Types of Online Casino Bonuses

Introduction

Casino bonuses have been one of the main reasons for the popularity of online casinos. Many people that play at online casinos will specifically tell you that it is because of the fact that they are people that love to play with free money. Some people are in it just to have fun with the casino’s money and some people are in it to try and make some money from the bonuses. Either way, understanding the types of bonuses that are available to you will allow you to become good at not only hunting for good bonuses, but also at claiming them.

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Welcome Bonuses

These are the bonuses that started it all! When the first casinos came to power online, they ended up offering people deposit bonuses if they would make deposits into their real money accounts. Casinos needed a way to legitimize themselves and this seemed for the moment a very good way to do so. The very first bonuses were flat rate amounts such as $10 or $20, but nowadays welcome bonuses have evolved to being expressed in terms of a percentage of the deposit as well as a maximum and possibly even minimum amount. A typical welcome bonus might be something along the lines of 100% up to $100, which ultimately means that anything you deposit up to $100 will be doubled by the casino in your wagering amount.

Reload Bonuses

These bonuses, while not as old as the welcome bonuses in conception, have nevertheless been around for a fair amount of time. What makes these bonuses so attractive is the fact that they are offered on more than one occasion. While a welcome bonus is only offered for the first deposit or for the first set of deposits, reload bonuses can be offered again and again for as long as online casinos exist. They are usually not offered on a regular basis, but at the same time are offered often enough that people can claim them multiple times per year and get more money in addition to the welcome bonus they got when they first signed up for the casino.

Periodical Bonuses

These are basically the same thing as reload bonuses, but instead of being randomly offered to different people at different times, they are offered to all people on a regular basis. The most common periodical bonus is a monthly bonus, however there are casinos that will offer quarterly bonuses and yearly bonuses as well. There are also some casinos that will offer weekly bonuses, but these are usually very hard to clear and are offered by less reputable casinos. This is not to say that a reputable casino will not offer a weekly deposit bonus, but rather to say that if they do offer one, you should make sure that they have a good reputation before investing your money.

Play Bonuses

These are quite different from all the bonuses listed above. Some casinos have "happy hour" promotions where you log on and play during a specified hour. Everyone that does this receives an entry into a drawing and the winner of that draw wins some small double-digit amount of money. These bonuses do not require a deposit, but they do require playing real money wagers at a specific time online. Some casinos will offer weekly play bonuses and this is a lot more common and a lot more reputable on average than the weekly periodical bonuses you are likely to see.