At Casinos.us, we take gambling reviews seriously, offering our readers exceptionally detailed and highly credible information. To ensure we recommend you only the highest-quality sites, we've established a comprehensive set of criteria that all operators must meet. Keep reading to discover how we rate casinos for American players.
If you've read any of our guides, you might have noticed that all operators are assigned a score between one and five. Naturally, this number is not randomly appointed, but rather a result from careful evaluation. Our rating system is built with the user in mind, so we want you to know how we go about it.
If you don't have the time to go through the whole guide, here's what you need to remember. The final score is an average of the ratings the operator received in different categories. From game diversity to bonuses, everything plays a role. Here's an overview of the online casino rating system and what the scores signify:
The most fundamental step of rating and picking an online casino has to do with its legal status. However, in America, checking if the gambling site is licensed is a process that might confuse new players. That's because online gambling laws differ by state, and each state has its own gaming authority that grants licenses. Additionally, US gambling legislations are sometimes updated.
Therefore, the first thing you need to do is familiarize yourself with the local regulations and the board responsible for online casino licensing. A few of the most notable ones include the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement, the Michigan Gaming Control Board, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, and the West Virginia Lottery Commission.
Once we've established which platforms are licensed in which states, we continue the rating process with a security check. Safe casino sites have strong SSL encryptions, independent audit certificates, responsible gambling partnerships, and various trusted payment methods.
The surest way to ensure the gambling site you're considering is legit is to find its license number and check its validity with the appropriate local authority. Simply seeing the gaming board's logo in the casino site's footer should be enough for the average player, but our team of experts likes to be thorough.
Having an independent audit certificate indicates that the operator offers fair games, player protection, and a responsible gambling environment. Our team looks for independent audit certificates by renowned companies like eCOGRA, iTech Labs, and GLI. Most casinos like to showcase those, so you shouldn't have trouble finding them either.
Another building block of a solid security system is advanced SSL encryption. We dive deep by checking the company that issued the certificate, its validity, and the encryption strength. Currently, the industry standard is 128-bit, which is more than enough to secure important personal and financial information. However, casinos with 256-bit encryption earn a bonus point in our book.
Finding you the highest quality and variety of games is one of our top priorities. When ranking operators, we try to consider the needs of all types of players. Therefore, we investigate the diversity and quality of experience of all game categories.
Whether it’s slots, blackjack, or another game, we know that part of a quality gambling experience for you is having access to a variety of different gaming experiences. That is why gambling sites that offer a wide variety of games and categories usually receive higher ratings. A diversified portfolio is key, and so is quality.
If you’re looking for extra features and chances to get lucky, just know that we’re looking too. Our experts evaluate casino games for modern graphics, wide betting limits, the availability of jackpots, and free play or demo versions.
Providing you an immersive gambling experience is a hidden player: software. We check for fast loading graphics, fair random number generators, and user-friendly interfaces. Developers like NetEnt, Play'n GO, and Evolution have mastered these areas. Casinos that feature them automatically get a boost.
You have a budget, and we want to help you maximize it. Evaluating bonuses is all about fairness, availability, and amount. For this reason, we consider bonuses and their terms as some of the main criteria in our expert casino rating system.
There are several types of sign-up bonuses, such as first deposit match and free spins. Some operators offer a combination of both, which is an advantage we consider in our ratings. A good offer is only as good as its terms and conditions, which we will break down for you in more detail in one of the next sections.
Some of the best online casino bonuses are the ones you can get only if you have an exclusive code. Since they are distributed through affiliates or privately, they tend to be more generous. After all, not every new player will be able to get their hands on them, which means the casino can afford to offer a higher deposit match.
To secure you the best possible bonuses, we only give high ratings to casinos that have fair terms and conditions. We consider wagering requirements (aka playthrough requirements) to be fair if they are up to 35x or maximum 50x the bonus amount. An offer should be valid for at least a week but preferably more, so that you have enough time to reach payout requirements. We also rate bonuses that require a lower minimum deposit higher. These are the 3 main factors we evaluate when reading the T&Cs, but players should also check to see if their favorite games are excluded from the offer or only count as a percentage towards the wagering requirement
Promotions shouldn’t stop at the welcome bonus, if you are loyal to a casino you should get perks too. We know existing players can't claim a sign-up offer, so we pay special attention to see if you will get regular promotions. The more daily free spins, weekly boosts, and monthly giveaways the operator has, the better its score.
