The UK's Best Online Casino Sites

How We Choose the Best Online Casinos

At TopRatedCasinos, our mission is to ensure online casino players new and old have access to the information they need to make informed decisions about their next gambling destination. We are passionate about delivering comprehensive and informative reviews to highlight the very best casino sites around. If you’re keen to find out more about how we do that, read on for a breakdown of each factor we consider as we review and rank the UK’s top rated casinos.

Deposit and Withdrawal Options

When it comes to playing real money casino games, it’s important to be able to use your preferred banking options for deposits and withdrawals. While pretty much all casinos accept Visa and Mastercard debit cards, you’ll need to make sure your preferred method is accepted before signing up if you want to use an e-wallet like PayPal, Neteller and Skrill, ecoPayz, pay by phone bill options, transfer services like Trustly, or prepaid cards.

It’s also important to make sure the deposit and withdrawal limits, as well as the processing times, are suited to your preferences. These vary from site to site, even for the same banking options. For example, some of the best UK casino sites offer instant PayPal withdrawals, while others can take several days to process payout requests. Read on for a quick rundown of what to expect from each payment option you’ll commonly find at top rated online casinos.

How to Make Deposits and Withdrawals

Getting set up with your preferred payment method is always a simple task — after all, the online casino’s operator wants it to be as easy as possible for you to make a deposit and get started. 

Once you’ve registered with the site and opted-in for your welcome bonus, head to the site’s cashier page and select your preferred payment method, fill in the relevant details, and complete the required KYC checks.

Withdrawals are equally straightforward — simply return to the cashier page and select the withdrawal option. You’ll typically use the same payment method for withdrawals as you did with deposits, although you may be offered the option to use an alternative. This applies particularly to users who make deposits with prepaid cards or pay by phone services, as these options can’t be used to make withdrawals. You will also need to complete a KYC check before making a withdrawal in order to confirm your identity.

Know Your Customer (KYC)

Before you make a deposit or withdrawal, you’ll have to complete a Know Your Customer (KYC) check. This is a requirement for UKGC licensees, and the check is used to confirm your identity. Not only does this protect your identity and cash, but it’s a major roadblock to criminals aiming to use online casinos for fraudulent or money laundering purposes. KYC technology has also been pivotal in industry-wide efforts to avoid advertising gambling material to minors.

If you have previously completed a KYC check with your online casino, this will usually be a quick and painless process that relies on data the casino already holds about you. For first-timers, you may need to provide proof of identity in order to complete the process and a deposit or withdrawal.

Bonus Terms and Conditions

Bonuses are an integral part of the gambling industry, and you’ll find a huge selection of great welcome bonuses and ongoing promotions to boost your bankroll at the best online casinos. Read on for a breakdown of the most common bonuses, the terms and conditions you’ll find attached, and how certain bonuses are better suited to certain player types.

Wagering Requirements

Online casino bonuses and wagering requirements are regular bedfellows — in short, wagering requirements block withdrawals against your bonus until you have wagered its value a certain number of times over.

On average, you can expect wagering requirements of 35x attached to your bonus, whether it’s a matched deposit, free spins, or free bets. Anything lower than 35x is considered ‘low wagering’, with anything above being ‘high wagering’.

Let’s say you’ve claimed a 100% up to £100 matched deposit bonus in full, with 35x wagering requirements attached. The total you have to wager in order to make deposits is calculated in one of two ways:

1. Bonus value x wagering requirements = total to be wagered
2. (Initial deposit + bonus value) x wagering requirements = total to be wagered

It’s important to know which method the online casino you’ve selected will use, and the details of this can be found in their terms and conditions. You should also pay attention to any time limits that apply, as it’s likely that you’ll need to clear your wagering requirements quickly to make the most of your bonus.

If your online casino of choice uses the second method, your wagering requirements will be considerably harder to clear, as you can see here:

1. £100 x 35 = £3,500
2. (£100 + £100) x 35 = £7,000

Depending on the kind of player you are, wagering requirements may be the most important factor to take into account when you’re browsing through bonus offers. If you’re unlikely to wager £3,500, or £7,000, within the stipulated time, and you intend to make withdrawals against any winnings you gain through your bonus, you might be better off looking at another option. That being said, wagering requirements are typically steeper for the best casino bonuses, meaning that satisfying the requirements might be more realistic if you’re a high-roller.

Matched Deposits

Typically advertised as something like ‘100% up to £100’, matched deposit welcome bonuses see the operator top up your initial deposit by a certain percentage up to a maximum. With this example, you could deposit £100, land another £100 as your bonus, and have £200 to play with. Alternatively, the offer may be 50% up to £100, meaning you would have to deposit £200 in order to gather the maximum £100 bonus. Matched deposits come in a huge range of sizes, with some sites offering up to £25 and others matching deposits up to £500 — it goes without saying that the wagering requirements for the latter will likely be far steeper than the former. If you’re a new online casino player, we would recommend seeking out matched deposits on the smaller side of the spectrum, as these will give you a means to try out the casino’s features along with the chance to withdraw your winnings without having to wager a big sum. For more experienced players, particularly high-rollers, you might not be put off by tough wagering requirements and will likely gravitate towards the most valuable ones available.

With all that being said, there are plenty of players out there who only play for fun, and aren’t worried about any bonus winnings. If that sounds like you, you’re best going for the most valuable offers so you can spend as much time as possible playing on the house.

