What is a casino welcome bonus?
A casino welcome bonus is a gift that casinos give to new players as a thank-you for signing up with them. In most cases, you will get extra money to play with after you make a deposit. However, a welcome bonus has many different types so exactly what you get and how much depends on each offer. This means it’s important to understand what is available so that you can choose the best welcome bonus casino for you.
While bonus percentage and the amount are important to check out, they aren’t the only numbers to keep an eye on. Bonus money isn’t given without conditions as there are certain terms you need to follow when claiming the welcome bonus. Such as wagering requirements for one.
Welcome bonus can be given on your first deposit or it can be a package that consists of several bonuses given out each time you make a deposit with real money.
Claiming a welcome bonus at a casino
Welcome bonuses can be extremely lucrative, as it’s the casino’s chance to tempt you to play at their site so they will often try to offer something particularly generous or different. You can claim a welcome bonus in the following way:
- Go to your chosen casino
- Create a new account
- Make a deposit
- Receive the welcome bonus
Some casinos need you to choose a welcome offer manually. For example, you may need to select it from a drop-down list or input a promo code when making a payment. These things completely depend on each site but they should be clearly signposted so that you don’t miss out. If you’re ever in doubt then you can contact the casino’s support team who will walk you through it.
You should be up and running in a matter of minutes. View all deposit bonuses available at Casino Professor.
How do casino welcome bonuses work?
You need to keep in mind that the small print often defines what the best online casino welcome bonus is or isn’t.
How do I know what I’ll get?
Most casino welcome bonuses work by giving you more money to play with on top of what you deposit. Exactly how much extra money you get depends on three things – how much you deposit, how much the casino is willing to match your deposit, and what the maximum bonus amount is. It might sound complicated at first but bear with us and it’ll soon be simple.
Example: a very common welcome offer is 100% up to £100. The 100% part means that the casino is willing to match your payment in full – so if you gave £50 then the casino would give you £50 extra money. However, there is a limit.
The £100 part tells you the maximum amount of extra money the casino is willing to give. So if you were to deposit £150 then they would only give £100 extra.
All that extra money you’re given? Unfortunately, the casinos don’t just let you take that out. Instead, you need to wager it.
Wagering
Pretty much all casino welcome bonuses will have what’s called wagering requirements attached. This means you need to use your bonus to bet over and over until you’ve reached a certain number. Wagering will be stated as something like “x20”. This means you’ll often need to multiply what you get as extra money by 20 to know how much you need to bet. Again, it sounds complicated but it’s best explained in an example.
Example: 100% up to £100 with x20 wagering on the bonus. You deposit £100 and get £100 as extra bonus money. As the wagering is on the extra money only, this means you need to multiply £100 * 20 = £2,000. So, before you can withdraw your extra money and any winnings, you need to use it to bet a total of £2,000. Unfortunately, casinos often enforce a maximum bet policy of £5 per spin/round so you can’t just race through it quickly..
Forfeitable
What do you play with first, the extra money or your own deposit?
It might sound odd – and this does actually depend on your preference – but you may want to play with your own money first. If you do and the bonus is forfeitable, this is how it works:
- Play with your own money first
- If you win: withdraw the winnings by giving up the extra money
- If you lose: use the extra money as a second chance of winning
Essentially, a forfeitable bonus gives you a second bite of the apple. However, sometimes you might not want to use your own money first, like when you’re trying out a new game for the first time. You just want to test it out without placing any real money bets to see if it’s good or not. In this case, you might decide to go for a non-forfeitable offer instead.
Cashable
Treading along a similar path – is the offer a cashable welcome bonus?
What we mean by this is whether you get to keep the actual bonus part or just the winnings. Example: You get £100 as extra money, you manage to complete the wagering and finish with £200 overall:
- Cashable welcome bonus = keep the full £200.
- Non-cashable welcome bonus = remove the initial extra money from the total winnings (£200 – £100 = £100).
A casino should explain in the offer’s terms and conditions whether you get to keep everything in full or not. You may also hear of cashable being a non-sticky bonus and non-cashable as a sticky bonus. However, no matter the terminology, they mean the same thing.
