Wagering requirements explained, with the maths

A casino bonus is not money you can withdraw straight away. It comes with a wagering requirement, which is an amount you must bet first. This guide shows how to work out that amount, what the betting costs on average, and which other terms change the answer.

Amounts here have no currency sign. Read them in your own unit, whether that is dollars or a fraction of a coin. The sums are the same.

What is a wagering requirement?

Britain's gambling regulator, the Gambling Commission, defines it like this:

A wagering requirement is where a customer is required to make wagers totalling a particular value for funds to become withdrawable.

Bonus terms write it as a multiplier, such as 35x. You may also see it called playthrough or rollover.

The basic sum is:

Wagering requirement = multiplier × bonus

A 100 bonus at 35x means 35 × 100 = 3,500 in bets.

Wagering counts the total of your bets, not your losses. If you bet 1 a hundred times, you have wagered 100, whatever your balance did along the way. A bet you win and a bet you lose both count.

Some offers apply the multiplier to something else, such as the winnings from free spins. The sum works the same way: multiplier × the amount the terms name.

Does 35x apply to the bonus, or to deposit plus bonus?

Check this first, because the same 35x can mean very different amounts of betting.

• Bonus only: multiplier × bonus.
• Deposit plus bonus: multiplier × (deposit + bonus).

Take a deposit of 100 with a 100 bonus.

When the bonus is the same size as the deposit, deposit plus bonus doubles the betting. When the bonus is smaller than the deposit, the gap is wider. Deposit 200 with a 50% match and the bonus is 100. At 35x on deposit plus bonus that is 35 × (200 + 100) = 10,500, which is three times the bonus-only figure.

To compare two offers, divide the total to wager by the bonus. 7,000 ÷ 100 is 70 times the bonus. That number tells you more than the headline multiplier does.

What is game weighting?

Game weighting, also called game contribution, is the share of each bet that counts towards the wagering. The Gambling Commission gives this illustration: a bonus where slots count in full, blackjack counts 50% and roulette counts 30%. Each 1 you bet on roulette then clears only 0.30 of the requirement.

The sum is:

Total to wager = wagering requirement ÷ game contribution

For a requirement of 3,500:

The percentages for each game are set in the bonus terms and differ from one casino to the next.

What does the wagering cost on average?

Every bet has a cost built in. The house edge is the share of each bet the casino keeps on average. It is the other side of RTP, which stands for return to player. A game with a 96% RTP has a 4% house edge, because 100% − 96% = 4%. Over a very large number of bets you lose about 4 for every 100 you bet. The guide to house edge and RTP covers this in full.

Two more sums finish the job. The second gives the expected value of the bonus, which is the average result you would get if you took the same bonus a great many times.

Expected loss = total to wager × house edge

Expected value = bonus − expected loss

An expected value below zero means the bonus costs you money on average. This simple sum assumes you finish the wagering. It ignores the times your balance runs out early, so treat it as an estimate.

A worked example

You deposit 100 and get a 100 bonus. The terms ask for 35x on the bonus only. You play a slot that counts 100% and has a 4% house edge.

1. Wagering requirement: 35 × 100 = 3,500
2. Total to wager: 3,500 ÷ 100% = 3,500
3. Expected loss: 3,500 × 4% = 140
4. Expected value: 100 − 140 = −40

If you complete all the wagering, it costs about 40 more on average than the bonus gives you.

Now take the same offer with 35x on deposit plus bonus.

1. Wagering requirement: 35 × (100 + 100) = 7,000
2. Total to wager: 7,000 ÷ 100% = 7,000
3. Expected loss: 7,000 × 4% = 280
4. Expected value: 100 − 280 = −180

The headline is the same and the average cost is 140 higher.

The wagering calculator opens with this example. Change the numbers to match the bonus in front of you. The house edge calculator shows what a given edge costs over a number of bets.

Does a game with a lower house edge cost less?

Not once weighting is counted. Take a game with a 1% house edge that counts only 10%.

1. Total to wager: 3,500 ÷ 10% = 35,000
2. Expected loss: 35,000 × 1% = 350
3. Expected value: 100 − 350 = −250

That is a worse result than the slot's −40. A lower house edge does not make up for a low contribution.

What does "on average" mean here?

