When it comes to luring in new gamblers and retaining loyal players, online casinos are very creative. Gambling sites invent all kinds of bonuses to display their generosity! We’re making an entire series of guides on casino bonuses, and the next on our list is a cashback bonus! Thanks to their versatility, cashback deals are something both recreational players and high rollers can benefit from. Let’s carry out an investigation of our own and see if a cashback bonus is as attractive as they say!
What is a cashback bonus?
Like most casino bonuses, a cashback bonus has a pretty telltale name. After all, who doesn’t know what a cashback is? Chances are that your bank card that you’re using every day has a cashback. If, for example, you spend $1,000 on online purchases and your cashback is 5%, you’ll get $50 back returned to your card.
Cashback bonus at online casinos works the same way! If you’ve spent a certain amount of money on the gambling site, the casino gives you a refund. In other words, you recover a small percentage of your losses over a pre-set period of time (day, week, month). The casino just gives you this money back, as if nothing has happened. Most of the time, cashback bonuses do not exceed 15-20%. Of course, when compared to super lucrative welcome bonuses that can reach 100% or even 200%, a cashback bonus may seem like a joke to you. But the thing you’re going to learn as an online gambler is that even a small bonus counts.
Types of cashback bonuses
Each online casino has a unique bonus program with different types of bonuses, wagering requirements, and other terms. When it comes to cashback bonuses, igaming platforms can provide them on different terms.
- Cashback bonus as a part of a welcome bonus. Speaking from experience, we can say that a welcome bonus with a cashback is a pretty rare thing across online casinos. Nonetheless, some igaming platforms give newly registered players a cashback on their first loss. This is a smart way to make gambling less risky in the eyes of rookies. A new player knows that even if things go south and they throw a big chunk of their bankroll down the drain, they’ll get a refund from the casino. It definitely makes the whole experience less stressful. The only drawback is that this cashback bonus is a one-time offer.
- Regular cashback bonuses. What makes this reward truly beautiful is that it’s an ongoing offer for all existing casino clients. Keep playing and keep getting refunds on your losses! Online casinos can have daily, weekly or monthly cashbacks. For example, 15% monthly cashback, 5% daily cashback, and so on.
- Cashback bonus on a specific game. It’s not uncommon that online casinos tie cashbacks to certain games. In this case, if you just happen to dislike a particular game that generates cashbacks, it’s a bummer!
- Cashback for VIP players. This type of cashback bonus often makes a part of multi-tier VIP programs. High rollers tend to spend a lot of money on bets. And it’s common knowledge that big bets come hand in hand not only with big wins but also with big losses. To keep its high-spending clients happy, a casino refunds a certain percentage of the player’s net losses over a certain period, whether it’s a week or a month. However, to qualify you for his hefty cashback, your losses need to exceed a very high threshold.
Benefits of a cashback bonus
We love cashback bonuses, and we want you to see their benefits as clearly as we do. Let’s take a look at evident and less obvious advantages of cashback deals.
- Cashback bonus is a refund, and there’s no such person who doesn’t like refunds! An online casino credits a part of your losses to your account. It’s real cash added to your bankroll. You can use this money to keep playing your favorite games. Just think about it: a bet made from this cashback money may land you a jackpot! You never know!
- Unlike most casino bonuses which are given to you as money gifts, a cashback bonus is actually your money that you've lost (well, a part of it, to be exact). From a psychological point of view, this is a very powerful move on the casino’s side. It’s understandable that a player will be mortified after a loss. In this situation, a cashback bonus comes as a great stimulus and encouragement. It’s as if the casino was saying “Hey, cheer up! We decided to give back to you some of the money you’ve lost!” There’s no better way to boost morale and make up for the stress of losing a significant sum of your hard-earned money.
- The thing that makes cashback bonuses unique is that they come with no wagering requirements. Isn’t that amazing? If you’re a seasoned player, you must know that wagering requirements can kill the joy from a most generous bonus! From the moment you accept a bonus, you set out on a quest of releasing the bonus and your winnings. It’s a pressure you can’t ignore. With a cashback bonus, you can forget about this nightmare. Even if a casino has wagering requirements attached to their cashback bonus, most of the time they’re very easy to meet.
Cashback bonus: What makes it tricky
Although a cashback bonus sounds pretty exciting, it has its fair share of limitations that make it less attractive in the eyes of savvy gamblers. Let’s scrutinize some of the pitfalls that beginning players may overlook when hunting for cashback bonuses!
- First of all, a cashback bonus is a rather modest reward that ranges from 5% to 20% of your losses. So compared to your total loss, the refund is going to make little difference. A cashback bonus has a positive psychological effect on the player’s morale rather than any practical value.
- At some online casinos, to make you eligible for a cashback bonus, your losses need to surpass a certain amount. In other words, you need to part with an amount of money large enough (say, $2000) e.g., to be able to claim a cashback. The problem is that some gamblers simply can’t afford to part with a sum of money that big. These restrictions make a cashback bonus an exclusive offer for a limited number of players with a hefty bankroll.
- Keep in mind that casinos cap the amount of cashback bonuses. This is a common practice when it comes to all types of casino bonuses. For example, if the cashback offer reads “15% cashback up to $200”, this means that the maximum amount that the casino is willing to pay back is 200 bucks, and not a cent more.
How to choose a lucrative cashback offer
With numerous online casinos vying for your attention and wallet, you're certainly going to browse through hundreds upon hundreds of cashback offers. How do you pick an offer that will be worth your while? Here are some of the fundamental things that you need to examine when poring over those flashing cashback deals:
- Cashback percentage. This is the first thing that a player notices about a cashback bonus. Of course, you should be looking for high percentages. The higher the percentage, the bigger the refund. At the same time, while a cashback percentage is really important, it shouldn't be the only thing that you concentrate on.
- Amount of losses. This is the thing that many casino enthusiasts tend to overlook. Be smart and find out what amount of losses makes you eligible for a cashback bonus. It may turn out that the lower threshold is too high for you to even think of!
- Wagering requirements. Read the Terms and Conditions on the casino site to make sure your cashback has no wagering requirements attached to it. This is the best case scenario. If, however, a cashback deal does come with wagering requirements, make sure that meeting such requirements is a doable task.
- Validity period. Also, you need to find out whether a cashback is an ongoing bonus or a limited offer. If it’s a regular bonus that you can claim an unlimited number of times, you have nothing to worry about. If, however, it's a time-limited deal, be sure to find out when it expires.
