The iGaming industry has been growing bigger. Already, online casinos generate billions on their own. Once we factor in sports betting, live casinos, and bingo websites the collective revenue goes up by quite a lot of cash. The conclusion is obvious; online casinos are much more popular than you could expect.
Naturally, this means that there are much more people with an interest in gambling; many of whom have not tried online casinos. That is why, in this article, we are going to give a brief introduction to online gambling, casino sites, and iGaming as a whole. We’ll cover everything from legitimacy, to security, and games you can play.
Legitimate Online Casinos
One of the biggest concerns with online casinos is the legitimacy. When the industry first got off the ground, very few websites were licensed and regulated. That is no longer true. In 2023, most gambling sites are very secure, and licensed by the top authorities in the field. There may still be unlicensed sites, but with just a bit of research, you can find these out, and avoid them.
Licenses are important, because they show evidence that the casino has been reviewed and approved by the most trusted authorities in the gambling world. A license means that the games are fair, the odds are good, and that the casino operates as a legitimate business, rather than it being a scam. In other words, before you start gambling online, make sure the website is licensed.
Bonuses at Online Casinos
Bonus offers are among the primary reasons why gamblers have taken to online casinos. Promotions inspire gamblers to try different things, whether that be a different bet type, payment method, or game. Whatever the case may be, they are a hugely popular phenomenon when it comes to online gambling.
However, not all bonuses are worth the effort. Some are definitely better than others. Luckily, gambling expert Gregor Ziegler has compiled a list of the best online casino bonus offers, making the search easier for you. You’ll notice, sign-up offers are the most popular. However, there are also other options to choose from.
Payment Methods at Online Casinos
When you first register and verify your account, the next step is to fund it. That means putting some money into your account, that you can then use to gamble. Many people might not know, that there are different options for depositing at online casinos. Let us look at the most popular ones.
- Credit card: It is not surprising that credit cards are among the most popular. After all, they’ve been there from the start. Once upon a time, using a credit card was an online gambler’s one and only option.
- Debit card: The natural progression of a credit card is the debit card. Recently, debit cards have been getting a lot more popularity, and plenty of people are finding that they prefer them over credit cards. Naturally, online casinos have begun accepting them as well.
- Cryptocurrency: Though the market has recently caught some flack, especially in the USA, online casinos remain adamant. Cryptocurrency is such a popular option at online casinos, that there are plenty of websites that only focus on Bitcoin, Tether, Ethereum, etc.
- Digital Wallets: Some have called digital wallets “the way of the future.†These digital storage and payment programs make it much easier to handle money. However, they do come with a big disadvantage. Namely, the hefty fees that users have to pay when they make deposits and withdrawals.
- Wire Transfers: For the most direct option, a direct transfer through the bank is the best choice. Low-to-no fees may be worth the long wait-time you will have to experience when gambling with direct transferring.
These five are, by far, the most popular options at online casinos. While it isn’t a guarantee that all online casinos will have all five of these, we can certainly be sure that all online casinos will have at least one.
Slots at Online Casinos
What do we go to online casinos for, if not to play games? Once upon a time, online gambling options were quite limited. You could expect slots, and maybe video poker machines. However, that has changed. Online gambling platforms in 2023 feature whole libraries of games, each more interesting than the last.
Despite that, slots still remain the most popular games. For good reason too, as slots are simple, easy, fun, and quite engaging. Thanks to improvements in technology, online slots are now gorgeous to look at, to the point where they rival some big-name video games. Not to mention, they’ve taken on some many diverse themes. You can find slots inspired by superhero films, westerns, samurai, anime, and much more.
However, slots are not the only option that online casinos have. In the next segment, we are taking a look at the other popular games you can expect to find at online casinos.
Other Popular Games
Blackjack is, almost certainly, the most popular card game at online casinos. Especially now that livestreaming has made live blackjack possible. A living dealer broadcasts themselves to an audience, who all make bets and calls from the chat. Live blackjack combines the joys of face-to-face gambling, with the convenience of stay-at-home gambling.
Roulette is also quite successful. Much like blackjack, roulette games have taken a new life with the introduction of livestreaming technology. Live roulette has elevated the game to a status where most visitors have played it, at least once.
Finally, poker is the big name that everyone wants to hear. Where it differs from the others is in the skill it takes to pull off a poker game. While a degree of luck is involved, a great poker player can win with the worst hand, whereas a bad one can fumble the best.
Poker is so popular, that there are poker sites, dedicated exclusively to the game. We wouldn’t recommend jumping headfirst into poker though, especially if you have not played the game before. Get some practice, hone your skills, and then show them what you are made of.