How we rate casinos
The South African online casino industry is vast and has many options to choose from. Because of the variation between online casinos, the way in which we rate casinos is standardized according to a checklist of key features, which helps us decipher which of those are best in the market and which are on their way up. For more details on how we rate our casinos, please continue reading.
Bonuses and promotions
We first rate the casinos on the bonuses and promotions they offer, because this is what appeals most to South African online casino players. We evaluate this by looking at it from four points of view, namely the welcome bonus, free spins available, reload bonuses and cashback deals. It’s important to note that we do not only take the topline figures into account but also focus a lot on the wagering requirements, to ensure these comply with legal gambling standards. At the end of the day, there’s simply no point in earning a large amount of money in bonus cash, but then not being able to complete the wagering. In addition to this, we keep a close eye on seasonal promotions and competitions throughout the year, to make sure we really provide a holistic review.
Range of casino games
The range of casino games an online casino has to offer is extremely important when it comes to rating. This is because most of the online gamblers’ time will be spent playing a variety of different casino games. Online casinos therefore need to ensure that they can offer a wide selection of different games, such as slot machines, jackpots, table games and live dealer games. Sports betting and player vs. player poker are other added bonuses we look for when rating a casino. To get a decent rating, it is advised to have at least one of the most well known games available on your site, such as Microgaming, NetEnt or Playtech. In cases where you have a very diverse offering of games, it is crucial to have a search function to avoid endless scrolling. If you meet the above criteria as an online casino, you’ll be sure to receive an A+ rating!
Return to player (RTP)
Another important rating factor is the return to player percentage. Although it is great to have so many casino games, it is as important to have games that offer high RTP percentages. Ideally, we would like to see video slots and poker with RTP’s around 90%. We are able to overlook multi-million dollar progressive jackpots having a low RTP, however non-jackpot slots need to have high RTP’s. Lastly, another very important thing is having a sufficiently low house edge on classic games, such as roulette, blackjack or baccarat. If you have high RTP’s and low house edges, we’re more likely to give your casino a 5-star rating!
Site design and useability
Another essential part of a good casino rating is for users to easily navigate and search for games on your site. This is extremely important to South Africans – if they don’t see what they’re looking for at a top-level glance or can easily find it with a user-friendly system, they are not going to stick around. Things like withdrawing winnings, viewing information on promotions with ease, accessing the cashier area and making a deposit should all be seamless and be able to be navigated to with only one or two clicks. If you don’t have a user-friendly and appealing site design, chances are you’re not going to get a high rating.
Payment methods
It is so important to offer a wide variety of different payment methods to accommodate all users. Some people may prefer Debit/Credit Card Payment and other EFT. In addition to providing a range of top payment methods, it is equally important to be transparent with users on your payment page about all related payment information, such as withdrawal and deposit limits, processing times and extra added fees. It is so important for the customer to know about these things so they can plan appropriately when playing online. If you follow these guidelines, you’ll get a good rating in this area.
Customer support
Good customer support is essential to online South African casino players. South Africans appreciate knowing that if they’re in a predicament, there is something they can reach out to and the problem will be solved. The online gambling industry has room for quite a few issues, such as game restrictions and withdrawal or depositing issues and South Africans will want to reach out to someone as soon as possible when they experience something like this. If you value your customer support, have a live chat option with friendly, eager-to-help staff, then you’ll definitely score high on our rating.
Reputation and ownership
Reputation is often overlooked by many South African players, however we make sure to do a thorough assessment on the casinos current reputation and ownership, so the casinos that are reviewed with high ratings on our platform are guaranteed to have a great reputation. We assess a casinos reputation by keeping a close eye on gambling forums, social media pages as well as casino blacklists. Although cliche, it takes a great deal of time to build a good reputation, but only a moment to tarnish it. Site ownership is another aspect we take very seriously because often online casinos are part of wider groups, and if one of the casinos in a group has a bad reputation, then it may indicate that another will too. If your casino is in good standing with the general public and if your site ownership is up to scratch, then you’ll score high on our ratings for this.
Licensing, privacy and security
Finally, it is of utmost importance that our users are being directed to online gaming sites that are valid, safe and secure. We therefore place a lot of importance on doing thorough background checks to ensure that all affiliated partners are fully licensed, meet the local authority standards and provide users with a safe and secure platform to play online. This includes checking the partner’s privacy policy to ensure that all financial and personal information of the user is kept confidential. Lastly, we conduct an evaluation on whether the site is protected with the most recent encryption technology. It is important that every page of the online casino is protected by SSL or TLS encryption at the very least. This allows players to safely gamble online without the worry of being exploited. If you are a fully licensed casino that complies with the standards of the South African Responsible Gambling Foundation and that has the latest encrypted technology, then you stand a good chance of getting a high rating.
Are your reviews 100% unbiased?
Yes. Although we make a small commission through our affiliate links on our platform, we uphold the standard of being a completely independent, impartial and honest source of information. None of our partners can influence the opinion we have on an online casino. So rest assured, the review you read on our site is completely unbiased, honest and accurate.
How do you find RTP info for slots?
To get more information on return to player (RTP) percentages, please view the game itself and click on the “i” icon. Alternatively, you can also view this information under rules or settings. It is important to note that RTP is shown as a percentage, with the higher percentage being better for the gambler. To learn more about volatility, please also navigate in the same way, by clicking on the “i” icon or viewing the settings or rules of the game.
How do I find an online casino’s license?
To find an online casino’s license, please navigate to the footer of the online casino’s website, in which you will find an icon of the licensing authority that governs the casino. This will provide you with all licensing information on the specific casino. Alternatively, you may find a normal link along with the casino’s license number in the footer of the website.
How do you test the casino’s customer support?
We test an online casino’s customer support by evaluating the ease of receiving support on their site. A few of the things we are out for are the contact pages on their site, how many contact methods they have and if they have 24/7 support available – this is first prize. First of all, we look at the contact pages and other ways to get in touch with the customer support team. We’re looking for 24-hour support, if possible, and as many contact methods as possible. From there, we send over some test questions by email or via live chat to test out the response time and knowledge.