Wagering is a word that you will come across when you start signing up with new online casinos. Whenever you register with a new online casino and claim the welcome bonus, first deposit bonus or any free spins offer, you will have to fulfil the wagering requirements attached, which means spending a set amount of your won real money funds on the online casinos’ selection of slot games. In this article, we will be looking at the best casino games to fulfil your requirements, how to fulfil your conditions, how to claim your bonus – and the winnings and more.
Casino Bonus Terms & Conditions
Every casino bonus that you will find at all online casinos will come with terms and conditions attached – which generally include a wagering requirement. These vary a lot in size. Some online casinos specify 20-times wagering, some 30-times, 40-times, with some being even higher. The higher the turnover (wagering) requirement attached, the harder it is to withdraw your casino winnings. That’s why we have brought you the best slots for fulfilling your requirements so you’ll get more chance to get your money!
The Best Online Casino Games
When we pick the best slot games there are certain elements that we look for:
- Return to Player percentage. The best games will have a high Return to Player percentage (RTP) – preferably 96% or higher. A high RTP means that you are more likely to win on the casino game. If you need to bet real money when wagering on online slots, then you should pick those games that are likely to give you a return on that money.
- Low variance and low volatility slots. As above. Low variance and low volatility slots are those that deliver smaller wins more often, which means that although you might not get those huge wins, you will get small wins more often. This is perfect if you are looking to fulfil bonus wagering requirements as you will get more back on the money that you are putting into the slot game. A High volatility game is perfect if you are looking for big wins and don’t have to wager a set amount of money, but if you have to wager money to claim your slots bonus, you should pick those casino games that give out more regular wins.
Fulfilling your Wagering Requirement
For example, you have signed up for a new online casino that offers a match deposit bonus on your 1st deposit. The offer is a 100% bonus up to €200 plus 50 free spins on Starburst. Before you claim the offer, you read the terms and conditions which state:
- New Customers only. Min deposit €10
- Max Bet €5
- 35x wagering requirements for bonus funds and free spins wins
- Free spins valid for 24 hours
- Game weighting applies
You decide that you want to deposit €50 and get a €50 bonus plus your free spins on Starburst. When you bet, you manage to win €100 with your bonus bet and you want to withdraw this. Firstly, you need to work out how much you need to wager in order to withdraw your bonus offer winnings:
€50 x 35 = €1,750
You then need to look at the game weighting. Normally, these specify that a slot game is 100% and casino table games are usually around 10-20%. As such, you will need to wager on a slot game. Simply look through the casino slot games available and rule out the high variance slot games. Look for games that have a low variance, low volatility and high RTP to fulfil wagering requirements.
You choose a game that has a high RTP of 97.6%. This means that, on average, casino players that play this specific game will get €97.60 back for every €100 they play. Therefore, with wagering requirements of €1,750, they can expect, on average, to get €1,708 back in winnings (1,750 x 97.6%)
As such, you will actually have spent €42 of your own money to fulfil your wagering requirements when taking into account your wins – and you can withdraw your €100 after this. Therefore, even with the 35x wagering requirements attached, you can still be up €52.
The Best Wagering Slots to Fulfil Your Bonus Amount Wagering
So, having said this, which are the best low variance slots with high RTP that we would recommend you spend your wagering bonus funds on:
Starburst by NetEnt
Starburst is not only a very popular slots game for a casino to offer their bonus on, but it is also a very good game on which to fulfil your wagering requirements. This is one of the most popular NetEnt slot games of all times with a cosmic, out of this world theme, offering 5-reels and 10 paylines. Although it doesn’t have a bonus game or ‘free spins’ feature, because it has a unique Both-way wins mechanic, it means that winning combinations are possible either way. You can also have more chance of wins with the Starburst wilds symbols which could activate 3 free respins if activated. It has a very decent RTP of 96.1 %.
Blood Suckers II
Another of the best wagering slots is Blood Suckers II, which is a hugely popular vampire-themed NetEnt slot, released on the back of the successful first instalment. This 5-reel game not only looks amazing – so you’re going to have fun when playing out your wagering requirements, but this is one of the best slots for bonus game selection. The slot offers 25 paylines, wild symbols, scatter symbols – most importantly though, it is a low volatility game that has an impressive RTP of 97.1%.
Thunderstruck II
This time we move over to Microgaming that also managed to release a slots sequel that actually surpasses the original game. Again, this is a fun and captivating 5-reel slot game that offers bonus features, wild symbols and plenty of excitement, but because this is a 243-ways to win game, getting those small wins in often is a given. So, on most of the spins you play, you will see some kind of return – perfect for fulfilling those free spins bonus wagering requirements.
Piggy Bank
This time we move onto the Play’n Go slot, Piggy Bank, which is a bright and fun offering from the masters of casino slots. Not only does it offer casino players a thrilling experience, attractive graphics, brightly coloured symbols and bonus rounds, but the main reason that it makes our list is because of its impressively high RTP of 97.03%, which makes it perfect for fulfilling those wagering requirements on any bonuses that you might claim!
