Wagering Requirements Explained: What They Mean & How to Outsmart Them
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Despite wagering requirements being part of online casino promotions, many players still don’t know what it means and why it is a thing. Our BetterGambling insiders will break down this subject and offer tested-and-tried strategies for beating wagering requirements. We have provided clear definitions throughout the article and answered questions like “what does wager mean?” and “what is a wagering requirement?”
- Learn What a Player-Friendly Wagering System Looks Like
- Player-Friendly Wagering vs Unfair Wagering: When to Walk Away
- Be Careful! Wagering Requirements Stacked Against You
- Breaking Down Wagering Multipliers: What Does 30x, 40x, and 50x Really Mean?
- Outsmarting Wagering Requirements & Proven Strategies to Cash Out Faster
- All in All: What You Need to Know Before Claiming a Bonus
- Strategist’s Take – My Strategy for Beating Wagering Requirements
Learn What a Player-Friendly Wagering System Looks Like
So what is a wager? A wager is simply the amount of money you are required to bet before you can withdraw your bonus winnings. Wagering, on the other hand, is the process of placing a bet. So when someone asks, what does wagering mean in the context of casino bonuses, they are referring to the process of staking bonus money severally in a bid to turn it into withdrawable cash.
Casinos impose wagering requirements on their promotions primarily to prevent bonus abuse and to keep players busy on their platforms. But this should not be a justification for ridiculously high playthrough conditions that some casinos provide with their bonuses.
Our BetterGambling experts think wagering requirements should be between 1x and 10x the bonus money. And what does 10x or 1x wagering mean, you may ask? Well, it means you only need to wager the bonus amount 10 times or once, respectively, before cashing out.
Here are other attributes of favourable wagering systems:
- Clear Game Contributions: The games that contribute to the wagering requirements should be clearly stated, and you should have enough options that contribute 100% to wagering.
- Partial Withdrawals Are Allowed: In a fair system, you can withdraw a portion of your winnings while still fulfilling the remaining wagering requirements.
Player-Friendly Wagering vs Unfair Wagering: When to Walk Away
Some UK casinos design their wagering systems to favour the player, while others set them up in a way that benefits the casino.
Let’s see how fair wagering and unfair wagering systems compare:
| Feature | Fair Wagering System | Unfair Wagering System |
| Wagering Multiplier | Low (1x – 10x) | High (40x – 200x) |
| Game Contributions | Most games contribute 100%. | Most games have low wagering contribution or don’t contribute at all. |
| Withdrawals Before Completion | Partial withdrawals allowed. | Prohibited. |
| Time Limit to Meet Wagering | Reasonable deadlines, e.g. 30 days | Extremely short bonus validity periods, e.g. 1-3 days. |
Check Your Knowledge of How to Meet Wagering Requirements
- Read the fine print for the wagering multiplier (e.g., 30x, 40x, or 50x). 30, 40, and 50 in this example are the multipliers of your bonus cash or free spins winnings. The fine print also shows the bonus expiry, allowed games, max win limit, and other crucial conditions.
- Play the right games. For most bonuses, slots have a 100% wagering contribution. This means every £1 you bet goes directly towards clearing the playthrough conditions. Take, for example, if the bonus awarded you £10 and it came with 20x wagering requirements, your wagering amount would be £200 (20 x 10). Every pound that you wager on games with 100% contribution would be subtracted directly from the £200.
- Monitor your wagering progress. Keep track of your bets to know exactly how much more bonus money you need to wager through. Keep in mind the bonus expiry to avoid losing your bonus funds mid-wagering and the max win limit to avoid over-betting.
Be Careful! Wagering Requirements Stacked Against You
Not every bonus is designed with the player’s interest in mind. Online casinos mostly set up promotions to keep you hooked or level the playing field for themselves by matching what other established gambling platforms are doing. So the wagering requirements will usually be high, and the whole wagering system is simply difficult to beat.
Thankfully, many UK players have woken up to the seriousness of stringent conditions. In response, casinos have had to relax terms like wagering requirements to make their bonuses more desirable. These are the offers you should pursue!
Wagering Requirements Broken Down: How Casinos Set the Rules in Their Favor
How do wagering requirements work? By now you know that they dictate the number of times you must wager your bonus cash or winnings to withdraw it. Their utilitarian value is to keep players from abusing bonuses. However, casinos are abusing them, and here is a list showing exactly how they do it:
- Setting high multipliers: High wagering multipliers set you up to drain your bankroll before you can reach the withdrawal stage.
- Providing unfavourable game selections: Often, only specific slots will count 100% toward the wagering requirement, while table games will contribute between 10% and 20%.
- Attaching short validity periods: Some bonuses remain valid for very short periods, which forces players to wager hastily and potentially make unwise bets.
- Hiding important conditions: Some wagering requirements come with hidden conditions like max bet limits, which on violation, render the bonus void.
Breaking Down Wagering Multipliers: What Does 30x, 40x, and 50x Really Mean?
If you are still struggling with the questions, “what does 30x wagering mean?”, “what does 40x wagering mean?”, or “what does 50x wagering mean?”, 30, 40, and 50 are wagering multipliers, and you have to wager your bonus amount 30, 40, and 50 times respectively, to be allowed to withdraw your winnings.
