Online casino wagering requirements

The terms and conditions attached to every online betting bonus ultimately determine its true value. One of the most common terms bettors will encounter is the wagering requirement, also known as the rollover.

Wagering requirements have a tremendous impact on bonus value, so it is imperative that bettors understand how they work. In most cases, the fine print is all that separates a good bonus from a bad one.

Read on for a full explanation of wagering requirements, tips for evaluating betting bonuses for value, and much more.

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Low Wagering Requirement Betting Bonuses

Online sportsbooks and casino sites enforce wagering requirements to avoid going bankrupt. Without a betting rollover clause, everyone just could register as many accounts as they want, claim deposit bonuses, and immediately withdraw for instant profits.

Instead, online gambling sites offer bonuses, which players cannot withdraw until meeting the wagering requirements. In doing so, operators aim to attract customers who are genuinely interested in placing wagers and dissuade those who would just want to take advantage of free money.

How Bonus Wagering Requirements Work

The specifics vary from one offer to the next, but generally, wagering requirements describe how many wagers customers must place to clear their bonuses or winnings for withdrawal.

For example, a $ bonus with a 10x rollover indicates the bettor must place a total sum of wagers equal to $1, before they can initiate a withdrawal.

Wagering requirements most often apply to deposit match bonuses, first bet refund offers, and other promos that issue site credit to gamblers.

When players complete an offer’s wagering requirements, they are said to have “cleared” the bonus. Clearing a bonus can mean different things depending on the offer.

In some cases, players can withdraw the bonus money itself after clearing it. In others, players may only withdraw the winnings from the bonus after meeting the betting rollover. The former is usually the better offer, but the latter is far more common.

As you may have surmised, the lower the wagering requirement multiplier, the better the offer. Unfortunately, it’s not enough to merely glance at the wagering requirement number, as it’s not often an accurate indication of how much you must bet.

Warning Signs of Low-Quality Bonuses

Bettors should examine three key aspects beyond the wagering requirement multiplier to determine if a bonus offer is a stud or a dud.

Deposit, or Deposit Plus Bonus?

One of the sneakiest tactics some online betting sites use is claiming that the wagering requirement is a certain amount when it’s really double that amount.

If an online sportsbook or casino advertises a bonus with a 10x wagering requirement but doesn’t clearly state that the rollover applies to the bonus and deposit, players may think they’re getting a 20x bonus when they’re really getting a 40x bonus.

In other words, the customer must place twice as many wagers as it may appear at first glance to clear the bonus.

For example, consider a gambling site that offers new players a % deposit bonus worth up to $ extra. A player decides to take up the offer, deposits $, and receives a $ (%) match bonus in their account.

The customer then checks the terms and conditions page, finds that the wagering requirement is 20x, and proceeds to place $10, worth of wagers ($ x 20) on their favorite slot.

The customer breaks about even but is happy to have cleared the bonus and is ready to cash out. The only problem is they can’t because the bonus funds are still restricted from withdrawal.

The issue is that the customer didn’t read the fine print closely enough. In this case, the bonus terms and conditions state that the wagering requirements are 20 times the bonus and deposit amount, not just 20x the bonus amount.

With an initial deposit of $ and a bonus of the same amount, that works out to a total betting rollover of $20, ($1, x 20), which is really 40 times the bonus amount.

In this instance, 40x is the actual turnover requirement, which is not as good of an offer as the 20x wagering requirement the gambler thought they were receiving.

The gambler in this example could have saved a lot of trouble by paying close attention to the terms and conditions. Rather than cashing out and moving on, this player has learned they are only halfway done clearing the bonus.

Beware Sub% Deposit Matches

“Deposit plus” bonus language is deceptive for % deposit matches, but it is even worse for lower match rate offers.

While % matches are the norm for new player bonuses, reload or returning player offers are usually not as good. Reload bonuses typically offer between 10% and 50% extra on deposits.

For example, consider an online casino that offers all current customers a 25% match bonus for up to $1, extra on their next deposit.

Imagine a player deposits $1, and receives $ in bonus funds for a total of $1, added to their player account. The wagering requirement on this bonus is a “reasonable” 10x the deposit plus bonus amount.

A 25% reload bonus with a 10x rollover sounds great at first, but it’s not a good deal. The bonus is just $, but the wagering requirement is $1, (deposit plus bonus) times 10 for a total rollover of $12, That works out to an effective wagering requirement of 50x, which is not a valuable offer.

Not All Casino Games Are Bonus Friendly

Sports betting offers may suffer from either of the above issues, but this third warning sign is specific to online casino bonuses.

A common tactic of online gambling sites is to weigh their games differently for bonus clearing considerations. The logic behind such weightings is that games with better odds should count less toward clearing a bonus than games with poorer returns like slots.

For an online casino bonus, the terms and conditions might read something like this:

• Slots count % toward the wagering requirement
• Roulette counts 50% toward the wagering requirement
• All other games (video poker, blackjack, other table games) count 10% toward the wagering requirement

This is not an exaggeration: a contribution rate of just 10% is very common for high return games like blackjack.

Sometimes video poker, blackjack, and even sports betting don’t count toward the wagering requirement at all.

Imagine playing on a site for weeks on end, only to realize you didn’t make a dent in your wagering requirements. It happens.

To determine the impact of contribution rates on a bonus play-through, divide the wagering requirement by the contribution rate. That will provide the true wagering requirement for the game you want to play.

For example, consider a customer who claims a 20x rollover bonus and intends to clear it by playing Jacks or Better, which only contributes 10% to the wagering requirements. The player can divide 20 by .1 and get x. That means the player would have to play through the bonus amount times to convert it to withdrawable cash.

