What Are Casino Free Spins?

Casino free spins are something that are regularly offered by online casinos and bookmakers.

Whether given as part of a sign-up offer, reload bonus or special promotion, free spins are a common and easy benefit that casinos use to reward or entice customers.

On the surface, casino free spins appear to be a no-risk, win-win situation, and a completely free hit at gambling that doesn’t cost you a penny. After all, we all love a freebie, right?

But are they as good as they sound? Why are they offered? Is there a catch? And how can we make the most of them when offered?

We’ll answer all of these questions and more in our quick guide to casino free spins.

What Are Casino Free Spins?

Free spins are exactly what they say they are – slot spins that you don’t have to pay for.

Normally when you open up a slot game, you select your stake and every time you press ‘Spin’, that stake is taken from your balance. Whether you’re a low roller on 10p a spin or prefer to bet higher at £5 a spin or more. Every spin costs you money from your balance, regardless of outcome.

Free spins, therefore, are spins but without the cost. With free spins, the casino sets the stake and this is usually on the lower side such as 10p or 20p. You are then given a set number of free spins at that predetermined stake, for example, 10 free spins, 30 free spins or even 100 free spins.

In this way, free spins are completely risk-free. They cost you nothing and if you can win something from them, then it’s a bonus. However, some free spins offers come with terms which can involve a financial outlay and we’ll go into those below.

Why Do Casinos Offer Free Spins?

There are three main reasons casinos offers free spins:

1. To attract new customers

2. To retain, engage and reward existing customers

3. To promote new games

The online casino industry is highly competitive so companies are always competing with each other for your custom. Therefore, they are constantly offering bonuses, incentives and freebies so you choose them over their competitors.

Free spins are a quick and easy option for casinos when it comes to bonuses. Firstly, it has the word ‘FREE’ in it, which is always attention grabbing. But also, they can limit the stake size, the eligible games, the amount of spins on offer and the terms and conditions that apply.

Plus, if you try out a game and enjoy it, you may play for longer, staking some of your own funds once the free spins have finished. It’s therefore a great way for them to showcase new games and give you a little taster of them to tickle your tastebuds so to speak.

That’s why you see free spins regularly featuring in welcome offers and reload bonuses, for example, ‘Deposit and Wager £10 and receive 30 free spins’.

You will also see them offered as a reward, for example, ‘Bet £10 on horse racing and receive 10 free spins’.

Plus, many casinos use free spins as a benefit in their daily games, as part of ongoing accumulator promotions and in random daily drops.

Do Casino Free Spins Have A Catch?

It’s human nature to assume that there’s a catch when it comes to anything free. We automatically search for the small print to look for the red flags.

When it comes to casino free spins, it is true that they come with terms and conditions, however, that doesn’t mean there’s necessarily a catch, you just have to know what’s involved.

Let’s be clear, many casino free spin offers are completely free, don’t involve you having to spend any of your own money and come with zero risk.

For example, Betfred recently had an offer of ‘5 Free Spins on Football Cash Collect’ to celebrate the start of the football season.

This is offered with very basic terms and conditions such as: you must be a customer of Betfred, have made one deposit at any time, and the free spins must be played on that specific game, in a specified time frame.

William Hill is another bookie that regularly offers customers three or five free spins on a random game a few times a week.

For both of these above offers, there is no ‘catch’. You simply open up the specific game, claim the free spins and any money you win goes automatically into your cash balance.

However, there are many casino free spins offers that have more terms and conditions attached, specifically relating to wagering, eligibility, and spend requirements. So, let’s take a look at these in more detail.

Wagering

Many casino free spin offers come with wagering. This is a term you should familiarise yourself with if you’re looking at casino play.

Wagering, in basic terms, means putting money through the casino. It comes as a multiplier, to indicate how many times you must play it through.

Say, for example, you receive an offer of 20 free spins, and it has a wagering requirement of x5. This means that any winnings you make from the 20 free spins has to be played through five times in the casino before you can withdraw it.

Consequently, if you make £5 profit from the 20 free spins, then in order to release the £5, you will need to wager a total of £25 in the casino (£5 x 5).

In effect, your winnings have gone into a bonus balance that you need to release by wagering money through the casino. Wagering can be as high as 30x or 40x in some cases, so it is something that needs to be considered when looking at any offer.

However, wagering doesn’t need to be feared. While it is true that wagering can whittle down your free spin profits, don’t forget there’s also a chance it can boost those profits too.

By wagering, you are continuing to play the game and that means it can be volatile. So, there is a chance that you can bust out and lose your free spins profits, but it is also possible to trigger a big bonus or big win while wagering which can multiply your free spin wins.

