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Casino Bonus

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What if we said that you could get something extra free, just for doing what you would have done anyway?

Well that’s how casino bonuses work!

Lucky for you, The Genie loves a bonus, so he’s helped us put together this guide so you can pick the best casino bonus available!

Best Casino Bonus Canada 2020

How Do Casino Bonuses Work?

Some bonuses reward loyalty, and are reserved for existing members, but when you join a casino as a new member, you’ll likely be most interested in getting the best sign-up bonus. The 3 main types are welcome cash bonuses, no deposit bonuses, and free spins…

This guide should help you see what’s best for you and make a savvy choice!

1) Casino Welcome Cash Bonuses

The most eye-catching bonus offered by many casinos is a welcome cash bonus… And it pretty much does what it says on the tin, offering new members a cash bonus to say ‘Welcome’ when they sign-up and make their first deposit!

2) Casino No-Deposit Bonuses

Believe it or not, no deposit bonuses are a lot like standard welcome cash bonuses – only you don’t need to make a deposit! (Maybe you guessed that from the name?) A no deposit bonus is the perfect way to start gambling on a site you’ve never used before, since you get to bet using your bonus funds, without putting up your own money. We have seen $10 free no deposit bonuses as well as $20 free no deposit bonus offers at some of the best online casinos.

And, if you don’t like the site that’s no problem, you can walk away without having spent a thing!

3) Free Spins

Instead of offering cash to gamble, many casinos offer free spins for new members instead – that means you get a free go on selected games (often slots – hence ‘free spins’).

Essentially, free spins and cash bonuses are different ways of presenting something very similar – the chance for you to gamble without using your own cash! Just like cash bonuses, some casinos offer no deposit free spins!

So, How Do the Numbers Work?

Naturally, any savvy gambler wants the best bang for their buck! But choosing the best casino bonus for you means you’ll need to understand the numbers.

Bonuses are normally explained in either cash or percentage terms. That means you’ll see offers like ‘Get $20 free when you deposit $50’ – which couldn’t be simpler. But how do percentages work?

Deposit bonuses offered on a percentage basis relate to the amount of your own cash you’ve paid in – so a 100% deposit bonus on a $50 deposit would equal $50 free as a bonus. It’s worth saying that many casinos set an upper limit (so you might see an offer for a 100% deposit bonus up to $1000, for example).

It can be worth taking the time to work out which bonus structure gives you the best return!

How Do Casino Wagering Requirements Work?

Casinos that offer the best casino bonuses have to protect themselves from members simply stealing that money (i.e. signing-up, claiming a bonus, and walking away with the free cash!) The casinos do this by applying wagering requirements that mean that cash bonuses and winnings from free spins have to be wagered (bet) a set number of times before being eligible for withdrawal.

The casinos publish their wagering requirements in their T’s&C’s – and, though these requirements can look a little complex, it’s worth remembering that they’re really just there to protect the gambling sites from abuse and to allow the casinos to offer their services to genuine gamblers.

How Do I Get a Casino Bonus?

Easy! Pick from the Genie’s list of the best casino bonuses – click through to the site, sign-up, and enjoy your reward! Additionally, you can also have a lot at our casino bonus codes page, where you can bag yourself a top deal.

Not Every Bonus is Worth It

This in-depth article will provide you with every information you need to get the best online casino bonuses in Canada. We will explain the things you have to look out for whenever you come across a tempting offer and how you can sort the good from the bad bonuses. Since you have a wide range of options to choose from, why would you want to settle for less by not exploring the best bonuses for your gaming experience?

With the information contained in this article, you will in no time learn how to hunt for the best bonuses in over hundreds of online casinos and also get the best value for your deposits.

Wagering Requirements

If you have tried playing games in online casinos, then you would be familiar with wagering requirements. The wagering requirements are usually the amount you need to play before you can be allowed to withdraw your bonus from the casino. For instance, if you get a bonus of $200 with 40 times wagering requirements on that bonus amount you will need to wager your $200 the number of times to get $8,000 before it becomes your own and it is only then that you can withdraw the amount.

Most casino bonuses with or without a deposit, usually are attached to wagering requirements. It is the only means that the casinos use to protect themselves from losing their free money. It wouldn’t benefit the casino if they were to just be giving out a lot of money for free. It would not be a profitable business for them.

Since it is accepted that casinos will normally have wagering requirements, how do you determine the casinos with fair and unfair offers? Which casino makes it almost impossible for you to get any value from your casino free bonus.

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Understanding the Idea behind online casino bonuses

We already explained why all casinos are giving out free cash bonuses to their players and it is clear that it is a marketing strategy to draw more people to their side. The question is how are these offers generated? Casinos are one of the largest profitable business in the world today. They are successful because of their strategy in knowing the logic behind their games and counting on the fact that people will not be making the best prudent decisions most times. The casino industry keeps booming every day and it is safe to say that their strategy is really working. Is there any secret behind the bonus offers that these casinos keep coming up with? The truth is casinos do not want to be giving out any free money and you shouldn’t seem surprised by this statement because the aim of every business is to make money. It wouldn’t do well for a business to give away money it doesn’t have. Giving things for free, however, is a way to attract people to patronize a business. Online casinos do this by offering cash bonuses and no deposit free spins so many players can sign up with them. If you are to consider what amount of money you will be getting, online casinos will need to consider many factors so that they don’t eventually lose in the process of giving you more than they ought to. They calculate by way of infographic bonuses variables.

