Both online and brick-and-mortar casinos use free spins offers to entice players to either register, deposit, or redeposit. They have proven wildly popular with players and are one of the leading casino bonuses offered by real money online, social, and even land-based casinos.
Offers
Right Arrow
No Code Needed
What are Free Spins?
Free spins come in lots of shapes and sizes but always refer to online slots. You may see no deposit free spins bonuses, welcome free spins with a deposit, free spins awarded for promos or fulfilling certain tasks, and even if you redeposit.
Generally, these will be free spins offered at some designated coin in amount and only on specific machines. However, some casinos allow you more choices than others.
You will receive the awarded wins from the bonus spins into your account, but they may have strings tied to them in the form of required play-through or other requirements, so make sure you read the terms and conditions carefully.
Is There a Difference Between Free Spins and Bonus Spins?
In theory, a free spin would be a spin on the slot machine that doesn’t cost you anything, and a bonus spin would be one awarded as part of the game for hitting some bonus future, but in practice, these terms are used pretty much interchangeably.
Where to Get Free Spin Bonuses
We’ve rounded up the best free spins casino bonuses out there and dug into the terms and conditions so you won’t have to. As you will see, not all free spins offers and bonuses are created equally, so choose the one that best fits your situation.
Also, remember that a casino bonus is essentially a free spins bonus if you use that bonus to play eligible slot games with the casino’s money and not yours. So feel free to use deposit bonuses as free spins bonuses.
BetMGM Casino
BetMGM‘s online casino offers free spins bonuses with signup in select states on top of their already generous signup deposit bonus match. That offer seems to rotate, so currently, you can get 50 free spins in West Virginia, but it will probably come back around to places like New Jersey and Michigan in the coming months.
The 50 free spins bonus can only be used on Bellagio Fountains of Fortune, but they don’t have additional wagering requirements, though you will need to use the free spins bonuses within seven days.
Updated on 8/29/24
BetMGM Casino
Get $75 on The House when You Deposit $10!
Bonus Code
FanDuel Casino
FanDuel was once a well-known daily fantasy sports operator. Still, they have aggressively moved into the real money online casino space and have casinos in Michigan, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
All new customers in MI, PA, and NJ receive the 200 free spins bonus offer at signup. Other casino bonuses include rebates of up to $1,000 of your losses on casino games in the first 24 hours.
Updated on 8/29/24
FanDuel Casino
Deposit $10, Get $20 In Site Credit & Play It Again up to $1000!
Bonus Code
No Code Needed
New casino users only, 21+. Must be physically present in MI, NJ, PA and WV. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER. Full T&C apply.
Borgata Casino
Borgata Casino is owned by BetMGM but has its own widely successful online casino site. Their casino bonuses are some of the best in the business. They currently have a 200 free spins bonus on their Starburst slot game just for registering, downloading their mobile casino app, and depositing $10.
Unfortunately, they have a 25x play-through requirement, but still, that is a lot of free spins for a very low deposit, free spins bonus offer.
They are currently available for real money play in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
Updated on 8/29/24
Borgata Casino
Get up to a $1,000 Deposit Match + $20 in Bet Credits!
Bonus Code
Claim $1020
888 Casino
888 Casino is an international online casino powerhouse offering the best online slots and casino games and is only available in New Jersey. They often include 88 free spins as part of their sign up offer, but it isn’t currently available for US players. We expect their free spins offers will return sooner than later.
They do offer free spins bonuses for various promotions and give aways. The play-through amount seems to vary by promotion.
Updated on 8/29/24
Get a $500 Deposit Match PLUS a $20 Bonus!
Bonus Code
No Code Needed
Terms Apply
Resorts Casino
Resorts Online Casino is another New Jersey only site offering a massive 500 free spins bonus code. It comes with only a 1x play-through and can be used on all but a couple dozen slot machines. It requires a $50 deposit and is one of the largest free spin bonus offers out there.
Updated on 8/29/24
Resorts Casino
Get a 100% Deposit Match up to $500 in Bonus Play!
Bonus Code
No Code Needed
More Related Guides for You
Best US Social Casinos with Free Spins
Not in a regulated state? No problem. Social casinos give gamblers another option to get free spins offers. You can also play slots and other casino games for free with sweeps coins that can be traded in for cash prizes or other casino bonuses.
WOW Vegas
WOW Vegas is a social casino that uses sweepstakes coins instead of real money. These coins are awarded when you buy gold coins to play in their social slot games. You can also wager these sweepstakes coins, which can be cashed out for real money.
These social casinos are available in all but Idaho, Michigan, Nevada, and Washington, giving them much broader availability than the six states currently offering real money slot machines.