Games and bonuses are important, but none of it matters if you can't top-up your account using a preferred payment method. When examining the cashier section, we pay attention to the payment platforms' trustworthiness, the deposits and withdrawals limits, and the processing speed. If all these meet industry standards, the casino has earned a good rating in this category.
Behind a simple deposit lies a number of important factors. We examine a plethora of deposit-related aspects, such as security, limits, speed, and bonus eligibility. Our research is complex, as we consider not only what is offered by the casino but also what's possible according to state law.
You should be able to payout your wins without many limitations. We take a look at withdrawal speed and since there aren't many fast payout online casinos in the US, when an operator offers instant cash outs we consider it a unique benefit.
When it comes to payments, speed is crucial, but so is security. Therefore, before we give our final rating in this category, we examine what measures the casino takes to ensure the safety of your funds. Gambling sites are required to complete an ID verification to prevent any underage gambling and money laundering. However, some do it better and faster than others.
If you prefer mobile to desktop play, you’re not alone, many players today like to play on the go. That’s why if an online casino wants to be recommended by us, they must offer a web or native app that is compatible with the most popular mobile operating systems.
Any reputable online casino should offer a web app that allows players to access their favorite games through their phone's browser. That's one of our basic requirements. Meanwhile, an intuitive mobile website and an extensive collection of games adapted for the small screen can earn the operator additional points.
A downloadable casino app can support a more immersive mobile gaming experience. If an online casino wants to stand out and reach the top of our ranking, it must offer a native app. In addition, we appreciate when there is an option for both Android and iOS users, but you can read more about that below.
All the best casino apps for American players are available for Android and iOS. However, from there on, they can be judged based on how well they perform and what additional features they offer. For example, we grant higher ratings to operators that have designed their apps with biometrics login and a two-factor payment authorization.
No one thinks about the quality of customer service until they have a problem. We examine customer service quality so that you can count on the operators we recommend before you ever have an issue. The quality is determined by the variety of contact channels, the response times, and the overall attitude of the casino representatives. You can read more information about each aspect in the following sections.
The most popular contact channels nowadays are live chat and social media. Naturally, offering these channels is excellent, but we also appreciate casinos that have a toll-free phone number and email support. We want to make sure you can contact your chosen casino in whatever way is most comfortable for you.
Another aspect that separates mediocre operators from the ones that deserve the spotlight is at what times customer support is available and how fast they react. Obviously, casinos that offer 24/7 service have an advantage. If they also manage to respond and solve the issue within minutes, we have a winner.
Localization is an aspect we consider when reviewing casino brands licensed in multiple states. Operators must comply with local regulations, so having identical sites is not entirely possible. We appreciate it when there is consistency in the customer support experience.
The final aspect of how we rate casinos has to do with responsible gambling. We check whether the operator collaborates with support organizations like the National Council on Problem Gambling and Gamblers Anonymous. We also grant a higher score to gambling sites that offer self-limiting tools.
We only recommend online casinos that have passed the needed checks – the rest are removed from our platform.
As previously mentioned, casino security and licensing are at the core of our evaluation process. Therefore, you know that all sites we recommend are 100% legitimate and safe. However, if you wonder what could make us blacklist an operator, here are a few examples:
If you've come across online casinos that have any of these red flags, feel free to use our contact form to put in a signal.
The information we share does not end when we publish our content. If we want to help you choose the best casinos in this constantly changing industry, we must keep our ratings relevant. This is why our team of experts constantly work on refining and updating our guides and reviews.
Our content is written by experts who always test the platforms that they are writing about. We frequently have the information double-checked by a secondary expert to ensure that it is trustworthy and accurate.
Finally, keep in mind that we check and update our pages frequently. If the recommended operators change their welcome bonuses, payment terms, or something else of importance, we will let you know. You can always count on us for the most up to date ratings.