What are Wagering Requirements?

Understanding Online Casino Wagering Requirements

Before you start playing in online casinos for real money, you need to understand what wagering requirements are, how they work, and above all how to get the best deal in order to be able to mathematically beat wagering requirements.

Learning about the withdrawal limits, return to player percentages, and casino payment methods only takes under an hour with our articles. Make sure to read this piece thoroughly, as we are going to explain precisely why wagering requirements exist, how they work, how you can take advantage of them, and where to find the best offers. Let’s continue!

What is a Wagering Requirement?

First and foremost, we need to explain what the wager is. All the money via bets you spend by playing slot machines, video poker, roulette, baccarat, blackjack or any other online casino game is considered as a wager. You are the one that controls the amount spent, by, of course, staying inside the betting range. Regardless of the outcome of the bet, the cash you’ve spent in that specific round adds up to all the previous stakes, which is how the total wager is calculated.

Be careful here though, because the prize you get at the end of the round is not included in the formula. There are rare cases of jackpots that ask for additional investments in order to contribute to the prize pool and enter the competition. This money is sometimes not included when calculating the total wager, but the information can always be checked at the casino’s terms and conditions section.

Essentially, online casinos only apply wagering requirements in case you decide to claim one of their bonus offers. However, sometimes you can’t just deposit €50 and immediately withdraw the same amount. Instead, you’ll either have to wait for a few hours or days, or there might be a small multiplier request or a fee attached to it.

How to Calculate the Wagering Requirements

We will do all the explaining with an example, as it makes it a lot easier to understand that way.

Let’s say you found a great first deposit bonus in a new casino which offers a 100% boost to your investment, and you decide to go in with €20. The casino will reward you with an additional €20, meaning that you’ll have €40 in your casino wallet.

Here’s the catch – by claiming this casino bonus, you’ve obligated yourself to fulfil the withdrawal requirement that goes along with the offer. You won’t be able to make a withdrawal request until you achieve the goal set by the casino.

If the casino requests a x50 wager to be made, you’ll have to spend €2,000 (€40 x 50) in order to become eligible for the withdrawal. This might sound scary at first, but it’s actually not. If you’ve read our article on Return to Player (RTP), you know what your chances of winning are, theoretically speaking.

If you start off poorly, meeting the wagering requirement can become a nightmare, but at least you had twice as much to play with. By depositing €20, you are already aware that you can lose that money in only a few minutes, but by doubling it down, you increase the odds of winning. Who knows? Maybe the last two or three euros will bring you a huge win on a progressive jackpot!

This brings us to the next point – which is how easy fulfilling the requirements can be if you’re lucky that day. Imagine landing a winning combination in a slot game with a €5 stake, or even a jackpot. This allows you to comfortably spend an additional €2,000 and get ready for the payout anyway. However, it is much more likely that you’ll accumulate dozens of smaller prizes. In the end, the ultimate goal is to manage to squeeze €2,000 through the slot machine with at least some cash leftover in your account.

So to break it down for you:

Example 1: €20 (your deposit) + €20 (casino bonus) x 50 (wagering requirements) = €4000 (the example listed above in a bit more detail).

Example 2: €100 (casino bonus) x 30 (wagering requirements) = €3000.

Know the Contributing Percentages Toward the Wagering Requirements

In casinos that allow the use of bonuses on a number of games, different contributing percentages are at work. In these casinos, all slots will have a 100-percent contribution, and other casino games will have a much lower contribution. For example, the Terms will indicate that table pokers, Roulette and Red Dog will have 50-percent contribution and all others will have a 10-percent contribution. For example, if you wager €100 on slots with 100-percent contribution, it means that the whole amount will be credited against the WR. But if you wager €100 on Red Dog with a 50-percent contribution, it only means that only €50 will be contributed to the WR. Use these contributing percentages to plan out your play so that the requirements are met in the soonest possible manner.

Keep Track of Your Wagers and Contributions Toward the Wagering Requirements

It pays to remain on top of things so you will know your progress. Some casinos separate the ordinary balance and the free/bonus cash balance. Usually, all winnings that were made using the bonus will be posted under ‘Pending’, and refreshed automatically. Once the requirements have been met, it will be credited under the official account.

