Canadian Online Casino Bonuses

The online casino business is intensely competitive. Each casino, no matter how well-established, has to offer many substantial free casino bonuses to Canadians to entice them to register and deposit or to continue playing there. Here, then is a short review of the types of Canadian online casino bonuses you can enjoy at every reputable online casino.

Before we begin, a word about the Canadian dollar. Most casinos do offer Canadian dollars bonuses but there are casinos that quote the bonuses in Euro, Pounds, or U.S. dollars. In those cases they convert the foreign currency amount into Canadian dollars. You actually have no control over the conversion rate so it’s a good idea to be fully aware of how such casinos convert money into Canadian dollars. As we said, this has become far less common than it once was but you may still encounter it.

No-deposit Bonus

The online casino no deposit bonus is very popular. It may not be the most popular Canadian online casino bonus but, in fact, it has been so well-received by players that it’s a wonder that more casinos don’t offer it. In short, for Canadians it is a small Canadian dollars bonus that enables new players to flit about the casino, playing a large number of games for just a few cents, before making a real-money deposit at all. The idea is to let the casino sell itself. Every casino that offers a no deposit bonus is confident that the player will make a real-money deposit in the end.

Welcome Bonus

Casinos use different terms to denote this type of Canadian online casino bonus but the basic intent is the same: to convince new players to register and deposit by offering them free money. New players who register and deposit through the mobile casino are almost always offered a Canadian mobile casino bonus that is as good as the desktop casino bonus. The main elements of these bonuses are:

Some Welcome Bonuses are a 100% matching bonus while others offer a percentage less than 100%.
Some Welcome Bonuses are a one-shot bonus while others cover the first three or more deposits.
Some of these bonuses cover a full year or more of deposits.
Every Welcome Bonus has a wagering requirement, meaning that you can’t withdraw the money before you’ve eclipsed the minimum betting requirement. The wagering requirement varies greatly from casino to casino.
Some casinos offer a larger extra bonus for high rollers.
Some casinos give you Loyalty Points immediately upon their receiving your first deposit.
Some Welcome Bonuses are offered as free spins on slots. You can search for the highest free spin offer; 100 free spins is not unusual.
Some casinos give free cash as part of the Welcome Bonus. This cash bonus is not large but it is free cash, without any wagering requirement.
A cash back bonus might be offered to cover some of the losses incurred while playing with one’s first or second deposit.
Many casinos are now offering an extra 10-15% first deposit bonus when you deposit via a selected online wallet or other casino-affiliated online “bank”.

Bonuses as Promotions

In addition to Welcome Bonuses, casinos have to keep their players happy by offering bonuses in the form of promotions. A favorite is the first weekly or monthly deposit reload bonus. Simply, the casino expects you to deposit next week or next month but they don’t know where you’ll deposit. So they offer a large incentive for you to deposit with them. This is usually a matching bonus up to $100 or $200 but can be higher. Many casinos offer a much higher reload bonus to VIPs. For VIPs, these bonuses can be for more than $1000.

Many casinos have small daily promotions in which they award small cash bonuses or free plays. Free plays cover many games whereas free spins are almost always just for slots.

Large Gifts

As part of certain promotions, players can win vacations, cruises, cars, or many other prizes. These are bonuses by another name. Often a promotion requires a buy-in fee. This is especially true of large tournaments where the buy-in money creates the large pot. Many casinos will offer to pay the buy-in fee to a tournament.

Loyalty Club

The Loyalty Club is a type of bonus that all casinos offer. You earn Loyalty Points (comp points at some casinos) with every wager. When you have enough Loyalty Points you can cash them in. As you acquire more Loyalty Points, you move up a graduated scale until you reach VIP status. A VIP is not necessarily the same as a high roller. You can become a VIP just by playing often even if you wager small amounts. As a VIP, you are entitled to many other benefits that vary from casino to casino. The benefits may simply be more cash with which to play but can also be trips and other substantial bonuses.

Cash Back Bonuses

The casino will always want to soften the blow when players lose. One way is to give them back some of their losses. This works well with average players but especially well with VIPs who may have lost a large sum but can continue playing with their cash back award.

Referral Bonus

The price for referring a friend who deposits has already risen from $25 to $50 at many casinos. This bonus will only get bigger in the future as players realize that they can earn free money and the casinos realize that they have a crew of salespeople ready to help bring new players.

One Final Word

Bonuses are only one way that casinos strive to make players happy. Service, in the form of 24/7 support is another. The quality of the casinos interface is yet another. But bonuses continue to be a driving force in this large competitive business.