If you’re considering signing up at one of the online casinos in Canada, perhaps the most important thing to look up before you make a spin is the availability of free spins bonuses. As one of the most popular casino promos out there, you’ve probably come across free spins before, but a lot of players still wonder how they work?
This brings most players to an immediate first question: in a greedy world where we’re always reminded that nothing comes for free, are there any restrictions I should be informed of before claiming your own free spins? We believe this is a very valid question which is exactly why our guide about online casino free spins will tell you everything about the world of free spins. After reading this guide you will understand how these casino bonuses work for yourself. We are very excited to inform you that free spins can actually be very interesting.
How free spins work
Free spins are exactly what’s written on the package: spins for a slot game that players can enjoy without betting any of their own money. This looks like an ideal situation as you can always win some extra money on free spins, but you can’t really lose. This makes free spins a very appealing bonus to many players, regardless of whether they’re new to the online casino industry or highly skilled. It’s easy to understand why because everything that’s free makes the crowds go wild. So do free spins and if you’re fully aware of how this type of promo works and what to do or not to do, things can get really interesting.
Free spins: same, but different
The number of spins you receive will depend on the casino website you’re playing. It might also be that the bonus is only valid for a small selection of games or providers, so ensure you first check out how limited or flexible the bonus offer is for your personal needs and preferences. A lot of online casinos work with free spins as part of a VIP-program meaning you won’t have to do a lot to obtain the spins other than playing at the casino and making a deposit. All free spins work the same as that they’re used to play real money slots and earn money, except that they’re free and come with some extra requirements. We’ll touch on these conditions in detail later on, including the importance of the wagering requirements.
No deposit free spins
A lot of online casino bonuses require a deposit to qualify. No deposit bonuses are a very welcome exception, but they tend to be less common than deposit bonuses. No deposit free spins are awarded to you without the need to make a deposit. The only condition you’ll have here with free spins no deposit required is that you need to sign up for an account. Most casino account registrations in Canada require your personal information like your name, address, email address, phone number, username, password, and bonus code (optionally).
Free spins come in different ways
Bear in mind that online casino websites usually restrict users to a limited number of no deposit free spin bonuses. After the first bonus, the user must make a deposit in order to claim any other bonuses in the future. We can’t really blame the online casinos as you’ll need to understand the free spins are offered because they’re trying to welcome paying customers to their website. The reason why they’re offering free spins doesn’t really matter if you as free spins give you the chance to make a win anyway, so you might as well make the most out of it. No deposit free spins in Canada are offered in different ways and are either used as an incentive to sign up or a reward for loyal players. Free spins are quite common as well for players reaching a new level in a VIP program or even on birthdays or other milestones.
Deposit free spins
Deposit bonuses require you to make a deposit to qualify for the promo that is often part of a welcome package. Online casino free spins come in either money, free spins, or a combination of both. Deposit free spins mean that you get a certain number of spins upon depositing funds.
This is how it works:
An online casino might give you 20 free spins for deposits of at least $10. The idea is the same as with no deposit spins, where you ideally make some nice winnings that can later be withdrawn or played with. The main difference in receiving deposit free spins include that they’re normally worth a lot more and come with lower rollover requirements.
Deposit bonus + free spins
A lot of deposit bonuses offer a combination of both cash and free spins. These promos are actually both very common and popular. Deposit bonus + free spins give you a chance to earn a cash bonus along with potential winnings from the spins.
This is how it works:
- A casino in Canada offers a 100% welcome bonus up to $200 + 60 free spins.
- The free spins are awarded 20 at a time for 3 days in a row.
- The minimum deposit to claim the bonus is set at $10.
- The deposit bonus comes with wagering requirements of 30x.
- The free spins bonus comes with wagering requirements of 40x.
All of the above are meant to give you a random example only.
Free spins for promo games
We explained briefly that a free spin promo can also be used by an online casino to promote some of its games, but there’s actually a lot more to it. Sometimes online casinos team up with slot providers to offer such a deal, meaning that you’re lucky in case this concerns a popular provider. Free spin bonuses are offered as a promo by adding it to your account or by requiring a promo code you need to fill in. No matter which approach the casino chooses, it won’t require a lot of time or effort. You should be able to easily redeem your free spins.
Free spins as part of a loyalty program
Free spins can be handed out to loyal players as well as a token of appreciation or as part of a loyalty program. Loyalty programs, or VIP programs, are set up in such a way that players gain benefits along the way and the more they play and deposit, the more benefits they receive. Free spins are often part of loyalty programs and are usually automatically credited to the user’s account. All you have to do is log into your account and claim your free spins.