Different types of bonuses

This process involves a lot and online casinos usually give bonuses with a reasonable expectation. In most cases, if you get $100 bonus, a casino will expect you to play if on their games to get a return of 95% which means you are likely losing just 5% average for every spin. If a player plays a spin which is valued at $1 and runs on a statistical average, it will be that the players are losing 5c for every spin. The player will be losing about 2000 spins at that rate after the player has wagered $2000 or 20x the bonus. The wagering requirements from a casino are usually at a point where the player can meet up or break even and is usually between 30 to 35X. This example given does not mean it applies to all slots. There is usually a Return to Player (RTP) which is above 95% and you can find most slots machines around 96.5% to 97%.

Real Wagering Requirements: Avoid Offers That Are Too Good To Be True

If you have always thought that every offer you hear is worth looking into, it is time you try another strategy. It wouldn’t realistic for casinos to be throwing out money except on special occasions. If a bonus has realistic playthroughs, it will be better for players because it would increase their bankroll and give them a chance to play as well as win big. The purpose of every player on a casino site is to play games and win big not to end up with a loss of $20 after making a deposit of $500. From everything that has been discussed so far in this article, one can safely say that realistic wagering requirements usually fall around 30 to 35x region. If it falls below this figure, it would be amazing for players but if it goes above 40x, the wagering requirements should be considered outrageous and players must avoid such bonus offers as a thumb rule. There are, however, exceptions in this case, especially when a casino is giving a large percentage bonus like 200% including your deposit. This will boost your chances of profit at the same time they usually come with steeper wagering requirements. If the casino is just offering a 100% match bonus, it would only be realistic for them to attach it with nothing more than a 35x wagering requirement.

Sticky Bonus

If a casino offers a cash bonus, they attach it with wagering requirements which prevents you from withdrawing immediately until you meet with their conditions. After you have met up with the conditions and you withdraw, the original bonus amount is usually deducted from your balance. For example, if you make a deposit of $200 and get a bonus of 150%, it would give you a total of $500 to play games online. The casino then tells you to wager 40x the bonus. After you eventually play for several hours and reach the stated amount, it will leave you with $650 in your account. This is an incredible profit which you are entitled at this point to withdraw. After making a request for withdrawal, you get only $350, it might seem surprising where all the other money went. Some players at this point may go ahead and call the casinos to support to explain that they have met with all the wagering requirements and they do not understand why this has happened. The casino will then explain that that bonus amount was just for play only and not withdrawable. The truth is there are a lot of sticky bonuses and many people think that they are scams. That is why it is always good to identify the bonus offers from casinos by reading their terms and conditions very clearly. Most times the words are written clearly in the terms and conditions which players fail to look at before signing up for a casino bonus. You should avoid sticky bonuses except maybe if they come with very little wagering requirements like 10x.

As we mentioned earlier, it can be a difficult meeting with the wagering requirements and you still have the bonus to keep. If you know that the bonus will be taken away from your balance, why would you want to play such a game in the first instance?

There are many bonuses offered by online casinos that are not sticky and allows you to withdraw the money won after meeting up with the wagering requirements. It wouldn’t be to your advantage to even consider sticky bonuses.

Game Restrictions

Have you taken your time to read through the long terms and conditions of online casinos? If you have, then you should have seen some restrictions that state what you are allowed to play and what type of games are part of the wagering requirements. You won’t want to just sit down playing a roulette game until you have been able to meet up with your bonus requirements.

It may be easy to wager the required bonus on a Roulette or Blackjack game but most times online casinos will always put a clause saying that bets on these games will not count when wagering of that only a part of the total bet on these games will count. This also applies to video poker games.

Most times, it is slot games that players can engage in and all your bets will count towards the bonus. There are also exceptions in slot games because some casinos will exclude you from playing slot games with your free bonus money. The reason for this is usually that these slots may have a high RTP which will probably be over 97% and even higher.

The casinos would not want you to play these games because you will end up making more money than is expected within a short period. In order words, you will earn more with the bonus money. Instead of increasing the wagering requirements for all players, the casino will exclude these games from the wagering list. This is another reason why players should always read the casinos terms and conditions when looking for the best online casino bonuses. There are usually changes that happen most times and players may find it difficult to keep track of them. The casinos make it so that it is only a few slot games that you won’t be able to play with the free bonus. If you play slots that are not under the eligible games, it would make your bonus void and you may not know until you try to withdraw your winnings. Take time to study the bonus rules so that eventually you won’t end up losing all your winnings technically.

When a casino gives you a bonus, they usually make it clear how much they expect you to wager in their terms and conditions. This amount is usually between 5% to 10% of the total amount of bonus. For instance, if you get a bonus of $100, the casino will not allow you to bet more than $5 to $10 on a single spin or a single hand in a blackjack game. The reason is basically for risk management.