There’s no escaping these requirements, and most established casinos impose these for regulation and as a smart business move. While these cannot be removed, you can still work your way around it. Just follow the recommended tips listed here, and you can beat these conditions, and enjoy the bonuses and perks that come with it!

Why the Wagering Requirement Exists

As wagering requirements mainly go along with bonuses, there are three groups, all working together that benefit from it but in different ways:

  1. Governments – Just imagine how easy it would be for criminals to perform money laundering actions if they could squeeze money through casinos and the law had not been regulated. This is why wagering requirements, daily limits, and pending times exist.
  2. Online Casinos – Besides operating uninterrupted, because they comply with the law, casinos increase their odds of earning money by bumping up the wager multiplier parameter. You need to look out for this in all casino sites and above all – all of the bonus promotions.
  3. Players – In exchange for allowing casinos to lock their funds until the total wager task is completed, players get the chance to double or even triple their investment with their first deposit.

It is evident that this element of online gambling does good for everyone and proves that it does not exist merely to prevent people from winning money with bonuses, as many people think. However, there are places and ways to “avoid” or “beat” the wagering requirements.

How to mathematically “Beat” the Wagering Requirement

The “beat” part of that sentence is under quotes for a reason. You can’t actually differentiate yourself from other players and entirely avoid them, but there are some legit offers and online casinos that do not have these requirements. However, they do come in different shapes and forms.

To be able to beat wagering requirement, it’s usually necessary to try to get a win of 400-500 times the bet or more, or at least a line of decent wins throughout the session (100-200 times the bet). One strategy on this is to start more aggressive by trying to play more high variance games with high potential to try and chase those really huge wins, especially if the wagering requirements are high.

Free Spins

Slot machine players are most likely to be familiar with this feature, as it’s included in almost every game out there. What you can do is find an offer that includes only free spins, excluding any sort of other free money addition.

Casinos allow you to spin the reels for, let’s say, 10, 20, 30 or so times at a fixed stake, without any obligations afterwards. This means that you can immediately withdraw any amount of cash you accumulated during those free spins. However, not all the offers are like this, and you might need to spend a bit more before withdrawing, which is why reading terms and conditions of any offer is crucial.

Cashback Offers

Losing streaks are not a pleasant experience in online gambling, mainly because you’re basically losing money rapidly. As means of retaining players, online casinos came up with the idea of giving back a small portion of what you have lost by implementing the cashback offer. The interesting thing here is that they usually have no wagering requirements, meaning that you can get 10% or 20% of what you have lost back.

These offers can be:

  • One time only available
  • Daily, Monthly, Weekly or even sometimes Annually available

We recommend using it whenever you end up losing money, as there isn’t a single reason why you shouldn’t. You’ll get some of the money back, which you can either withdraw immediately or give it a few more tries. Who knows – you might end up getting all of it back or hopefully more than what you had initially.

No Wagering Casinos

As we want to be as transparent as possible with you, there are some things that need to be cleared out when topics such as no wagering requirements or wager-free casinos are mentioned. Whenever casinos claim to have no wagering requirements, they are in fact telling the truth, but you can almost always find those nearly impossible to read sentences below the offer.

This is why we insist on reading the terms & conditions, because casinos are obligated by the law to disclose all the details regarding fees, requirements, and additional charges there. Even though there isn’t a requirement of x20 or x30, there are often small fees which can either be fixed amounts or fixed rates presented as percentages on any offer.

Online Casinos Without Wagering Requirements – Are They the Best?

Many first time players focus on looking for online casinos that don’t have wagering requirements as they believe those to be most profitable for them. However, the truth is actually a bit more complicated. First of all, wagering requirements offered by different gambling portals vary greatly. They range as far as 1x to 80x, depending on the game you’re playing, and what operator you prefer.

It’s very important to understand that these requirements are usually attached only to some games and mainly casino bonuses. In most cases, a wagering requirement is attached to a casino bonus. This means that even the same casino might change the numbers depending on the offer. You should always read the Terms & Conditions of all bonuses and promotions carefully to make sure you understand exactly how to benefit from them.