Free Spins

Slots are enormously popular, and there are thousands out there to try out at the best UK online casinos. The world’s software developers are continually adding more to the pile, too, so you’ll never be short of a fresh experience to test your luck on. Free spins are a great way to do just that, and these offers are very commonly offered either as a sweetener for other bonuses or as bonuses in their own right. Once you’ve landed some free spins, either through a welcome bonus or casino promotion, you’ll generally find that they’re limited to either certain games or games delivered by certain software developers. As with matched deposit bonuses, you’ll likely have to deal with wagering requirements on free spins, although these are generally calculated based on the amount you win from your free spins rather than the amount you deposit. For example, if you win £50 from your free spins with 35x wagering requirements, you will need to wager £1,750 in order to make withdrawals against those spins.

No Deposit Bonuses

Generally speaking, you must make a deposit in order to claim a welcome bonus. As with all things, there are exceptions to this rule, cannily named ‘no deposit’ bonuses. These are generally small and tokenistic bonuses, but they’re also free funds, spins or bets that require no risk on the player’s part. Along with being small, no deposit bonuses are likely to come tethered to wagering requirements, meaning the casino in question isn’t putting itself at risk either: you’ll need to stake some of your own cash in order to withdraw some of theirs. Nevertheless, no deposit bonuses are a welcome and player-friendly way to get acquainted with a site’s features without having to commit any of your own cash.

Rebate Bonuses

Everyone loves a rebate, and that’s no different in the gambling world. Rebate bonuses return a percentage—something like 10%, usually—of a losing stake, or stakes, in free bets or spins. Not only is this a nice way to take the sting out of a loss, but it means you’ve got a little cash injection ready and waiting for your next wager. 

Reload Bonuses

Once you’ve claimed your welcome bonus through a first-time deposit, you might think that’s the last time your online casino will reward you for adding funds to your wallet. While that might be the case with some operators, the best online casinos will offer additional bonuses for further deposits, or ‘reload bonuses’. These might be smaller than your welcome bonus or come in the shape of free spins or bets rather than extra cash to play with, but they’re always a welcome extra for your continued play. 

Free Bets

Free bets may be offered as a welcome bonus or as a promotion. You might see an offer that says ‘deposit £20, get £10 in free bets’. In this instance, the £10 free bets can only be redeemed as such. Rebate bonuses and accumulator insurance offers will likely be offered as free bets if you’re on the betting side of an online casino’s site, meaning the returned funds don’t quite qualify as real cash. Any winnings you gain from free bets, on the other hand, generally will be withdrawable. Be sure to check the terms and conditions of your free bets, as you may have to fulfil wagering requirements in order to withdraw your free bet winnings.

Software Providers

It’s no surprise that such a tech-heavy industry is replete with a broad range of top-tier software developers, and each that we’ve listed here comes with its own particular strengths. This is just a brief selection of the names you can expect to find attached to online casino games and slots, but we’re confident that you’ll be satisfied with any game you play that’s been delivered by the following heavyweights.

NetEnt

Swedish software developer NetEnt has been in the game since 1996, and it has developed a fierce reputation as one of the finest to grace online casinos. Led by CEO Therese Hillman since 2018, the company’s offering has expanded beyond games over the years and its portfolio now encompasses casino platform hosting, business intelligence services, training, technical support, and much more. 

NetEnt, whose subsidiaries list includes Red Tiger Gaming, commands an ever-growing list of premier slots titles, including Starburst, Gonzo’s Quest, and branded titles such as Street Fighter II and Narcos. If you find NetEnt’s name attached to a slot, you can be sure you’re in good hands.

Microgaming

Founded in 1994 and based on the Isle of Man, UK, Microgaming lays claim to being the world’s first online casino software developer. The firm offers a casino platform and development services for new operators, along with over 800 casino games. Microgaming has also delivered a host of popular branded titles, including Game of Thrones, Jurassic World, and Lara Croft slots.

Known for its jackpot slots, the industry heavyweight has paid out over €1.1bn through its progressive jackpot network over the years through such titles as Mega Moolah.

Evolution Gaming

Evolution Gaming has carved out an impressive niche as the live casino game developer of choice. The company has four streaming studios around the world—based in Latvia, Malta, Georgia, Romania, Canada, New Jersey, Belgium, and Spain—meaning time zones are no boundary to stellar live casino experiences. Along with sheer availability, Evolution is dedicated to delivering high-quality streams, top of the line games, and a brilliant user interface that keeps you up to date without being intrusive.

Novomatic

Novomatic Group is an enormous, global company that employs over 30,000 people, operates 255,000 gaming terminals and video lottery terminals worldwide. The firm is committed to delivering innovative and progressive technology solutions, particularly in tackling underage and problem gambling. In the online space, Novomatic delivers a broad selection of fantastic slots, table games and progressive jackpots. Including the likes of Book of Ra, Lord of the Ocean, Riches Ahoy!, and American Poker II Deluxe.

Playtech

Playtech’s another seasoned hand in the iGaming software development space, having launched operations in 1999. Self-styled as the world’s largest supplier of online gaming and sports betting software, Playtech has delivered turnkey solutions to operators across the globe along with its extensive portfolio of top-tier games. These include casino classics, slots, live casino games, sportsbooks, virtual sports, video poker, bingo — you name it, Playtech is on it. Along with its prolific output, Playtech is a quality-focused developer whose name is a welcome sight on any casino game.