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No-Deposit Bonuses – Not As Generous As You Might Think

If you find an online casino offering a no-deposit bonus, you'll think you've already hit the jackpot. After all, who doesn't love free cash? But hold your horses. As with many things in the casino business, not everything is as good as it first appears to be. The no-deposit bonus may be great to receive. But to utilize and take any winnings is practically impossible. Thanks to a huge number of restrictions and conditions, making any real money from this bonus is going to be very difficult.

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Truths Behind No-Deposit Bonuses

Of all the bonuses that gamblers love to receive at online casinos, probably the no-deposit bonuses are the most popular. When you think about it, it’s one of the few deals that give you the chance of winning without having to put anything in at your end. Not only that, but because you only have to register an account to qualify, these bonuses are incredibly easy to obtain.

Maybe Not The Best Casino Offer

Providing your online casino account is approved, then you’ll receive a no-deposit bonus offer. Then you’re able to sweep up this bonus and get on and play some real money games for free. You’re even allowed to collect your winnings which can either be withdrawn as cash or you can use some to gamble more to generate big prizes. But be aware, if it sounds too good to be true in some ways it is. But more about that later. Nevertheless, get on and have a look at no-deposit bonuses and online casinos.

For those of you who are low rollers, the no-deposit bonuses seem like the perfect deal. However, we would suggest that these offers are far from perfect. No-deposit bonuses come with some huge flaws that you should consider before signing up for them.

No-Deposit Bonuses Are Small

So you’ve been searching the internet for an online casino for a while. You’ve probably come across some massive welcome bonuses which are available for all new players. Many of these, like those from 22Bet Casino, are worth hundreds of dollars and some even thousands. For example, some websites offer a 100% match bonus of up to $1,000. This is a great way to stretch your bankroll and increase your jackpot winning chances.

Low Bonus Amounts On Offer

But when it comes to no-deposit bonuses, well, to be frank, the casinos are not that generous. Most of these deals are around $5 to $10. And you’ll be lucky to find anything above $25. Of course, we’re not criticising the casinos for this. After all, it makes no sense for them to simply give you free money. If you think about it, the no-deposit bonuses are simply a reward for giving the casino your personal details. And those details certainly aren’t worth $200 or $1,000.

No-Deposit Bonuses: Only Cash Out Winnings

Many players are mistaken in the belief that no-deposit bonuses offer special cash-out benefits in the same manner as deposit bonuses. This means that in both cases you can only withdraw the bonus amount, providing it’s cashable of course, after meeting bonus terms and conditions. But this is wrong. If for example, you receive a $25 no-deposit bonus then you cannot withdraw $25 after jumping through the wagering requirements and other terms and conditions. The only thing you can withdraw is any winnings that actually come from the bonus offer itself.

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The Playthrough Is High

Without a doubt, the most important item to be found in the bonus terms and conditions are the play-through or wagering requirements. This sets the basis of how much you need to wager before you’re able to collect any winnings that result from your bonus. The wagering requirement is expressed as a multiple of the total bonus amount. Only by meeting these terms will you be able to collect your winnings.

Here’s an example:

You receive a $10 no-deposit bonus.
Rollover is 60x the bonus.
60 x 10 = $600 must be wagered before cashout out winnings

The problem here is that the way to the requirement is a multiple is very high. The vast majority of top online casinos will have a multiple of around 40x. To be honest, casinos are businesses and are perfectly within their rights to set whatever multiple they want. But for the gambler who’s accepted no-deposit bonuses, a large multiplier of 60x makes it difficult to get anything from the bonus deal itself.

Certain Games May Not Count Towards Rollover

You’re probably thinking that the best jackpot winning strategies to satisfy the playthrough requirements is by hitting up jackpot slots and table games with the highest RTP like blackjack. Unfortunately, that’s not a real-world scenario. You’ll find at all online casinos that offer no deposit bonuses will only offer you a limited number of games to meet the playthrough requirements. And you can bet your bottom dollar these games will be with shockingly low RTPs. Furthermore, you may well find that, if there is a game with a high RTP on offer, then it will only contribute a small percentage towards the total rollover amount.

Here’s an example of what to expect in this situation:

You play a slot with 97% RTP.
The playthrough on no-deposit offers is normally 60x.
But this game only contributes 20% towards the rollover.
60 / 0.2 = 300x playthrough

As you can see in this example the rollover amount has been increased by 5 fold. It’s essential that you examine the restricted contribution list before taking any no-deposit bonuses. It’s quite possible you’ll discover that you’re most desired games with the best RTP and not on the list or if they have extremely reduced contributions.

No-Deposit Bonuses: Winnings Will Be Capped

We can imagine that all players who take any casino bonus, whether a deposit or no-deposit, are dreaming of turning the bonus into a massive win. For example, you may be able to win the jackpot online with a $10 bonus and end up with a $100,000 free slots prize. Yet the casino is already one step ahead of you. They cap your winnings at a certain point and this is often very low. On the whole, you’ll find that you’re only able to cash out between $100 to $300, no matter how much you actually won.

You Have To Meet The Casino’s Minimum Withdrawal

Well, at this point you might be thinking that between $100 and $300 is still worth signing up for the no-deposit bonuses. But we suggest you do a deep dive into the casino terms and services. That’s because all no-deposit bonuses will come with a minimum cash-out amount. Normally, this ranges between 10 and $25. This means that if you earn any less than this with your no-deposit bonus, you won’t be able to withdraw the money. Furthermore, there will be a time limit in place within which you have to make withdrawals or you will lose the prize money altogether. Even worse, many casinos will require you to make an actual cash deposit into your casino account before you’re able to cash out anything.

No-Deposit Bonuses Are Now Rare

Having said all of the above, no-deposit bonuses are on their way out. To that end, it might be difficult to find any today. For example, 22Bet Casino doesn’t offer them anymore. The reason is not that the casinos themselves have any problems with this type of bonus. It often goes hand in hand with legislation against problem gambling. After all, the idea of something for nothing might encourage gambling more in those without money.