PayPal Casino UK - The Online Casinos That Accept PayPal
Although PayPal is the largest eWallet in the world, casinos offering PayPal deposit and withdrawals are somewhat rare species. This is mainly due to the payment provider being very selective rather than casino sites not being interested. However, because of this, those elite few online casinos that use PayPal have a very big advantage over those that don’t. The Professor is a huge advocate of this service, and we’ll explain why in just a second. First, check out his exclusive list of PayPal casinos with accompanying in-depth reviews. NOTE: For GB players, every PayPal casino listed here will work in the UK as each one has acquired the necessary UKGC license.
PayPal Casinos – The Best for iGaming Payments
The transaction vendor has a long history having been around since the early 2000s. It has early connections with a certain Elon Musk, before being sold to eBay for a whopping 1.5 billion US dollars (Biography – Elon Musk). However, that figure is a snip compared to its value of 61.6 million US dollars as of February 2018 – leading PayPal to be branded “the biggest online payment company around” (Compelo – PayPal Net Worth Has Surpassed Parent Company eBay).
With such a huge reputation and user base, it’s pretty clear why casino sites would jump at the chance of allowing their players to deposit using PayPal. But why should players themselves be interested? Several reasons, actually.
Easy to Use
The first being how simple yet efficient it is. The service wouldn’t be what it’s worth today without being extremely easy to navigate, allowing people to send and receive money without any hassle.
Transactions are usually completed within a matter of seconds due to this simplicity – something which is perfect for casino site payments!
Of course, in an age which is dominated by mobile devices, you can manage your PayPal account from your smartphones and tablets as well as desktop. Either login using a web browser, or download the iOS or Android apps if you can afford the space.
Save Your Details
As with any eWallet, the most convenient aspect of using PayPal is that you only need to enter your payment details once. You can link one or a combination of debit card, credit card and/or bank account.
Also, you do not need to transfer money directly before making a transaction. If your wallet doesn’t have enough money to cover the cost, your saved payment method(s) will automatically be called upon to initiate the transaction.
Once you’ve opened a PayPal account and added this information, you can use it again and again at casino sites.
Top Security & Support
PayPal has a strict policy regarding who it does business with due to being a multinational, stock-listed company. It has a great reputation, with millions and millions of users worldwide, and is resoundly regarded as a safe payment service with watertight security features*. Therefore, it wouldn’t want to muddy any waters by siding with rogue sites.
The past relationship between PayPal and online gambling is complicated with few casinos making the cut. However, those that do can be seen as having an extra layer of authenticity. As such, only the most trusted casino sites make the cut.
If you ever run into any problems then there is a detailed FAQ section to browse through plus community support, an email service or UK freephone number for urgent assistance.
*NOTE: Buyer Protection is not available for online gambling transactions (PayPal Buyer Protection Policy – Eligible Transactions).
Lighting-Fast Withdrawal Time
Speed is one of the biggest benefits of online casinos that accept PayPal when compared to conventional methods such as bank transfer.
For deposits, this isn’t too much of an advantage as almost all casino sites process money coming in immediately. It’s mainly the security features that benefit players here.
However, when withdrawing any winnings there is a huge improvement. Bank transfers, cards and a few other methods can take several business days to complete. With PayPal, the withdrawal time is often instant* – or certainly within a few hours – for a small fee.
*NOTE: Remember that PayPal casino sites still require you to verify your identity before transferring money. Also, how quickly they process your withdrawal requests is up to them.
Available on Desktop & Mobile
It doesn’t matter whether you’re gaming using a desktop/laptop or smartphone/tablet, casinos with the functionality in place will always offer PayPal as a payment option.
We don’t know about you, but the Professor always finds paying on mobile a little trickier than desktop. Maybe it’s his age showing, but entering a password on a touch screen takes longer for him than a physical keyboard.
That’s where something like PayPal One Touch™ can help, as it keeps you logged in on certain devices. For shared devices – which are much more likely to be laptops or computers – this isn’t recommended. Yet, for smartphones and other items that are only used by you, this kind of nifty feature can save a few more seconds.
Any Disadvantages?
Of course, while this might be the best casino payment vendor in the Professor’s eyes, he’s wise enough to realise that it’s not faultless.
For starters, a small fee will be taken every time you receive a monetary transaction (in this case, any casino withdrawals). This starts from 1.9% and can go up to a maximum 3.4% (+ 20p) depending on the transaction (Fees – Selling with PayPal). Deposits via PayPal should always be free. If they’re not, that’s a fault on the casino side of things rather than payment.
