According to a respected market data company, the value of the global online gambling market is close to 59 billion dollars (U.S.). By 2023, it’s projected to increase to more than 90 billion dollars.
With that kind of money floating around; it’s no surprise that new online casinos are appearing all the time. However, as a prospective player, it’s important to know what to look for when deciding where to play.
This article will highlight a few of the key considerations that you should think about.
Five factors for picking an online casino
There are advantages and disadvantages with new casinos, compared to their established counterparts. On the one hand, many brand new sites come with all the bells and whistles in terms of platform features – for both desktop and mobile players.
Of course, high-quality, time-served operators have the trust and approval of existing and former players. Putting those things aside; here is our choose-a-casino checklist:
Licences: The first thing – above everything else – is to check that the casino is licenced and regulated. This ensures that the operator will have, as a minimum, industry-standard SSL certificates and firewall software to provide optimum security. Furthermore, regulated online casinos must have their games independently audited, so you can trust that they are playing fair and in accordance with the published RTP percentage.
Selection of games: The question you must ask yourself is ‘What games do I want to play?’ Some online casinos will be geared more towards attracting video slots’ enthusiasts, whereas other sites may have a stronger collection of live casino games.
Additionally, you will come across casinos more suited to high-stakes players. At the opposite end of the spectrum are the operators looking to serve the recreational player market. As you can see, there isn’t a ‘one size fits all’ answer to this. It’s a personal choice governed by your preferences.
Fair bonuses: All experienced online casino players will tell you, ‘Don’t look at the size of the bonus, look at the terms and conditions.’ What this means is that a casino could offer the largest bonus on the internet, but if the terms are not player-friendly, then it’s practically worthless. Bonuses with low wagering requirements are usually the way to go.
Payment options: To be fair, this is rarely a concern with most modern casinos, but it is still something that you should pay attention to when looking for a new online site. Specifically, does the operator provide suitable payment methods that you are willing to use? It is also useful to delve deeper in this area. You can find out if there are any banking fees; and the minimum and maximum limits for deposits and withdrawals.
Mobile gaming: These days, more players use mobile devices rather than desktop platforms for casino gaming. If you are one of these, take five minutes to check out the mobile site – or mobile app if there is one. Assess its user-friendliness, speed and variety of games, as they may differ from the main platform.