Reloads
We mentioned earlier how a casino welcome bonus takes a variety of forms. In some cases, casinos may include more bonuses after the first as part of their welcome offer or package. These are known as reload bonuses. So, instead of receiving a boost on your maiden deposit only, you might actually get more for your second, third, fourth deposits too.
Although it’s not always clear if a casino welcome offer includes reloads, the size of the package often gives it away. Example: if you see something along the lines of £1,000 welcome bonus then you can assume this is spread across multiple payments, not one. Of course, if you ever see an offer specifically state that it’s across many deposits then you know there are reloads included.
Examples of welcome bonuses
100 casino welcome bonus
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18+ new players only. Min deposit: £20. Max £100 bonus. Max bet with active bonus: £2. Wagering required 100% match bonus: 30x deposit + bonus. Max win from welcome bonus: £500. 100 Free Spins are given out 20 per day on Book of Dead for 5 days in a row. Max Free Spins winnings: £100. Free Spins winnings credited as bonus money with 45x wagering & 3 days expiry. Deposit bonus & Free Spins wins are forfeited 30 days after bonus is credited if the wagering is not met. Game weighting and restrictions apply. Play Responsibly. www.begambleaware.org
18+ | Gamble responsibly | GambleAware.org | Full T&C’s apply -
New customers. Opt-in required. 20 Bonus Spins on “Sahara Riches Cash Collect” at 10p per spin and 100% Deposit Bonus up to £25 on first deposit (payment method and play restrictions apply). Min. deposit £10. 30x wagering for Bonus Spins and Deposit Bonus (game weighting applies). Max. £5/spin or £0.50/line. 30 days expiry. Please gamble responsibly • BeGambleAware.org • T&Cs apply
18+ | Gamble responsibly | GambleAware.org | Full T&C’s apply -
18+ | Please play responsibly | www.begambleaware.org 1st deposit only | min deposit £10 | max bet with bonus £2 | max bonus £100 | X40 wagering | bonus spins valid for selected games only | X40 wagering on bonus spins winnings | expires within 24 Hours | User Agreement & Bonus T&C apply.
18+ | Gamble responsibly | GambleAware.org | Full T&C’s apply -
18+ New Players Only. Minimum Deposit £10, Wagering Requirements: 35x. Bonus balance is paid with 10% installments to balance. Bonus balance is not payable. Max bet is £20. Account balance is withdrawable at any time. Upon withdrawal, any remaining bonus balance is forfeited. T&C Apply. New Customers Only. Please Play Responsibly. BeGambleAware.org
18+ | Gamble responsibly | GambleAware.org | Full T&C’s apply -
18+ BeGambleAware.org. Full T&Cs apply. New player only. 7 days to claim offer and deposit a min of £10 with a further 7 days to wager 35x. Cash stakes only and wagering contributions vary. Max reward £150. 50 wager-free spins 0.10p each on Big Bass Splash awarded after wagering complete, winnings paid as cash. 3 day expiry.
18+ | Gamble responsibly | GambleAware.org | Full T&C’s apply
The 100 welcome bonus is one of the most popular casino deposit bonuses around at the moment. It is available at the sites listed above.
Getting 100% means whatever you deposit will be matched in full up to the maximum amount.