WOW Vegas Casino offers 35 sweepsstakes coins for free as a welcome bonus. While lacking a free spins bonus for signup, they regularly offer free spins and bonus spins as part of their ongoing daily promotions and challenges. These do not have wagering requirements.
While they don’t offer the six or seven hundred online slots you might find at BetMGM or Caesar’s online, they do provide a wide variety of fun-to-play free slots, including some exclusive to WOW.
Updated on 8/29/24
WOW Vegas Social Casino
Get 1.75 million WOW Coins + 35 FREE Sweepstake Coins!
Bonus Code
No Code Needed
Learn More
No Purchase Necessary. Void Where Prohibited by Law. Must be 18+. T&Cs Apply.
High 5 Casino
High 5 Casino is another sweeps/social casino that offers lots of free spins bonuses for ongoing redeposits, daily challenges, and giveaways. These free spins offers are used as a vital way of keeping players engaged and interested.
They offer over 1200 different games, slot games, and live dealer games. They have lots of cash prizes, gift cards, and cash out offers for your sweeps coins. Their daily free spins usually come via email or through daily challenges. There are no additional play-through requirements. All games at highest RTP in Sweepstakes coins.
Updated on 8/29/24
High 5 Casino
FREE 5 Sweeps Coins, 250 Game Coins and 600 Diamonds!
Bonus Code
No Code Needed
Learn More
No Purchase Necessary. Void Where Prohibited by Law. Must be 18+. T&Cs Apply.
How to Get Free Spins From Online Casinos
Before you begin, you will need to understand the exact nature of the free spins bonus offer. Some will deposit or limit the online slots you can play. Some will have play-through requirements. Read the terms and conditions before you claim free spins, and perhaps even screenshot them before you go any further.
Research and Find Your Online Casino
The free spins bonuses that work best for you may not be the best for everyone. You may be short on funds and are only looking for a no-deposit bonus, including more free spins, in order to build up your bankroll.
Or maybe you don’t like the free spins bonus offers that require 25x play through but just want an online casino that offers simple 1x play through. You may be only interested in social casinos because you don’t live in or travel to a state with legal online casinos.
Research casinos that fit what you are looking for.
Sign Up For A New Account
Regardless of what type of free spins bonuses are being offered, you will need to set up an account with most online casinos before you can get your welcome bonus. This may require more identification and time with a real money online casino than a social casino, but they can’t credit you with free spins until you have an account.
Follow the Directions for Receiving Free Spins
The terms of the free spins bonus offer will lay out the next steps. Perhaps the free spins are only for a particular machine, or you must deposit a certain amount of money before the deposit free spins bonus is awarded. If you have questions, reread the T&Cs or contact customer support.
Claim the Free Spins Bonus
When it is time to claim your free spins bonuses, they will generally be available automatically. You should seldom have to reach out to claim the offer unless you haven’t yet met the offer terms or didn’t use the right bonus code.
The free spins casinos usually offer a deposit bonus that may take a little time to process before they show up in your account, as the online casino verifies your deposit.
Different Varieties of Free Spins Bonuses
Different casinos have different types of free spins bonuses. Knowing what type you are playing with and how they work is important.
Welcome Deposit Bonus Free Spins
Probably the most common of the free spins bonus offers, the deposit bonus free spins require you to not only open an account and register but also to make some token deposit, often from $10 to $100 in cash into your account.
This shows the online casino you are serious about wanting to wager and will be a profitable customer in the future.
No Deposit Bonus
Other online casinos believe that they can use the free spins bonuses to entice you to sign up and register and that once you have an account, they can get you to play slot games and other casino games with them. Not as common as the deposit-free spins offer, these online casinos prioritize building their database out for future play over immediate profit.
Slot Specific Bonuses
Many slots offered by these casinos have widely varying Return to Player. This is the amount that the player can expect back over many, many spins. It can be as low as 90% and as high as 99%. For instance, the Bellagio Fountains of Fortune are the only machines on which you can use your Borgata free spins. It has an RTP of 95.79%.
By forcing you to redeem your free spins on slot machines with lower RTP, casinos can ensure they hand out less in deposit bonus money than they might if they let online casino players use their spins on higher RTP slots.
Rewards Programs
Many free spins bonuses are used by casino VIP rewards programs to incentivize play. Sometimes, they will award free spins on a specific slot to get you to try it out; other times, they might offer some number of free spins if you wager so much in a given time period or even allow you to use your comp rewards to buy some number of free spins on limited games.
Most times, when you register with an online casino, they will automatically enroll you in their rewards program, but make sure that you double-check as BETGM Rewards or Caesars Rewards can be used not only online but at dozens of land-based properties across the country.
