Gamblers love low deposit casino bonuses. Who doesn’t like free money to play slots with, with the chance to win even more money? However, many players see wagering requirements as the arch-enemy of the famous online casino bonus. Almost all online casino sites offer lucrative promotions and bonuses, but in most cases, you cannot withdraw the bonus money directly.
First, you have to meet the casino’s wagering requirements. Understanding wagering requirements well makes it easier to find the best casino bonuses and gives your bankroll a strong boost.
In this article, our casino experts explain everything you need to know about wagering requirements and how to beat them. In addition, our team provides you with the best tips on the best online casino sites with the most attractive bonuses.
What are the wagering requirements at online casinos?
Wagering requirements are tied to promotions and bonuses you can get when visiting an online casino. Most casinos offer free spins, welcome bonuses and other promotions. That sounds great, right? Although these types of bonuses are certainly nice extras, in most cases there is an important factor to consider: the wagering requirements.
As the name suggests, wagering requirements stand for the number of times you have to wager the bonus money and your bonus winnings before you can convert them into real money and withdraw your money from the casino.
While you are probably wondering how wagering requirements work, it is important to understand that they differ between the various types of bonuses. For standard bonus money you have to wager the bonus amount a specific number of times, while the wagering requirements for a free spins bonus are determined by the amount you win with them.
Can you bypass wagering requirements?
If you play at an online casino that offers bonuses, you probably can’t bypass the wagering requirements. If there are wagering requirements attached to the specific bonus offer you want to use, you simply can’t avoid them. But you can deal with them wisely and reduce the impact of wagering requirements in various ways:
Look at both the wagering requirements and the bonus amount
Don’t get tempted by the biggest bonus amounts when looking for bonuses. Carefully review the wagering requirements and other bonus terms. Always read the fine print. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Choose a casino without wagering requirements
– Some casinos go a step further and offer real cash bonuses without any wagering requirements attached. In most cases these types of bonuses are less lucrative than promotions with wagering requirements, but they are certainly worth looking for.
Look for special bonuses without wagering requirements
Some online casinos reward players with special bonuses that have no wagering requirements attached. These can be cashback promotions (which are usually part of loyalty programs), free stuff, event tickets and more.
Declining bonuses
Some players, especially high rollers, prefer to only have real money in their casino account, and prefer not having to deal with wagering requirements. With most new online casinos it is possible to simply not make use of your bonus so you don’t have to play it through either. We do not recommend doing this, because it is always worthwhile to take advantage of casino bonuses. Firstly, because it allows you to try out games and play without having to risk your own money. Secondly, because in many cases you will meet the wagering requirements, allowing you to earn some extra money.
Check how much a game contributes to the wagering requirements
– At most casinos, different types of games contribute in different ways to unlocking a bonus. For example, if online slots contribute 100% towards unlocking a bonus, and table games 20%, then every euro you wager playing slots contributes 100% to the wagering requirements. However, for every euro you wager at the roulette table, only 20 cents contribute to unlocking the bonus. So always read the Terms and Conditions well before playing your favorite games.
Calculating wagering requirements
When choosing a casino bonus, it’s good to know exactly what the wagering requirements mean. Luckily, it’s very easy to calculate the wagering requirements. You can do this yourself using the following formula:
Bonus amount x wagering requirement = total amount to wager
You can apply this simple formula to all wagering requirements to calculate exactly how much you need to wager in total. Let’s take an example to show how this translates into real money amounts:
Let’s say the wagering requirements for a bonus are 20x, and you claim an online casino welcome bonus where you get a 100% bonus on top of your first deposit. For example, if you deposit $100, this means the casino will deposit an additional $100 bonus money into your account. If the wagering requirements for this bonus are 20x, you can apply the following calculation:
$100 x 20 = $2,000
This means you need to wager a total of $2,000 to meet the wagering requirements before you can convert the $100 bonus money into real money. This may seem like a high and unachievable amount, but in reality it is certainly not impossible to meet these wagering requirements.
At some casinos, the wagering requirements apply to both the bonus amount and the deposited amount with which you received the bonus. The formula for calculating the bonus requirements is then:
(Bonus amount + deposited amount) x wagering requirement = total amount to wager
If we use the same bonus terms as above, the deposited amount is now added to the calculation as follows:
($100 + $100) x 20 = $4,000
Sometimes you need help to be bothered to do the math yourself. In that case, it’s worth looking around for one of the available online calculators to calculate wagering requirements.
Free spins and wagering requirements
Many casino bonuses are paid out as cash amounts. These can be deposit bonuses, no deposit bonuses or cashback promotions, for example. However, one of the most popular online casino bonuses remains the free spins promotion. As the name suggests, with this promotion you receive several free spins for a specific online slot machine. Casino sites usually use this bonus as a way to highlight a new or popular slot machine.
