The longer answers
The homepage FAQ keeps it short. This page is where we put the longer, more useful answers — particularly around bonuses, wagering and what UKGC licensing actually means in practice.
Safety and licensing
What does it mean that an operator is "UKGC licensed"?
The UK Gambling Commission is the regulator for commercial gambling in Great Britain. A licence means the operator has been vetted on integrity-of-ownership, anti-money-laundering controls, segregation of player funds, advertising rules, social-responsibility duties and complaint-handling. It also means the operator sits inside the UK's national self-exclusion scheme (GamStop) and the standard player-protection toolkit — deposit limits, time-outs, reality checks, etc. The Commission publishes a public register where you can verify any operator's licence number before signing up.
Are player funds actually protected?
Yes, but with a caveat readers should understand. Every UKGC licensee has to disclose its player-funds protection level: basic, medium or high. The label is in the small-print of the operator's terms. Basic means funds are segregated but not legally ring-fenced from creditors if the business fails; medium and high involve trust arrangements or insurance. None of the operators on this site sit below the medium level.
How do I block myself from every UK operator at once?
GamStop is the free national self-exclusion scheme. One sign-up blocks you across every UKGC-licensed operator for six months, one year or five years. The block can't be lifted early by any operator. If you want to talk to someone before deciding, the GamCare helpline runs 24/7 on 0808 8020 133.
Bonuses and wagering
Why don't you compare welcome bonuses by headline value?
Because the headline value is the part of a casino bonus that tells you the least. The number that matters is the wagering requirement — sometimes called playthrough — expressed as a multiple of the bonus, the deposit, or both. A £200 bonus with 50x wagering on the bonus plus deposit means £20,000 in turnover before anything can cash out, and that's with games weighted at 100%. Most table games and live casino weight much lower (10% or 0%), which inflates the turnover further. A smaller bonus with cleaner terms is almost always the better offer in practice.
What does "game weighting" actually mean?
Game weighting is the percentage of each pound of stake that counts toward the wagering requirement. Slots usually count at 100%, video poker and some table games at 10–20%, and live dealer games are very often excluded entirely. If you prefer Blackjack or Roulette, the operator's bonus terms have a much bigger effect on you than the bonus amount does.
What's a "sticky" bonus versus a "non-sticky" one?
A sticky bonus stays in your account until wagering is complete — you can't withdraw it. A non-sticky bonus separates your deposit from the bonus amount: you can withdraw the deposit (and any winnings on it) without losing the bonus, but you can't cash out the bonus itself until it's been wagered. Most UK welcome offers are sticky; the cleanest of the operators on this site put the structure in plain English in the offer itself.
What about the max-bet-while-wagering rule?
Most UK bonuses cap your stake at around £5 (sometimes £10) while you have an active wagering requirement. Stake more than the cap on a single spin and the operator is within its rights to void the bonus and any winnings from it. This tends to be buried in the bonus terms but it's one of the most common reasons readers find a withdrawal blocked.
Are there bonuses with no wagering?
Yes — sometimes called "cash spins" or "real-money spins". Winnings from these are paid as cash with no playthrough. The downside is the headline number is usually smaller. Mid-cycle promotions (loyalty drops, slot of the week) more often come without wagering than the welcome offer itself does.
This site
How are you funded?
By affiliate commission from the operators we link to. We don't charge operators for listing, scoring or position. The full picture is on the affiliate disclosure page.
Can you help with my casino account?
No, and we wouldn't want to. Anything to do with verification, deposits, withdrawals, bonus eligibility or account restrictions is between you and the operator's own support team. If you can't get a resolution there, you can escalate to the operator's alternative dispute-resolution provider (named in their terms) and ultimately to the UK Gambling Commission.
Why don't you cover payment methods or withdrawal times?
Because the honest version is "it depends on your account, your verification status, your bank, your method and the time of day". Any number we put on it would be made up. The operator's help centre is the source of truth, and we'd rather link to it than guess.