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Do you like slots?
You’re not alone. Slots is just as popular online as it is offline.
What I like about online slots is you get the same perks you’d get playing offline. You get to play licensed slot machines, such as Iron Man or Terminator; you get to play for progressive jackpots; you can play for a variety of stakes, starting as low as 1-cent per line; and you’ll have hundreds, if not thousands of unique machines to choose from.
But there are some perks you get online that’s not usually offered offline – some extra incentive to stay home to gamble instead of taking that big, expensive and time-consuming vacation to Las Vegas or Atlantic City.
For example, online casinos offer deposit bonuses, which is money given to you by the casino when you make a deposit. You can also play slots on the go from your mobile device. Try doing that with a 200+ pound Vegas slot.
And those are only two examples of why you should play slots online. There are several others – we’ll cover some of those later on, but first, let’s talk about how to start playing online. What’s the first step?
The first step is to choose the best casino. You’ll find our top picks for slots in our table below.
Rank | Online Casino | Deposit Bonus | Get Started |
#1 | ![]() Playamo Casino | 100% Up To €1,500 | Visit Site |
#2 | ![]() Jackpot City Casino | 100% Up To €1,600 | Visit Site |
#3 | ![]() Spin Casino | 100% Up To $1,000 | Visit Site |
#4 | ![]() 888 Casino | 100% Up To €140 | Visit Site |
#5 | ![]() Betway Casino | 100% Up To €1000 | Visit Site |
If you want to learn more about how we choose the best slots casinos, including what you should look for and how things like progressives and bonuses work, keep reading – we’ve covered those details below.
If there’s anything you CAN count on, it’s that there’s not one casino that’s going to be a good fit for all slot players. It might come down to preference, budget or simply something more out of your control, such as where you live.
That being the case, what I want to do is highlight the things that I feel are most important when choosing a slots casino.
The first thing I look at is who the software providers are, and how many of them the casino works with.
Different software providers mean unique slot titles. It might also mean the opportunity to play different kinds of slots, such as 3D slots, large progressives or movie, and TV themed slots.
If there’s a specific type of slot you want to play, it’d be a good idea to learn more about the major software companies so that you can figure out which casinos they work with. You can read about software providers elsewhere on our site. We also mention who each casino uses in our reviews.
Other than specific software providers, I recommend finding a casino who works with multiple companies. This will give you the largest selection of slots to choose from – hundreds, sometimes thousands of different machines – and it’ll give you a diverse selection, as most companies do something a little different in terms of themes, graphics, and so on.
Another thing I look for is whether you can play mobile slots. Some casinos have jumped on the mobile bandwagon, while others are still dragging their heels or playing catch up.
Not only do you want to see if slots are available, but you will want to look to see how many machines you’ll get to play. Since many casinos are still new to mobile, they may offer only a dozen or two games overall, with a portion of those games being slots.
If you find a casino that offers an instant play (browser) casino, that’s likely to be your best bet in terms of slot quantity (without sacrificing quality). We mention what each casino offers in our reviews.
Last, you’ll want to see what devices each casino is compatible with. The most common options are Apple and Android-powered smartphones and tablets. Blackberry and Windows are hit and miss.
Can I play for free? This is another question I aim to answer when scoping out an online casino. There are a few reasons why.
For one thing, playing for free is a great way to scope out a casino, their software, support and other areas BEFORE you make a commitment with your wallet. Because you don’t want to make a several hundred or thousand dollar deposits, only to soon find out the casino sucks.
This is also a great way to test a slot machine before you play for real money. That way every dollar you spend is on a machine you thoroughly enjoy.
Another reason to look for free slots is that, sometimes, you just want to play a few spins without spending any money. Maybe you’re killing a few minutes before an appointment, or while watching TV, and you don’t want to spend any money.
Last, playing for free is a great way to understand how that slot works – what combinations pay, what triggers bonus rounds and jackpots.
Just remember that playing for free WILL NOT pay real money if you hit a bonus round or jackpot.
Short and simple – I look for machines I want to play, at stakes I want to spend.
It’s happened far too many times playing live – I’ll find a machine I’m interested in, or have played before – then I’ll sit down, put some money in, and then find out that each line is, like, $3 or something. And I’m wanting to play penny lines.
Oops.
So, this is something I scope out before I join a casino, as identical machines can vary from one casino to the next.
I take this same approach with features and bonus rounds, too. Some casinos – because of the software providers they work with – will have lots of slots with features (cascading wilds, wilds, multipliers, etc.) and bonus rounds, while others will not.
Our reviews usually cover these details. But it doesn’t hurt to sign up for a free account and play a few machines for free, either, to double check the slot selection before making a deposit.
US players have a few different challenges or things to think about compared to players from outside the US.
For starters, since most Americans will have to play at offshore casinos – casinos who are operating illegally in the US – it’s important you make sure they’re legit. You can trust our ratings and reviews if you want – that’s the fastest way.
Another way to go is to check for a license. I wouldn’t put too much weight behind it, as licenses are relatively cheap and most jurisdictions have lax rules and oversight.
You can (and should!) check out casino forums and review sites, such as AskGamblers.com and CasinoMeister.com, as I’ve found these, to be honest, thorough and less biased than other review portals.
And don’t just check the casino out – make sure you check out the software providers, too. For example, for the longest time, I touted any casino who worked with Betsoft, a software company known for their 3D slots, which are loads of fun to play.
But then I learned something disappointing about the company.
In 2016, a player won a progressive jackpot on a Betsoft machine that both the casino and Betsoft failed to pay. On top of that there are reports that some of Betsoft’s machines simply do not work/pay out.
