Some of the best things that can come out of your online gambling sessions are the rewards from online casino bonuses. These are essentially rewards offered to you by a casino as a way of either attracting new players to its website, keeping existing players or saying thank you to loyal players.
With so many excellent online casinos out there, the industry has become very cut-throat. Online casinos have had to up their ante in recent years with better bonuses and richer rewards to woo new clients and retain their existing ones. Thankfully, it’s you – the player – who comes out of this situation the clear winner.
But online bonuses come in all shapes and sizes and it can become quite overwhelming to understand them and how to apply them. Even the most seasoned players need some help in this department now and then. Thankfully, our team at Casino Midnight has put together an awesome comprehensive guide to help you navigate the different offers available out there.
Our guide teaches you how to use the different types of online bonuses so that they work in your favor and you get to reap all the benefits!
The Different Kinds of Casino Bonuses
We’ve already established that bonuses at online betting sites are a way for casino to reward new and returning players. Obviously, not every bonus suits all types of players. If you’re new to the online casino, you’ll get the best benefits from a site’s welcome bonus. If you’re a returning player, you’ll be able to boost your bankroll with cashback bonuses or reload bonuses. Casinos know how to reward their most loyal customers in an extra way, and they even say thank you to you for referring your friends in the form of a bonus. There is always something for everyone!
The purpose of an online casino bonus, from the casino’s point of view, is to encourage you to try its site and to show you what it has to offer. From your point of view, it’s to increase the size of the sum which you have set aside for playing online or to enjoy free spins and other rewards. This is certainly the ultimate win-win scenario!
Welcome Bonus
You know what they say about making a good first impression, and that goes for online casinos as well. If a site wants to show off what it has to offer, it has to give you a very good reason to open an account and start playing the games. As such, you’ll find that the most generous bonuses are Welcome Bonuses (also known as First Time Deposit Bonuses, New Player Bonuses and by other names.). They are the casino’s one-shot to get you to walk in through its virtual doors.
The welcome bonus is usually in the form of a match offer. In other words, the virtual betting site says that it will match your first deposit by a certain percentage.
Here’s an example:
- If the offer is for a 100% bonus on your first deposit up to $100, it means that if you intend depositing $100 into your account, the casino will match that sum by another $100.
- All in all, you’ll have $200 to play with.
- If you only deposit $50, the 100% match bonus rewards you with an extra $50.
- In this example, you can only have your deposit matched up to $100.
A new player bonus can sometimes be part of a Welcome Bonus package, which means that the web casino offers you match bonuses over your first few deposits. Some Welcome Bonus packages also incorporate free spins and other rewards to make them extra lucrative.
A typical welcome bonus package would look like this:
- Your first deposit is met by a 100% match bonus.
- Then your second and third deposits see you rewarded with 50% match bonuses.
- All three of these deposits also see you rewarded with 10 free spins on each deposit.
No Deposit Bonus
At times, an online betting site may want to do something extra special for new players and start rewarding them even before they make their first deposit – hence its name: A No Deposit Bonus. The casino offers free casino credits – usually a sum smaller than a regular match bonus – to use at the site.
The purpose of this type of bonus is to test-drive the games and software at the internet casino without the need to pay anything out from your bankroll just yet. Some sites will allow you to keep any winnings you may make from the free casino credits. Other gambling sites may offer their No Deposit Bonus in the form of free spins on new or popular slot games.
How would this work?
- Register with the online casino and open an account.
- You do not need to make a deposit.
- The casino will credit your account with free cash or spins.
Free Spins
Another way for an online casino to reward you is by offering free spins on slot games in its portfolio. Casino software groups are always releasing new titles on a regular basis. What better way to entice new and returning players than with free spins on new slot games? Some web casinos pinpoint the most popular titles and throw in some free spins on much-loved slots. Free spins offers differ from site to site, whether in the number of free games, the criteria that needs to be met or the target audience.
Reload Bonus
Let’s say that you redeemed a Welcome Bonus offered to you by a virtual casino. What now? What’s to stop you going off to another site to try it out? Online casinos want to do all they can to retain their existing customers and one of the ways to do so is to offer a Reload Bonus. This is usually in the form of a match bonus; ie. the betting site promises to match your next deposit up to a certain percentage.
High Roller Bonus
You can’t blame online casinos for wanting to entice those players with the fattest wallets. To do so, they’ll throw in extra rewards for High Roller players. If you’re lucky enough to be blessed with a larger-than-normal bankroll and you want to get the best for your buck, check out the High Roller bonuses offered by virtual casinos. Again, the size of the bonus and its format will differ from site to site but the idea is generally the same: The more you deposit, the higher the rewards.
