How we review

Before we deposit, we confirm the licence with the regulator's own register: a US state gaming board, the UK Gambling Commission, iGaming Ontario or the relevant provincial body. A site we cannot match to a current licence is not reviewed as a real-money option.

Each review covers the same ground, in this order:

• Sign-up and identity checks: which documents were asked for and how long approval took.
• Deposits: methods available, fees, minimums and how quickly funds arrived.
• Bonus terms: the wagering multiple, game weighting, time limits and maximum bet, read from the full terms rather than the banner.
• Games: the size of the lobby, the studios represented and whether payout percentages are published.
• Withdrawals: we request at least one payout and record the time from request to money received.
• Support: we ask a real question on live chat or email and judge the answer, not the greeting.
• Safer-gambling tools: deposit limits, time-outs, reality checks and self-exclusion, and how easy they are to find.

The score is out of 10 with one decimal. Payout speed and reliability, the fairness of bonus terms, and licensing carry the most weight; game range, the app and support follow. Sweepstakes and social casinos are judged on how their coin economy and redemption rules treat players. Rewards programs are judged on how fast tiers are earned and what the perks are worth in practice.

Scores are compared within a category. A 9.0 sweepstakes site and a 9.0 UK casino are both excellent at what they do, not interchangeable.

Terms, games and payout times change. We revisit reviews when an operator changes its terms or when readers report a different experience, and a correction note explains any material change to a published review.