A big part of online casino promotions involves free spins. These are typically used as part of a welcome bonus offer to attract new players to a platform but can be available through other offers like reload bonuses and VIP clubs.
Free spins are exactly what they sound like, as they have no direct monetary value and can’t be exchanged for money. They simply replace a real-money stake for a spin of the reels on a slot machine at an online casino. Here’s how it usually works: you make your first deposit and receive 100 free spin bonuses (if your online casino is generous enough), then you can use all those spins on slots or sometimes on one specific slot.
Why mention “one specific slot”? Because free spins are often tied to a single game and can only be used there. Do these free spins hold real value, or are they just another promotional trick for a particular slot?
Lowest Value
Awarded free spins only have the lowest value that can be played on a slot machine, typically 0.10 per spin in whatever currency is being used. This is important to recognize because it means that free spins can’t be used as maximum bets, which on some machines, excludes the option of playing for a jackpot. But with that minimum stake, prizes can still be won and other special features of a slot triggered like re-triggers, wilds and scatter symbols.
Game Limitations
When free spins are awarded, in some instances there is a stipulation as to what particular slot machine they can be used on. The free spins may be only for use on one particular game title, even. Casinos often do this to promote a new release, highlight a popular game or showcase features such as bonus rounds. It’s also a good way to attract players and sometimes to fulfill agreements with game developers.
That dials back the versatility of them somewhat, but they still provide a nice introductory experience to that particular slot. When free spins don’t have those game limitations, they are great tools for exploring with, as players can use them to get a feel of different slots without risking any real money stake.
Chances Are the Same
One thing that remains the same, no matter how free spins are used, is that the chances of winning from them are not different from a real money stake. Nothing changes within the mechanics of a game, nor is the chance of winning from a single spin weighted more against a free bet. So in that regard, they are valuable, because a free spin represents the same value and chance of winning as if a minimum 0.10 bet had been used from the user’s balance.
Wagering Requirements on Free Spins
Not all free spins have wagering requirements, but some do. This is where the value of any winnings from free spins has to be wagered in real money before they can be withdrawn. A typical wagering requirement on free spins ranges from 10x to 50x the value of the winnings. For example, with a 20x wager – one of the most common – if $5 was won from free spins, $100 would have to be gambled first.
Operators use this system so that customers don’t just sign up, play free bonus offers and cash out winnings immediately without putting anything back into the platform. It’s also worth holding winnings in an account for a while before trying to withdraw, even after completing wagering requirements, to allay suspicions about this practice.
Different Perspectives
For the casino, free spins are a promotional tool, and while they run the risk of potentially giving something away financially from them, there is a much bigger picture that they focus on.
If a 10 free spins offer has helped them attract a new customer, the operator will expect that the new player will invest a lot more during their time on that platform, than what the casino would ever lose from those 10 free spins.
In most online casinos welcome bonuses, a player has to deposit to the account before getting the free spins, so the funds are already there and as deposited funds have to be played through at least once before a withdrawal can be made, the casino will get a big chance of making money.
From the perspective of the player, free spins have value. It’s essentially a free hit at gaining some winnings from legitimate play. Jackpots may be out of the question, but that doesn’t matter, because any win from those bonus spins would still add value.
Value or Not?
The chances of landing any significant win from a free spin are very slim, but not impossible. Also, packages of free spins are small, perhaps only 20 or 50, and putting those towards slot machines which are difficult to win on anyway, and the forecast isn’t great.
But when taking everything into account, including any game restrictions and wagering requirements, free spins are genuine bonuses that at least provide a chance of winning. Just over the long term on the casino platform, you will likely be wagering more than what could be earned from them.