These figures do not tell you what will happen to you. Swings in luck, called variance, are not in the sum.

Which other terms change what a bonus is worth?

The sums above leave out the terms below. Each one can make a bonus worth less than the figure you worked out.

Maximum bet while wagering

A max bet rule caps your stake while a bonus is active. Say the cap is 5 and you have 3,500 to wager. That is at least 3,500 ÷ 5 = 700 bets.

Terms can treat a bet over the cap as a reason to remove the bonus and your winnings. Do not count on the site to stop you placing that bet. The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) looked at online gambling terms and reported in 2018 that it had found penalties for breaking play restrictions, "yet nothing to stop consumers from breaching the restrictions".

Maximum cash-out

A max cash-out caps what you can withdraw from a bonus. Say the cap is 100 and you finish the wagering with 500. You are paid 100 and the rest is removed. Look for this term on any no-deposit bonus, which is a bonus given without you paying in. The expected value sum does not include a cap, so a capped bonus is worth less than the sum shows.

Time limits

A time limit means the wagering must be finished by a deadline, or the bonus and its winnings expire. Say you have 7 days to wager 3,500. That is 500 in bets every day.

The Gambling Commission has said that high wagering requirements could lead people to gamble for longer, and faster, than they are used to. A deadline adds to that pressure.

Excluded games

Some games count 0%, so betting on them never clears the requirement. Some terms go further and forbid certain games while a bonus is active. Read the list before you play, because the penalty can be the loss of the bonus and winnings.

Sticky or cashable?

A cashable bonus becomes yours once the wagering is done. The sums in this guide assume a cashable bonus.

A sticky bonus can be bet with but never withdrawn. Depending on the terms, it is either removed when you cash out (sometimes called a phantom bonus) or stays in the account for more play. The calculator does not model sticky bonuses, so treat its figure as too generous for one.

Terms may not use the word sticky. The CMA's wording for the same thing is a bonus "for wagering purposes only".

Bonus-abuse clauses

A bonus-abuse clause lets the casino cancel a bonus and its winnings for certain ways of playing. Rules against fraud and multiple accounts are a separate matter. The problem is vague wording about play itself.

The CMA found operators "deeming certain play strategies invalid / 'abusive' after the event". It said terms should spell out every forbidden pattern of play and not leave it to the operator's sole discretion. A casino licensed outside the UK is not held to that standard. If the wording is vague, the casino decides what counts after you have won.

A checklist for reading bonus terms

1. Is the wagering on the bonus only, or on deposit plus bonus?
2. What does the multiplier come to as a total to wager?
3. Which games count, and at what percentage?
4. Which games are excluded or forbidden?
5. What is the maximum bet while the bonus is active?
6. Is there a maximum cash-out?
7. How many days do you have?
8. Is the bonus cashable or sticky?
9. What happens to your own deposit if you withdraw before the wagering is done?
10. Is forbidden play spelled out, or left for the casino to decide?

Then put the numbers into the wagering calculator.

When is a bonus not worth taking?

A bonus is not worth taking when any of these is true.

• The sum is clearly below zero. At a 4% edge and full contribution, by the simple sum, a bonus-only requirement of 25x costs as much on average as the bonus is worth: 25 × 100 = 2,500, and 2,500 × 4% = 100. Anything above 25x costs more.
• It needs more betting than you planned. A bonus that asks for 3,500 in bets is not a reason to bet 3,500.
• It locks your own money. The CMA found terms that stopped players withdrawing their unspent deposit while a bonus was active. UK operators were then expected to let players withdraw their deposit balance at any time. A casino licensed elsewhere is not bound by that.
• The terms are unclear. If you cannot tell what the wagering applies to, or what play is forbidden, you cannot work out what the bonus is worth.
• A cap or deadline changes the picture. A low maximum cash-out or a short time limit can leave a fair-looking sum worth much less.

Below 25x in that example, the simple sum is above zero. That is an estimate, not a sign the bonus pays. It is still an average, it leaves out the terms covered above, and your own result can be far from it. Any limit you set for your bankroll, the money you have put aside to gamble with, should stay the same whether you take a bonus or not. The guide to bankroll basics and betting systems covers setting one.

You can also say no. If a casino lets you play without a bonus, none of these terms apply to you.