Online casinos attract new players by offering what seems like free money through a no deposit bonus. As soon as you sign up for an account, the casino credits your balance with AU$10, AU$20 or sometimes even AU$50 that you can use to play real money games.
While this free casino bonus sounds enticing, is it truly free money? Or are there catches involved that make it not worth claiming? In this article, we’ll examine the pros and cons of no deposit bonuses to determine if they are as good as they seem.
How No Deposit Bonuses Work
A no deposit bonus provides bonus cash or free spins simply for registering an account with an online casino. You do not have to make a deposit of your own money to claim promo like Stay Casino login Australia sign up bonus.
These bonuses come with wagering requirements that must be met before any winnings can be withdrawn. This means you must place bets totaling a specific multiple of the bonus amount before cashing out is allowed. Wagering requirements are commonly 20x to 50x the bonus amount.
Here’s an example:
- Casino offers AU$20 no deposit bonus
- Bonus comes with 30x wagering requirement
- You must place AU$600 in bets before withdrawing any money won with the bonus funds
In addition to wagering requirements, no deposit bonuses come with other restrictions like maximum cash out limits. We’ll explore the implications of these rules shortly.
First, let’s look at reasons why no deposit bonuses can be valuable.
Appeal of No Deposit Bonuses
Accepting a no deposit bonus comes with little risk, making it enticing for many players. Potential benefits include:
Try Games for Free
A no deposit bonus allows you to sample an online casino’s game selection without spending your own cash. If you dislike the games or software, you haven’t lost anything.
You can use the bonus to test new game variants or practice gameplay strategies risk-free. Just be aware you may not win real cash payouts during bonus play.
Take a Shot at Free Money
No deposit bonuses provide an opportunity, albeit small, to win real money at no personal cost. Casinos wouldn’t offer these bonuses if players never won playing with them.
While beating wagering requirements involves luck, some players do succeed in converting bonus money into cash withdrawal. Again, the casino takes on full risk by giving you bonus funds to play with.
Use as Bankroll for Matched Deposit
Some players claim a no deposit bonus with the plan to make an actual deposit later. This allows you to use the bonus money as part of your starting bankroll.
When you deposit your own cash, many casinos provide a matched bonus. This offers a percentage match up to a specified amount. You can potentially clear wagering requirements playing with both bonus amounts.
| Bonus Type | Bonus Amount | Withdrawable Profit |
| No Deposit Bonus | AU$20 | AU$0 |
| Matched Deposit Bonus | AU$100 | AU$30 |
| Total | AU$120 | AU$30 |
As you can see in the table, by combining both bonus types, you may come out ahead in the end. You’ve risked none of your own money for a shot at real profits.
This demonstrates how no deposit bonuses can provide actual value. But casinos impose rules to heavily limit how much money you can gain this way.
Disadvantages of No Deposit Bonuses
While no deposit bonuses come with perks, online casinos tip the scales heavily in their own favor. Restrictions attached to these bonuses greatly reduce their value.
High Wagering Requirements
The first catch we observed with no deposit bonuses is sky-high wagering requirements. Having to wage a AU$20 bonus 30 to 50 times is no easy feat.
The terms stack odds massively against the player cashing out any money from the bonus. Even getting halfway towards clearing requirements involves astounding luck.
Mathematically, most players have no realistic chance of beating wagering requirements playing exclusively with a small no deposit bonus. Casinos count on this fact.
Low Maximum Cashouts
Another universal restriction placed on no deposit bonuses is capping maximum cash out. This refers to the highest amount you can withdraw from the bonus, should you beat the wagering requirement against all odds.
Typical maximum cash-outs allow winners to withdraw between AU$50 to AU$200. Even if you accrue total winnings of AU$500 from a AU$20 bonus, you may only withdraw a fraction of that amount.
Forfeiting Winnings
Winnings earned playing games with a no deposit bonus remain locked until wagering requirements are met. If you fail to clear the turnover amount before your bonus expires, all those wins vanish.
This means you can put in hours playing with a bonus, building up a nice payout amount, only to have the casino remove all your winnings when the bonus period ends.
Bonus Abuse Protection
Casinos strictly prohibit “bonus abuse”, meaning to only bet in ways that carry minimal risk for the purpose of cashing out bonus winnings. Such strategies include:
- Placing minimum bets on even money bets in blackjack, roulette, and baccarat
- Wagering small amounts on red and black or even and odds repeatedly
- Building tiny guaranteed profits betting on both sides of a binary markets
If casinos catch you attempting any guaranteed profit schemes, they’ll remove the bonus and any resulting winnings. You may even get banned from the casino outright.
Between absurd wagering requirements, cash out limits, expiring bonuses, and abuse protections, casinos leave no openings for players to consistently win money from no deposit bonuses.
Are No Deposit Bonuses Worth Claiming?
Given the sheer amount of restrictions that come with no deposit bonuses, they realistically provide very little monetary value. The probability of cashing out any real winnings from these bonuses is extremely slim.
However, they can still hold worth for some players in specific situations:
- New players wishing to preview games or test gameplay strategies
- Experienced players trying out new casinos before depositing
- Players who plan to make a deposit and use it as a starter bankroll
Outside of these narrow applications, the limitations attached to no deposit bonuses make it doubtful that claiming them is +EV. You can expect to play through the bonus with little chance of actually withdrawing anything in the end.
In summary, while no deposit bonuses appear to offer free money, online casinos incentivize players to sign up without actually providing withdrawals in most cases. If your goal is to ultimately cash out winnings, these bonuses generally are not worth the effort required, unless used strategically in combination with real money deposits.