Tips & Advice for Canadians Choosing an Online Casino

The right advice for Canadians looking to play at online casinos.

Tim Dallios  Updated: June 18, 2022

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If you're a first-time player and new to online casinos, then choosing where to play may seem a little overwhelming. With well over 1000 online casinos operating, most of which are friendly to Canadians deciding which one is best for you might not be a simple task. When deciding where to play, it's essential to consider things not clear to your first-time player with little or no experience.

Some of the most critical factors for your consideration which you should utilize as parameters in making your decision of where to play are listed in the quick reference links below.

Does the casino fully accept and cater to Canadian players?

It's essential that as a Canadian player that any online casino you choose to play at fully accepts players from Canada. By registering and attempting to play if they do not may lead to the blocking and subsequent removal of your account. To avoid any doubt utilizing a guide such as TopCasino.ca who specializes in Canadian online casinos can assist by choosing a casino that most certainly does accept players from Canada. Should you decide to play at a casino that not present on this website, then you should reach out to their customer support to find out whether you can play.

Does the casino have a good reputation among players and within the industry?

Dishonesty in the online gambling industry is more common than you may think. Online casinos are in the business of making money, and as such many of them circumvent morals, fair gaming and ethical business practices in favour of further lining their pockets.

Some of the most common themes of online casinos cheating players involve the following:

1. The casino refuses to pay the winnings won fairly by a player:
   
   
   • The casino claims that the winning amount is the result of a software error and that the player will not receive it as a result. The casino then tries to get the player to take a much lesser amount reducing the amount to 15-30% of the winning amount.
   • The casino claims that the wagering requirements have not been met as yet or disqualifies the win based on this.
   • The casino continually makes excuses and prolongs the cashout process indefinitely which may eventually lead to an account block.
   • The casino already imposes or introduces unrealistically low withdrawal limits that would take forever to withdraw the full amount of the win.
   • The casino provides other explanations of them justifying why they're not willing to pay out.
2. Unscrupulous software providers develop games that favour the house with low payout ratios.



3. The casino uses clauses in their terms and conditions or makes something up about bonus abuse, making you look like you are involved in wrongdoing.

The result of such practices makes it crucial for both new and savvy players to distinguish between good, fair and honest online casinos from those that are dishonest, immoral and outright cheats. Here at TopCasino.ca, a listing of expertly vetted online casinos specifically chosen for Canadian players, can be found.

Is there oversight by a reputable regulator?

In Canada, there is no federal, provincial or municipal licensing and regulatory authority for offshore online gambling sites. In terms of Canadian licensed and regulated options as of the time of writing this article, there were only two. One in Ontario PlayOLG.ca the other in British Columbia PlayNow.com would be the only provincially licensed and regulated brands in which to play. Respectively they both only accept players from their provinces. Players from these provinces who do play at these casinos will find there are no bonuses or incentives provided nor is the game variety the same as what's offered by offshore online casinos.

As a Canadian, even if you are from Ontario or BC, and you can play the limitation is being able to play at the two government-controlled options. The advantages of looking at foreign regulated and operated online casinos are, in my opinion, the better option if you're from Canada. You immediately get access to a much more extensive selection and variety of options in which to choose. One of the most critical factors; however, in determining and playing at an offshore online casino is whether they're fully licensed and regulated in a well-known jurisdiction. There are many jurisdictions which gambling operators choose to obtain licenses and to be regulated. The most favourable reputable jurisdictions I look to when playing myself include the Kahnawake (in Canada), the United Kingdom, Gibraltar the Isle of Man, Guernsey and Malta. What I look for in a robust licensing jurisdiction is a strong history of player protection, robust vetting procedures for operators and thorough software testing. Just sticking to playing at casinos that hold licenses in one of these jurisdictions you minimize the chances of playing with a dishonest casino.

Is the casino solvent and sustainable?

