How do Online Casino No Deposit Bonuses Work?
Last Updated on by James King
If you’re remotely interested in the world of online gambling, then it’s likely that you have come across a ‘no deposit’ offer. In its most basic form, this means that the casino will give you free casino credits or spins simply for opening an account.
Sound too good to be true?
Absolutely not. You see, the online casino space is now highly oversaturated, so competition between operators is fierce. As a result, casinos will offer lucrative bonuses as means to entice you to their site.
Among a number of other terms and conditions, the overarching requirement is that you have never previously held an account with the casino. If you have, you won’t be eligible.
In this article, we at CasinoSites.org give you the ins and outs of how online casino no deposit bonuses work.
What is a No Deposit Bonus?
In a nutshell, a no deposit bonus is a promotion offered by casinos to those that are yet to open an account. As the name suggests, the bonus is credited without you being asked to make a deposit. Instead, you simply need to register an account and the funds will be applied to your balance.
For example, let’s say that the promotion offers a £20 no deposit bonus to new customers. Upon opening an account – which rarely takes more than a few minutes, you will have £20 in bonus funds to play around with. If you are able to meet the casino’s minimum wagering conditions, you will then be able to cash out your bonus funds – plus winnings, to your bank account.
Types of No Deposit Bonuses
There are generally two types of no deposit bonuses in the online casino space. The first is a casino credit that is added to your balance. As we covered in the section above, this will be a fixed amount – such as £10 or £20.
Crucially, no deposit bonuses are usually for smaller amounts. This makes sense when you consider the casino is essentially giving away cash for free. With that said, if you crave a super-large casino bonus, you might be best to give a no deposit bonus a miss, and instead opt for a more lucrative matched deposit bonus
Nevertheless, the second no deposit bonus type is that of free spins. These spins can be used on a specified slot game, which will be stated in the casino’s promotional material. For example, let’s say that the bonus gives you 25 free spins on the Starburst slot title.
Upon opening an account, you will then get to play 25 spins on the slot game without risking your own money. Each and every time you land a win, the winnings will be added to your bonus balance.
As we cover in the next section, these funds will then need to be rolled over before a withdrawal is permitted.
How do Withdraw a No Deposit Bonus out
The biggest roadblock standing in the way of you being able to withdraw your no deposit bonus out is that of the wagering requirements. For those unaware, this refers to the number of times that you need to gamble the bonus funds before you can withdraw the money out as real-world cash.
If the casino didn’t install such a condition, players would be able to withdraw a no deposit bonus as soon as it’s credited! As you can imagine, this wouldn’t be a viable business model.
So, the wagering requirement on your no deposit bonus will be stipulated as a multiple – for example 5x, 20x, 40x, etc. You then need to multiply the wagering requirement by the size of your no deposit bonus.
For example, let’s say that you claimed a £20 no deposit bonus at a wagering multiple of 10x. This means that you would need to gamble at least £200 (£20 x 10x) before a withdrawal is permitted. Once you do, you can then request for the funds to be transferred to your bank account.
Other Terms to Consider
On top of the wagering requirement, there are a number of other terms and conditions on many English casino sites that you need to be made aware of. For example – and as noted earlier, no deposit bonuses are typically only available to players that are yet to register an account with the casino.
Moreover, no deposit bonuses usually come with an expiry date. This is the amount of time that you have to wager the bonus funds before the cash is revoked from your account balance. This is usually just 7 days.
Crucially, you also need to have a firm understanding of what games you are permitted to play with your bonus funds. While this might not be an issue with dedicated free slot spins, it will be if you the bonus comes as a credit.
For example, table games like roulette and blackjack normally contribute just 10% towards your wagering target. This means that a £20 bet would only wipe off £2 from your target, subsequently taking you 10 times longer than a slot game that continues the full 100%.
James King is an iGaming journalist with over a decade worth of expierence. Having worked as part of varous online casinos digital content team, he moved into journalism covering the latest news and devlopments in the iGaming world.
