Online Gambling Guide for Rookies

Ever since it was invented, gambling has been one of the favorite pastimes for people who enjoy the thrill of taking chances. It’s fun, it’s exciting, and if you get really lucky, it could even bring you a decent amount of money.

Of course, to win big, you first need to know the tricks of the trade. Also, there are gambling laws and various specific aspects of online casinos to get acquainted with, such as trustworthiness or promotional offers. If all that sounds overwhelming,  worry not – our online gambling guide is here to help. Whether you’re interested in poker, roulette, slots, or any other game of chance, this online casino guide for beginners has got you covered.

General Gambling Tips

For a fruitful online casino experience, understanding the rules of the games you wish to take part in is vital. Costly mistakes will pile up quickly if you don’t know the first thing about gambling, and the last thing you need is losing money over ignorance. Luckily, many casinos offer playing for free, and you’d be wise to take them up on the offer until you get the hang of everything.

Another thing to make sure of beforehand is the credibility of gambling sites you’re considering to join. You should compare online gambling sites and go with the one with the best reviews and ratings. Also, look for licensed and regulated casinos to ensure your data and money’s safety.

Finally, it’s essential never to chase your losses. It is a vicious cycle, and chances are you’ll only keep losing while falling deeper down the rabbit hole. One of the foremost rules that successful gamblers stick to is quitting while they’re ahead, and you should follow in their footsteps.

How To Recognize a Reputable Gambling Site

To ensure your online gambling safety, you should always follow these guidelines:

• Gamble on licensed sites
• Check if a casino has been blacklisted due to slow or unsafe payments
• Choose casinos that are independently audited – agencies such as eCOGRA help ensure that casinos offer fair gambling without fixing odds to the site’s advantage.
• Security must be in place – secure SSL encryption is crucial for keeping your transactions and personal information far from prying eyes. Choose only online casino gambling sites that guarantee the protection of your account.
• If you are gambling via your mobile device, check the connection type – inputting sensitive information over a public connection can lead to data theft. Knowing the online casino basics such as this one, reputable gambling sites will often require you to enter personal and banking details only over a trusted network, such as your home Wi-Fi.

Things Every Online Casino Should Have

When looking to join an online casino, you should also consider its other services:

• Game variety – Pay attention to the number and type of games offered by a gambling site. If the selection is scarce, you’ll probably get bored quickly and deregister your account. Moreover, you’ll have to go through the whole registration process again on another site.
• Banking methods – Before you attempt to make deposits & withdrawals, check whether the online casino you picked offers the payment method you’re using.  Some banking options might not be accepted in some regions or on certain gambling sites.
• Bonuses and promotions – You’ll want to pick a site with the best promotional offers, of course. However, most of them include wagering and deposit requirements, so make sure not to overlook the fine print.
• Customer service – Sometimes, you may encounter issues while gambling online, which is why 24/7 customer service is an invaluable asset to have at hand. Add a comprehensive FAQ section to the list, and you’ll quickly solve any problem that could otherwise obstruct you while you’re trying to make money gambling online.

Games – What To Expect

Some players prefer slots over card games, while others stick to bingo. We didn’t want to take a gamble on which type you might be, so we’ve touched upon all three categories below. Once you know what to look out for, it’ll be easier to decide on a game as well as to go home with full pockets.

Slots

Upon joining an online casino, you’ll notice that slots are the most numerous game type. There are usually hundreds of them, ranging from classic to five-reel slots. Among the best ones are the progressive slots, which accumulate jackpots. That means you can potentially win thousands of dollars playing these slots. Our online casino strategy guide recommends that you check the pay tables first, though.

Every slot has its unique pay table – a list of payouts. Knowing how much you stand to win for each combination can help you decide whether to take your chances, as sometimes you may not end up with as much as you deposited. On the other hand, the random number generator guarantees each of your spins has a fair chance of winning.

Another key aspect to pay attention to is the game provider. Some providers’ slots are known for delivering big payouts. Therefore, another of the online casino tips to remember is finding out the jackpot values a provider puts forth.

Many online casinos let you spin the slots’ reels for free as well. That way, if you’re not sure what slot game to go for, you can test the waters without risking a dime. And if you realize that slots are not your cup of tea, you can easily move on to another game.

Table Games

Just like the traditional brick-and-mortar casinos, their online counterparts feature a variety of table games, the most popular being blackjack and roulette. As a rookie, maybe you’re not too familiar with these games. Do not despair – an abundance of casino game guides is readily available to you on the web. Starting off with a popular casino card game such as blackjack would be a good choice. If you’re leaning more toward roulette, you can choose between the French, European, and American versions of the game. Alternatively, you can give baccarat or three-card poker a go.

Baccarat is one of the oldest casino games. Initially, only the wealthiest players used to play it. Today, people from all walks of life can enjoy baccarat. In this game, the highest hand value wins. If you consult a baccarat-focused online gambling guide, you’ll notice that the cards’ values differ from what you might expect in most card games. The ace has a value of one, while tens and face cards have a value of zero. The remaining cards’ values are the same as their number indicates. The goal is to get as close to a total of nine as possible. When the sum of your cards surpasses ten, only the units digit is taken into account.

Lottery-Style Games

At most casinos, you’ll find lottery-style games such as keno or bingo.  Being games of pure chance, playing either of these games doesn’t require any skill. All you need to do is pick your numbers and hope they’re drawn.