The Bottom Line

It’s not nearly enough to take a cursory glance at the wagering requirement language, as the number doesn’t tell the whole story.

Two offers could both have 20x wagering requirements. On one, there are no contribution rates or game restrictions. The wagering requirement applies only to the bonus amount, so the actual wagering requirement is still 20x.

With an alternative bonus, many games only contribute 10%, the deposit match is only 25%, and the wagering requirements are 20x the deposit plus bonus for a true wagering requirement of up to 1,x.

The differences aren’t usually that stark, but they can be. It pays to do a little homework.

Other Bonus Considerations

Beyond gambling bonus wagering requirements, there are two other factors BettingUSA considers when deciding whether to recommend a deposit match offer.

The first is time. All online betting bonuses come affixed with an expiration date. For some players, it’s just going to be unreasonable for them to bet 20x or 30x their bonus amount in the allotted timeframe.

A typical timeframe is roughly 30 days, which should be more than enough for casual players, but some betting sites go as low as a few days.

If time expires, the bonus is forfeited even if the bettor partially fulfilled the wagering requirements. That wouldn’t be so bad if it weren’t for the second consideration:

Note: Wagers typically count against your cash balance first and then your bonus balance second.

For instance, imagine you have $ in cash, a $ bonus, and place a $50 bet on a team to cover the spread. If that wager loses, your cash balance will take the hit, down to $, and your bonus balance will remain at $ Now, if you either cancel your bonus or it expires, you’re down $

Therefore, we strongly recommend players only claim betting bonus offers they can confidently clear in time.

What’s a Good Wagering Requirement?

Now that you’re equipped with the knowledge of how to calculate an offer’s true wagering requirement, what constitutes a “good” deal?

It really depends on the kinds of games you want to play. Higher wagering requirements are more palatable if your game of choice is blackjack or pass line craps because the house edge is so low.

On the other hand, for online slots bonuses, you’ll typically want a lower wagering requirement due to the lower returns inherent in slots.

The way to determine a favorable wagering requirement is by first calculating the cashback rate of a bonus. Players can use a simple formula to figure the cashback rate:

Cashback % = / true wagering requirement

So, if a wagering requirement is 20x, then our cashback rate is 5%, which we derive by dividing by

Next, add the cashback rate to a game’s return, and you’ll get its true return. For example, if a slot returns % and you receive 5% cashback, the true return is %. At that rate, it’s almost a breakeven game. It’s not great, but it’s also not terrible for online slots.

Legal US gambling sites are usually transparent about game returns. Players can usually find them in any casino game’s information tab.

For a 20x wagering requirement, every game that returns 95% or more will theoretically provide players with an edge for the duration of the bonus, and that’s a sweet deal.

If the cashback % plus a game’s return to player (RTP) is over %, the player has the advantage.

Just remember that not all games contribute equally.

If video poker only contributes 20%, then the actual wagering requirement is x, not 20x, and thus the cashback % is (/) or 1%. That’s still a pretty good deal for certain video poker paytables, but clearing the video poker bonus is going to be a grind.

It’s helpful to know that the house edge on point spreads and totals for major sports markets is %, assuming lines on both sides. It dips to just % for lines.

With all this in mind, here are BettingUSA’s recommended maximum wagering requirements for each game type:

• Slots: 20x (25x – 30x is acceptable if you’re playing the very best online casino slots or enabling Big Bet features)
• Roulette: 30x for single zero; don’t bother with double zero
• Blackjack: x assuming perfect or near-perfect basic strategy
• Other Table Games: 30x is typically safe for most games unless you’re playing side bets
• Video Poker: x for good paytables and near-perfect play
• Sports Betting: 20x on straights at , no more than x on parlays and props

Unfortunately, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find online casino and sportsbook offers and promotions that meet those standards, but at least some make the grade.

Finding the Best Sports Betting Bonuses

It’s far less common to see online sportsbooks offer deposit matches, at least not to new players. Instead, they tend to opt for bonus bets or bet refund offers, and second chance bets.

Still, it’s essential for sports bettors to understand wagering requirement language because free bets at US sportsbooks are also bonuses and may come with their own wagering requirements.

Also, in states that have legalized online sportsbooks and casinos, it isn’t unheard of for operators to roll out multi-vertical deposit match bonuses that enable players to clear their bonus in the sportsbook, casino, or a combination of both.

Summary: Tips for New Players

To sum up, these are the essential pieces of advice BettingUSA can offer to new players who are still a bit confused by deposit matches and wagering requirements of online gambling bonuses:

• Always read the terms and conditions before claiming a deposit match bonus.
• Don’t just go by the wagering requirement number alone. It needs to be converted into a “true wagering requirement.”
• Be on the lookout for language that reads “deposit plus bonus.” This suggests the effective wagering requirement is higher, sometimes much higher, than what’s specified. Do the math.
• Know your contribution rate: Video poker, blackjack, and even sports might contribute less to the wagering requirement than slots. Sometimes, they may be excluded entirely.
• If you aren’t sure you’ll have enough time to meet a bonus’s wagering requirements, either make a smaller deposit or don’t claim the offer.
• Don’t ever cancel a bonus unless you’re up so much money that you don’t mind forfeiting it.
• Be leery of bonuses and promotions with high monetary caps, like $2, or more. Often these bonuses are loaded with unfavorable bonus terms and conditions.
• Aim for signup bonuses that allow you to play with an edge. The casino or sportsbook has the advantage nearly all the time – might as well take advantage of the few times they don’t.

Bonus Wagering Requirement FAQ