Some casinos still use their software, which is why it’s important you do your own due diligence. It’d suck to hit a jackpot, only to find out you have a better chance of seeing pigs fly than receiving a payout.
While checking out software providers, Americans should keep in mind that they won’t find a casino that offers licensed slot titles. Think machines like Iron Man, Wolverine, Ellen, and Bridesmaids. These are only available to players outside the US, or players at legal US online casinos (in New Jersey and Delaware).
It’s important that Americans check banking options, too. Even though some offshore casinos are marketed to Americans, the casino only has 1 or 2 options – like a debit card and bank wire – you can use to fund your account or cash out your winnings. That’s ridiculous.
Ideally, the casino you join has several options with reasonable limits and fees. I’d also give extra brownie points to any casino who offers bitcoin. If you’re not using bitcoin, I recommend you at least check it out.
Progressive jackpots are a ton of fun to play. You’re betting a large sum of money every round, which is fun in itself – because when you win, you win tens, hundreds, sometimes even thousands of dollars.
But then there’s the potential of hitting a jackpot. Not one of those weenie $30 or $100 2nd or 3rd tier prizes, but the main jackpot – the one that pays several hundred thousand or even millions of dollars.
And, yes, that’s possible online. But there are a few things you want to know about before you sit down to play one.
Not only that, but you’ll want to look at the limits the casino imposes on players. Sometimes these two are one in the same, other times they’re not.
But nearly every online casino will have daily, weekly and monthly cash out limits. Sometimes these are as low as $1,000 per week, while other times you can cash out as much as $50,000.
It should be obvious why this matters – if you’re only able to cash out $1,000 per week or $4,000 per month, a $100,000 jackpot win will take you two years to cash out. And that should be scary, because how often do we hear of online casinos who close after only a couple years in business?
While $50,000 per month sucks – because limits suck, period – at least you can cash out most jackpot winnings within a few months, or 12-18 months in a worst-case scenario.
The absolute best slots casinos will have terms that say progressive jackpots are excluded from their (limit) terms. That, if you win, you’ll immediately be paid in full.
Those casinos are rare, but those are the casinos you want to join if everything else about them works for you.
Slots players won’t have any difficulty – NONE AT ALL – in finding various promotions and deals. In fact, most online casinos cater their offers to you.
So, your challenge won’t be in finding an offer, but instead in finding the best offer. There are a few things you want to look at:
Let’s start from the top.
The first thing you want to look at is the amount of the offer. Because, all things being equal, you want the most money for every dollar you deposit or spend. A 100% match bonus up to $500 should take a backseat to a 100% match offer up to $1,000.
All things being equal – which is often not the case.
Whenever possible, I go with the higher match – even if it means getting less money overall. And I do that because it means less risk on my part. I put in less money, but get the same, if not more out. Like the 200% match offer up to $250.
But I wouldn’t fault anyone for taking the 150% match offer, either. I can put up even less money but still get better than a 1:1 match.
So, that’s how I’d approach it.
But if you have the money, don’t mind the risk and want to get more bonus money, by all means, find the biggest offer you can fully take advantage of.
But assuming the match is the same, or close enough, the next thing you ought to look at is the playthrough.
Again, all things being equal, you’ll want the lowest playthrough. The lower the playthrough, the less money you’ll have to risk before you get to cash out.
Put another way, the lower the playthrough, the higher your chances of walking away with money instead of playing and losing it back to the casino.
This means that – all other things being equal – you’ll want to take a 35x playthrough over a 40x playthrough. However, each casino approaches this differently.
But other casinos say the playthrough is on both the deposit AND bonus. Using the example above, you’ll need to wager $8,000 before you can cash out.
Both amounts are HUGE when you consider you’re playing a game that favors the house, and all for a $100 bonus. But $8,000 is clearly the one you’d want to avoid, if possible.
It doesn’t happen often with slot machines, but sometimes a machine won’t favor the house enough – the payout is too high, or there’s too much risk in the player winning a lot of money.
So, one thing a casino may do is handicap the machine. Each bet you make will be worth less than 100%, which means you’ll need to wager MORE to clear the same offer.
Is that worthwhile? Only you can determine that. But my opinion is a big NO.
If the casino doesn’t handicap the machine, they may just prohibit it altogether. So, you’ll have to decide what you want most – to play the machine, which means you skip the bonus – or the bonus, which means you wait to play your machine until you’re done clearing the offer.
Another thing you want to look for is additional offers. Some casinos have dozens of offers – too many, in fact – while others have one or two, and expect you to be impressed by it.
You want to find something in the middle – a good deposit bonus, then a few additional offers. Here are some of the offers I suggest you look for:
There’s no right or wrong here – you just want to find a casino that has multiple offers with reasonable terms. And that’s subjective, as everyone has different expectations as to what ‘reasonable’ is.
As far as slots promotions go, you’ll also want to look for:
If bonuses, deals, and terms are a big concern for you, then I highly recommend you read our casino reviews. We cover these details thoroughly in each one.
That’s about it.
Honestly, if you haven’t played slots online before, I highly recommend it. Most of what I’ve played online are free slots because I find them fun enough without having to spend any money. AND I prefer playing licensed titles, which aren’t available to Americans (online).
But whether you want to play slots for real money or for no money at all, it all starts with finding the best slots casino. That’ll determine the machines you can get to play, the jackpots you can win, and the bonuses and other perks you can claim.
Get the casino right – which can be as simple as choosing one from our list above – and it’ll be hard to have a bad time.