As casino bonuses remain such a hot topic at the moment, we have written an updated article on tips and tricks for maximising the latest offerings in 2024. What are the most common casino bonuses that players are enjoying, and which casinos are offering the best bonus games and potentially the most lucrative bonuses?
At first, wading through the amount of casino bonuses available can seem like a minefield, but we break it all down a little below so you can go about finding the one that suits you the most.
Table of contents
Different types of casino welcome bonuses explained
Casino welcome bonuses are designed to entice new players onto a platform by offering some kind of freebie. These bonuses come in various forms detailed below and are intended to encourage you to sign up and start playing at a casino, either with no initial deposit, a minimal deposit, or a number of free spins.
👉 The most popular form of welcome bonus is a deposit match combined with a certain number of free spins on a popular game. Currently, the Big Bass series of games seems to be the most popular amongst players.
No deposit bonuses
What are they? These are bonuses in the form of free spins or free bingo, where no deposit is required to claim a very small number of free spins. They are usually available on a specific slot game and come with tight wagering requirements. Free no-deposit bingo typically grants access to a particular bingo room for a period of time without needing to make an initial deposit.
Maximisation tips: Don't expect too much from these bonuses; you are unlikely to win with the small number of free spins provided as part of a no-deposit bonus welcome offer. Use this offer purely to familiarise yourself with a potential online gaming platform.
Deposit match bonuses
What are they? These are bonuses where your initial deposit is matched, usually up to 100%, and capped at a certain limit, most commonly 100% up to, for example, £250. These offer the most potential in terms of winning something back from the free matched bonus. They also come with capped winnings and wagering requirements.
👀 It is, however, becoming increasingly common to find no wagering deposit match bonuses, so keep an eye out for these.
Maximisation tips: Deposit as much as you can comfortably afford on your initial deposit, as a deposit match bonus will typically only apply to your first and sometimes second deposit. There's no point in depositing £10 if you can afford to deposit £100 and get £100 in bonus credits.
Free spins bonuses
What are they? Simply what they say they are—these are free spins available on certain predefined slot games when you make an initial deposit of, for example, £10. You can receive anything between 20 to 100 free spins, usually combined with deposit match bonuses.
Maximisation tips: If you're primarily interested in free spins, deposit the minimum requirement to receive them. As mentioned above though, maximise this type of bonus by depositing as much as you can afford on your initial deposit, grabbing the deposit match and the free spins simultaneously.
Reload bonuses
What are they? Intended to keep you returning to your casino platform, these bonuses for existing players are becoming more common. Once you have signed up to an online casino platform and made a few initial deposits, you will notice weekly, biweekly, and sometimes even daily free spins offers dropping into your inbox or arriving by way of SMS text message.
Maximisation tips: Only accept these offers if you can afford to and if the offer is enticing enough or available on a game that you are interested in playing. These offers are very easy to claim as your account has already been verified and your payment methods are typically set up by this time. Remember, you do not need to accept these offers simply because they are available.
Cashback bonuses
What are they? Similar to other online shopping platforms, these are cashback offers that return a certain percentage every time you deposit and lose a certain amount of money. For example, if you deposit £100 and lose £100, you could receive a 10% cashback as compensation. All British Casino, for example, offers 10% cashback all the time on all player losses.
Maximisation tips: There is no particular way of maximising this type of bonus, but if you are looking for a cashback bonus, make sure you sign up to a casino that offers at least 10% cashback every single time.
Understanding wagering requirements
This is by far the most important detail to look for when claiming any kind of online casino bonus. The wagering requirements are there to keep you playing and returning to the platform after your initial welcome bonus has been used, and to protect the online casino platform from bonus abuse, which has been rife over the last couple of years.
Wagering requirements must be fulfilled before you can withdraw any winnings gained from your bonus spins or credit.
👉 A typical wagering requirement would be anything between 20x to 40x, meaning that should you win, for example, £10 from your free spins, you would need to make further bets or wagers of £200 to £400 before being able to withdraw that £10 win.
This doesn't necessarily involve depositing anywhere near £200 to £400 to achieve this, but it does involve ‘betting' that amount one way or another. In theory, it's possible to achieve this without depositing any more money into your account, but in reality, you probably will have to in order to meet the wagering requirement.
Be aware that different games will contribute different amounts towards meeting the wagering requirement, with slots often being the biggest contributor and table games contributing much less.
Time limits and eligible games
Welcome bonuses will always come with expiry dates. These are time frames within which you must utilise the bonus or the free spins, typically within 72 hours.
👉 It's also common for free spins to be split over a certain number of days, so if you claim a bonus with 50 free spins, you might find that these free spins are made available to you over a three-day period.
Conclusion
Online casinos offer new player welcome bonuses as a means of enticing you onto the platform, with the objective being to win you as a long-lasting customer. These are not get-rich-quick schemes, and you will never win fortunes from a new player welcome bonus.
In our opinion, cashback bonuses offer the biggest long-term benefits if you intend to play regularly at an online casino. As always, be disciplined with your bankroll management and never deposit or spend more than you can afford to lose.
Additionally, only ever claim bonuses from reputable, licensed, and regulated online casinos to ensure that your funds are safe and any wins are paid out.
Also bear in mind that it is very common not to claim offers and promotions made available by online casinos because they come with such stringent wagering requirements. If you genuinely want to play regularly, it can often make more sense to decline the offer altogether.