The Best Bingo Bonuses
When it comes to promotional materials for online bingo, it can difficult to know if we, as players, should be concerned about like of quantity; while the age old phrase “quality over quantity” is a good rule of thumb, quantity can be a clever way to judge how customer focused an online bingo brand truly is.
Bingo is a massive market, and with it comes numerous variations of bonuses, from free online bingo with no deposit required to 100% deposit bonuses, there’s a lot of ground for gamers to cover. Then, of course, you have the fact that some deals are exclusively for a type of member, e.g. a newcomer or VIP, and so understanding how good a value something actually is becomes that much harder. By using our review, we hope to bring you only the very best online bingo for UK and international users, and if we don’t, we’ll tell you why a site you love hasn’t ranked as highly with us. there’ll always be transparency. If you’re a fan of playing online bingo for free, you can skip this section.
Online Bingo; No Deposit Bonuses and Deposit Bonuses
The age old question a lot of gamers ask on a daily basis is which are the best online bingo offers? The reason for this is because, on the surface, a free online bingo with no deposit sounds like a much better deal, in that you don’t have to spend money in order to get some extra cash into your account. It’s a win-win to play free online bingo with no deposit and win real money, right?
In truth, when you compare the terms and conditions of these online bingo bonuses that rely on a minimum deposit, you’ll find that the wagering requirements vary dramatically. As a result, what would normally be a standard x2 rollover requirement for a 100% bonus, has suddenly jumped to a x10 wagering requirement because of the fact you got it for free. Typically, online bingo wagering requirements are much lower than those of online casinos, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get a nasty shock when you take out that exciting online bingo bonus. The best advice we can give is to be mindful of free online bingo saying no deposit required, unless you’re fully willing to take on an increased rollover agreement.
Free Spins and Free Tickets
Despite online bingo websites being all about those balls, many of them also cater to other types of iGaming as well, primarily that of slot machines and instant wins. Consequently, it’s normal to see free games on a certain slot to be offered, as well as the expected free online bingo tickets. However, while it’s good to be on the lookout for both, as these sites mainly deal in bino games, it’s important to take notice of the number of free bingo options you get when compared with slots. If the slot bonuses outweigh the online bingo aspect, then you’re essentially getting the generic online casino treatment that you could get from any number of other labels out there.
Loyalty Schemes vs VIP
Another common type of bonus to see is that of loyalty points and collectables; even in the world of online bingo, loyalty to a brand goes a long way. Often you’ll find that many online bingo sites provide both a points system, designed for all members, alongside a VIP scheme that is setup for only the most dedicated of those members. Sometimes the two will cross over in value, with it being worthwhile to try for both rather than one or the other, however sometimes it serves you well to go for the one most accessible to you.
A fine example of this are online bingo VIP clubs which rely on invitation only members, meaning that you have to catch the eye of the bingo team before they will allow you to be a member. In truth, invitation only clubs are becoming more and more rare, however they still exist and are something to be careful of. The problem with these types of clubs is that you don’t know what it is you need to do in order to get that invite – you know that it’s beneficial to play often and deposit money, but beyond that it’s a guessing game as to how long such a task will take. It can almost take the fun out of online bingo. And yet, on the other side of this, you have confirmation that you’re one of the top percentage of gamers that could go that extra mile.
In contrast to this, online bingo loyalty schemes are normally something you can get involved with from the money you join, with you able to use the points you collect in exchange for bonus money and free games. The rewards are usually less impressive than that of an online bingo VIP club, and yet by keeping everything more lowkey, a wider range of users are able to reap the benefits of such a system.
Is Cashback Everything?
Moving onto our next commonly seen bonus, we have the cashback deal, a trend that’s becoming more common with each passing day. When you play online bingo for cash, or any sort of iGame for that matter, the risk of losing money is always there, with the only way to avoid it being to play for free. Due to the financial risk, a cashback bonus is a great way of ensuring you don’t lose everything on that single game of bingo.
Online bingo cashbacks can work in one of two ways: you either get all of the cashback or you get a percentage. The percentage option is normally the most common, such as 50% cashback when you wager £10 and lose, but occasionally a site will give you all your lost money (on the qualifying games) back.
Get the Very Best Every Time
We can’t always promise you that an online bingo label will deliver the goods each time, but what we can promise is that by using our quick overview, you’ll be able to decide which bonuses are most useful to you. There’s no need to take out every single online bingo promo you see, as in the end, you’ll be sure to get bogged down in a endless struggle against terms and conditions. Instead, if you cherry pick the bonuses that work best for you, you’ll be able to get every last drop out of the deals you activate. This in turn will give your online bingo account the right foundations to grow on, and should leave you more in pocket than being out of it.
Of course, what goes hand-in-hand with such a feat is also choosing to play with only the most reputable of online bingo brands; if you join a poorly designed, badly operated site, the bonuses will be minimal. However, if you go for well known, popular labels, you’ll be more likely to have a diverse mix of bonuses to choose from and enjoy. Beating the online bingo bonus is about being smart and enjoying yourself, not one or the other.
The Latest News and Promotions
Online bingo in the UK and beyond relies heavily on users being able to keep up to date with the latest news and promotional developments of any one brand. Nine times out of ten, a iGaming news story won’t be seen on the standard evening news, and so it’s up to you to find out what’s going on within the community. But how can you do that when resources are poor?
