Almost all online casinos offer a reward for registering as a player. They call this reward a sign-up bonus or simply a welcome bonus. Nowadays, offering a welcome bonus has become a common practice in online casinos. It’s one of the best ways to attract new customers.
Welcome bonuses can be divided into two categories:
Deposit bonuses
Free bonuses/no deposit bonuses
After registering, and waiting for the casino to verify the account details, the players can choose what kind of welcome bonus they want. The most popular types of welcome bonuses are:
Free spins: Free spins are especially useful for pokies. For example, you can receive 50 free spins after having registered, and another 50 free spins with your first deposit. On average, the number of free spins that can be obtained can reach 500. Therefore, it’s worth comparing bonuses in order to find the best ones!
Extra money: When you receive a welcome bonus, it can be in the form of extra money that you can use on your favourite games. For example, +50% or even +200% of the amount of your first deposit. It’s important that you know that the percentage of the bonus depends on the amount of money you deposit. For example, if you deposit NZ$100, the bonus can be 50%, but if you deposit NZ$500, the bonus can be up to 100%. This type of bonus can also be obtained independently of deposits.
Refund Bonus: With this type of bonus, you can recover some of your losses. Usually between 10% and 20%. It's a rare bonus, but definitely an interesting one.
Why Should You Take Advantage of Welcome Bonuses?
It doesn’t matter if you’re an experienced player or a beginner. Any type of bonus, especially the ones that are 100% free, is helpful if you wish to familiarize yourself with online casino platforms and discover new games. Also, with the help of a nice bonus, you can increase your chances of winning!
Bonuses and rewards are among the biggest advantages of online casinos. In traditional casinos, it’s rather uncommon to obtain such benefits. However, it’s important to know exactly how they work since not all bonuses are equally advantageous to players. For example, the biggest bonus might not be the best bonus since there are different requirements and conditions associated with different bonuses.
What Are Bonus Terms and Conditions?
It’s very important that you make sure to check up on the terms and conditions for obtaining welcome bonuses – or any other type of bonus. Some of the bonuses promoted by casinos may seem extremely attractive. But, if you read the terms and conditions carefully, you will realize that they’re perhaps not as advantageous as they appear to be. So how do you know if the bonus you’re about to claim is right for you? Firstly… DON'T PANIC! Here’s a list of things you need to know before claiming the bonus:
Concession conditions. One of the requirements that you may need to fulfil in order to claim your bonus, is to deposit a certain amount of money into your account. It’s important to check which payment methods are accepted by the casino. So that you can claim your bonus.
How to use the bonus. There’s a possibility that some bonuses can only be used for a few selected games. So, if you’re not a fan of those games, the bonus will not be very advantageous for you. On the other hand, there’s also the possibility that some bonuses are restricted from usage in other games. So, it’s always a good idea to check if the bonus you‘re looking at can be used for the games you want to play.
Wagering/turnover requirements. These represent the value of the bets required to receive the bonus. For example, if the bonus is worth NZ$100 and the turnover/wagering requirements are 20x, it means that you need to wager 20 times the bonus amount, i.e., NZ$2,000 in total in order to get the bonus.
Time interval available for activating the bonus. Some bonuses need to be activated within a specific time frame. Many bonuses have a deadline. If they’re not used before the deadline, they expire and become invalid, like coupons!
Withdrawal conditions. Just like with the wagering requirements, depending on the bonus, it may vary whether you're able to withdraw your bonus in the form of money. It could be that there is a condition where you can only withdraw the bonus as money once you have played a certain number of times.
Deposit or withdrawal limit. The bonus you have could be NZ$100 and you may have a daily withdrawal limit of NZ$50. These limits are established mainly to prevent people from making impulsive bets and also to protect casinos from having to make exorbitant payments and “lose” large amounts of money in one day. Nevertheless, for any licensed casino, it’s illegal to withhold an amount without a compelling or valid reason. So, if you’re worried about winning a millionaire bet and not being able to withdraw it, you have nothing to worry about!
Other conditions and requirements associated with bonuses. The world of online casinos and bonuses is very extensive. There may be conditions associated with the bonus that has not yet been mentioned. Therefore, we recommend that you always pay attention to the conditions or requirements of the specific bonus that has caught your eye.
No Deposit Welcome Bonus
If you wish to get this bonus, you must sign up at the casino that you feel will give you the best experience. It’s important that you know that, generally, the only condition to obtain your welcome bonus is to be a new client. However, depending on the country where the casino you have registered is found, the conditions for you to receive the welcome bonus may be different. To register at a casino, you must enter your personal information, such as name, surname, and email address, and you must upload a copy or photo of your identity. This last one is a step that you can’t skip since the casino has to make sure that your identity is real and that you’re at least 18 years old.
In addition, every player is allowed to have a single-user account in an online casino, so it’s a bonus that you can only benefit from once. But don't be discouraged! Because you have the option to explore new casinos, (which you can easily do with a comparison platform like Casino Cupid) or you can enjoy other types of bonuses at your current casino.
Deposit Welcome Bonuses
In order to get this bonus, it’s not enough to just sign up at a new online casino. As the name implies, you also need to make a deposit. The bonus usually consists of a fixed percentage. As an example, if you make a deposit of NZ$100 and the bonus is 50%, you will receive a bonus of NZ$50. So, you will have NZ$150 available in your account to use when playing casino games. Often, this bonus can be up to 200%, but the higher the percentage, the stricter the conditions. Again: Don't forget to read the terms and conditions very carefully!
Sticky Bonus Vs. Non-Sticky Bonus
A non-sticky bonus is a bonus that allows you to keep the money you‘ve won after meeting the wagering requirements. Wagering requirements can vary a lot, from 0 to 99x, but most casinos have wagering requirements between 10 and 35x. In simpler words, with non-sticky bonuses, you can redeem your winnings and the bonus amount without any problems.
On the other hand, if the bonus offered by the casino is a sticky bonus, you won’t be able to withdraw the bonus money, only the money that you’ve won on your bets. The way to take advantage of sticky bonuses is to use them to play other games.
Professional Tips
Take full advantage of the welcome bonus. You only get it once! Also, it’s good to keep in mind that if you wish to play more, it’s a good idea to deposit more than the minimum amount required for deposit bonuses. The higher the amount deposited, the higher the bonus. However, it’s still important that you play in moderation. Never bet more money than you can afford or are willing to lose! With gambling, you never know what the outcome will be. It's all about luck!
How to Find the Most Advantageous Welcome Bonus
The best way to find your "best fit" is to know your preferences. Therefore, in order to get the most advantageous bonus, we recommend that you compare online casinos based on the following bullet points:
Bonus percentage of the amount deposited
The maximum amount that the player can receive
Wagering requirements
Withdrawal requirements
Free spins
It may sound a bit repetitive, but in addition to considering the points above when finding the best bonus, it’s also important that you read the terms and conditions of the bonus carefully. Also, make sure that you check what payment methods are accepted so that you don’t face any inconveniences when withdrawing your winnings or bonuses.
Advantages and disadvantages of welcome bonuses
Here we listed pros and cons of welcome bonuses. Have a look!
They are free!
You get more money to play with
You have bigger chances of winning
They provide the possibility to try more games for free
Can only be received once
Different withdrawal conditions, bets, etc.
Don’t forget to play responsibly and be aware of your betting limits. Other than that, it’s all about enjoying your favourite games and getting the most out of the bonuses!
