Various online casino bonuses and their peculiarities

There’s no denying that it’s awfully tempting to go bonus hunting in today’s online gambling environment. The fierce competition for players within the industry has generated a large variety of bonuses and promotions, many of which – if wisely exploited – can provide players with an edge that’s larger than the house edge they have to play against in any casino. That’s right, some bonus hunter make money redeeming online casino bonuses, and sometimes they even make money by winning during bonus redemption. In order to become a successful bonus hunter yourself, first you need to know a thing or two about the types of bonuses that are being offered and about the advantages and disadvantages various bonuses carry.

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The sign-up bonus is obviously the best know type of online casino bonus. Sign-up bonuses are usually one time deals, meant to welcome players (they’re often known as welcome bonuses too). These bonuses are usually the best deals for bonus hunters. You should always be aware that sign-up bonuses do not represent free money: you’ll have to unlock them through fulfilling the play-through or redemption requirements before you can cash them out. There are two factors which determine the value of a sign-up bonus. The first one is the maximum bonus amount. This is what casinos usually advertise. The larger your maximum bonus is the better it should be but that doesn’t mean that an extremely generous bonus is indeed a good deal. Its true value is determined by the redemption/play-through requirements. Almost every casino features such play through requirements and there are many subtleties to them. There are games for instance, on which bonus redemption is impossible. Most online casinos will make you play games on which there’s a bigger house edge, in order to redeem your bonus. Weigh all these factor in carefully and only then make your decision regarding a possible sign-up.

The match bonus is a type of bonus which is based on an initial deposit by the player. Some online casino and most online poker bonuses are such match-bonuses. These bonuses usually come in percentages (100%, 200% etc). A 100% match for instance means that for depositing $50 of your own money, you’ll get $50 from the casino. Of course, there are re-occurring bonuses on offer in some casinos as well. In poker a re-occurring bonus would be the rakeback, (like the boss media rakeback or the full tilt rakeback). These bonuses are usually offered to players as loyalty rewards. Most of the time, the sign-up bonus offers players extra value which is gone as soon as it is redeemed or as soon as it expires. Bonus hunters usually pack up at this stage and move on to another casino. The re-occurring loyalty bonuses are meant to prevent players from abandoning their accounts and moving on.

The referral bonus is a bonus just like the sign-up one, with the exception that it is granted to players who refer their friends (bring them into the fold). In order to receive this bonus, you need to make sure that you friend doesn’t just open an account, but makes a deposit as well (sometimes he’s even required to play). Referral bonuses (also known as “refer-a-friend” bonuses) have to be redeemed in a manner similar to your sign-up bonus redemption.