Well-capitalized highly solvent online casinos offer the stability that can withstand the high degree of variance that comes with running a casino. What this means is that if you were to win a massive jackpot, the odds are that the casino could a) pay you and b) won't go belly up as a result of that. I believe that by playing at online casinos that have stood the test of time and have grown into large well-established brands is the safest bet for Canadian players. The list would include many of those that are featured here in the top 10 list on TopCasino. Most notably would be Jackpot City Casino and Royal Vegas Casino, which to this day remain two of my favourite online casinos to play at regularly. Both of these behemoths established in the late 90's early 2000 have substantial player bases and deep pockets. So, paying the many winning players each month these casinos have no problem doing so. The one drawback you'll find with these brands and many others will be that they impose restrictions on how much you can withdraw each week. How this affects you as a player is that you are limited to a specific amount you can withdraw, which can range between C$4000 and C$20,000 per week depending on the rule set by the casino. If you hit a big win, you will be stuck withdrawing funds for the foreseeable future. The unfortunate reality is that casinos impose these restrictions to protect themselves from cashflow related issues in months where there may be a significant number of large winners.

Does the casino offer a variety of games by multiple software providers?

One construct of a terrific online casino is that they offer plenty of game variety and more importantly, games by several software providers. Modern day online casinos no longer focus on pushing players to download the software but rather play the no download instant play version. What this does is allows players to enjoy a unified gaming experience that is no different on their desktop computers, laptops, tablets or mobile devices. It also does away with much of the complexity of offering download versions of casino software.

With casino software companies no longer focusing on download versions of casino products, they focus the majority of their efforts on games. Casino games found at online casinos these days match or may even surpass that of what you'll find in a traditional brick and mortar casino. Most online casinos you'll find offer casino games offered by a variety of software providers. Even the closed nature of Microgaming casinos has opened up in recent years, and operators that were once only provided Microgaming games now offer games by a variety of providers. The most significant push has come from players who demand more variety.

Often casinos now offer thousands of games instead of hundreds. The variety of styles of games, variance and general gameplay varies, which means there's something for everyone. All these games by all of these software providers can be accessed directly from the lobby of the casino. It's hard to imagine that you have access to thousands of casino games right at your fingertips!

Does the casino provide attractive bonuses with fair terms and conditions?

Casinos offer bonuses as a means of attracting players to their casinos or keeping them loyal once they're registered, have made a deposit and are playing. An attractive bonus is a consideration to keep in mind when you first sign-up and play at an online casino. Most commonly as found on this site and in general are deposit bonuses and free spins bonuses. These common bonus types are the least susceptible to bonus abuse by players and used in favour of no deposit bonuses or other free cash offers. They are not immune to bonus abuse, but they are more resilient. It does mean that the bonus terms and conditions are well calculated and explicitly designed to be in favour of the casino. It's important as a player to ensure that you fully understand what you're getting yourself into and what the requirements are for you to comply. From wagering requirements to game type contributions for your play-through, these are facts you'll often find in casino reviews but definitely on the casino's promotions page. If you're not yet familiar with casino bonuses, TopCasino.ca has a comprehensive guide on the subject here on the casino bonus page.

Is it easy to browse the casino website and find the games you want to play?

The ease of finding information on a casino website will lead to a less stressful and far more enjoyable experience. Most online casinos offer well thought out navigation and site structures to allow you to quickly find promotional information, terms and conditions and their casino games listings. One thing I particularly like is when an online casino games lobby provides search and sorting functionality to refine the listing of what I see. It makes finding games I enjoy or styles of games far more convenient than searching a library of well over a thousand games manually.

Does the casino offer the best deposit and withdrawal options for Canadian players?

A critical aspect of being able to enjoy any online gambling experience is the ability to deposit and withdraw funds effortlessly. Canadians have plenty to do both. Depositing and funding your online casino account can be done using a variety of banking methods. The most commonly used by players from Canada however are credit and debit cards and Instadebit, each of which allows you to get started quickly and safely. My personal favourite is Instadebit, which enables me to connect directly to my bank account and debit funds directly from my account. By doing so, I'm able to control my gambling by never spending more than I have. More important than being able to deposit funds is how to withdraw them and Canadian friendly online casinos offer several safe and secure methods to withdraw your winnings. Canadian players should seek out and play at casinos that provide Instadebit and other banking methods that allow for simple transactions to and from the casino. All of the casinos found listed here provide convenient banking methods for players in Canada.