How to know if free spins are any good
Whenever you find yourself a new free spins deal, it’s always a good idea to read through the free spins before you accept the bonus offered to you. The terms and conditions will vary from one casino to another, but a few examples of limitations to look out for can include:
- Restrictions on cash outs: $150.
- Time limits: validity of 3 days.
- Game restrictions: not valid for jackpot games.
- Rollover requirements: 40x.
We’ll narrow down the above so you’ve got a clear picture of what terms and conditions you’ll need to pay extra attention to, starting with the most tricky condition of all:
- Wagering requirements: rollover requirements can be a bit difficult to understand which is also due to the different sort of wagering requirements for different parts of a bonus, leading to some confusion, especially among new players. As there’s no cost in the free spins and the winnings are added to your online account, you’ll probably agree on the fact that this wouldn’t be a good deal for casinos. If you’re given 20 free spins and you win $200 without requiring to make a deposit, the casino website will lose and there’s a sort of imbalance between the operator and the player. In order to balance this out, most casino websites add wagering requirements which means you’ll need the bonus a number of times before you can withdraw your money.
- Time limits: all promotion deals work with a period of validity and it doesn’t really matter whether we’re talking about a deal in a webshop, at a clothing store, or at a travel agency. It simply means there can be a different validity period for free spins and another one for a match bonus. Make sure to read all the terms so you don’t miss out on any of the important info. The period of validity can differ per bonus type, which is something to pay extra attention to, but the main idea is very straightforward.
- Special games: some free spins are meant to promote a certain slot or slot provider which is why you’ll need to use them for one or a few games. Generally, free spins are only offered for slot games and not for other types of games or platforms like live casinos or sportsbooks.
- Minimum deposit: to claim a deposit bonus, players usually will need to make a minimum deposit (if applicable) to be eligible for the free spins. The minimum deposit depends on the casino, but could range from anywhere between $5 and $25.
- Minimum or maximum bet: a lot of casino bonuses come with minimum and maximum stakes. Maximum bets are often displayed as maximum bets per spin. In order to be able to withdraw your wins you will need to meet this requirement at every single spin you make while the bonus is active.
- Free spins per region: some free spin bonuses aren’t available everywhere. The availability and even the number of free spins may be based on your region while the same holds for the games they are valid for. Some slot providers don’t hold licences in certain regions which is why their games could turn out not to be available affecting the overall applicability of free spins bonuses and even bonuses in general.
- Payment method: bonuses also change per payment method and it is very common that a payment option gets excluded from the free spins. This holds for e-wallets, but are not very common for bank transfers or credit card payments.
Walk through the checklist
You might as well take the above information as a checklist and our suggestion would definitely be you go through each one of them and decide whether you can tick off the checklist or whether the casino fails to offer a good deal. Ideally, a casino works with fair conditions for all of the above, but it’s difficult to find casinos that merely work with flexible terms. You might bump into a free spins bonus that offers very low wagering requirements, but only remains valid for a limited time meaning the bonus meets one of the conditions, but isn’t very flexible with the other. Any reasonable casino would meet at least a few of these criteria.
How to claim free spins
Free spins come in different ways which is why there are different ways to claim the free spins. We’ll go through the different scenarios that all come with some slight differences.
Free spins for new users: deposit bonus
These free spins are either awarded separately or in combination with a money bonus. Please note that free spins are often included as part of a bigger welcome package and normally have their own terms and conditions with regard to deposit minimums, validity periods, and wagering requirements. This is why checking the terms is also listed below:
- Learn more about bonuses: free spins are quite easy to understand, but things become a bit more difficult to grasp if they come with a match bonus. This requires some extra attention for separate terms and conditions which is why we always advise you to learn everything about bonuses so you avoid any misunderstandings.
- Find a casino: to make the most out of your free spins you will clearly need to find a proper casino. With a proper casino we mean a nice site, but we also refer to a strong licence, a solid reputation and fair general terms and conditions. If you make a nice win with your free spins you would want the casino to pay you out as they promise. By sticking to casinos from our toplist or at least playing at casinos with a Canadian licence your online casino free spins will give you a much better experience.
- Register: once you’ve found yourself a nice casino you need to sign up at their website. Most players will understand what to do here, but in case you don’t, just look for a button that displays something like “Create Account” or “Sign Up”. Even if you click on the button to claim the bonus you will be guided to the registration page. Just follow the steps to sign up and complete your registration.
