Choosing an online casino can be a major obstacle for new gamblers. The selection is so vast you might drown in the sea of online casinos and end up so overwhelmed you don’t even want to gamble anymore.
And even if you DO end up finding some options, you might be wondering if you found safe and reliable online casinos. Sadly, not all of the online casinos out there are safe or even properly licensed.
So, how can you make sure you don’t stumble upon unreliable casinos? There are a few key factors to keep in mind when analyzing online casinos and lucky for you, the following guidelines will be all you need on your quest to find the best online casinos.
Make Sure the Casino is Licensed
This is something that can’t be emphasized too much. Every casino needs to have a license. Actually, there’s even a special Gambling Commission in the UK, responsible for regulating gambling companies in the UK. All decent trustworthy casinos have a license from the UKGC. Or from licensing authority of their respective country, such as Latvia.
You definitely need to make sure you play at a casino that has the UKGC license. The license ensures that the company has gone through extensive background checks and are deemed to be safe by the Government itself.
If you play at unlicensed casinos, you put your personal data and money at great peril. You never know if the casino is reliable and in the worst case, you might end up not even receiving your winnings. Unlicensed casinos might be scams, instead.
Seriously, never play at unlicensed casinos. You’ll just call misery towards you and end up not enjoying the experience.
Check the Game Providers and Game Selection
The next step is to go through the casino’s game selection. Both the selection of game providers and games themselves matter.
You always want to have the best game providers behind your back. Strong reputable game providers mean you’ll have trustworthy ethical games that are checked and verified, meaning you won’t have to worry about being cheated in the games. Plus, the best providers go far and beyond to engineer exciting gameplay that keeps you on your toes for hours.
Some of the most reputable game providers include:
These are just the tip of the iceberg as there are tens and tens of highly reputable game providers out there.
The game selection itself matters too, of course. First, you’ll clearly want to find a casino that offers games that tickle your fancy. If you like sports betting, you’ll want to find great betting sites. If you like live casino tables, you’ll want strong live casino sites.
Most online casinos offer a great selection of online slots, roulette, blackjack, baccarat, bingo and some even include sports betting.
Bonus Offers Matter
Casino bonuses make up a big part of your gambling experience. Even if you’re not usually too keen on using promotions, don’t underestimate the bonus selection.
Casinos that run promotions are often much greater in satisfying their customers and sometimes, promotions can include other perks such as cashback or special free bets, not even regular casino bonuses.
And if you ARE a happy bonus user, it’s clear that the bonus selection matters a lot.
Either way, a great variety of bonuses make a huge difference. You should definitely prefer a casino with a decent bonus selection.
Test the Customer Support
Even in the most efficient casinos, you might end up having some questions. For example, you might need to confirm some details on your account or ask how long your withdrawal request will take.
The best casinos have reliable, professional and fast customer service. In best cases, customer support is available 24/7 via live chat. If possible, prefer casinos with that kind of service quality, plus a decent FAQ section doesn’t hurt either.
To make sure the casino has proper customer service, contact them before opening an account to see how the service behaves. If you’re happy with the service, you can feel more confident about opening the account and starting your gambling venture.
Read the Terms and Conditions
We know how boring it is to read through terms and conditions but the truth is, terms contain some essential points that apply to your relationship with the casino. If you just sign up and never go through the terms, you don’t know what you’re agreeing to. In worst-case scenarios, you might end up in a casino with troublesome terms that don’t work for your needs at all. For example, the casino might have strict withdrawal policies in place that forbid you from withdrawing over a certain amount.
We know how boring it is to read terms and conditions but at least, glance over them and definitely check the payment conditions.
Safe Payment Providers
Last but not least, you should go over the available payment providers too. After all, your whole experience revolves around making deposits and withdrawals. Without them, gambling is impossible. Naturally, the casino should offer payment methods that work for you but beyond that, the payment methods should be safe and well-known.
Never use casinos that have something shady going on about them, including some shady payment methods. Best casinos out there collaborate with well-known payment methods, such as VISA or Mastercard payments, PayPal and such.