Also, the choice is limited. Although there are a decent number of options on this page, it’s a far cry from the 100+ casino sites that the Professor has reviewed in total. Of course, this can either be a positive or negative depending on your stance. If you like to hop around then you’ll probably need to mix and match. Yet, if you revel in finding a secure platform and like to stay put, PayPal casino sites are a very good choice.
Your PayPal Account
To get an account, head to paypal.com and sign up for free. You will need to provide some basic information regarding your identity and then verify your email. The whole process shouldn’t take longer than a couple of minutes.
After you have created an account, you can add your preferred payment methods mentioned above, as well as removing certain limits. In order to remove these limits, your account needs to be verified (How do I verify my PayPal account?). This process usually takes a few business days.
New PayPal Casino UK – How to Choose
Okay, if you’ve gotten this far then we presume you’re very much into the idea of online casinos that accept PayPal. But how exactly do you select one?
As experienced iGamers will know, there’s much more to gambling sites than just easy payment methods. Good VIP programs, lots of games, fast customer support and other positive features that the Professor looks for as a standard still apply. However, there are specific advantages and disadvantages of the PayPal aspect to consider as well.
PayPal for Both Deposits AND Withdrawals
One thing to consider is whether you can only deposit using PayPal and not withdraw. Casino sites are well-known for having fewer withdrawal choices compared with deposit. This trend isn’t always bucked here either, despite this payment provider’s lure.
Due to the fees incurred, whether you want to use an alternative vendor to access your winnings is another consideration. If you’re okay with the costs, here are some good options which offer PayPal as both a deposit and withdrawal option:
Approving/Processing Speed
We noted above that instant (or at least fast) PayPal casino withdrawal times relate to requests that have been approved. This means you won’t receive any winnings as soon as you hit the withdraw button, but will instead need to wait until the casino site gives the green light.
How quickly PayPal casino sites approve/process transactions is, therefore, a crucial aspect when deciding where to play. You want to get your money quickly, after all!
Here are some of the fastest within the Professor’s records, with averages of within 24 hours once you’ve verified your identity:
PayPal Casino FAQ
Casino Professor hopes this page has given you a well-rounded argument for using PayPal at casino sites. However, as it’s not the most common of areas, the iGaming old-timer has collected the most popular questions about this topic and collated them for you here.
Happy gaming!
What is the best PayPal casino in the UK?
As I always say to everyone who asks, it’s impossible to nail down one “best” casino for anything. The truth is that there are some very high-quality casino sites out there, but what works for you may not necessarily work for another.
It all depends on tastes, and to be honest every domain that accepts PayPal must be of a high standard – otherwise the vendor wouldn’t get involved with them! However, if you’re completely new to the area, the suggestions I’ve provided above are very popular with readers.
Why is PayPal rarely offered at casino sites?
Once upon a time, it used to be the biggest payment processor for gambling transactions – believe it or not! But after receiving a lot of pressure from the US government, a decision was taken to withdraw from the market in 2003 (CNN – EBay’s PayPal accused of violating Patriot Act).
The financial giant then returned to gambling activities in 2010 – yet, they’ve since been extremely careful about who they partner up with. Anyone interested “must demonstrate to PayPal’s satisfaction that they have the ability to block gambling activities for account holders in the U.S. and any jurisdiction where gambling activities may be illegal” (Help Center – What gambling activities does PayPal prohibit?).
So, if a casino site manages to convince the biggest payment service in the world that they’re genuine, that’s a good enough indicator to casino players I think!
Is PayPal eligible for welcome bonuses?
It depends.
If you’ve ever been hunting for casino welcome bonuses, you’ll probably have seen the clause written into several terms and conditions that “Skrill or Neteller are not eligible”. Casino sites sometimes decide to include PayPal into this clause as well. Therefore, I cannot stress enough how important it is to read the t&c’s of a bonus before trying to activate it.
If you happen to find a bonus above that isn’t eligible, that’s not a reason to discard it completely. Instead, you can use an alternative method (such as credit/debit card) to make the qualifying deposit(s) for the bonus before turning to PayPal for subsequent transactions.
Is there always an option to deposit and withdraw?
Not always.
Every single PayPal casino site will allow you to deposit with this method, but not all have the option to withdraw.
I’ve listed a few examples who do both above.
I’m from Canada, do these PayPal Casinos work for me?
If you’re in an eligible region, yes!
There are quite a few Canadian online casinos with PayPal, so if you’re an eligible resident then you have a decent selection to choose between.
One that stands out for me is PokerStars Casino.
I’m from the US, do these PayPal Casinos work for me?
Likewise if you’re from a US state where gambling is legal, there are options for you too.
New Jersey gamers, for example, can deposit and withdraw using PayPal at 888casino.