If you’ve carefully followed our tips for gambling online thus far, we’re confident that you’ll first make sure the casino of your choice secures fair play by employing a trusted random number generator for these games as well.

Benefits of Online Gambling

Why choose a website over the real thing? To answer this question, we’ll need a bit more space, as quite a few advantages come to mind. Below are our top reasons for opting for a virtual casino.

Saves Time and More

One of the biggest advantages of gambling online is that you don’t have to move a muscle to get there. Going to a land-based casino would also require adequate attire, which can take hours for you to find (and you must pay for it).

What about online casino benefits such as not having to look for a parking spot or an empty seat at the poker table? Not to mention you won’t have to waste time going to the casino and returning home or waiting in line just to buy some chips. Sometimes, just finding a nearby brick-and-mortar gambling venue can be difficult, as not all cities have them. In short, an online alternative to a brick-and-mortar casino will save you both time and trouble.

When it comes to beginners in particular,  there’s one more thing to mention. Since you’re only starting to learn how to play casino games, you’ll probably forget some of the rules every now and then. If that happens at a land-based casino, it’ll be more difficult to resort to the internet for help than if you’re playing from the comfort of your home.

Available Anytime, Anywhere

Speaking of locations, many online casinos give you the possibility to play no matter the place or time of day. Do you need to kill some time while riding a train home? Maybe you need some entertainment while you’re relaxing on a beach somewhere. Besides operating 24/7, top gambling sites are optimized for cross-device use, ensuring an array of ways to gamble online.

More Bonuses and Promotions

Being a relatively new thing, online casinos are constantly looking for ways to attract new customers and outbid traditional casinos. They will always offer a wide selection of attractive first-deposit bonuses, more free spins, or even no-deposit bonuses. To put it simply, you have a lot to gain by simply choosing to play at an online casino.

Greater Game Selection

Another tremendous advantage of opting for an online gambling destination is the variety of games you will find in one place. After consulting the best online casino guides on how to play the games, you can start looking for those that best suit you. Whether you decide to try out blackjack and roulette or slots and live betting, online casinos’ vast selection of games won’t leave you hanging.

Knowing the Laws in Your Area

Before taking any steps to join an online casino, finding out whether or not gambling is legal where you live is of vital importance. If you disregard this advice, you might get in trouble with the law, and all the other tips regarding gambling for beginners won’t be of much use then.

In the US, gambling is essentially a matter of state laws, meaning each state reserves the right to choose whether to allow it or not. Therefore, you should check what your current place of residence has to say about it. Note that being a resident of a state that permits gambling isn’t always enough – some allow you to gamble only when you’re also physically located within the states’ boundaries. Of course, certain general conditions apply as well, such as being of legal age or having a bank account in your name.

Keeping Records of Your Betting

Tracking your winnings and losses can be of great help when you start gambling online. Also among the online gambling tips we can offer in this regard is tracking the overall profitability alongside your betting scores. Putting these side by side and regularly updating the data will give you a clearer picture of whether you’re on the right track or not.

Welcome Bonuses – Reading the Fine Print

Welcome bonuses are a way for casinos to attract new players. Once you start learning the ropes of online gambling for real money, you should take the time to understand what these offers include, if there are specific requirements involved, and how to make the most of them. Our casino guide found that most bonuses for online gambling are reasonably easy to obtain, and they can amount to hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

As the name suggests, welcome bonuses are awarded upon joining a casino. In most cases, all you need to do is sign up, make your first deposit, and claim the bonus. Some casinos may even extend the offer to the second, third, and fourth deposits. The amount of these rewards usually depends on the amount of the deposits. Keep in mind that, typically, you also have to wager a specific amount of money before you are allowed to claim your bonus funds. After the wagering requirements are met, the money is transferred to your account. Sometimes, these funds can only be used for placing other bets, though.

Selecting Payment options

Top online gambling sites will always provide a plethora of banking options for you to choose from. The selection will usually range from debit and credit cards to bank wires and e-wallets. However, some financial institutions will not allow their credit cards to be used for online gambling transactions, so make sure to check that with your bank first.  Apart from that, you should also ensure that your banking method of choice has the most favorable transaction fees and, of course, that it’s trustworthy.

To make the most comprehensive one out of all gambling tutorials found online, we’ve assembled a list of the most popular banking methods top online casinos offer. These include:

• Mastercard
• Maestro
• Visa
• Visa Debit
• PayPal
• Skrill
• Neteller
• Prepaid cards
• Wire transfers
• Bank transfers

Many online casinos will promote special bonuses for players that use specific banking options.  Of course, safety comes first when choosing your method of payment. While credit cards may be the most convenient option, e-wallet services such as PayPal are still considered the safest.

Managing Your Bankroll

The last of the expert gambling tips we’ll give you in this article concerns bankroll management. What we mean by that is learning how to minimize the risks involved with gambling, ensuring you don’t lose all your funds and leave the casino empty-handed.

Bear in mind, this has little to do with your gambling skills. Experienced poker players employ bankroll management strategies to avoid spending more than planned. They know they cannot afford to lose more than a certain amount, and exercising prudence with their finances ensures they never do.

Another essential rule to follow is playing only with funds designated for gambling and not for, let’s say, paying your bills. Never let yourself get caught up in the excitement – it may cost you dearly.

These bankroll tips for online gambling will help you keep your account balance in check as well as your playing habits, as investing your funds prudently can help prevent getting sucked into a gambling problem.