Although each free spin has a monetary value (usually the minimum bet available on the slot machine), these are usually minimal amounts. With free spins, the wagering requirements are therefore often different. In this case, the wagering requirements apply to the potential winnings you achieve with the free spins, instead of the value of the free spins themselves. However, calculating wagering requirements for free spins is just as easy. You can do this by simply multiplying the amount won by the wagering requirement:
Potential win x wagering requirement = total amount to wager
For example, if you win $15 playing the free spins, multiply that amount by the wagering requirement. If the wagering requirements are 30x, for example, the total amount to wager in this case is:
– $15 x 30 = $450
How to beat the wagering requirements
If the casino bonus you have chosen has wagering requirements, you need to meet these conditions to collect the bonus money. However, this does not mean that you cannot use strategies to make it easier to unlock the bonus. Below are some ways that make it easier to meet wagering requirements:
Read the terms and conditions
Good advice for all casino gamblers is to make it a routine to always read the fine print. By reading through the casino’s terms and conditions, you can get all relevant information about the various rules attached to a bonus. Bonuses often have other conditions besides just the wagering requirements, such as time limits and the payment method for your deposit.
Choose the best low deposit casinos
Looking for the best $1 online casino sites is a good way to find the best bonuses with the easiest to clear wagering requirements. A bonus with 20x wagering requirements is simply put better than a bonus of the same amount that you have to play through 40x. Doing research and comparing different casinos can help you find the gems among the bonuses.
You can also simply check out our list of the best online casinos. Via our list you quickly gain access to the most reputable $1 casino sites that have the best bonuses available. Our team always reads the fine print and takes this into account when evaluating and recommending casino bonuses. In addition to carefully selecting our bonuses, all casinos recommended on our website are fully licensed and regulated. Our expert team is always looking for sites with the best game selection, customer service and designs.
Think about which games you play
As important as it is to find the right casino, it is just as important to find the right games. Online casino bonuses often give different contribution percentages to different games, which determine how much they contribute to meeting wagering requirements. This is where it becomes useful again to read the fine print and find out which games contribute most to unlocking bonuses.
In addition, the general bonus terms and conditions also tell you which games the bonus applies to. Keep in mind that not all games in an online casino contribute to meeting wagering requirements. Of course, you prefer to play games where you get value for money and which makes it easier to meet wagering requirements.
Although there are exceptions and differences between the different casinos, in most cases you can assume that online slots contribute 100% to meeting wagering requirements. With table and card games it is lower, usually around 50% or less.
Choose the right slot machines
So are online slots the games you should play to meet wagering requirements? Yes, but you need to keep a few things in mind when choosing which games to play. Some games make it easier to unlock the bonus than others.
This is because not all slot machines are the same. They all have a different variance level and a different Return to Player (RTP). You need to pay close attention to these two pieces of data. Although the payouts are lower on low variance slot machines, on average they pay out prizes more frequently. Keep these factors in mind and consciously choose which slot machines you want to play to ensure you meet wagering requirements faster.
If you manage to grab some nice payouts and build up your balance, it’s a good idea to leave the volatile slot machines and switch to lower variance games. Although lower variance slot machines with a higher RTP don’t pay out huge payouts, you do win smaller prizes more often. The bankroll you’ve built up lasts longer, allowing you to keep playing without having to deposit again.
Time Limits, Contribution Percentage and Wager Turnover of Wagering Requirements
If you visit an online casino with the plan to unlock an attractive bonus, aside from the wagering requirements, there are a few things you need to take into account:
Time limits
Casino sites almost always set a time limit for a bonus. This is the number of days you have to meet the wagering requirements and convert the bonus money into real money. If you think about it, it makes sense for the casino to do this. If players didn’t have a time limit, it would be easier for them to find ways to meet wagering requirements.
You can find the time limit in the bonus terms, but typical time limits are within 10 days, 30 days or 90 days. However, it’s possible to encounter all kinds of different time limits, depending on what the casino decides.
Contribution percentages and wager turnover
The contribution percentage, or wager turnover, is the percentage of each bet on the game you are playing, that the online casino counts towards unlocking a bonus. Some games contribute a higher percentage of your placed bets to meeting wagering requirements. This means you need to carefully choose your games if you are determined to unlock your bonus.
Slot machines are by far your best option if you plan on meeting the wagering requirements of a bonus. Other casino classics like Blackjack, Roulette and Poker have lower contribution percentages.
As always, you can read through the terms and conditions of each bonus to find out what the contribution percentage is. Some games do not qualify at all, meaning they contribute 0% to unlocking bonuses. The terms and conditions will tell you which games are best avoided if you intend to unlock your bonus.
Wagering requirements and bonus abuse
Bonus abuse sounds like an old-fashioned term from the early days of online casinos when the rules were often less clear. Indeed, in the beginning of casino websites, some players abused bonuses and tried to take advantage of casinos. This resulted in some major losses for casino providers.
This abuse prompted online casinos to introduce strict rules, such as wagering requirements and contribution percentages, to prevent players from winning free money by abusing bonuses. In the modern online casino era, it has become much more difficult to abuse the system, even if it was never really illegal or fraudulent.
Despite most players wanting to behave ethically and adhere to casino etiquette, there are still some players trying to bend the rules. They do this by creating multiple accounts, canceling transactions after claiming bonuses and spending money, and systematically visiting multiple casinos hunting for bonuses.
It is never advisable to try to cheat in a casino. Aside from obviously violating, you will never get paid out if caught. In addition, you will be banned from the casino. And nowadays, since casinos are regulated, fraudsters may even risk prosecution.