How Free Spins Work – Do You Know The Basics?

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One of the best perks of playing casino games online is getting to claim great advantages and promotions only available to online players. One such advantage are free spins bonuses.

No matter how much experience you might have, free spins for popular slots can always come in handy.

So what are free spins, how do they work, and how do you get them? Read this page and get answers to all of these and many more questions.

What are Free Spins?

Free spins are a type of promotional offer you can get when playing in online casinos. Simply put, you get a predetermined number of free spins you can use on a certain slot machine. They come in the form of no deposit bonuses or as a part of deposit bonus packages.

Although this sounds too good to be true, it’s a common marketing tactic most online casinos employ to attract new customers.

Even more so, these bonuses are even accessible at many $1 minimum deposit casino sites, so you can try it out without risking much on your side. There’s no hidden catch to this bonus, as everything you manage to win while playing with free spins is yours to keep.

That said, these bonuses do come with certain conditions. You can only use them on the slot games included in the promotion and must play through the spins by the deadline specified in the bonus terms.

They also come with specific wagering terms, most notably marked by a high wagering requirement. Taking all of this into account, you should always read through the entire free spins bonus T&Cs page to understand how the particular bonus works before you claim it.

Wagering Requirements in Free Spins

Wagering requirements are a pre-set promotional term that comes with almost every online casino bonus, not just free spins. It describes the number of times you have to wager through the bonus before you can turn the bonus money into real money.

For example, let’s say that the free spins bonus comes with 35x wagering requirements, and you got 50 free spins, with every spin is set at $0.10. This means that the total bonus is worth 50×0.10=$5.

However, wagering requirements won't be based on this value. Instead, they will apply to whatever you manage to win using free spins. So, if you end up winning $10 after using all free spins, you'll have to bet a total of $350 before you can cash out.

From this perspective, it makes sense how online casinos can offer free spins bonuses without losing money. Not many players can wager through so much money.

Plus, a percentage of new users will become regular casino’s customers, depositing and playing long after they’ve played through the free spins offer.

Overall, wagering requirements for free spins are a fairly standard thing in every online casino. You should take them seriously before you start betting, but they shouldn’t turn you away from playing in a particular online casino and claiming the free spins bonus.

Just keep in mind that when wagering, not all games contribute in the same capacity. While slots will usually count 100% towards wagering requirements, games such as roulette or blackjack could only contribute 10% or 20% of every bet made.

How Do Free Spins Work and How to Claim Them

Free spins are most commonly included as a welcome bonus for new players who decide to sign up with an online casino. They can also be a part of a regular promotional deal for loyal players, but this is a bit rarer.

If a part of the welcome offer, you don’t have to do anything special to trigger this bonus. You only have to agree that you want to take advantage of the offer when creating an account with the casino.

After that, all you have to do is open up the slot game the free spins are offered for, and you’ll be credited with the spins automatically.

When using the free spins to play slot games online, the casino will automatically decide the size of the bet. This is to ensure a safe betting environment and minimize the chance of any cheating.

Generally speaking, your bets will be set across all of the slot’s paylines on the minimum bet value.

Types of Free Spins

There are hundreds, even thousands of free spins’ offers available at online casinos, and they come in all shapes and sizes.

For this reason, you should know how to differentiate between the main types of free spins. This will allow you to claim the free spins promotions you know will give you the best chances to turn bonus money into real money.

To help you with this, we’ve surmised the most common types of free spins offers you’ll come across when playing in online casinos:

• No Deposit Free Spins – The most enticing type of free spins bonus, you can claim this type of spins without putting any money into the casino. This bonus usually includes a smaller number of spins and is offered on some of the most popular slots on the site.
• Deposit Free Spins – Opposite to the previous type, this offer rewards you with a certain number of free spins only after you deposit money into the online casino. Since you’re depositing money to claim the free spins, this bonus comes with the smallest number of wagering restrictions of all types of free spins bonuses.
• Wager-free Free Spins – A relatively new type of free spins bonus, this offer removes the wagering requirements aspect from the promotion. This makes the bonuses more player-friendly, as you don’t have to grind through the requirements to claim the full value of the offer. That said, this type of free spins bonus is still scarce in online casinos.

So, in an ideal scenario, you'd want to claim no deposit, wager-free free spins. These are very few and far between, but if you put some effort into it, you'll be able to find some online casinos with these types of offers, especially for players from certain countries.

Can You Win Real Money From Free Spins?

With all of the things described in this article in mind, what are your chances of withdrawing real cash when playing with free spins?

The bottom line is, you can win real money from free spins bonuses in slot games. They are a great way to increase your gambling bankroll without risking any or very little of your own money.

You should also remember that the free spins bonus is primarily there to give you a feel of what it's like to play at the specific casino that offers it.

Having a fun and enjoyable time should be the first thing on your mind when playing with a free spins bonus.

Take this opportunity to explore the site and see if they offer some of your favorite games beyond slots, like baccarat or craps. That way, you’ll know what to expect and even have a chance to win some actual cash with little to no risk.