The world of online gaming has exploded in popularity in the past few years and there are now more choices than ever!

Gone are the days where you’re forced to drive out to a dark, smokey casino. Instead, more and more players discovering casinos online that let them play in the comfort and privacy of their own homes while winning big too.

Although there are so many legitimate, regulated casinos available online to choose from, there are also plenty of scammers too. So how do you separate the good from the bad to the sizzling hot? Below, we’ll go over the signs that a casino is legitimate and trustworthy, as well as the red flags.

1.    Reasonable account registration requirements

For casinos sites that involve real money, new players usually need to go through a two-phase registration process. The first phase involves registering with the casino itself. In this stage, players are often required to provide their full name, email address, username, home address, and phone number. The second phase involves depositing money into the account for gameplay. For this, some casinos will request additional documents to verify a new player’s identity, all done through the casino’s encrypted platform.

The important thing here is that safe casinos only need this information once and it’s then saved in their system.

However, casinos that are not so trustworthy will often ask for details and verification documents multiple times. Sometimes, they’ll make new players transfer these sensitive documents in unsafe and unencrypted ways. If this is the case with any casino you’re checking out, run the other way! It’s a huge red flag.

2.    Fast Payout Speeds

Legitimate casino sites utilize major payment methods like credit and debit cards, bank transfers, and e-wallets. These casinos make it possible to safely deposit money and withdraw their winnings within a reasonable time frame, which ranges from immediate transfers up to a week.

If a casino has unreasonable payout times or waiting periods before money can be withdrawn (which can take three months or more), it’s a sign that it might not be so trustworthy.

3.    Helpful Live Customer Support

Customer support at a trustworthy casino is responsive and helpful, with representatives available live 24/7 in most cases. The representatives assist players until their issue has been resolved, help provide compensation for lost games, and give fair warning before closing or suspending an account.

Some of the less-savory online casinos out there will close accounts for no reason and use bots instead of real customer service representatives.

4.    Fair Gaming Practices

It’s a given that when you place a bet at a casino, you’re not going to win every time. To ensure that games are based on true luck and skill, trustworthy online casinos use special Random Number Generator (RNG) software that makes sure the results of games are completely random and fair. Malicious casino sites, however, do not employ RNG technology and heavily rigg their games in a way that players can almost never win.

5.    Peer-reviewed

Sites that are trustworthy tend to be known in the casino community and are reviewed by industry experts. These sites only review casinos certified by established regulatory agencies like the UK Gambling Commission or the Malta Gaming Authority, and they carefully look at every aspect of the casino. Different countries tend to have vastly different gaming regulations, so most casino review sites in New Zealand, Canada, Australia, and other English-speaking countries tend to focus on their own specific regions.

6.    Certification

Trustworthy online casinos are regulated by different third-party casino regulatory authorities such as the UK Gambling Commission, the Malta Gaming Authority, and eCOGRA. These analyze a casino site’s RNG software, game functionality, banking methods and terms, and payout percentages. Obviously, it is very easy for any site to pretend that they’re certified, so it’s recommended to verify with the regulatory body itself that the casino in question is registered with them by checking their online database or contacting the organization yourself.

Before choosing a particular casino to invest your hard-earned money at, it’s crucial to shop around and compare different sites. Definitely read the casino’s terms and conditions and if anything isn’t clear, ask customer support for clarification. The best way to do this is through casino review sites that take a deep dive into different facets of the casinos in question, whether that’s based on the welcome bonus offered, the authority its certified by, wagering requirements, or types of games offered.