If we can deduce one solid fact about the online gamblers, it is that they love the casino bonus and have been spoiled by it. Only a decade or so ago, when the online casinos enjoyed the budding popularity of gambling on the internet, the bonus was small and offered mainly to VIP customers. Much in the same way today the land-based casinos offer points and VIP status, yet no one is handing you wads of free cash at the door. Even today the pit boss would straight laugh in your face is you ask for a match bonus on your blackjack bankroll.
But with the introduction of the welcome bonus by the online casinos, all hell broke loose and today it is unheard of not to offer one to every new customer. Not only the welcome bonus has become endemic to the casinos, but their size is down right gigantic, when you think about it. It is not unheard of reputable casinos offering 400%-500% match on your first deposit, some even offering special additional bonuses if you use a certain method to fund your player’s account.
But the welcome bonus was not enough, the online casinos ad to come up with something even better to compete with each other. Enter the no-deposit bonus! The online casinos were willing to give their customers (both existing and potential) a stack of virtual chips to try their games, without even requiring the player to deposit any money. And the sweetest part of this deal – the players are able to cash out their winnings from this no deposit bonus! Ad even though some players though of this “too good to be true”, the casinos were serious and with time the no deposit bonus became the most popular form of free play, and the most sought after, too.
You can see the latest no deposit bonus codes from the most popular online casinos on our dedicated page, by following the link above. But for those new to online gambling or sill skeptical about this amazing offer, we have written this guide explaining how the online casino no deposit bonus works.
How the no-deposit bonus works at the casino
One may think that with such generous offer, the workings of the no deposit bonus would be complicated and fraught with pitfalls. On the contrary, as we will explain it here, this is a very simple proposition by the online casinos and no special skills (or jumping through hoops) is required to take advantage of it. At the end, we have added a step-by-step guide to how the no deposit bonus works and you can follow that quick guide to claim your next bonus, without having to make a deposit.
So how does the no deposit bonus work? It’s rather simple, really. The bonus which requires no deposit at the online casino is a small stack of chips that the player can claim in the Cashier section of the casino site. The casino will give you the free money and you can start playing with it right away. Once you have satisfied the wagering requirements of the no-deposit bonus, you can cash out your winnings, all without having to deposit a single penny.
Step by step to claiming the no deposit bonus
- Log in to your casino account or open a casino account, if you have never played there before.
- Visit the cashier section of the casino
- Select the no-deposit bonus offer (or enter the no deposit bonus code)
- Start playing the casino games
- When the playthrough requirements are met – head back to the cashier
- Cash out your winnings
As you can tell, there are a few major parts of the no deposit bonus offer. Let’s look at all of them in order, thusly learning how the bonus works.
Type of no-deposit bonus
The first thing to consider is the type of the bonus. There are two main types, the free money and the free spins. As the names imply, when the casino offers the former type, it will give you a certain amount of free chips, for example, $30 free. The player can then play the slots with that free cash. In the latter type, the player will not receive free money, rather a predetermined amount of free spins on a certain slot machine. The way to look at the two types and how the work is basically whether you will be limited to playing a specific slot machine (with the free spins bonus) or if you can play any of the video slots the casino has to offer (the free chips). Either way, you get free money, no deposit required and you can win real money in return.
And while we are on the subject of no deposit bonus codes, we should mention that certain casinos and certain bonuses will have a code associated with them. But fear not, this works the same way discount codes work at some online retail websites. You simply copy the code and paste it into the specific field under the Cashier or Banking section of the online casino, and you bonus is instantly credited to your account. If you would like – check out some examples of bonus codes. It really works as simple as copy and paste.
Wagering requirements of the no deposit bonus
There are a couple of ways the online casinos protect themselves from both fraud and the chance of a player cleaning out the casino. The first is the playthrough requirement of every bonus. If you’ve been taking advantage of any kind of casino bonus, you already have some familiarity with this concept. If you have not, let’s quickly explain how the wagering requirement of the bonus (deposit or no-deposit) works.
We have an in-dept guide to the casino wagering requirements, but if you just want the gist of it, here it is how it works. In essence, the casino requires that the player makes a certain amount of wagers with the bonus money, and the payout is locked until the customer does so. Obviously, it would be insane for the casino to simply give you a bunch of free money and then let you withdraw them without even one spin of the slots reels. So in order to make you bonus cashable, you have to place a certain amount of wagers with it. If you come out a winner at the end – cash out your winnings.
Max cashout
Speaking of cashing out your winnings from the no deposit bonus, here is the second stepping stone and the one that prevents the player from decimating the casino without even depositing a dollar. Every bonus which requires no deposit from the player has a maximum amount that can be cashed out as real money. For example, a casino may offer a $25 in free chips with a $250 max cashout. How this works is that the player is allowed to withdraw up to $250 in winnings stemming from the free money bonus. Anything over that amount will be forfeited by the player, once you have requested the payout.
This feature of the no deposit bonus protects the online casino from going deep in a hole from all the customers claiming the bonus, yet offers the players a very good return on their time spent enjoying themselves. Let’s not forget that the financial risk to the player is essentially nil, so any real money is free money.
In Conclusion
Now that you know how the no deposit bonus works, there should be no surprises when you find an online casino offering this type of amazing promotion. And while some casinos may offer it only to new customers, quite a few will extend this offer to their existing customers, so keep an eye on those mailers from your favorite casino for any free spins or free money offers. While you won’t strike it rich, it’s still a great way to put some free (and real) money into your pocket without having to risk anything in return. And, more importantly, you will have fun doing it!