Wagering, therefore, doesn’t have to be negative, it can be positive too, but either way you need to be aware of it and what it entails.

Spend Requirements

Some casino free spins come with spend requirements, for example, ‘Wager £10 and receive 10 free spins’.

This obviously comes with a risk as it involves spending £10 of your own money without any guarantee that you will make that money back from the free spins.

In situations like this, you have to weigh up the risk/reward and decide if you are happy to proceed in the hope of making that money back plus more.

Remember, spending £10 on slots doesn’t mean you will necessarily lose all £10, that is the worst case scenario and your maximum risk level. There is a chance you will hit some wins while wagering that money and you could even end up making a profit from your initial wager before you’ve even started the free spins.

However, this is not guaranteed, so you always have to be prepared to cover the maximum risk.

There are ways of reducing the risks though, such as choosing the right game and stake to play, and this is called casino advantage play which we’ll go into later.

Game Eligibility

Most casino free spins have a restriction on which games you can use them on. It will either be one specific game or a range of games chosen by the casino.

When this is the case, ensure you open up the correct game. There should be some indication on the screen that you are playing free spins or something to click to access the free spins. Always make sure these are in place before you hit ‘Spin’ to prevent you from playing with your own funds.

Free Spins Expiry

Most offers have an expiry date, so always ensure you use your free spins by the date or you will lose them.

This is especially important if you have taken part in an offer with a spend requirement as you have already wagered your money up front so don’t want to miss out on your free spins.

While many bonuses will credit the free spins immediately once you’ve qualified , some don’t. You’ll see casino free spin offers such as ‘Wager £10 this week and receive the free spins next week’. Always ensure you keep track of these offers as it's your responsibility to claim your free spins.

If you have wagering to do on bonus funds, this will often have an expiry date too so be sure to complete wagering within the time limits.

Where To Find Free Spin Offers

Many casinos offer free spins as part of their welcome offer. You only need to search ‘free spins’ on any search engine and it will bring up a mammoth list of casinos offering you free spins.

However, don’t be dazzled by outrageously big free spin offers as often these come from unregulated offshore casinos. It’s important to always stick to reputable casinos that are registered with the UK Gambling Commission to ensure they are trustworthy. You can check if they are registered by going on the UKGC website and searching the name.

If already signed up to online casinos or bookies, you will often find free spin offers in the promotions section of the website or they are offered as part of a daily promotion. For example, Coral and Ladbrokes offer a free daily game where you can win free spins, or coins. Once you collect enough coins you can exchange them for free spins.

Check out both the sports promotions and the casino promotions sections as often you can get free spins from placing sports bets too.

Finally, always check the terms and conditions of all free spins offers, so you know exactly what is required in terms of spend, wagering or eligibility before you take part.

Are Casino Free Spins Worth Doing?

The short answer is yes, but only if they have reasonable terms and conditions.

Free spins without any risk, spend or wagering are absolutely worth doing. They are a total free hit and any profit is a bonus.

Most free spins offers that have low wagering or spend requirements are also worth doing as you have minimal risk but opportunities to make good profits.

However, some free spins offers will have unreasonable terms, and the risks will outweigh the potential rewards. For example, ‘Wager £50 to receive 10 free spins’ would not be worthwhile doing for the inflated risks and minimum rewards.

There is a way, however, of using free spin offers to turn the odds in your favour and in some cases lock-in guaranteed profits from them - casino advantage play.

How To Make The Most Out Of Casino Free Spins

Casino advantage play is a part of Matched Betting which uses the bonuses offered by casinos and bookies to give players the upper hand.

It works by finding the best offers, then applying strategies and mathematics to see if the offer will give players a Positive Expected Value (+EV).

Strategies can include choosing the right slots with a high RTP, selecting the optimum stake size and bet choice, depositing the right amount, using lay bets and knowing when to continue or stop playing.

Ultimately, it’s about minimising risks as much as possible and maximising potential profits.

Outplayed is a Matched Betting site that not only identifies the offers, but also provides the expected value and gives step-by-step guides on completing each free spins offer to get the most value out of it. To find out more, read our guide.

Keep Gambling Fun

Remember, slot play is meant to be fun at all times. While many casino free spin offers come with little or no financial risk, there is still reason to be alert.

Free spins can lead to players starting to stake their own money, if they enjoy the game. They may even start to play the game regularly leading to further risk.

It is always essential to gamble responsibly and mindfully. Always set a budget or time limit, take regular breaks, and ensure that it doesn’t start affecting other parts of your life such as reducing family time, borrowing money or impacting your mental health.

If you feel like you need support, contact GAMSTOP for information and guidance.