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While it’s not all about free spins and promotions, welcome bonuses are the glue that holds together much of the digital casino industry. I’ve yet to come across a new casino that doesn’t offer some form of bonus or promotion for new customers.
In fact, even those that offer only one or two are at a disadvantage, especially when you look at the more established operators, who will have half a dozen welcome promotions and just as many bonuses for existing customers to keep them returning to their site. So, let’s have a look at some of the casino bonuses you can find online at the moment, as well as some of the key factors you should consider.
Popular Types of Casino Bonuses
Although VIP, refer-a-friend, and other bonuses exist on the industry’s periphery, the no-deposit, first-deposit, and free spins bonuses often steal the limelight. This isn’t because they’re better, although many VIP bonuses are as they aim for high-value players⎯with free spins or no deposit bonuses⎯there’s just simply a lot more of them on the market.
There’s no deep psychological research that has resulted in casinos opting for one type of bonus over the other, it’s a basic human mindset⎯why would you play with your own money at a casino when another is offering you the same game that you can play using free credits or cash?
For instance, no deposit bonuses are exactly what they say on the tin. You don’t need to deposit any cash, and while some casinos will sell the idea of a no deposit bonus, you need to be wary of the ones that have you jumping through a ton of verification challenges and say you can’t withdraw any winnings in real cash.
Suppose it only pays out in betting credits, or you’re only allowed to play one game,; this is a lower-quality bonus compared to providers who allow you to use a no deposit bonus on any game and withdraw it whenever you like.
Factors to Look Out For
Wagering Requirements
Free spins are the most common bonus for UK casino gamers, so we’ll start with them. The key variables are the wagering requirements, which are a multiplier number of games you have to play before you can cash your winnings for real cash.
For instance, if a casino game has a 50x wagering requirement, and the bonus is worth £10, this means you have to wager £500 worth of free spins before you can claim any winnings.
It’s important to read through any terms. Bonuses are still a great tool, and you can shop around and get your money’s worth, but casinos will put these measures in place to ensure that people don’t misuse them.
Minimum Deposits, Max Cashout, and Multi-game Bonuses
If you do win big with your bonus, you need to know you can withdraw at least a sizeable chunk of it. PlayFrank Casino has a welcome bonus that requires a £20 minimum deposit before you can use it.
Likewise, Pub Casino has a no max cashout and a £10 minimum deposit with their welcome bonus. Both of these aren’t bad attributes; they just give you an idea of how bonuses operate and how terms and conditions can vary.
Finding some playing value should be the main goal if you’re claiming a bonus, and casinos like PlayFrank, Pub Casino, Winomania, and Casumo are examples of casinos looking to break into the elite of digital casino gaming in the UK.
That’s not to say that there aren’t world-renowned names looking to crack the UK market, too—BetMGM is the latest titan of American gambling looking to branch into the UK and other big international gambling markets.
The most effective way to do this is via a welcome bonus or promotion; it brings people in, and let’s the platform highlight the most impressive components of its service. They’re currently using a £200 matched deposit bonus combined with free spins, so they’re not aiming for just one type of casino gamer.
Again, the best bonuses will try to cover different bases to allow you to explore everything the service offers.
Final Thoughts
The terms and conditions are the main takeaway for online casino gamers in the UK when exploring welcome bonuses. Once you understand terms like wagering requirements, minimum and maximum deposits, and max stakes, you’ll understand how to look for bonuses and the best ones in UK online casinos.
Don’t underestimate the power of online reviews, either, which provide first-hand accounts from people who have used many of these bonuses to try out a new casino platform.
The almost universal opinion on welcome bonuses is that no deposit ones, where you get real cash to play with, are the pinnacle⎯but they’re rare to come across.
Ultimately, as long as you can find a bonus with multiple facets, including free spins, matched deposits, and ones that don’t restrict you to just one or two titles, you’ll be able to use them to supplement your gaming and help save yourself a bit of change as you go from provider to provider, looking at which one you most prefer.
