Casino Bonuses – What Makes a Difference?

By | April 20, 2017

Casino bonuses are available at almost all online casinos. Promotions are designed for different aspects, one being the generation of new players, and the other to reward existing players. The value of these bonuses lies in the extra money a casino promotion generally adds to a deposit, and for those on smaller budgets, this often proves most value. However, those with large budgets also find it appealing for many reasons.

The main difficulty with a casino bonus is that most players fail to invest time in understanding a bonus, and how it relates to their deposit and subsequent bonus. This can often lead to frustration and disappointment, so the importance of fully understanding a casino bonus and its value before taking it up is time well spent. Also, bear in mind that you don’t have to accept a bonus if it’s not something you want.

The value of a bonus comes from a number of different areas, and as you read further, we will highlight those areas and explain them in detail. The purpose is to inform and educate, with the goal being a better gaming experience.

Welcome Bonus and Wagering Requirements

Joining a new casino usually means being offered a welcome bonus. A bonus of this nature will generally offer a 100%-300% match bonus. All bonuses will have some terms relating to wagering conditions. For those new to online gambling, this pertains to the number of times you will be required to wager the amount of your deposit plus the amount of the bonus you received. An example of this would be as follows: You make a deposit of $100, receive a bonus of $200 for a total of $300. The wagering terms state you must wager the deposit/bonus 10x. This will mean your total wagers must total $3000 prior to a withdrawal request.

While the bigger bonuses seem more attractive, you’ll need to consider the wager requirements. Casinos that offer smaller bonuses usually provide lower wager requirements as the risk is less. Let’s assume a 50% bonus with a max bonus value of $200 is offered and has wager requirements of 20x. If you deposited $100 and received $50 as a bonus, your wagering requirements would total $3000. If the bonus was a larger, in this case, let’s assume 200% up to $500 with 30x wagering, then the total wagering, on a deposit of $500, would be $30,000. While the larger seems attractive in the beginning, quickly it becomes unattractive once the wagering requirements are factored into the picture. It does not take a genius to realize the difference.

Read this article for a more detailed explanation of wagering requirements.

How the Game Selection Affects You

Most casinos now provide a greater range of games to choose from, this is evident by the number of slots one can access. Some offer high payout rates, while others are designed to pay less often but generally award larger wins. Game selection has a bearing, but choosing a game to play also is determined by your playing style and budget. If you prefer a large number of small wins, low variance slots are your best bet, however, if you are one who prefers to go the distance and wait for the larger wins, then high variance slots are more suitable for you. Take time to investigate each game prior to playing, review its paytable, bonus features, and available wagering options. This will help you determine the best slots suited for your style of play.

To help you choose, our casino bonuses page is ranked by game, as well as value and wagering. Check out the latest casino bonuses – ranked by game.

The house edge of a game has a part to play in game selection also. Have a read through the following articles to get an idea of how bonuses are designed to work:

Casinos with Fair Bonuses and High Payout Rates

Guts Casino offers new players 4 different bonuses, which gives you up to $300 in free cash. This also includes 100 free spins, boosting your account balance even more. Wager requirements for the bonus are set at 40x, which might seem a little high. However, the free spin winnings have no wager requirements at all, meaning the winnings generated from free spins are ready to be withdrawn and can be used as an added bonus to complete the requirements for the welcome bonus.

Author: Andy Follin

Copywriter, webmaster, and casino systems expert.