Example: 100% up to £100. This means whatever amount you deposit will be given as bonus money by the casino, up to a maximum of £100. Here are some examples:
- Deposit £100 = £200 overall (£100 deposit + £100 bonus)
- Deposit £200 = £300 overall (£200 deposit + maximum bonus of £100)
200 welcome bonus casino
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18+ New Players Only. Minimum Deposit £10, Wagering Requirements: 35x. Bonus balance is paid with 10% installments to balance. Bonus balance is not payable. Max bet is £20. Account balance is withdrawable at any time. Upon withdrawal, any remaining bonus balance is forfeited. T&C Apply. New Customers Only. Please Play Responsibly. BeGambleAware.org
18+ | Gamble responsibly | GambleAware.org | Full T&C’s apply -
18+ | New players only. Min Dep £20 Max Bonus Bet £5 Offer: 100% of 1st deposit up to £300 + 100 Zee Spins on Starburst (first 10 credited on 1st deposit; rest credited at 07:00GMT at 10/day) + 500 Zee Points. Spins expire after 23:59GMT on day they’re credited. Winnings from each 10 spins capped at £50 & credited as bonus. Bonus funds expire after 30 days, are separate to Cash funds, & subject to 35x wagering of bonus + deposit amounts. Affordability checks apply Full Terms Apply. | Please Play Responsibly. | GamblingTherapy.org
18+ | Gamble responsibly | GambleAware.org | Full T&C’s apply -
4.1 / 5First Deposit Bonus100% up to £200 -- bonus code: FIRST200
New casino players only. Free spins offer is subject to account verification. All spins must be used before withdrawal allowed. Min. deposit £20 with code ‘FIRST200’. Debit card (Visa or Mastercard) only. Selected Slots only, 7 day expiry. 5 redemption points per £1 to clear bonus. Game contributions vary. Maximum bet £5 per round. Terms apply. 18+ Play responsibly. BeGambleAware.org
18+ | Gamble responsibly | GambleAware.org | Full T&C’s apply -
18+ begambleaware.org. New Customers only. Minimum Deposit £10 and Get £40 in Casino Bonus Funds. Debit card only. Up to 50x wagering, game contributions vary, max. stake applies, new customers must opt in and claim offer within 24 hours and use within 30 days. Full terms apply.
18+ | Gamble responsibly | GambleAware.org | Full T&C’s apply -
18+. New players only. Min Dep £20. Max Bonus Bet £5. Offer: 100% of 1st deposit up to £250 on Slots + 100 Yoo Spins on Starburst, Book of Dead, Fire Joker, Gonzo’s Quest, and Big Bass Bonanza, respectively (first 20 credited immediately upon first deposit; rest credited at 07:00 GMT at 20/day). Spins expire after 23:59GMT on day they’re credited. Winnings from each 20 spins capped at £50 & credited as bonus. Bonus funds expire after 30 days, are separate to Cash funds, & subject to 35x wagering of bonus + deposit amounts. Only bonus funds contribute to wagering requirements. Affordability checks apply. Full terms apply. BeGambleAware.org.
18+ | Gamble responsibly | GambleAware.org | Full T&C’s apply
A £200 or 200% welcome bonus is less common but more lucrative. It is available at the sites listed above.
Getting 200% means that, whatever you deposit, the casino will give you double that amount in bonus money up to the maximum amount.
Example: 200% up to £200. This means you will get double the amount you deposit as bonus money, up to a maximum of £200. Here are some examples:
- Deposit £100 = £300 overall (£100 deposit + £200 bonus)
- Deposit £200 = £400 overall (£200 deposit + maximum bonus of £200)
300 welcome bonus casino
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18+ | New players only. Min Dep £20 Max Bonus Bet £5 Offer: 100% of 1st deposit up to £300 + 100 Zee Spins on Starburst (first 10 credited on 1st deposit; rest credited at 07:00GMT at 10/day) + 500 Zee Points. Spins expire after 23:59GMT on day they’re credited. Winnings from each 10 spins capped at £50 & credited as bonus. Bonus funds expire after 30 days, are separate to Cash funds, & subject to 35x wagering of bonus + deposit amounts. Affordability checks apply Full Terms Apply. | Please Play Responsibly. | GamblingTherapy.org
18+ | Gamble responsibly | GambleAware.org | Full T&C’s apply -
18+ begambleaware.org. New Customers only. Minimum Deposit £10 and Get £40 in Casino Bonus Funds. Debit card only. Up to 50x wagering, game contributions vary, max. stake applies, new customers must opt in and claim offer within 24 hours and use within 30 days. Full terms apply.
18+ | Gamble responsibly | GambleAware.org | Full T&C’s apply
A £300 or 300% welcome bonus is available at the casinos listed above. However, this offer is rare in the UK because few sites are willing to offer it.
Getting 300% means that, whatever you deposit, the casino will give you triple that amount in bonus money up to the maximum amount.
Example: 300% up to £300. As it’s 300%, this means that the casino is willing to triple what you deposit up to the maximum of £300. Here are some examples:
- Deposit £100 = £400 overall (£100 deposit + £300 bonus)
- Deposit £200 = £500 overall (£200 deposit + maximum bonus of £300)
Welcome bonus FAQ