What Are Online Casino Wagering Requirements?

If you have played in the online casino world for any length of time, and have claimed a bonus here or there, you will probably be very familiar with online casino wagering requirements. These unpleasant but perfectly fair stipulations are part and parcel of the online casino bonus world, and without them, there would be very few promotions and bonuses for you to claim. But what are they, and how do they work? In this article, we reveal all.

What are casino wagering requirements?

Almost any bonus you claim at any online casino will come with wagering requirements. These wagering requirements quite clearly dictate that players need to wager their bonus amount (and sometimes bonus and deposit totals) a number of times before they can withdraw any winnings they pocket from the bonus. Why?

No running away with the casino’s cash

Generally speaking, there is a very simple rule, and reason why casinos carry wagering requirements. Without them, you could simply claim a massive cash bonus, and then withdraw it. You would in effect be walking away with the casino’s cash, and offering them nothing in return. By having wagering requirements, you are forced to spend the bonus cash, and can’t do a runner with any money that was given to you in good faith.

Seeing how much you have left to stake

It is important that you keep an eye on your wagering requirements. Following a big win, you may wish to take out your winnings. If you haven’t fulfilled your wagering requirements, though, you won’t be able to do that. Most casinos will reveal how much you have left to wager either via the withdrawal screen, or via your account page. Failing that, you can always contact customer support to see how far away from a withdrawal you are.

How do you get wagering requirements down?

Most casinos simply require that you wager the bonus and deposit amount a specific number of times to nullify wagering requirements. For instance, if you claim a deposit bonus of £100, and the wagering requirements are 20x the total bonus, you need to wager £100 a total of 20 times before any withdrawals can be processed. It is common for casinos to have wagering requirements of 20x to 40x in total, some due extend beyond those figures, though.

In order to get your wagering requirements down, you simply need to wager on games at the casino. Slots usually count best towards those requirements, whilst it is possible that table games, video poker and the like may count less. Some games (such as progressive jackpot slots, or in some cases, live dealer games) don’t count at all towards wagering requirements.

When do you incur casino wagering requirements?

In most cases, every time you claim a bonus at an online casino, you will be accepting new wagering requirements. It is often a good idea not to claim new bonuses until you have fulfilled the wagering requirements of the previous bonus you claimed. Always read the terms and conditions before claiming any bonus, to see just what the wagering requirements for that particular offer are.

Wagering requirement free bonuses

Believe it or not, some casino bonuses come free of wagering requirements. These rare deals are often only worth very small sums of cash, and some loyalty bonuses come free of requirements. If you can claim an offer which comes free of wagering requirements, we urge you to do so. Again, just check the terms and conditions of any casino bonus offer you are planning on claiming to see if it really is free of wagering requirements.