Using Free Spins on High RTP Slots
As discussed above, when the casino gives you a choice of which machines you can play, a little research can help you determine which of those slot offerings offers the highest RTP, or in other words, is most likely to pay you back the most. You can generally google the slot’s name followed by “RTP” if the casino doesn’t list the RTP right there by the slot.
Because we only get a small number of free spins, it might be best to consider medium or low volatility machines as well. Low volatility means it pays back less on jackpots but pays much more often. We would rather have some casino bonus money from our spins than not get anything at all.
Terms and Requirements for Free Spins Bonuses
Terms and conditions of free spin offers are crucial if we are going to attempt to use these free spin bonuses as they were intended. Here are a few of the things we need to determine.
Wagering Requirements
The free spins casinos use for deposit bonuses may or may not have a wagering requirement, but it will be clearly spelt out in the terms and conditions. Some might have zero. More common is a 1x play-through; some have 25x or more that the deposit bonus must be wagered before we can withdraw it.
Maximum Winnings
Different casinos handle this differently as well. Some will only allow you to play machines where the max jackpot is already lower than comparable real money slots. Others that allow you free spins on machines of your choosing may limit the jackpot to $1,000 or $5,000; others will let you spin to win a million or more. Again, this will be clearly defined in the T&Cs.
Gaming Limits
You may only be allowed to play your free spins on specific slot machines; you may only be allowed to play your casino promo winnings from those spins on specific slots, or maybe just slots in general with no other casino games permitted. Once you’ve used your free spins, casino T&Cs will dictate the games you can wager your winnings on.
Time Restrictions
Your deposit bonus free spins will definitely have a time limit on them. In fact, it may be as short as 24 hours or up to a week, but if they aren’t used, the deposit bonus will expire and disappear. Also, if play-through is required of wins from your free spins, casino rules will spell out how long you have to meet this play-through or risk losing those winnings as well.
Finding Trustworthy Online Casinos for Free Spins
If you want to claim free spins bonuses from reputable online operators, you should start with the ten we discussed above. You should always only seek out free spins from registered and licensed best online casinos in the in the United States. Offshore casinos don’t offer the same protection you get at home.
When dealing with social/sweeps casinos, look for those with state licensing listed on their sites or great reviews on Google. Never send money until you have checked and rechecked the Terms and Conditions as well as that company’s online profile.
Responsible Gambling at Online Casinos
Even the most well-intentioned of us can get in over our heads. If you or someone you know might have a gambling problem or just would like some answers about what problem gambling looks like, please reach out to 1-800-Gambler or the SAMHSA website for help or guidance. Or check out our responsible gambling page for more resources.
Free Spins Conclusions
Free spins are one of the best bonus offers out there. You get the excitement of slots without spending your own money. Many casinos award a reasonable number of free spins for a small deposit, and others will give you free spins just for signing up.
But remember, always read the terms and conditions of these deposit bonuses and no deposit bonuses before getting started so you know what you will need to do.
Casino Free Spins FAQs
Here, we have some answers to frequently asked questions about free spins at casinos, including where to find the best offers, how they work, and what you can win.
Where can I get free spins?
Many top online casinos, whether real money or just social casinos, offer free spins both for registration and as ongoing marketing tools. Look over our list above for a general sense of where to begin.
Can I win real money with free spins?
Absolutely. However, be aware that some of the online casinos will require you to play through the winnings in order to convert the bonus funds to cash.
How do free spins work?
Every casino will work a little differently for how free spins work. But you can expect to be given a set number of free spins on certain slot games or perhaps a specific brand of slots. You will then collect the money won or extra free spin awarded until your round is complete.
In some casinos, your winnings may be treated as a bonus and require additional play through. In others, it may be in sweeps coins that can be wagered like cash, and in some, it is just money awarded to your account that can be withdrawn.
Why do online casinos offer free spins?
Free spins can work both as a marketing tool to get you to register and can be used to introduce a new game to a wider player base.
Do free spins have limits on winnings?
Generally yes. They may be hidden deep in the terms and conditions, but there will be limits when you win money. Some newer or less experienced operators may not realize they need these and may not include them.
Are free spins worth it?
By their very definition, free spins are worth it because, hey, they are free. Just remember not all free spins are created equal, and don’t sign up for something you usually wouldn’t have with free spins being the deciding factor, as often they aren’t as valuable as you might at first believe.
Kevin has been in land-based casino management for more than 30 years, currently at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Biloxi. He oversees table games and slot departments, sportsbooks, and even poker rooms. He currently writes about all things casino-related, but especially blackjack, card counting, and game protection.