The answer is part of the reason we’ve created Bingo.xyz: you can’t. You need good, reliable sources of information whenever you research about online bingo, even if that means having to find out unsavoury reviews about a specific brand. We won’t ever sugarcoat what’s going on within the bingo industry, which in turn puts you in full control of how you play. Nonetheless, while Bingo.xyz can do much to point you in the right direction for great online bingo, for more light and fluffy news, such as a new game or bonus, you’re best bet is to follow the social media channels of an online bingo brand.
Online bingo websites usually link to their social media on their homepage, towards the bottom of the screen, and so if you don’t find any icons there, it either means they haven’t got social media or that they have but it’s not active. We always advise that you pay attention to the brands active elsewhere online, as those are the ones that usually send out promotions in their tweets or give you free games for liking their Facebook page. If however, an online bingo label doesn’t have social media channels but does have a subscription something, that too is something to opt in for.
We don’t like getting inundated with unnecessary online bingo emails either, but the really good brands out there, the ones that are well managed and care about their members satisfaction, will keep promotional emails low in volume. Over the years, many online bingo gamers have been able to snap up exclusive deals because they were signed up to a sites newsletter, and normally, these subscription based deals are unavailable anywhere else. In an age where online connectivity is everything, it does well to immerse yourself in that side of the online bingo community, and if you can’t, we can do it for you. Inside all our reviews will be a section of that label’s latest promotions and updates, as well as a brief walkthrough on how to activate said bonuses.
Safety and Security
Any website online should take the safety of its clientele very seriously, however that point is never truer than with iGaming sites. When we sign up as members, we share a lot of personal details with that site in order to do so, such as our age, address, and card details; if any of that were to be hacked and stolen, it would be huge cause for concern.
Fortunately, there are many security steps online bingo websites can put into place to make sure that doesn’t happen to them. And, should the unfortunate happen and a cyber attack does occur, that the encryption software installed keeps all that personal data hidden and safe. Nevertheless, it’s still vital that you know the signs of a potentially dangerous website so that you can avoid falling into the trap of trusting the wrong site.
Licensing – Do They Have It?
Legally, any online bingo website must have a license if they’re to run their business. However, that doesn’t mean that illegal sites don’t exist. As such, whenever you hear about a new brand, it’s best for you to research into the regulators of the site, e.g. who is in charge of licensing. In the world of online gambling, there are several jurisdictions currently regulated:
- United Kingdom
- Malta
- Gibraltar
- Curacao
- Alderney
- Isle of Man
- Belgium
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Italy
- Costa Rica
- Kahnawake
Each of these jurisdictions will have their own set of gambling laws, meaning that sometimes an online bingo site in the UK may not be accessed by someone living in Denmark. Normally you are given a good indication of which online bingo sites allow which jurisdictions, as their terms and conditions will outline a list of restricted countries. However, if you’re ever in doubt, not only can you ask the team, but you can look at the licensing as well; if a site is governed by the UK Gambling Commission, that usually means those residing outside of Europe will be unable to register.
What is SSL Encryption
The term SSL is an abbreviation of the term Secure Sockets Layer, a fancy term that basically refers to that tiny “s” you see included within the http:// of a URL.
When that “s” is included, it means that the server you’re attempting to connect to and your own computer have formed a secure connection, one that can’t be (easily) hacked. Should you visit a bingo site and that detail is missing, that means that a hacker can intercept your details via the server and mine your details. Online Bingo labels that rely on SSL encryption to keep their customers safe, won’t just like the URL of their site do the talking, they’ll also display a certificate on their webpages, detailing that they have been verified as protected by SSL software.
As for the encryption side of this security system, that’s in place so that all the personal details you put in can’t be seen any anyone else; if someone was to hack in, they’d be greeted by lines of code rather than an easy to read rundown of your credit card, date of birth, etc.
Be Smart with Banking
Due to the use of SSL software by online bingo labels, it’s fair to say that a lot of banking with a bingo site is smart, as your details are protected. That being said, some bank providers can be difficult to deal with should something unfortunate happen and your money gets lost; this is where ewallets tend to outshine standard credit/debit cards. Companies like PayPal and Skrill are renowned for having exceptional customer service should something go amiss, and will typically have the issue resolved in a matter of days.
If however, you don’t wish to use such services, but still want to keep yourself in check when it comes to other aspects of banking, most online bingo sites will let you control how you spend. For example, if you’re worried about overspending, you can go into your account settings and setup a gambling limit for yourself. Once you do this, it should mean you can’t deposit over a set amount, e.g. if you set the limit at £100 and attempt to deposit £110, the site will stop you from doing so.
None of these systems are foolproof within the online bingo industry, but they do help you make smarter financial decisions, an aspect of online gambling that is always good to be knowledgeable about. If you want to know if a site takes banking as seriously as we do, look to see if they have a Gamble Awareness logo and/or they provide a range of payment methods that have policies in place for if you experience banking problems.
Trust the Reviews
If all else fails in your bid to work out whether an online bingo website is safe and secure, you can rely on a tried and tested system that never fails: the reviews. Granted, some online bingo reviewers are paid to say the nicer elements of a brand while skimming over the others, but even inside of those reviewers, the areas of potential issues show. There’s no escaping what a review does and doesn’t say. Consequently, if you find a site that looks good but then spot it has a two out of five stars ranking, it is better to cut your losses now and find another website that has a higher review score.
Keeping that in mind, it’s time to make use of our reviews here at Bingo.xyz and start enjoying the very best of what online bingo has to offer. Believe us when we say, there’s many good websites out there waiting to show you a good time on their games and bonuses, all it takes is that first step. Happy bingoing!