How we rate and review casinos
At No Wagering we’re not just enthusiasts, we’re experts. And we’ve been doing this for a long time. We examine, test, assess and review casinos rigorously. Why? So that you don’t have to.
There are lots of casinos out there, and the truth is they’re not all made equally. That’s why we provide honest, straightforward reviews of no wagering casinos.
Whether it’s the scoop on terms and conditions (T&Cs), or an honest look at customer service, we want to give you information you actually need. No copy-pasting generic text or regurgitating borrowed blurbs here. How do we do this? By considering everything that makes for a good online casino experience!
Scoring
Firstly, we want our reviews to be helpful to you. So we ensure they are honest, unbiased, comprehensive and include quantifiable information.
To provide clear and accessible feedback, we rate each site. We score each category then apply a 5-star scale. We also explain exactly how we arrived at each score. The scores in these 6 main categories determine the casino's overall score:
- Design
- Usability
- Games
- Promotions
- Banking
- Support
Our main criteria
When we assess a new casino, the 6 main criteria are kept firmly in mind. The casino needs to score well in all 6 to appear on No Wagering.
We could feature hundreds of casinos, but we stay true to our ethos, which is why you'll find only the best no wagering casinos on No Wagering.
Design
There’s only one chance to make a first impression. And of course, site design plays a major part in this. After all, it’s the first thing new players see and casinos tend to know the importance of good presentation. For a casino to score well in our ‘Design’ category, it must be easy on the eyes.
We consider:
- Themes – which help to target specific audiences.
- Colours, graphics, animations and aesthetics.
- Quality of the text and descriptions – with concise, informative writing preferred. Text which is bloated, or which contains unhelpful information will score lower.
Usability
With the vast majority of players using mobiles these days it’s key that any online casino worth its salt must be very mobile-friendly.
‘Usability’ is all about good functionality. Casinos which score higher in this respect are generally:
- Easier to navigate
- Have helpful search functions
- Different categories for different types of games
- A clean, uncluttered layout.
- Always easy to find whatever you’re looking for, without having to manually trawl long lists of games or blocks of text.
All things considered, the casino should be intuitive, logical and organised.
Games
We look for casinos that have a good selection of games. By ‘good’ we mean a range and depth of quality games that come from both industry-leading developers and a few of the smaller studios that create some of the quirkier games that come onto the market. A collection which includes games with different mechanics such as Megaways and scatter pays will also be regarded positively by our reviewers.
We wouldn’t normally look at a casino with less than 1000 games unless the selection was exceptional.
It’s important to look at which games the casino puts in its ‘shop window’, as this provides a likely indicator as to the type of player they’re trying to appeal to. We like to see a healthy mixture of reliable favourites and underdog newcomers. Casinos that regularly add to their libraries will also score better.
‘Variety is the spice of life’ is a great maxim when it comes to thinking of a casino’s games selection.
Promotions
Promotions can come in all shapes and sizes – some excellent, many good and some, a little ‘average’. We trawl through what casinos are offering and filter them accordingly – looking only for the best to include. We do the hard yards assessing promotions so you don’t have to.
Bonuses are important, and no wagering bonuses are what we do best, so it’s clear why ‘Promotions’ is a key criteria! When examining a casino’s promotional offerings, we only consider those with no (or very low) wagering requirements, so that players get to keep their bonus winnings. Essentially we’re looking for promotions that are fair, transparent and player-friendly. This means having reasonable terms and conditions and attainable requirements.
We also factor in things like the minimum deposit required to claim a bonus or maximum win.
In addition to welcome bonuses, we look at a site's ongoing promotions. These will likely include:
- Reload deposit bonuses
- Free games
- Weekly giveaways
- Cashback schemes
- Loyalty programmes
A good range and mix of these will help a casino score highly in the ‘Promotions’ category.
Banking
The Banking category includes things like:
- Range of payment methods accepted
- Payment processing times
- Minimum and maximum deposit
- Withdrawal limits
- Fees
When joining a casino, most players will likely use a debit card. A number of casinos now accept e-wallets such as Paypal, Skrill, Neteller, Trustly and Paysafecard. Digital wallets such as Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay are also growing in popularity. Paying by mobile is another payment method increasing in popularity. The more payment options the casino has the higher we will rate it in this category.
Deposits should be instantaneous, but withdrawal processing times can vary significantly between casinos, so we pay close attention to this. We expect withdrawals to be quick and without any fees. And we want withdrawal limits to be low.
Support
We expect a decent casino to offer various ways for players to get in touch, although live chat can be good enough as long as it's quick and helpful (and isn't an annoying chatbot).
Quickly and easily getting in touch with a real, competent, friendly human being who can help you will score a casino highly in this category. It indicates they care about their players.
A comprehensive FAQs section shows the casino has put some effort into pre-empting potential queries.
Other considerations
In addition to the above criteria, our reviews also cover other aspects about the casino. The following additional considerations aren’t scored in the same way, but they do help inform how a casino scores in the main categories.
Individual impressions & reviewer opinions
Our reviewers are casino enthusiasts and experts – our team has a collective 30 years+ experience. We’re objective and fair, but tough and exacting when needed!
There are plenty of opinions and enough hands-on experience within the team to provide our readers with genuinely helpful insights. We also consider the feedback we receive from players. Our reviews are honest and straight-up; no BS.
Platform & software
Casinos tend to be based on one of several foundational pieces of software, and casinos run by a single operator often share the same platform and server. You may well have noticed similarities between what are called ‘white label’ sites.
Some casino software is more robust than others, with the less reliable being prone to broken links or sluggish loading. When reviewing a casino, we always consider the performance capability of the underlying software.
Security and safety
There’s no overstating the importance of security when it comes to a player’s personal details and money. We only review sites licensed and registered with the UK Gambling Commission, so you can relax knowing you're choosing a safe and legal place to play.
Other factors such as the use of encryption, additional licences and transparency can also feed into our reviews.
All of the casinos we recommend are strong advocates of responsible gambling.
Operator
Casinos we review are sometimes part of a family of casinos operated by a larger company. We consider the size, reputation, background, longevity and credentials of operators when reviewing their casinos, rather than just the ‘brand’ itself. We’ll also draw your attention to any noteworthy sister sites.
Our review team
Both slots enthusiasts and experts, our team of reviewers and writers have collectively been immersed in online casinos for decades. They know their stuff. Their aim is to share their experience to guide you to the best no and low wagering casinos with the best promotions and bonuses.