Casinos are not concerned about how much a player bets but at the same time they don’t want a situation where you get to win huge with the bonus. If many people start winning huge amounts of money from free bonuses, it would be outside the calculation of the casinos. You can only make bigger bets with your own deposit money and not with bonus funds.

Types of Online Casino Bonuses

There are many bonuses you will find online from online casinos and the best ones include:

First deposit bonus

All Canadian online casinos give players a bonus when they make their first deposit. The bonus usually falls between 25% to 125% of the amount they pay into the casino. All you will need to do is set up your account, make a deposit and probably enter a bonus code which you can get through affiliate sites. The first deposit bonus usually comes with wagering requirements that you will need to meet before the withdrawal. The bonus amounts given out can be in increments of $5 to $20 for every milestone you reach as you play.

No Deposit Bonus

This is also a common bonus from some casinos online where you don’t have to make any deposit before you can start playing games. Some casinos will give you free cash or free spins for just signing up with them. Sometimes this bonus also comes with the first deposit bonus.

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Reload Bonus

This type of bonus is usually given when you make a second deposit into your casino account. The bonus is usually lower than the first deposit bonus.

The reload bonus is awarded when you make another deposit into your account. Reloads tend to be less generous than first deposit offers, ranging from 25% to 75%. The same type of play through requirements that govern initial deposit rewards are applied to reloads.

Cashback bonus

Online casino slots sites also give new players a cash back bonus. The money is usually a percentage of the losses for the month. There is usually no wagering requirements for this type of bonus offer.

Game Bonus

There are some promotions that are attached to some games online. Sometimes it could be a cashback bonus on a particular slot game or a reload bonus that can only be claimed from a particular set of games.

Free Spins Casino Bonuses

Free spins are usually packed together with other bonuses. Some casinos give free spins on particular slot games. Casinos offer free spins on popular games like Starburst and other video slot games. You can get hundreds of spins from online casinos with or without deposit. Usually the free spins without deposit are usually small like 10 free spins but those casinos that offer larger spins like up to 200 free spins will require that players make a deposit.

Also when playing some slot games, players get free bonus rounds in between games where they can get free spins to play a free round. No deposit free spins given during sign up are usually attached to wagering requirements. When a uses the free spins, the bonus amount will need to be wagered to a certain amount before it can be withdrawn.

How To Recognize the Best Casino Bonuses

Here is a quick summary of all that has been said so far about finding the best online casino bonuses. If you are looking for the best bonus offers, you should look out for the following:

Bonus amount

This should be what you notice at first before considering any other thing. The amount you get is when you make a deposit or you are registering with an online casino is important so that you know exactly what extra money you are getting from your wager.

Wagering Requirements

Even if the bonus is big, is it going to be worth it or is it realistic? You need to know if you would be able to reach the wagering requirements. Wagering requirements of more than 35x are usually unrealistic.

Staying away from “sticky” bonuses

This is where you get a bonus which is meant for free play only. The bonus is what you can use to play with but after meeting the wagering requirements, the bonus amount will be removed when you need to withdraw. Look through the casino's terms and conditions to know if they are offering this type of bonus.

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Ultimate Guide to Casino Bonuses In Canada

If there is anything gamblers agree on when it comes to online casinos is the fact that getting the best bonuses can make a big difference. There are so many online casinos in the United Kingdom and many of them offer similar games to players. That is why most of them offer customers more so they can visit their site for games. They know there is a lot of competition in the gambling industry and that they need to offer players more than just the games they have to keep them on their site. That is the reason for the free cash bonuses they keep throwing out.

Well, that isn’t all, there is more to the free bonus:

First, you should know that all casino bonuses are different and they may sound really great but you will still wonder why casinos will be giving away a lot of free money out with all the impressive bonuses that come with their offers. Actually, the value of the free bonus isn’t always very big, it has a small value compared to when you are playing with your real cash. As an inexperienced player, it may be difficult to know what to look out for when choosing a casino bonus and that is why we have prepared this guide to help you get the best online casino bonuses in the United Kingdom.

Conclusion

It can be quite difficult to decide which casino bonus is the best one especially since there are so many of them been offered by all casinos. Hopefully, this article has provided sufficient information that will help you in your search. Many new casino sites offer multiple promotions running at the same time.

Find which bonus you think that will be profitable for you in the long run and ask yourself questions like, would you be able to meet up with the wagering requirements? Or do you enjoy playing the games on the casino site?

If you are able to decide on this, it will help you decide which of the casinos to claim bonuses from among the several casinos online. You can also check out reviews from players online who are always happy to give their first-hand experience with online casinos.

Also look through the fine print of the casino’s terms and conditions to learn everything you can about what the casino is offering. It is from these terms that you can tell if the requirements for the bonus are achievable and if the bonus will be in your favour.

Free bonuses from casinos are usually great to be because they are free and you do not risk losing your own money. Finding the best bonuses will help you on your way to getting the best gambling experience online. Now that you understand everything about online casino bonuses, you can then take advantage of signing up to play games online.