What to look out for before claiming an online casino bonus

Whenever we look for a casino to join or want to have some extra funds to play with, we’ll be looking for a good bonus to claim. We may be browsing through some of the busiest online casino promotions pages on net looking for that irresistible bonus offer – some will look for a free spins offer, no deposit bonus or a massive welcome match offer. But what makes an online casino bonus good? What are the things to look out for in a bonus? Let’s take a look together at the things you should pay attention to, when claiming an online bonus.

Online casino welcome offers

As most of us know, casino welcome bonuses tend to be the most exciting and usually the most generous bonuses we can find. Why? The reason behind it is quite simple – the casino wants to attract your attention and lure you in, and there’s no better way to do it than with a massive welcome offer. The casinos welcome bonuses have rapidly changed over the years due to many reasons- the competition between operators is bigger than ever with new online casinos popping up every day as well as the fact that more players are trying to abuse casinos by creating multiple accounts.

So what are the current welcome bonus offers that attract players? There is no easy answer to that, as there are many factors that affect the welcome bonus worth.

Welcome bonus types:

100% Match bonus: This is probably the most commonly noticed offer that you can receive as a new player. Many of the 100% welcome bonus offers will also include free spins that are usually divided over several days. It’s common that 100% 1st deposit bonuses are used by casinos that offer a welcome bonus package where you can get smaller match bonus amounts for your 2nd, 3rd and sometimes even 4th deposit at the casino.  Here you need to pay attention to two things- the minimum deposit that is required in order to receive the bonus and the maximum bonus amount. Make sure to choose a casino that allows you to deposit using limits that fit your betting preferences. You’ll find many online casinos that allow you to deposit £20 to receive welcome bonus, while some may require higher deposits than that.

100% + Match bonus : You may notice that some online casinos offer 125%, 150% or even 200% welcome bonuses. Usually it happens with casinos that don’t have a welcome bonus package but rather just have one massive welcome bonus. And if you’re looking to have fun with a good balance boost, offers like this may be a perfect fit for you. An important thing to look out for in this type of offers is the bonus terms – bonus terms are always important, however, the bigger the bonuses are, the more restrictions they may have.

50%-100% Welcome bonus: Although at first you may think that a 50% welcome bonus isn’t a good deal to take, it’s not that black and white. Some casinos offer small welcome bonuses of 50% however, players find them attractive due to the fact that they may have smaller wagering requirements attached. Therefore you can still get a solid deposit boost and wager smaller amount of money before withdrawing winnings. This is a good offer for players who choose to deposit higher amounts.

Wagering Requirements- what is a player-friendly offer?

Wagering requirements are probably one of the most important things you need to pay attention to, when looking for an online casino bonus. The wagering is a multiplier that explains the amount of times you will need to rollover your bonus in order to be able to cash it out. Lately many casinos attach wagering to both – deposit and bonus amount and more rarely you can find an offer that requires only bonus amount to be wagered. The average bonus wagering ranges from 25x-40x deposit+bonus amount, but of course, the best offers are considered to be ones that ask only bonus funds to be wagered. Usually this applies to non-sticky bonuses, which means that first you will be playing with your cash funds that you can withdraw at any time and bonus terms apply only when you have ran out of your cash balance and start playing with bonus funds. However, wagering is something you should pay very close attention to, as it can either make or break your bonus experience.

Restricted games and maximum bets

Another important factor that comes into place when playing with bonuses, is the amount of restricted games and maximum bets. There will always be games that cannot be played while having bonus funds and you can find a list of them in the casinos’ Bonus terms. It’s something you need to read carefully before claiming a bonus, as the list may include some of your favorite games or slots that you didn’t think could be restricted. On another note, sometimes casinos offer bonuses that can be played on specific games only or only specific game provider games. That might change your mind about claiming the particular offer.

Another thing that always applies for casino bonuses is maximum bet. The maximum bet that is allowed to be placed while having bonus can range from as low as £2 per spin/bet and up to £8. The most common maximum bet is £5 but if you consider yourself to be leaning more towards mid-roller or highroller in your betting patterns, it’s something that you need to thoroughly check before claiming an offer.

So what is a good bonus offer?

As we said, there’s no such thing as the perfect bonus because we as players are different in our game, betting and software preferences. However, it’s safe to say that introducing yourself to the casinos’ bonus terms and conditions is vital before claiming any offer. Sometimes the bonus offer might look better than it is which is why you need to be careful and abide by all the rules. In this day and age, as a player you have dozens of online casinos to choose from and most of them offer bonuses- think about what matters to you most as a player and do your research- we know you’ll find the perfect bonus for you!