- Read the bonus terms: upon registration you will need to accept the general terms and conditions and our advice would be to always read them instead of accepting them without having consulted the terms. The same is true for the bonus terms which are separate terms, usually listed on a separate page. Most casinos work with a dedicated bonus terms page that lists all bonuses and their conditions. On the promotions page you will generally find the bonuses as well with their separate conditions. Visiting this page avoids the need to scroll through all terms.
- Make a deposit: the easiest way to claim a free spins bonus is via a welcome bonus. Many casino websites offer free spins in addition to a standard match welcome bonus. So, the main offer might be along the lines of ‘Deposit $10 and get $20 to play with’, ‘plus 25 free spins for Book of Dead, Wolf Gold, or Stardust’.
- Fill in the promo codes (if applicable): a lot of casinos both internationally and in Canada, work with promo codes and these are very handy for claiming a free spins bonus as well. This might sound a bit more difficult than it is, because all this step requires is that you copy and paste the codes listed on the promo page. Do make sure you’re using the right code as different bonuses that are part of the same package come with different codes. Copying and pasting the wrong codes means you won’t be able to claim the bonus you were looking for.
- Test the game (if applicable): free spins offer a way to play with spins that were brought to you as a reward by the casino for making a deposit. This gives you a chance to make some spins without directly risking your own money, but if you want to get the most out of free spins we would advise you to play the game first in the demo mode in case you’re not familiar with the rules.
- Spin & win: step 7 is optional as well in case you haven’t played the game before and want to make it’s time to make a spin and make a win. In case there’s no need for you to test a slot game in the demo mode you might as well head straight to step 8 and start spinning.
Free spins for new users: no deposit bonus
Free spins for new users not requiring a deposit will need you to follow the same steps as above, except you won’t need to make a deposit to receive your set of free spins. You will need to create an online account after which is why there’s still a requirement of making a deposit to be able to claim any wins you made with the free spins. The exact details of this requirement will depend on the online casino you’re signing up to.
- Find a casino.
- Read the bonus terms.
- Fill in the bonus codes (if applicable).
- Test the game (if applicable).
- Claim your free spins.
Free spins for existing users
In the event of free spins awarded to you as part of a loyalty program or a deposit bonus you may skip the first three steps of the guide mentioned above (assuming you’re aware of the different types of casino bonuses) and claim your spins. This means you can claim you free spins by:
Deposit bonus:
- Learn more about bonuses.
- Read the bonus terms.
- Make a deposit.
- Fill in the bonus codes (if applicable).
- Test the game (if applicable).
- Claim your free spins.
Loyalty spins:
- Read the bonus terms.
- Fill in the bonus codes (if applicable).
- Test the game (if applicable).
- Claim your free spins.
How to make a profit from free spins?
Almost every online casino in Canada will use the prospect of free spins as an incentive to attract new visitors to their site or keep existing ones happy. While the spins are free in the sense that you won’t ever have to pay real money on them, it’s of course worth remembering that online operators wouldn’t offer them at all if they didn’t want anything in return. The main idea is that you’ll sign up to a new casino to take advantage of the welcome bonus, and then keep playing there once you’ve used up your free spins. This is why we would urge you to pay attention to the tips below. This might increase your chances.
1. Check the wagering requirements
Wagering requirements are probably the biggest stumbling block for especially novice players which is exactly why it requires some extra attention from every player claiming a bonus. You’ll only be able to make a profit from free spins if you know what the wagering requirements are and when to stop once you do. The same wagering requirements will give you an idea if the free spins bonus is worth it as actually not accepting the bonus can make a difference for your bankroll as well. Fair rollover requirements basically means you’ve got a chance to actually make a profit. If they’re not feasible, don’t accept the bonus.
2. Stick to the max bet per spin
Every free spin comes with a maximum bet and if you want to claim any winnings made from the free spins you will need to stick to the max bet at all times. Every spin needs to be considered as a single spin, so breaking the rules during only one spin can ruin everything for all the other spins you successfully made with the maximum stake or lower. Make sure to double check the maximum bet per spin for the game you want to use the free spins for.
3. First practice
Free spins are obviously a way to test a game as well, but you might as well be extra sure and test the slot machine anyway by playing it in the demo mode. This avoids you’ll lose a spin or two because you didn’t know what the exact rules were. By first practising and then playing for real money (or at least with the free spins bonus) you will maximise your chances. Let’s not forget we’re talking about net revenues here. Every dollar counts and we believe it’s fair to say that every spin counts as well. Make sure your spins are worth it.