Check the legitimacy

For newbies to the online casino world it is crucial that you research the online casino you choose before you even visit their website. There are many really great, legitimate and legal online casinos out there but there are also some very unscrupulous and downright dirty digital establishments as well. Check out our online casino reviews here to see some of the online casinos we trust and recommend.

Online casinos, the legit ones at any rate, will always publish where they are registered somewhere on their website, usually at the bottom or in their FAQs or About Us sections. This is normally along the lines of: “XYZ Casino is licensed and registered in Malta”, or “XYZ Casino is regulated by the Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner”. This means that the online casino is licensed and regulated by a recognised authority with the jurisdiction to offer online gambling licenses. The most trusted of these territories include Malta, Gibraltar, United Kingdom and Curacao.

While land-based casinos, especially the bigger mega-entertainment and resort casinos, are (generally) legit, there are also shady brick and mortar establishments. If your first outing to a casino is your friend Bob dragging you down an alley to the back room of a bar with a fruit machine and a group of poker players who look like they’ve just stopped shooting as extras in a gangster film – leave.

Set up a bankroll and a budget

A bankroll is a set amount of money you have with which to gamble at any single gambling session.

A budget is a set amount of money you put aside, it could be weekly or monthly or bi-annually, that is reserved for when you want to go gambling.

Your bankroll is taken from your budget and can be a portion or the entire thing.

One of the most important things any gambler can remember is: if your bankroll and budget is gone, STOP GAMBLING!

Setting a limit for yourself ensures you won’t get into financial difficulty. The allure of a winning streak can be devastating if you get it wrong.

Play low stakes until you’re more experienced

It makes no sense to jump into a high stakes game of Texas Hold’em on your first visit to a casino – the chance are you will be cleaned out within a few hands.

Start at low stakes table. Find slot machines or online slots games that have a high RTP. Spend some time getting a feel for different games. Gambling at low stakes games won’t give you massive wins but they will help you learn the game and avoid massive losses.

Plus, low stakes games will make your bankroll last longer so you can play for longer.

Understand the rules

Not just the game rules, the casino rules. Different casinos have different rules on what you should wear and how you go about ordering drinks at the tables and whether or not you can touch the cards.

Online casinos have some very tricky rules when it comes to withdrawing your cash.

On the point of withdrawing cash: beware the bonuses! Online casinos love offering bonuses to new players and loyal players but these bonuses come with some very specific rules called wagering requirements. These bonuses van be great if you want to bulk up your bankroll or try out new games without risking your own money but, if you don’t follow the wagering requirements very thoroughly, you could lose any money you win.

MAKE SURE YOU READ AND UNDERSTAND ALL TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND WAGERING REQUIREMENTS BEFORE YOU ACCEPT OR USE BONUSES!

Avoid Keno

Remember our example of house edges above? When we said the higher the house edge the less chance you have of winning? Keno may seem like a fun and easy game but it has an insane 35% house edge. Compare that to blackjack with a 1% house edge, or roulette with just less than 50/50 odds and you will see why we recommend staying away from Keno until you are way more experienced.