Almost all online casinos will offer some form of bonus to tempt new customers to try their site, many of which can appear to be irresistibly generous.
However, it’s important to remember that there is no such thing as a free lunch, casino bonus offers need to be used carefully to make the most of the opportunity and avoid any potential pitfalls.
Here are our ten top tips on how to use your casino bonus better:
1. Remember The Purpose Of Bonuses
The main thing to remember about casino bonus offers is why they are there in the first place. While the casino wants you to think of a bonus as a free gift, it is, in fact, largely a marketing ploy designed to have the maximum impact for the minimum cost.
2. Check Out The Casino
A good offer doesn’t necessarily mean it is a good casino. It is important to check the legitimacy, online security and reputation of any site you are thinking of playing.
You should check that the casino you’re considering is registered with the appropriate authorities (usually listed at the bottom of the homepage) and check online for reviews and feedback from existing customers.
3. Read The Small Print
You should never play a casino bonus offer without reading the small print first. The headlines will only give you the best bits about the offer, but the terms and conditions will give you the full picture. If a headline seems too good to be true, you’ll usually see why in the small print.
4. Don’t Invest More Than You Want To
Many bonuses come as a deposit match, so the more you put in, the more ’free money’ you’ll get to play with. However, you shouldn’t let this tempt you into depositing more than you wanted to. You can deposit less than the maximum and still double your money, so there’s no need to over-extend yourself.
5. Understand The Time Limits
Many casino bonus offers have time limits, such as seven days or even 24 hours to use your bonus, to get you playing before you change your mind. Others will drip feed the bonus to get you returning every day and build a habit.
Make sure the timescale of the offer matches the way you want to play, or you could lose your bonus.
6. Look For Wagering Requirements
Wagering requirements are the biggest ‘catch’ of casino bonus offers. If there is a wagering requirement, you will need to replay your winnings a number of times before you can withdraw them. This is to give the casino a better chance of getting their money back and to get you into the habit of playing regularly.
7. Know What You Can Play
When you read the small print, you’ll often find bonus offers are limited to just a few games. For example, you may get 1000 free spins but only be allowed to play them on one or two machines, which are rarely the big jackpot slots. Make sure you can play the games you want with your bonus.
8. Know What You Can Win
If you do win when playing a bonus, you may find that winnings are capped even if you drop the jackpot. Make sure you know the limit before you get excited about winning a fortune.
9. Know How Wins Are Paid
Not only do many wins have wagering requirements, some are not even paid as cash, but as free bets or free spins that cannot be withdrawn.
Because of this, it can sometimes be more profitable to play bonuses with smaller wins, paid in cash, than larger wins that have lots of conditions attached.
10. Remember There Are Other Offers
Remember that there is no obligation to continue to play once you have used your bonus. There are hundreds of different online casinos out there, all with their own offers, so why play with your money, when you could be playing with there’s? Use your offer and move on to the next one.