Enchanted Garden II
This is a beautifully designed slot game that is perfect for players looking to spend their bonuses. It was designed by Real Time Gaming and is yet another sequel that has outdone the original… there seems to be a theme here! This game offers 5-reels and 25 paylines and a Fairy wild symbol who is there to magic up those wins for you – and double them up too! It offers players scatters and bonus rounds. This is an excellent low volatility slot that promises players lots of small wins that keep coming in – perfect for wagering your bonus and free spins winnings!
Other games to look out for when fulfilling your wagering requirements:
- Gemix by Play’n Go
- Warlords: Crystal of Power by NetEnt
- Bonanza Megaways by Big Time Gaming
- Wild Scarabs by Microgaming
- Spin & Win by Play’n Go
Wagering at an Online Casino – What it Means
Because an IE online casino cannot afford to give away money for free, they need to add betting limits and wagering requirements to their bonuses and promotions. In order to stop casino players abusing bonuses, casinos add ‘wagering requirements’ to most of their offers (although occasionally you will find a wager free bonus). Wagering requirements, also known as turnover requirements, require you to wager your bonus a number of times before you can withdraw your bonuses and winnings. The wagering requirement is calculated as follows:
For example, you claimed the bonus €50 that was on offer for new players. However, it comes with a 30-times wagering requirement. This means that you will need to wager €1,500 on selected games before you can withdraw the bonus money and any wins from it. If you complete these wagering requirements within the set time limit then you can withdraw your funds.
One thing you need to check is whether the casinos state 30-times wagering (bonus plus deposit). This is very different. In this case, the casinos are asking you to deposit 30-times (€50 bonus + €50 deposit) = 30 x €100 = €3,000 – double the amount. This puts quite a different spin on it. So, you need to double-check whether your wagering requirements apply to just the bonus funds or the bonus funds plus deposit funds.
Bonus Wagering
If you look at the game weighting, you will find that there are a number of casino games that are excluded from fulfilling your wagering requirements, which are usually table games, video poker games and jackpot games. There will be a number of games that don’t count towards wagering requirements so check first. Generally, most slots are included for wagering requirements (except jackpot games and some high volatility slots). However, as stated before, if you are looking to fulfil those wagering requirements, you would be best off steering clear of those anyway and enjoy the vast number of low variance slots with high return to player percentages!
Another aspect attached to the wagering requirement is the max bet amounts that are specified. The casino may well specify a max bet of €5 when playing out your wagering requirements. In essence, this is the casino trying to avoid players getting big wins from their bonuses. Generally, when they apply wagering requirements, they are doing so in order to protect them from big payouts – which is the same for max bet limitations.
But what if you do want to play those high variance slots? Although we have looked at the best low volatility games for wagering requirements, you are bound to want to play your favourite games – and these could be high variance or high volatility slots. If they are permitted for your wagering requirements then you need to take certain things into consideration. You should only play these games for a set time, we would then recommend switching to a low variance game. High variance games were not designed with wagering requirements in mind. These slots can see your winnings disappear pretty quickly, as they often come with losing streaks and periods of time where you win nothing at all.
Strategies
If you do think about employing strategies to fulfil your wagering requirements, then you need to be careful as some casinos are on the lookout for wagering strategies. They might disallow you from getting a big win on a high variance game and then switching to a lower volatility slot. Unfortunately, casinos often stipulate that the offer can be pulled at any time. However, all of our recommended casinos are above board and, as long as you don’t break any rules, should allow you to fulfil your wagering requirements however you see fit!
Casino Cruise €1000 Welcome Bonus + 255 Free Spins!
Casino Cruise is an excellent online casino to try out these online Slots in. As a new signup you will receive 55 no deposit free spins on Starburst. When you make your first couple of deposits you can collect up to €1000 in welcome bonuses + 200 extra free spins.
Best Wagering Slots FAQs
Which are the Best Wagering Slots?
Obviously, you want to have fun whilst wagering your bonus funds, so we would always recommend that you play a slot game that you enjoy. However, in order to make anything from your bonus, you need to ensure that your chosen game has a 100% game weighting. We would also recommend you choose a low variance, low volatility game such as Starburst, Blood Suckers II, Thunderstruck II, Piggy Bank and Enchanted Forest II. Always check out a games RTP.
What is a Wagering Requirement?
When you claim a deposit bonus, or free spins bonus, whether it’s a new players 1st deposit bonus or an existing players bonus, casinos add a wagering requirement, which is the number of times you need to wager the funds before withdrawing. In general, the lower the wagering requirement the better.
Can You Get Wager-Free Bonuses?
If you are lucky, every now and then you will come across a bonus that comes without any wager requirement attached. If you happen to find a 1st deposit bonus that claims to be ‘wager-free’, then we recommend that you claim it, because ultimately it means that you can keep any money that you win from your bonus. Wager-free free spins are very popular because it means that you get to keep the winnings from all of your spins. However, you will still need to check the terms and conditions to see what other restrictions apply (such as a max win cap).
What Does Return to Player Mean?
All casino games will have a Return to Player rate (referred to as RTP). This is the percentage of money that a player can expect to be returned to them in winnings if they play that game. For example, if a game has a Return to Player (RTP) of 97%, then for every €1000 they spend, they can expect to win, on average €970 of that money back. These aren’t guaranteed though, it’s just an average figure. If you are looking to fulfil wagering on your bonus amount, then we would recommend that you wager your bonus funds on a slot game that has a high Return to Player rate.
