No deposit bonuses are considered to be free money by some gamblers. They’re a value given to players by online casinos to make gambling on their site or app more appealing. However, these bonuses come with conditions, and that can mean you need to pay your own money in order to get them.

From explaining how they work to listing the casinos with the best offers, this guide explains all the important facts about no deposit bonuses.

What Are No Deposit Bonuses?

One of the most appealing offers used by online casinos is the no deposit bonus. Although a small bonus, it serves to attract a large number of new players by guaranteeing them a free sum of money or an offer with value (e.g. free spins), subject to completing the terms and conditions set by the individual casino. This money is available to gamblers, who don’t need to deposit any of their own cash first.

No deposit bonuses can either be used as a way of welcoming new players to an online casino or to reward loyal gamblers for continuing to use the site. These bonuses are also known as ‘free cash bonuses’ or ‘free bonuses.’

How Do No Deposit Bonuses Work?

No deposit bonuses work in a very simple way – players sign up to the offer and are then eligible to collect free money once they have satisfied the terms of the offer. Casinos offer a range of different amounts to players, but the most common amounts are £5 to £10.

One of the most important things to understand about how no deposit bonuses work is that they are not completely free. Why is this? Because in order to get access to the free money, you often need to spend some of your own cash, once you’ve signed up.

As we’ve established, you don’t pay any of your own money up front to get access to a no deposit bonus. Instead, players accrue credit with the casino by playing eligible games and wagering money on them. How this works is that casinos will ask you to wager a certain value of the no deposit bonus in order to get it. For example, if a no deposit bonus is £10 and the wagering requirement is 10x, then you need to wager £100.

Do Wagering Requirements Mean No Deposit Bonuses Aren’t Free?

A popular example of how the no deposit bonus wagering requirement works is that gamblers build up credits to their profile while they play the casino’s games. This doesn’t necessarily mean that they spend their own money.

For instance, if the offer is aimed at existing players, they can use their bankroll — and if every step they make towards getting to the necessary credit comes without losing, then they won’t need to add their bankroll.

There are two clear examples where no deposit bonuses aren’t free:

• If you have no existing bankroll
• If your existing bankroll doesn’t count towards the wagering requirement

In both of these examples, and before you can claim your no deposit bonus, you will need to invest some of your own money in order to meet the wagering requirements.

Types of No Deposit Bonuses

Online casinos offer several varieties of no deposit bonuses, and here is a brief overview of some of the most popular ones that are available to gamblers.

No Deposit Bonus Cash

This is a small welcome gift of cash given away to players who have just signed up. Online casinos usually give away small cash bonuses of £5 or £10 to newly registered players.

Some players can grab no deposit bonuses as large as £100 by signing up through affiliate links (i.e no deposit bonuses advertised with gambling sites). These affiliate sites take a commission from online casinos for getting players to sign up to their no deposit bonus, which is why the bonuses are larger.

No Deposit Free Spins

Some casinos give away free spins on featured slots to newly registered players. For example, Casumo, one of the best UK casinos we’ve reviewed, gives away 30 free spins to new gamblers as part of its sign up offer – the number of spins is subject to change and may not be the same amount when you visit the Casumo website.

Free Play Bonuses

This is a relatively new variety of no deposit bonus, which players can grab as soon as they sign up. It is larger than a no deposit cash bonus. Players are then challenged to use their free play bonus for a set amount of time (for example, one hour or 90 minutes) and win as many real money prizes as they can.

How to Claim No Deposit Bonuses

Getting access to the money you are eligible for as part of the no deposit bonus is not as simple as signing up and cashing out – online casinos place conditions (often wagering requirements) on gamblers to make sure they get something in return for the ‘free’ money they give to players. Here are the various steps involved in claiming a no deposit bonus.

• Create a new account at an online casino.
• In some casinos, players will have to contact customer care and express their interest to receive the bonus.
• Sometimes, players have to input an alphanumeric bonus code available at the online casino.
• Players who are signing up through an affiliate site will have to input the alphanumeric bonus code provided by that site.
• You meet the conditions (such as wagering requirements) needed to access the no deposit bonus(es).
• The online casino will credit the no deposit bonus(es).

When claiming a no deposit bonus, players must understand that it is associated with a number of terms and conditions. You cannot withdraw a no-deposit bonus. You can only withdraw the winnings, but after satisfying the wagering conditions.

Mobile Casino No Deposit Bonuses

No deposit bonuses are not only available to gamblers who use the website version of an online casino. Mobile casino gambling is increasingly popular among players and most online casinos seek to appeal to players by creating an app to go alongside their website. Part of the attraction of mobile casino apps is that many offer no deposit bonuses, in the same way that the websites for online casinos do.

Mobile casino no deposit bonuses are like those that are available via an online casino’s website – they offer a sum of money (or an offer of value, such as free spins) to gamblers in return for meeting certain terms and conditions.

Can I Keep The Winnings From My No Deposit Bonuses?

The question every gambler asks with no deposit bonuses is whether they can keep them. The answer is that you can keep the winnings from your no deposit bonuses but you need to work for them.

Online casinos are obliged to pay gamblers the promised no deposit bonus once they’ve met the terms and conditions for their payment, meaning that you keep the winnings. However, the bigger question is whether you make any real winnings from no deposit bonuses. This is because the wagering requirements mean that you may end up paying significantly higher than the value of your no deposit bonus in order to get it – can it really be said that £10 amounts to winnings if you’ve had to wager £100 to get it?

What’s No Deposit Bonus Abuse?

Online casinos hardly offer no-deposit bonuses directly in order to save themselves from bonus abuse. When players sign up at online casinos only to claim the bonus offer, it is known as bonus abuse. No deposit bonuses are usually offered through affiliate links, which is why experts urge new players never to sign up directly at an online casino. Always sign up through approved affiliate links to get the best deals.

What’s A Wagering Requirement?

A wagering requirement is a value you need to achieve in order for your no deposit bonus to be credited to you. This value can either be in cash amount or in-game currency.

Cash amount

You receive a cash bonus. You need to wager a specific amount of your no deposit bonus to get it. For instance, if a no deposit bonus of £10 has a wagering requirement of x10, you need to wager a total of £100.

Game currency

You receive a bonus in-game currency, such as free spins. You must wager the required amount of the no deposit bonus to get your bonus. For example, if a no deposit bonus of 10 free spins has a wagering requirement of x10, you need to wager 100 spins to get your bonus.

Are No Deposit Bonuses Free Money?

Whether no deposit bonuses amount to free money depends on your definition of free. Yes, online casinos will give you money (or game currency), but there is a charge for this. The result is that you could pay a lot of your own money before you are able to access your free no deposit bonus.

As we’ve established, you don’t pay any of your own money up front to get access to a no deposit bonus. Instead, players accrue credit with the casino by playing eligible games and wagering money on them. How this works is that casinos will ask you to wager a certain value of the no deposit bonus in order to get it. For example, if a no deposit bonus is £10 and the wagering requirement is 10x, then you need to wager £100.