A beginner’s Guide to Free Spins

Understanding what free spins are isn’t difficult as the name more or less gives it away. They’re spins on a slot machine that are completely free, which means that you don’t have to risk any of your own money when using them.

Complicating the term just a tiny bit is, however, the fact that free spins can appear in three different variations that are all unlike each other. You can find them as bonus offers; as game mechanics and as part of a demo play.

To give you a better of understanding of this, we have thoroughly explained each of the three variations below.

Free Spins as Bonus Offers

These types of free spins are those that this entire page is dedicated to. They are spins that you receive as part of a promotional offer that a casino is running. It can be a welcome bonus for new players, a campaign targeted to existing ones or an offer which a loyal player is given as a good will.

With these free spins you will receive a certain number of game rounds on a specific slot machine or be given an option of a range of slots that you can use them on. They work just like normal spins, but with the pleasant exception of being completely free.

Usually the free spins will have the same value as the lowest stake of the machine you’re using them on. Should you receive a hundred of them on Starburst, they would be worth £10 as this game has a minimum bet of 10 cents. Sometimes you may, however, also come across a type of spins which are known as mega or super spins. With these types of free spins bonuses your game rounds will have a much higher value, such as £1, £3 or £5 per spin.

Just like a game round played with real money, any winnings made by your free spins will be credited to your online casino account. Even though there are exceptions to the rule, they will, however, not be credited as real money, but as bonus cash. This cash needs to be wagered a certain number of times before a withdrawal can be made.

Free Spins as a Game Mechanic

These days almost every slot machine comes with one or several lucrative features that can be triggered and one of the most common ones are free spins. Usually you activate these by landing three or more of a special symbol on the slot reels. When you do, you’ll be given a number of free game rounds.

These game rounds are usually very different from those bonus offers you get from free spin casinos in the. First of all, they will always be valued the same as the value of the real money spin which triggered the feature. Should you for instance be playing a slot at a stake of £1 and you trigger free spins, these spins will all be played at a stake of £1.

Secondly, it’s very common that these types of free spins come with valuable attributes that increase your chances of profiting big time. It could be that all of your winning hits will be multiplied by five or that the wild symbols in the game will expand on the reels.

What may be the most vital difference between free spins as bonus offers and free spins as a feature in slots is, however, the wagering requirement. Any profits made from a free spin feature will always be credited as real cash that can be withdrawn whenever you like.

Free Spins as Demo Play

This term variation of free spins isn’t nearly as common as the two above, but the term could still be used to describe playing slots in a demo mode. As you may or may not already know, the majority of online slots have demo versions that can be enjoyed for free.

This basically means that you are playing the game like you usually would, but instead of betting any real money you’re using demo credits. It’s a great way to try out a slot before taking it for a real spin, but it does of course mean that you can never cash out any winnings.

Wagering Your Free Spin Winnings

Even though free spins and other bonus offers can be great ways to increase your chances of making a profit they usually don’t come with no strings attached. Some do, but most of the time you have to fulfill a wagering requirement to be able to cash out your winnings.

What this means is that the amount that you have won from your free spins will be credited as bonus cash that needs to be staked a certain number of times. How many times can vary from one casino to another and one bonus offer to another, but it could for instance be 30x.

Let’s say you have received 50 free spins and managed to win a total of £20 when playing these. With a 30x wagering requirement attached to them, this would mean that you would have to stake a total of £600 (30 * 20) before being able to cash out your winnings.

This may sound like a lot and at a first glimpse you may think that such a wagering requirement could never make the free spins profitable for you. It may seem so, but as you will notice in our next topic it is actually quite often the opposite. By just enjoying your casino session in a certain way, you’re often able to guarantee yourself a long term profit should you wish to.

Profiting From Your Free Spins at Online Casinos

It’s not much of a secret that free spins at online casinos are offered by operators as a way for them to increase their profits. They don’t necessarily enjoy giving them away though as it’s actually a cost for them. This may sound contradictory, but as the online casino industry’s an incredibly competitive one, operators more or less have to use bonus offers as a way to attract players.

This is why many of them are giving away plenty of free spins and then force you to wager your winnings a certain number of times. If they didn’t have this wagering requirement, a lot of players would just instantly cash out to make easy profits while the operators would suffer massive losses. The forced wagering is simply a way for the online casinos to cut their costs.

But even with a wagering requirement attached to the free spins, we as players will always get an added value from them. It doesn’t matter if we have to spin on a slot thousands of times as getting more money (which we get from free spin bonuses) will always increase our long term chances of making a profit.

It gets even better though as like we mentioned before, we can even guarantee ourselves a profit from the free spins. Not all of them, but if you’re playing at any of the free spin casinos that we have suggested you usually can. The key to this lies in the extent of the wagering requirement and the RTP (return to player) of the game(s) that you choose to wager your free spin winnings on.

Free Spins as Welcome Offers

This is one of the most common ways to receive free spins as a lot of online casinos include them in their welcome bonuses. As you probably already know, this type of bonus can only be taken part of by players who are new to the casino.

As a way for gambling sites to efficiently attract new players to their site, welcome offers tend to be among the best bonuses you can find. It’s not rare to get a hundred or more spins and usually you don’t have to make that big of a deposit to get them. Also, it’s not only free spins that you get with your deposit, but normally this is matched by an extra amount of bonus money, which often makes the offer very attractive.

In rare cases it gets even better as some casinos give away a small number of free spins on sign up as part of their welcome offer. This means that all you have to do is to create an account with them and you’ll get a certain number of spins for free.

Free Spins With a Real Money Deposit

Getting free spins with a real money deposit is the most common variation that you’ll find. It simply means that you’ll get a certain number of spins by loading your online casino account with a certain amount of cash. You’ll frequently find these types of spins as part of welcome offers and temporary campaign offers.
No deposit free spins

These types of spins are great for anyone who doesn’t want to risk losing any cash as you will get them for free. It’s certainly not as common of an offer as free spins with a real money deposit, but you’re still able to find these types of spins from time to time. They can for instance be part of a sign up bonus that a casino is offering or be received as a form of good will for being a loyal player.

Should you be interested in learning more about these spins and finding casinos that offer them, we have a dedicated page for free spins with no deposit.

Free Spins Free From Wagering

Over the years free spins free from wagering have become more and more common and usually they are highly sought after by casino players. It’s no wonder though as all winnings made from these free spins are credited as real money which can be instantly cashed out. There’s no wagering requirement that will force you to stake a certain amount of money, making the spins very valuable.