For cash bonuses, you apply the multiplier directly to the bonus amount. Free spins bonuses, on the other hand, require that you play the initial free spins and apply the multiplier on the winnings.
How Wagering Multipliers Work – From 1x to 50x and Beyond
Different bonuses come with different wagering requirements. Some don’t have any playthrough conditions at all, while others will require you to wager through your bonus funds as much as 50x – 200x. Typically, no deposit bonuses have the highest wagering multipliers.
Deposit-based offers, like matched bonuses, have lower conditions, but the number still depends heavily on the casino you bet at. We also realized that bonuses with low wagering requirements are likely to have shorter validity periods, lower max win limits, etc., and vice versa.
| Bonus Amount | What Does 1x Wagering Mean? | What Does 30x Wagering Mean? | What Does 40x Wagering Mean? | What Does 50x Wagering Mean? |
| £10 | £10 | £300 | £400 | £500 |
| £20 | £20 | £600 | £800 | £1,000 |
| £30 | £30 | £900 | £1,200 | £1,500 |
| £40 | £40 | £1,200 | £1,600 | £2,000 |
| £50 | £50 | £1,500 | £2,000 | £2,500 |
| £100 | £100 | £3,000 | £4,000 | £5,000 |
| £1,000 | £1000 | £30,000 | £40,000 | £50,000 |
Outsmarting Wagering Requirements & Proven Strategies to Cash Out Faster
Even if a bonus comes with high wagering requirements, there are strategies you can use to meet them more efficiently or, in some cases, avoid them entirely.
How to Meet Wagering Requirements Without Losing Your Bonus
Want to know how to wager bonus funds to the end and on time? Here are things you should do and common mistakes you should avoid:
| How to Meet Wagering Requirements | Don’t Do This! | What Success Looks Like |
| Choose High-Contribution Games | Don’t play games with no wagering contribution or that only contribute 10-20%. | Play slots or games that contribute 100% to the wagering requirement. |
| Manage Your Bankroll | Avoid the urge to bet recklessly in an attempt to clear requirements faster. | Stick to your budget and bet plan. |
| Make Use of Bonus-Specific Strategies | Don’t ignore the bonus terms specific to the bonus in question. | Adjust bet sizes according to bonus conditions. |
| Monitor Your Progress | Don’t forget to keep tabs on the headway you make towards clearing the wagering amount. | Utilize bonus calculators to track your bonus and know when you are close to fulfilling the playthrough requirements. |
| Avoid Chasing Losses | Avoid increasing bets impulsively to recover lost money. | Maintain discipline whether you are losing or winning. |
Beating the System: When You Can Actually Avoid Wagering Requirements
Albeit uncommon, wager free bonuses exist! Most we have come across have made up for the lack of playthrough conditions with extremely low bonus values, low max win limits, and other restrictions. Here’s how they stack up against bonuses with wagering requirements:
| Bonus Type | Typical Wagering Requirement | Best for Casual Players? |
| Deposit Match Bonus | 20x-50x | No, usually difficult to clear. |
| Free Spins | 30x-40x | Depends on validity period. |
| No Wagering Bonus | 0x | Yes, winnings available for immediate withdrawal. |
| Cashback Bonus | 1x-5x | Yes, playthrough requirements reasonably low. |
| Reload Bonus | 10x-20x | Sometimes, if combined with low bonus amount and large max bet size. |
| Loyalty Bonus | 1x-50x | Yes and no, as conditions depend on casino and loyalty tier. |
All in All: What You Need to Know Before Claiming a Bonus
The wagering requirement might be the most impactful term in any casino bonus T&Cs. Here are key insights from our BettergGambling experts to help you understand wagering requirements better and choose bonuses with better terms:
- Wagering requirements are designed to prevent bonus abuse. They determine the number of times you need to bet your bonus before you can withdraw any winnings.
- Bonuses with lower wagering multipliers are always more player-friendly. By our standards, wagering conditions shouldn’t cross the 20x threshold.
- Not all games contribute equally to wagering. Always prioritize games that contribute 100% towards the wagering requirements.
- Time limits and additional conditions may be as equally important as playthrough requirements. Consider bonuses with ample validity periods, high max win limits, and more extensive game selections.
- Understanding key terms is crucial. What does wager mean? What is bonus expiry? What is cashout limit? What are eligible games? Find answers to these questions before claiming an online casino bonus.
Strategist’s Take – My Strategy for Beating Wagering Requirements
As an experienced gambler and strategist, I have spent years analyzing wagering requirements and testing various bonuses to see what really works. And in my experience, the most important thing is to read the fine print and plan your strategy based on what is in the T&Cs.
I prefer bonuses with low multipliers, i.e. those with 1x-10x wagering requirements. Well, I have claimed bonuses with 30x, 40x, 50x, and even 60x multipliers, but these were options whose other terms allowed me to complete the requirements without betting hastily. Essentially, the only time I’m compromising on my WR standards is when there is ample time to clear the wagering requirements, favourable eligible games, and a proper true bonus value.
In summary, always take the time to read the terms and conditions, plan your strategy, and know exactly how to meet wagering requirements without jeopardizing your bonus. This way, you can outsmart even the most challenging wagering conditions and enjoy a more rewarding online casino experience.