The reason why wagering requirements are attached to these offers is that they mitigate the risks the casino takes when it gives you a chance to score a big win. Every Free spin for a player is a loss for the house, and online gambling is as much of a business as any other. However, the stakes in this industry are extremely high as people get a chance to win millions and several consecutive wins can put an un-savvy casino under very fast.

Therefore, wagering requirements help the business maintain a sound balance. The company gets to make attractive offers that get players interested and the chance of them winning remains. At the same time, the house is sure to make some profit from repeated bets people have to make in order to meet the wagering requirements.

As the majority of regular players spend quite a lot of time on the sites, they would bet anyway. Considering this, a bonus is indeed a great opportunity, regardless of any wagering requirements attached. However, one has to admit that these offers tend to motivate people to play more aggressively to take full advantage of the deal.

Offers with wagering requirements are mostly used to:

  • Attract new players
  • Celebrate some holiday
  • Boost customer loyalty with exclusive bonuses
  • Introduce new games

In essence, the practice of setting wagering requirements in an online casino exists to bust the myth that one can become a millionaire by making a single small bet. Although there are some documented cases of incredible wins, these cases are extremely rare. Most players should know to treat online gambling as a type of entertainment that has an extra thrill of providing financial reward. When you look at the situation this way, you’ll see that wagering requirements aren’t some kind of ‘great conspiracy’. They are a necessity of the business and when used by trusted providers, they don’t reduce the joy you get from the game.

Online casinos without wagering requirements take greater risks. Therefore, they make fewer rewarding offers. They might also have some other way to motivate players invest more time and money into gambling. For example, the no-wagering rule can be attached only to very limited bonuses or work only for a few games. The player might also need to meet some special requirements set by the casino in order to be eligible for the bonus.

All these details must be explained in the Terms & Conditions of the offer.

Casino Bonuses With No Wagering

Now that you know what no wagering actually means, we can go through several casino offers that have these promotions.

PlayOJO Casino
Get up to 80 free rolls without wagering requirements at this casino, but here are the specifications of this offer:

  • For each £1 deposited, you get one free roll
  • Additional 30 spins are awarded after the first deposit, which needs to be at least £10
  • Get 30 more by going into the Kicker section on their website
  • The game you’ll have to play is Rich Wilde and the Book of Dead
  • Spins are locked at £0.10

BGO Casino
You can get 10 free spins without even depositing, but also an additional 100 for making the first deposit. Here’s what you need to know:

  • You’ll get the first ten spins after registering and verifying on your mobile device
  • The minimum amount is £10, otherwise you won’t get the spins
  • 2.5% fee applies along with the £10, but the minimum fee is £0.50
  • You can withdraw the money at any point, but the 2.5% fee will be applied
  • Not all slot machines can be played using these free spins

Are These Requirements a Bane to all Customers, and Should Be Avoided at All Times?

Technically, you can avoid these restrictions in place, but you’ll end up missing a huge opportunity – the casino bonuses. Yes, these will restrict the play and withdrawals of players, and may be a cause of stressful nights for some, but there are some good things about WR. You see, these requirements are in place in compliance with the law. To ensure that the casino complies with anti-money laundering laws, these rules are in place. If these conditions are not in place, criminals can easily fund accounts and withdraw them in an instant. While WR can be stressful and highly limiting for casino players, keep in mind that there are ways on how you can work your way around these restrictions, and beat the house along the way. Here are some ways on how you can master WR, and allow these requirements work for you instead.

Conclusion

Now that you know where to find no wagering casinos and what wagering requirements are present, it is up to you to decide which way you want to go.

Being educated on the matter prevents you from running into trouble or getting into situations where there is no going back. One example would be depositing €100 in a casino, without knowing that the first deposit bonus of 100% will be activated automatically. You’re either going to be lucky and meet the requirements, allowing you to request the payout, or you’ll end up losing it all, while you only wanted to spend half of it. And you deposited more simply because you wanted to avoid fees that go along with lower amounts.

Always invest amounts you can afford to lose, never gamble under the influence of any substances, and make sure to enjoy it as much as you can!