What Is a Wagering Requirement?

New and existing online gamblers must have come across the term “wagering requirements,” especially where bonuses are concerned. If you’ve been gambling online for a while, then you probably understand a little of what this term means. On the other hand, if you’re new to the gambling space, chances are, you might be a little confused.

A wagering requirement is one of the essential factors in playing online casino games and sports betting. If you’re seeking to know more about this term, you’ve landed on the right page. Here, we shall explore all about wagering requirements and find out what it means for a gambler.

What Are Wagering Requirements?

When you sign up on a casino, you get welcome offers depending on the casino. These offers could be cash bonuses or free spins.

Your first thought is that these are free money; you’re not wrong. You can use these bonuses to sample different online casino games without risking your hard-earned cash. However, there’s a minor condition attached to these bonuses: wagering requirements.

Wagering, like any player, would know, means betting. It’s the amount of cash players stake when playing table games or spinning the reels at the slots.

Wagering requirements are then the total cash you must bet before you can withdraw your bonus or bonus wins. Fulfilling a wagering requirement is the only way to turn your bonus cash into real money.

How Do Wagering Requirements Work In An Online Casino?

These betting conditions vary depending on the bonus. If it’s a cash reward, you must wager the bonus through a specific multiplier. The multiplier number depends on the casino and the bonus involved.

Let’s say you receive $100 with a 20x wagering requirements as a welcome or deposit offer. You multiply the bonus by the required number to get the wagering requirement. This means you must bet $200 on specific games before you can request a withdrawal for your bonus amount.

These terms on free spins are a bit different. Since these spins are not cash values, you must first use them to play and earn on specific slots. The wagering requirement will apply to your bonus wins.

Let’s assume a player gets 30 free spins at $0.5 per spin. This means that the player has $6 to play slots. This bonus amount might come with a wagering requirement of 40x.

Assuming the bonus total is $100, the player must wager $100 forty times before withdrawing.

The money you earn remains in a pending balance while you try to meet the condition. The casino transfers your funds to your main user account once you’ve completed the requirements, after which you can withdraw. Players forfeit the bonus if they’re unable to meet the specifications.

How Do Wagering Requirements Work In Sports Betting?

These conditions work the same way as they do in online casinos. Bettors have to wager their bonus amount a certain number of times before withdrawing bonuses. However, there’s a slight difference when it comes to free bets.

The requirement would need bettors to wager a certain amount to trigger the free bets in most cases. For instance, you might have to stake $10 to get $25 free bets. The sportsbook also specifies the minimum odds of the bet.

Why Do Casinos And Sports Betting Sites Use Wagering Requirements?

Here are reasons why gambling sites have wagering requirements and other conditions on bonuses:

To Prevent Immediate Cashout

Some gamblers are all about claiming the bonuses. They could join a gambling platform to get a welcome offer or other enticing promotions. If there are no requirements, players can register on any platform, claim a bonus offer and leave.

These scenarios would cause online gambling sites to go down the drain as they’ll be giving out too much free cash. With these conditions, a player must bet on that site at least once. This ensures that casino and sports betting platforms can get back their free money and avoid losses.

To Attract Players

Once a bonus offer is worth it, players might not worry about the wagering requirements. Instead, they would want to play more and claim more bonuses on the site. Sites with good offers and reasonable playthrough conditions would have more players registering on the platform.

Can You Avoid Wagering Requirements?

With such high numbers on the table, you’ll be seeking ways to bypass these conditions. Unfortunately, wagering requirements are unavoidable. You must fulfill them to enjoy cash bonuses from gambling sites.

Nonetheless, you can choose to forego the bonus and play with your deposit only. Such decisions are not the smartest as you’ll be forfeiting a lot of free cash.

Even though these conditions restrict your playing possibilities, they shouldn’t discourage you from enjoying your experience. Instead, view them as a means to earn far more than your deposit. Plus, if you enjoy the games on the site, clearing these requirements won’t always pose a problem.

How To Beat Wagering Requirements

Though you can’t avoid these conditions, there are a few ways to get the most out of them. Below are methods that you can use to beat wagering requirements:

Find The Right Gambling Platform

Some sites will have attractive offers but very high requirements which you might be unable to meet. To avoid this, sign up with a gambling site with low wagering requirements. Players will always find the requirements of some bonuses among the terms and conditions of the site.

Choose The Right Game

Casinos usually have what they call “weightings” on all their games. This determines how the site calculates gamblers’ playthrough requirements.

For instance, a casino game might have 50% weighting. This means that 50% of every stake contributes to your wagering requirement. So, if you have a $500 playthrough requirement and bet $50, only 25% would be removed from the $500.

That said, it’s best to opt for games like slots that usually have 100% weighting. So, if you bet $50 and have $500 wagering requirements, the casino subtracts $50 from $500.

Conclusion

Wagering requirements might seem like a spoiler, but it’s only a security measure to avoid losses. Plus, it’s a way to double, or triple, your winnings because the more you bet, the higher your winning chances. However, ensure to settle for sites with lower wagering requirements.

This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or management of EconoTimes