No Deposit Bingo Sites

The deal with no deposit bingo sites

Everyone enjoys getting something for nothing and no deposit bingo rooms are the bingo equivalent of a supermarket sample table. Just enough to whet your appetite, but not quite enough to leave you satisfied.

Like supermarkets, bingo sites face intense competition from bigger and better offers at rival brands. Free bingo bonus games are a way to get players through the door without the barrier of commitment. Want to try before you buy? View our pros and cons of no deposit bingo sites below.

Our top five reasons to try before you buy

1. Test a different bingo platform or software - Bored of the same game and lobby experience? Look for a new bingo site on a different platform. You might prefer it. Not sure which software powers your current favourite site? Find it in our index and view the ‘About’ section of our review page. Some of the most popular platforms for no deposit bonuses include Mandalay Media, Ignite, Microgaming, Stride and Cozy. You’ll also find variations of free bingo offers on 8 Ball Games and Virtue Fusion websites.

2. Meet the community and chat hosts - One of the best things about online bingo is the sense of friendship and community between players in the rooms. Playing without paying gives you the chance to meet new people and get involved in conversations for free.

3. Win real money and prizes - You don’t have to spend money to play bingo and win big. Many sites which don’t require a deposit do offer real cash jackpots and special prizes for complimentary games. Just beware though, that you’ll probably have to deposit before they allow you to actually withdraw your winnings. One exception to this is MrQ, where players are given the chance to claim six complimentary tickets for the Free For All bingo room, running 30 times throughout your first 24 hours after signing up.

4. View the lobby and slot range - Usually when choosing where to play bingo you have nothing more than the site’s homepage and a few screenshots to base your decision on. With a no deposit free bingo bonus, you can quickly explore the lobby, slot game selection and playing experience for yourself.

5. Just the ticket - Enjoy the security of playing for free but retain the adrenaline rush of having just one to go with exclusive tickets to some of the UK’s most popular games. A common place to find such offers is on the Dragonfish Real Money Network.

Types of no deposit offers

Although definitions vary across the internet, here’s how we specify the different types of free-to-play promotions in our database.

• No deposit bingo: A type of free bingo offered at a usually paid-for bingo site. The offer is commonly restricted by bonus amount or time, and a deposit will eventually be required to continue playing.
• Free bingo sites & rooms: Completely unpaid access across all or selected free bingo game rooms. The site has a no paid option but may offer real money prizes to players. No deposit is required to access and play is unrestricted for site members.
• Newbie rooms: Special rooms designed to introduce new players to a particular bingo site. Access to newbie rooms is often dependent on a player making a first deposit and can be subject to a time limit.
• Mobile apps, social and flash games: Completely free-to-play, standalone bingo games that can be played on social media sites or downloaded from mobile app stores.

Beware of stealthy wagering restrictions

Like the vast majority of gambling bonuses you’ll find online, no deposit deals are usually subject to restrictive wagering requirements.

While free bingo wagering can be as low as four times, this can increase to 10x or more depending on the site you visit. And remember, you’ll more than likely still have to deposit before you can withdraw any winnings, even after completing the wagering requirements.

Sites running on the Cozy platform have a particularly long-winded wagering rule for such deals. Even if you do escape the four times bingo wagering, this can only be utilised as casino cash upon making your first deposit.

Cozy casino cash, which can be used on either bingo or slot games, is then itself capped and carries its own wagering rules. So you effectively have to successfully wager your no deposit bonus through two wagering cycles, and make a deposit, to withdraw winnings which are subsequently capped. Is it really worth the effort?

The impact of Remote Gaming Duty

If you’ve noticed a fall in the number of bingo sites offering no deposit bonuses, you’ve witnessed the beginning of a potentially huge change in how free bets are promoted online.

Up until August 2017, bingo and casino websites only had to pay tax on real money deposits and wagers by players. So if you deposited and wagered £20, the operator would have to pay tax on the £20 only, regardless of any bonus you received.

Now, if you deposit and wager £20, plus an additional £50 of bonus funds, the operator will have to pay tax on the £70 total.

As a result, the introduction of Remote Gaming Duty has caused sites to look more closely at how much they are giving away to players when they sign up. No deposit bonuses are particularly vulnerable to the axe as a site can start paying tax on a bonus before a player has even deposited.

At OnlineBingo, we expect to see fewer bingo promotions in future months and a significant decline in the amounts offered with those that remain.