Cashback vs Deposit Casino Bonus – Which is Best?

Bonuses have become synonymous with crypto casinos ever since these virtual coins graced the world of online gambling. 

You can get free spins or a free bet immediately when you create an account or maybe even free crypto for simply signing in. The most generous rewards, however, come when you make your first deposit, generally in the form of a % match bonus for a specified maximum amount. 

For most, this bonus is too good to ignore, but is it really worth it?

I’m saying this because there is another type of bonus that, for some reason, always takes the backseat. And, this bonus, in my opinion, needs more showtime, because it is often way more lucrative and realistic to play through than the conventional welcome bonus. 

Let me introduce the Cashback Bonus.

What is a Cashback Bonus?

Exactly what it says. 

• You deposit €200
• The casino offers a 10% cashback
• You lose €50
• You are now eligible for €5 in cashback

The cashback offer is usually over a period of time, most likely a week, and is credited directly to the player’s account. And, although it is sometimes subject to wagering requirements, the playthrough requirements are generally far less than that of the deposit bonus. 

Or, you might be lucky enough to bump into a cashback bonus with no wagering requirements at all, like the up to 45% cashback bonus offered by Fortune Jack Casino. 

Now, there are different types of cashback bonuses:

Daily Cashback Bonus – This is when the casino gives back a percentage of your previous day’s losses depending on your deposit amount. Katsubet Casino, for example, has an ongoing cashback bonus that gives you back either 5%, 7%, or 10% of your losses the following day, and to get the maximum 10% is not that difficult to reach because you only need to make a deposit of 0.052 BTC to qualify. 

KatsuBet has a 10% Daily Cashback Bonus

VIP Cashback Bonus – VIP Clubs allow you to climb the VIP ladder by earning points by making deposits and the higher your status level is, the higher your rewards. These rewards often include cashback bonuses, that get higher, the higher your status like at 7Bit Casino, for example. There you get between 5% (VIP level 4) and 20% (VIP level 10), every Monday on your previous week’s losses.

7Bit’s Monday VIP Cashback Bonus

Cashback Deposit Bonus – This is when you make a deposit to receive a specified percentage of your losses back. Usually, the more you deposit, the higher your return and you’ll also often see this at Sportsbooks, like NitroBetting which offers you a 10% RaceBook bonus when you make your first deposit of at least 0.001 BTC – with no wagering requirements.

NitroBetting’s Cashback Bonus has NO WAGERING REQUIREMENTS

Cashback Bonus Highlights

You get something back after a bad run – Cashback is generally between 5% – 20% and if you get this percentage of your losses back, it’s money in your pocket that you would not have had. 

You can receive cashback bonuses more often – Cashback bonuses are offered as a welcome bonus, an ongoing bonus, a special promotion, or as part of a VIP program which means that you’ll get to take advantage of this bonus more often. 

The playthrough requirements are far less – Which is most probably the biggest perk! Again I need to mention Fortune Jack because there you can get up to 45% cashback every week and it has NO WAGERING REQUIREMENTS. But this bonus is quite exceptional because KatsuBet has wagering requirements of x15, and 7Bit has wagering requirements of x3 on their respective cashback bonuses. It is however still far better than the average wagering requirements of a standard deposit bonus, which is generally between x30 – x50. 

Now, let’s compare it to a Match Bonus.

What is a Match Bonus?

This is when the casino offers to match a percentage of your deposit up to a maximum amount. 

Here’s an example:

• The casino is offering a 100% match bonus of up to 1BTC
• You deposit 0.001 BTC
• The casino gives you 100% of your deposit amount – 0.001 BTC
• You have 0.002 BTC in your wallet

Peachy deal right? Sadly, it’s not that simple

Although like Cashback Bonuses, you’ll get Match Bonuses in endless shapes and sizes, like Reload Bonuses, VIP Bonuses, or Welcome Packages, but unlike the cashback bonus, you first need to earn your deposit bonus for it to become available for you to use. 

How is this done? More or less like this: 

• The casino offers a 100% Match Bonus of up to €200
• You deposit €100 (which means you’re eligible for €100 bonus money)
• But the wagering requirements are x40 the bonus
• €40 x €100 = €4000 must be wagered to unlock your bonus

There are also other factors that you should consider, like max bets that are often capped at a certain amount which makes it difficult to unlock your bonus faster. Casinos might also restrict certain games or lower the contribution percentage of specific games if the games offer a high payback. 

Here’s an example of the contribution percentages of games:

• Slots – 100%
• Sportsbook – 10%
• Live Casino – 5%
• Dice – 5%
• Provably Fair Games – 5%

Key Takeaways

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not implying that a Match Bonus is completely bad news but we all have choices and when you compare the Match Bonus to a Cashback Bonus, I’m sure you’ll agree that, although a Cashback Bonus has fewer thrills and electrifying elements, it’s far more realistic and lucrative.