Welcome bonus
This is awarded to players making a new account with an online casino. In order to encourage new players to sign up, this type of bonus is often the largest and most lucrative that a casino will offer.
What makes welcome bonuses stand out, is that they are often a combination of different bonus types. Usually, they do require a deposit in order to claim them, but there are some no deposit welcome bonuses as well.
It’s also the most variable bonus. While it’s commonly offered as a match deposit to boost your bankroll, this ranges from a 50% match to a 400% match. On top of that, welcome bonuses are sometimes split too. Instead of just being attached to a single initial deposit, some casinos will split it across the first few deposits. Depending on the casino, the match percentage will vary across each of the subsequent deposits.
This is something to be aware of as many casinos will combine all those initial deposit matches into one lump sum when advertising their welcome offer. You will need to check that this is not split across a number of deposits.
Match deposit bonus
As we mentioned, this is one of the more common versions of the welcome bonus. But it also doesn’t have to be part of a welcome bonus either. It can be its own standalone bonus too. This is one of the more lucrative bonus options out there. However, what you get out of it will also depend on how much you put in.
As this is a match deposit bonus, the more you deposit, the greater your match bonus will be. Even though it’s just a percentage of your deposit, a larger deposit can give you more to play with overall. This is especially true if subsequent match deposit bonuses aren’t going to match your deposit to as high a percentage.
However, it is important to take careful note of the wording of match deposit offers. In some, the eligibility cap is placed on the amount of deposit that is eligible for a bonus, in others the cap is placed on the amount of bonus awarded.
So, for example, if the match deposit offer is a 400% match up to a DEPOSIT of $50, and you deposit $100, you’ll have a total of $300 to play with (400% x $50 = zodiac casino $200 + initial $100 deposit). If the offer is a 400% match up to a BONUS of $50, and you deposit $100, you’ll have $150 to play with (400% x $ = $50 bonus + initial $100 deposit).
One thing to bear in mind when taking on this type of bonus is that a bigger percentage isn’t always better if either the deposit cap or the bonus cap is low.
Deposit bonuses
The deposit bonus is often confused with the match deposit bonus, but, in fact, they are slightly different. A deposit bonus will award you with something, but it’s not going to match your deposit. Instead, there’s usually a minimum deposit requirement in order to claim a specific bonus. This can be a set amount of free cash or free spins no deposit.
What this means is that you can, in some cases, make a smaller deposit, yet still claim a decent bonus. This also means that you can spread your money around to other casinos, while still reaping the same, larger bonus rewards.
It’s also worth noting that deposit bonuses are often used to keep players coming back to a site. It’s this type of bonus that tends to be used for long-term players, especially if the casino feels you haven’t deposited anything in a while.