What Is an Online Casino Bonus and Should You Use One?

Although gambling is a controversial topic in India, playing casino online has been on a steady rise in the past couple of years. Many established gambling sites in Europe have been switching their focus to India while new casino sites in Asia have been launching on a regular basis. 

As illustrated by the list of online casinos recommended by GamblingBaba, all casino sites offer new players a bonus. This is a strategy that they use to attract new players. While the bonuses may be great to use, it’s important to know that they often appear better than they actually are. 

To avoid any pitfalls, we are here to clarify things for you and tell you the most important things you need to know about casino bonuses in order to make the most out of them. 

What Is a Bonus?

There are many types of casino bonuses on ufabet, but the most common one offered to new players is a matched deposit bonus. An example of this would be a 100% bonus up to ₹50,000. 

This means that if you make a cash deposit of ₹1,000, the casino site would add another ₹1,000 to your balance. Likewise, if you deposited ₹20,000, they would add another ₹20,000. 

Since the bonus in our example is up to ₹50,000, you could never receive more than this amount. 

Wagering Requirements

While the extra money you get from a casino bonus will be credited to your casino balance and can be used to play casino games, it is not your money per se. All casino bonuses come with thorough terms and conditions that you can read about at the online casino. A wagering requirement is a common one.

This requirement tells you that the bonus you have received must be staked a certain number of times before the money is yours and can be cashed out. It may, for instance, be that the wagering requirement is 40x. If you received a bonus of ₹1,000, you would then have to stake a total of ₹40,000 before you could withdraw the money. 

Connected to this wagering requirement is usually a time limit. This means that you have a limited time to do the required staking. If you don’t manage in time, the received bonus would be lost. 

A wagering contribution is also an important condition related to wagering requirements. This is a term that states that different games have different contributions to the requirement. It may be that stakes placed on slot machines contribute 100%, while stakes placed on live casino games only contribute 10%.

In other words, if you would only play live casino games, the 40x wagering requirement would actually be ten times higher – 400x. 

Bonus Terms Will Vary a Lot

It may not be difficult to understand the basics of wagering requirements, but it gets a lot trickier when you realize that all casino sites have their own spin on them.

For instance, at some online casinos, the wagering requirement is based solely on the received bonus. Then you also have casino sites where it is based on your deposited amount as well as the bonus sum. 

Another varying aspect is how your real money deposit and bonus money is used. Most commonly, your real money is used up first as you play and then the bonus. However, there are also sites where they are used proportionally with each other, 50/50. 

With some casino bonuses, only stakes placed with the actual bonus money will count towards the wagering requirement, while real money stakes also qualify with some bonuses. 

The time you must wager a bonus within can also vary from 7 days to 30 days. So can the wagering contribution. At some online casinos, live dealer games have 100% contribution and at some, they do not contribute at all to the wagering requirement. 

Then you have bonuses that are marketed as being free from a wagering requirement. While these have no wagering that has to be done before you are able to cash out, you can never withdraw the actual bonus amount. You would only be able to withdraw winnings made from the bonus. In other words, upon a withdrawal request, the received bonus amount would be subtracted from your balance.  

Are Bonuses Worth Using?

Generally, casino bonuses are very much worth using. By receiving extra money from the casino, your chance of making a profit is actually increased. However, you should always fully understand how a bonus works before taking part in it or it is likely that it will disappoint you in one way or another.   

How much online casinos will tell you about a bonus offer can vary quite a bit. The most reliable ones front with all of their terms, making it easy for players to take part in them. Others try to hide everything from you and leave you in the dark. 

To actually understand how a casino’s bonus work, you must read through the full terms and conditions of it and also check the general bonus terms which are often found in the footer of the casino’s site. It may sound like a lot of work, but trust us when we say that it will save you from a lot of trouble.  

What Is the Best Kind of Bonus?

One could argue that casino bonuses that don’t have any wagering requirement at all are the best types. With these, your balance is never locked and you don’t really have to think about anything other than the fact that when you make a withdrawal, the received bonus will be subtracted. 

When it comes to bonuses with wagering requirements, the below pointers are good to keep in mind:

  • The lower the wagering requirement is, the better.
  • The longer the time limit for the wagering, the better.
  • The higher the wagering contribution with different games, the better. 
  • Both real money + bonus money contributing to the wagering is better. 
  • Using real money before the bonus money is generally better. 

Why you would want a bonus where the real money is used before the bonus money is because you often have the option to cancel the bonus if you would like to. This allows you to cash out winnings that are made from your real money deposit at any time, without having to fulfil the bonus’s wagering requirement.