We’ve learned a lot in our decades of experience playing at—and writing about—online casinos. Our team consists of passionate players who pass along their expertise to our readers in everything we publish. This page is designed to consolidate our most popular online casino tips and advice to give you an easy resource for playing more while risking less.
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Most Important Online Casino Tips
1. Choose a Casino Based on Quality, Not Bonuses
You may be surprised to see this offered as a tip from a site called Bonus.com. But, in reality, we’re focused on recommending excellent real-money online casinos, so we take into account the many facets that contribute to overall quality. The exclusive bonuses that come with our recommendations are really just the cherry on top of the sundae.
OK, so let’s talk about quality. When choosing an online casino, always look at the full picture: site design, app reliability, ease of use, game selection, and so on. Once you’ve used your welcome bonus, it’s finished, but these other considerations will affect your quality of play and enjoyment throughout your entire experience. Picture yourself playing long-term at an online casino when choosing where to sign up.
2. Don’t Claim Just Any Bonus Offer
Oftentimes, the bonuses that appear most appealing are the ones you should skip. Large dollar amounts and big promises are often hampered by terms and conditions that make it nearly impossible to end up with anything worthwhile after all is said and done. Take playthrough requirements, for example. One bonus may be a deposit match up to $100 with a 1x playthrough requirement, while another may be a deposit match up to $1,000 with a 10x playthrough requirement. While the $1,000 may look more appealing, the $100 offer is actually better. On the smaller offer, you’d only have to wager $100 to convert your bonus funds to withdrawable cash. With the other bonus, you would have to wager up to $10,000—a feat best reserved for only the most experienced gamblers.
Read More: Is an Online Casino Bonus Worth It?
3. Read All Terms & Conditions
With the previous tip in mind, this one should come as no surprise. To determine whether you should be taking advantage of a bonus, you have to read the terms and conditions. Don’t worry; online casino bonus terms and conditions usually aren’t as lengthy as others you may come across. Don’t skip this tip because even the simplest online casino bonuses come with strict terms and conditions that include playthrough requirements, game restrictions, bonus fund expiration dates, and more.
You can also forfeit a casino bonus to cancel it at any time.
4. Play Casino Games with the Best Odds
Of course, playing at online casinos is all about having fun, which entails playing the games you enjoy most. However, you should also consider their odds. Playing casino games with the best odds generally makes for a more rewarding and enjoyable experience. While making this decision, ensure that the games in question feel comfortable for your budget.
For the best odds casino games, we always recommend blackjack, French roulette, and video poker. But, as mentioned, playing online casino games is about having fun, and progressive jackpot slots make for an undeniably great time.
5. Become an Expert at Your Games of Choice
Of course, simply choosing a casino game with the best odds isn’t enough. You should also ensure you’re maximizing your odds by following the best strategies, such as basic blackjack strategy, for example. In addition to following strategy, you should be aware that not all variations of games are created equally. Look for variations that have player-friendly rules that give you the best win potential.
6. Play Games for Free Before Playing for Real
Understanding a game and how it operates is one of the greatest assets you can have in your online casino arsenal. Luckily, almost every game is available to play for free before you dive into real money play. One good example of this is the ability to play free slots online. Use demos to your advantage to learn the strategy, features, and mechanics of games before putting real money on the line.
7. Earn Rewards Points
Most online casino reward programs are quite stingy in that high roller casino players get rewarded the most. However, every penny matters, and if you have the ability to get something additional just from your regular play, you should absolutely be taking advantage of it. If the online casino you choose does offer a rewards program (such as Caesars Rewards), take a close look at the earning schedule to try and align your play with it. Online casinos are often more generous with their rewards than land-based retail casinos since there’s more easily accessible competition.
Essentially, make sure you’re participating in the best rewards programs (link to best rewards page) available. This hearkens back to our first tip and is one of the features you should look for in a long-term online casino.
8. Check for Promotions
Another headline for this tip could be “Don’t miss out.” Basically, when doing almost anything at an online casino (making a deposit, playing a game, etc.), you should check first to see if that activity qualifies you for an online casino bonus. If so, make sure to opt-in to that bonus on the promotions page. If you don’t opt-in, you could miss out on earning an extra bonus just by doing the same thing you were already planning on doing. This could be a reload bonus, a free spins bonus, or even a “game of the week” slot promotion.
9. Play to Your Budget
We briefly mentioned this in our fourth tip, but it’s important enough to merit its own entry. Always play to your budget. In other words, never play in a way that makes you uncomfortable. The benefit of online casinos is that they offer smaller bet minimums than most land-based retail casinos. One-dollar hands of blackjack are available, while you can also find $0.05 to $0.10 slot spins on penny slots, just as some examples. These are easy ways to get more play without risking large sums. The bottom line: keep it comfortable.
10. Set Deposit Maximums & Track Your Play
The lowest minimum deposit casinos allow transactions as low as $5. But have you ever noticed that you spend more on groceries when you go to the store every day instead of once per week? The same applies to online gambling. Smaller, more frequent deposits can add up without you realizing it. Make sure to set daily, weekly, or monthly deposit limits using the responsible gambling tools available at every legal online casino so that your deposits don’t unexpectedly run away from you. You can also set budgets through third-party payment providers, such as PayPal. For that reason alone, it may be worth checking out PayPal casinos.
11. Cash Out When You’re Ahead
If you are lucky enough to get ahead, make sure you cash out. Your winnings are truly never your winnings until they’re in your bank account, as the temptation to continue gambling with that money may still exist if it’s in your online casino wallet. In the same vein, never chase your losses if you are down. Often, your smartest move may be to stop playing and cut your losses. Regardless, playing at one of the fastest-paying online casinos can be beneficial to ensure you get your money in a timely manner.
12. Only Join Legal Sites in Your State
There are many illegal, offshore online gambling sites. There are also many ways these sites can take advantage of you since they are unregulated. Offshore sites could rig games, not allow you to withdraw your own money, or steal your personal and financial information. While real money online casinos are only currently available in certain states, such as Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia, players in other states can still redeem cash prizes at sweepstakes and social casinos rather than playing at illegal sites.
13. Know Myths & Gambler Fallacies
Casino games are designed to play into common gambling fallacies, but by knowing them, you can avoid the pitfalls. Let’s cover a few examples. Bigger jackpots aren’t “due” to win; in fact, it may be more beneficial to play for smaller jackpots. Furthermore, past jackpot amounts aren’t good indicators of future jackpot sizes. Just because a slot spin has a lot of winning symbols or symbols that are just off a line win doesn’t mean you were “close” and have more likelihood of winning if you spin again. No matter how much you’ve lost, you’re never “due to win.” (Results are random, by law.) The list goes on, but these are just some examples to know.
14. Never Use Betting Systems
Betting systems such as the Martingale system are responsible gambling nightmares, and the only thing they can nearly guarantee is that you’ll lose all your winnings or double your bet into bankruptcy. As stated in the 10th tip, you should never chase your losses, and the Martingale system encourages you to. If that isn’t enough reason to avoid it, we’re not sure what is. Other betting systems, such as the Fibonacci, are just as bad, if not worse.
15. Know That Help Is Available
Most importantly, you should always reach out for help if you feel that you need it. If you or someone you know has (or may have) a gambling problem, 1-800-GAMBLER is always available for you. In fact, there are tons of resources available, such as the National Council on Problem Gambling, which includes a free anonymous online chat as well as a toll-free, 24/7, completely anonymous, and confidential helpline. Reach the helpline via phone call or text at 1-800-522-4700.