VIP Bonus
Another way for casinos to retain existing customers is through loyalty points and VIP Clubs. The more you wager at the site, the more points you can earn and the higher you climb up the loyalty levels. The higher the level, the greater the rewards. You get to enjoy multiple rewards including exclusive VIP bonuses, special gifts and lots of other perks. The online casino makes sure that you have every reason to continue playing at the site.
Cashback Bonus
There are times when Lady Luck will step out of the House for a while, and you may encounter a losing streak. Just so that you don’t get despondent, the web casino will offer you a Cashback Bonus. This means that a percentage of the cash that you lose during your gaming session will be returned to you by the casino.
Here’s an example:
- During your roulette session, you lose $100.
- The online casino promises you a 20% Cashback Bonus on your losses.
- The casino credits your account for $20 (20% of your $100 loss).
Refer-a-Friend Bonus
When you find a great online casino, you’ll want to share the news with your friends, family and acquaintances. Not only will you be spreading the love, but you’ll also be able to claim rewards for doing so. For any friend of yours that signs up at the casino and makes a deposit, you’ll be given casino credits for your own use. How cool is that?
Payment Methods Bonus
Sometimes gambling site wants to encourage you to use a certain payment method to make a deposit into your account and pay for your gaming fun. To do so, it promises an extra bonus if you use one of those methods, such as Neteller or Swift. You’ll usually enter the bonus code when you make your deposit and the casino will credit you back with a certain percentage of your deposit amount.
General Conditions and Wagering Requirements
One of the most important things that you need to remember about online bonuses is that they all come with conditions and requirements. Each bonus has its own terms and conditions and it is imperative that you read them and understand them before redeeming the bonus. Just like you wouldn’t go into a financial transaction without reading the fine print, so too should you make sure that you understand and accept the wagering requirements.
Once you understand this very important concept, it’s time to familiarize yourself with some of the more common conditions that you’ll come across. If you don’t understand the terms and conditions, contact the online casino’s customer support team and ask for clarification.
Wagering Requirements
The web casino will let you know the bonus’ wagering requirement (aka the play through requirements) which is the amount of money you need to wager before you can withdraw the bonus and any related winnings. You’ll be told that the bonus (and/or bonus related winnings and/or first deposit) needs to be wagered a certain number of times before you can make a withdrawal.
Here’s an example: The casino offers a $60 when you make your first deposit of $20 with a wagering requirement of 10 x. To work out how much you have to wager before you can make a withdrawal, you will use this equation: Casino bonus ($60) x wagering requirement (10 x) = the total sum that needs to be wagered before you can withdraw $600.
- Minimum and Maximum Amounts: Online bonuses may be limited to minimum and maximum amounts. You may see you need to wager a minimum of $20 to be eligible for a bonus. Or you may see that the bonus is available up to a certain amount, eg. 100% bonus up to $100 – meaning that you can’t claim any amount above $100.
- Excluded Games: In continuation of the point regarding Wagering Requirements, not all games count towards these conditions, while some games count more than others. Casinos will usually exclude all jackpot games with a progressive jackpot, all table games and all Live Casino games. High volatility slots may also be kept off the list.
- Target Audience: Not all bonuses target all players. Make sure that you are eligible for the casino bonus. Some bonuses require that you are a complete newcomer to the casino, while others require that you have made a deposit into your account in the past. Some require you to deposit a certain amount before you can claim the bonus. For example, if you are an amateur online casino gambler with limited bankroll, you’ll want to avoid the Highroller Bonus.
Ask yourself the following questions before signing up for an online bonus:
- Until when is the online bonus valid? You want to make sure that you have enough time to meet the wagering requirements of an offer before it expires. Check for dates.
- What is the minimum qualifying deposit? Check how much you need to deposit before you can be eligible for the promotion.
- Can I deposit with any banking method in order to qualify for the promotion? Some offers, especially Payment Method Bonuses, are limited to specific banking methods. Make sure that the banking method actually suits your gaming preferences and geolocation before redeeming the bonus. Don’t take it for the sake of taking it.
- Which games contribute towards the wagering requirements? Don’t just assume that your favorite games will count towards a bonus’ wagering requirements. If you’re a blackjack fan, for example, it may take you a long time to meet those requirements, since most bonuses exclude table games.