonus worth £40 and have a balance of £60!
Some go even higher than that! In general you’ll find that the biggest promotions in terms of the percentage tend to have lower maximum values. For example, you may find an online casino offering a HUGE 500% bonus but this will usually only be on deposits of £10 or £20.
This type of promo is perfect for smaller stakes players. For a low deposit you can get a very big bonus. That means very low risk but still a decent sized bonus to boost your casino bank. Such promotions are perfect for those who don’t want to deposit hundreds of pounds anyway.
On the other hand, high rollers may prefer to opt for a site that only offers a 100% bonus but with a much higher maximum.
How do Casino Bonuses Work?
Casino bonuses are a great incentive to try a new casino. They give you extra casino action in an instant. Just make a deposit, enter any bonus or promotional code if needed and you can turn £100, for example, into £200 – just like that!
Casinos are, of course, businesses though and sadly you can’t just withdraw your profit and run. In order to withdraw your winnings you will just about always have to play through the value of the bonus a certain number of times.
Bonus Wagering
This is called the bonus wagering, or rollover. Once you have committed to a bonus or other welcome offer, you normally need to compete the bonus wagering before you can withdraw.
Some casino sites structure the rollover in terms of the bonus amount ONLY, whilst others base it on the bonus AND deposit combined. All things being equal, the former is better, although it depends on the wagering requirement.
For example, if the wagering is 20 times the bonus on a £100 offer, you will have to stake £2,000 on casino games before you can withdraw. If the promotion is a 100% matched bonus but the terms are 10 times the deposit and bonus combined, this will also be £2,000. In this instance the rollover is 10 times (£100 + £100) = £2,000.
Terms and Conditions to Note
All of the online and mobile casinos we promote are huge, reputable companies. We have played their casino games for many years and we trust them 100%.
We can safely say that they play fair and if you win, you’ll get paid. That said, they have a number of terms and conditions you should be aware of. These are not designed to catch you out. They are designed to stop players taking advantage and making a guaranteed profit and then never playing in the casino again.
As long as you are aware of these things in advance you won’t get caught out. All too often people dive into an offer thinking it is easy money without reading the terms of the promotion.
Nobody wants to read through pages of small print but a simple knowledge of the following should mean you know what to look out for.
New Customers
All welcome bonuses are designed for new customers only. If you have had an account at these online casinos before you won’t be eligible. Sometimes you won’t be eligible if someone in your house has an account with them, whilst these restrictions may also apply if you play at one of their partner casinos.
Bonus Codes
Some offers may require you to input a code, either when you join, when you make your deposit or to claim the bonus once you have added funds. We’ll normally highlight these, whilst sometimes they will automatically be entered when you visit from one of our offer pages. However, if you don’t add the code, you may not be granted the bonus.
Wagering
We have covered the basics of the bonus wagering above. However, there are lots of other factors to consider too. The biggest of these is which games are allowed.
With a lot of promotions given to newbies at online casinos, certain games may not contribute towards the wagering. It’s good to check this first as it can be pretty maddening to spend hours trying to clear a bonus only to discover the game you played doesn’t count!
All the casinos we feature here at CasinoOffers.Co make it VERY clear what games are valid and which aren’t. It’s also VITAL to note that some games count more than others.
Slots usually count at 100% towards the wagering whilst other games may count for a lot less. For example, if a site permits blackjack but only at 10%, a hand played for £10 will only count for £1 towards the bonus rollover.
Time Limits
Almost all casino offers will have time limits attached to them. With some you must claim the bonus within a certain length of time from when you first join the site. With others there may be time limits on how long you have to complete the promotional wagering.
Miscellaneous
There are certain other terms that are worth looking out for. For example some online casinos may not offer their welcome bonus in your country. We are a UK-focused site, so all of the offers featured here are valid for UK players. If you reside elsewhere, be sure to check the terms and conditions before you try and claim a given offer.
There may also be more terms relating to the bonus wagering. Some casinos now have a limit on the maximum contribution any single spin, bet, game or hand has. Others may not count wagering they class as “low risk” – for example betting on most numbers in roulette. Lastly there can be restrictions and switching between games that count very differently towards the wagering. For example, if you win big playing blackjack, switching to slots may not be allowed.
Casino Welcome Bonuses Conclusion
This can all sound very confusing and complicated: it isn’t. Many casino sites won’t tell you the information we have here. We are just being very honest and very cautious to try and help you avoid disappointment or confusion.
In reality, online casinos, especially the huge names that we recommend, are not trying to catch you out. They are simply trying to protect themselves from people who are trying to catch THEM out.
99.9% of normal casino players need not worry about any of the sorts of issues we have mentioned under miscellaneous. If you are just a normal player, playing naturally, you will be fine.
It is only those players who are trying to game the system by using intricate tactics to try and clear the bonus that need check such small terms and conditions.
Everyone else can simply sit back, claim a great bonus and play their favourite casino games with a boosted balance. That means more fun, longer playing the games, bigger bets and, with a little luck, a nice healthy profit once the bonus wagering is complete!