No doubt you’ve taken a look at a few online casinos and realized that very little sets them apart other than the general look and some specific games. If you have a definite need for a certain detail, it makes your choice easier, but for most of us the thing that really narrows down the choices are the bonuses.

The biggest, best, and usually first bonus is the Welcome Bonus. This is what every casino uses to attract new customers (feel free to correct me if I’m wrong — I’ve seen hundreds of online casinos and not one yet without a Welcome Bonus!).

Matching or Deposit Bonuses are the most common. When you make your first deposit at the casino, they’ll match a certain percentage of your deposit amount and add the free bonus to your account. So when you see Cherry Red Casino‘s 100% up to $777 Bonus, every dollar that you put in your account (up to $777) at Cherry Red Casino becomes two dollars to play with!

Less common but more popular is the “no deposit bonus“, where casinos just give you some free money right away to try out their games. They’re smaller amounts (usually in the $5 to $20 range), but they’re totally free, no strings attached. Try out the relatively huge $24 No Deposit bonus at one of our new favorites, Box 24 Casino.

Sometimes you get a Welcome Bonus that doesn’t fit either category — we like those best of all, because they’re so rare. The latest bonus twist comes from casinos like Blackjack Ballroom (the home of the $5.5 Million Mega Moolah winner) and Golden Tiger Casino, who have a ‘spending spree’ bonus that gives you a lot of free money (as in $500 to $1500!) and one hour to play anything you like…before you even deposit a penny! And (just like no deposit bonuses), anything that you win during that hour, you get to keep!

You shouldn’t ONLY look at the bonus, of course — make sure that the casino has a good reputation with satisfied customers. And, of course, that the casino offers the games that you’ll want to play!