Are Casino Promotions Actually Worth Anything?
Many players wonder if bonuses and promotions from casinos are actually worth it, and here we'll show you how to figure it out for yourself.
No matter where you turn in the casino industry, online or land-based, you'll see different types of promotions and bonuses available. Because these deals have a wide range of terms and conditions, there is no one-size-fits-all descriptor of whether they are worth it or not. However, it's not too difficult to learn how to evaluate these options yourself, and we're going to look at traditional match bonuses as an example to show you how a minute or two of very simple math with a basic calculator can tell you the actual worth of these deals.
Goal: Figure out What a Bonus Costs You
The basic idea is straightforward: You want to see what a bonus or promotion costs you, and then you want to see if you gain more from the promotion than its cost. For a match-style deposit bonus, you'll do this by comparing how much you'd lose from playing out the wagering requirements from the actual value of the bonus. This might sound complicated, but it only takes a moment, and we'll show you exactly how to do it below.
How much you'll Lose, On Average
Suppose we have a 100 percent match bonus on a $200 deposit, and we have to wager through the bonus and deposit 20 times before we can cash out. That's 20 x $400, which comes to $8,000. We can multiply $8,000 by the house advantage (as a percentage) of any game we could play to see how much we'd lose on average and to determine if we'd have a profitable promotion on our hands.
For example, if we wanted to play European roulette, the house edge is 2.7 percent. Taking 2.7 percent of $8,000 is simple on most basic calculators, and that comes to $216. We'd lose $216, on average, to complete the play-through requirement of this bonus offer. Since we'd only be gaining $200 in bonus value, we can see that it would not be worth it in this particular case.
However, what if we were playing a video poker game and would expect to get a house advantage of 1.5 percent with strong play? If we take 1.5 percent of $8,000 on a calculator, we'll get $120 that we'll be losing on average. After the bonus of $200 comes our way, we'd have an average net win of $80. That's the equivalent of getting paid to play a game we would have been playing anyway, so it's definitely worth it.
The Basic Idea
Overall, the basic idea is pretty easy to understand. You want to know how much you're earning from a deal and how much it's going to cost you. The cost can be measured in money losses, time or anything else that's relevant. You then compare the two to determine your profit or loss in taking the promotion, and then you can use that value to decide for yourself if it's worth it as a whole.