How wagering requirements work

What the number actually means

Say you claim a £20 bonus with a 35x wagering requirement. You have to place £20 x 35 = £700 of bets before the bonus and its winnings become withdrawable. If the terms say you must wager the deposit and the bonus, a £20 deposit plus £20 bonus at 35x is £1,400 of turnover, not £700. The terms will word this as "wager the bonus 35x" or "wager deposit + bonus 35x", so it is worth reading which one applies.

Withdrawing before the requirement is met almost always forfeits the bonus and anything won from it. You keep only your remaining real-money balance.

Game weighting

Not every bet counts the same towards the requirement. Slots usually count 100%. Table games such as blackjack or roulette often count 10% or less, and some games are excluded entirely. A £10 blackjack bet at 10% weighting only clears £1 of the requirement, so trying to clear a slots-weighted bonus on table games takes ten times as long.

Sticky and non-sticky bonuses

A non-sticky bonus is kept separate from your deposit: you can withdraw your own money at any time and only lose the bonus. A sticky bonus is bundled with your balance, so withdrawing anything before the wagering is done removes the bonus amount from the withdrawal. The terms do not always use these words, but they will describe which applies.

The terms that quietly change the value

• Expiry: many bonuses must be wagered within 7 to 30 days, after which the bonus and its winnings are removed.
• Maximum bet while a bonus is active, commonly £2 to £5. Going over it can void the bonus.
• Maximum withdrawal from bonus winnings, sometimes capped at a multiple of the bonus.
• Minimum deposit to qualify for the offer.
• Excluded games that do not count at all, often the higher-return slots.

A quick way to judge an offer

1. Find the wagering multiple and whether it applies to the bonus only or the deposit and the bonus.
2. Multiply it out to get the total turnover required.
3. Divide that by your usual stake to see roughly how many bets or spins it takes.
4. Check the time limit is realistic for that many bets.
5. Check the maximum bet does not force you to play slower than you planned.

If the honest answer is that you would not place that many bets at that stake in the time allowed, treat the bonus as optional rather than a reason to sign up.

Offers with no wagering requirement

A few operators offer bonus spins or credit with no wagering on the winnings, which are paid as cash. These are simpler, but still check the maximum withdrawal and the expiry date, and whether the spins are released all at once or over several days.

The Advertising Standards Authority has ruled that calling a bonus "free" is misleading when a wagering requirement applies. Read the full terms on the operator site before you opt in.

We score every operator on bonus value and fairness rather than the headline figure. See how we rate bonuses or compare casinos by our rating.