Best Slot Sites 2021

The perception of glitz and glamour that accompanies visions of casino gambling is more a product of Hollywood than your typical UK high street. Casino Royale would have been far less popular had James Bond been hunched over a betting machine playing virtual poker in his local Ladbrokes instead of a hotel in Monte Carlo. The reality of offline gambling leaves the door wide open for the internet to claim an increasingly large chunk of the market. Online slots are particularly well placed to make the most of the opportunity for the following reasons: The convenience of online slot sites As with anything on the internet, convenience is a huge factor in players opting to play slots online. You’re not constrained to daily opening times, you don’t need venture out in the rain and you’ll never have to wait for a seat at your favourite machine. Every brand in our list above is also completely mobile-friendly, providing a fully optimised experience whether you’re laying in bed or sitting on a train. Privacy It’s understandable that many people like to keep how they spend their time and money private. Slot websites are bound by privacy laws to keep your data safe, allowing you to play without the person on the stool next to you looking over your shoulder. We strongly encourage anybody who struggles to manage their gambling habits to reach out for support and take appropriate steps to restrict their spending. See our responsible gambling guides for more information and the contact details of various addiction charities. Game selection and availability Even the biggest casinos or the most advanced FOBTs (fixed odds betting terminals) have a limited range of slot games. If you’re looking for the biggest and best selection of titles, we highly recommend choosing one of the best slot sites to play them. Top sites like Videoslots boast almost 3,500 online games from over 100 different providers. You’d be hard pressed to find more in Vegas! Prizes and jackpots Just like the fruit machine in your nearest pub, the payout of online slot games is determined by RTP (return to player) ratios, with the most profitable bonus rounds reserved for only the luckiest players. However, because of the highly competitive nature of the internet and the huge range of titles to play, you’ll often find more jackpots online than you will elsewhere. Most slot games run on networks hosted by a number of different slot sites, meaning that bets from thousands of players contribute to jackpots, even if they’re not playing at the same place you are. How much can I win playing online slots? The biggest single jackpots can be found in the world of progressive slots. Progressive jackpots increase by accumulating a percentage of each losing stake to the total. The world record for the largest jackpot ever won on an online slot machine is €17,879,645 (£13,209,300) back in October 2015. Lucky UK player, Jon Heywood, won the prize playing Mega Moolah at Betway. In contrast, the biggest offline slot jackpot was won back in March 2013 at the Excalibur Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, totalling a massive $38,710,826 on the Megabucks game. How we choose the best sites for slots We’ve reviewed over 300 of the best UK slot sites, rating everything from the range of games to the fairness of welcome bonuses. Our team of experienced reviewers thoroughly test every brand in our database to provide the most accurate and up-to-date information at all times. What’s the difference between slot sites and casinos? We admit, there’s not a lot to separate a slot site from a casino; but we do believe that there is a distinction to be made. A lot of this comes down to the size and variety of the games available. Here’s how we define each: Slot site: Large range of slot games with a limited casino offer, such as Wild Spins. May include a small selection of live games and tables. Casino: Includes a large number of video and live dealer casino games such as poker, roulette, blackjack, baccarat and others. Features a range of slot machines as part of the wider site. Bingo site: Despite their differences, slot and casino sites do have one thing in common: a total lack of bingo. For us, a bingo site with slot games is still a bingo site. Do bingo sites offer slots? The variety of slots available on bingo sites will usually be smaller than on a dedicated slots site, although some platforms including Dragonfish and Jumpman do tend to retain a full selection of games regardless of site type. What the best sites have in common When players first look at slot sites, there’s a tendency to just sign up to the first they see, especially if they click through to a site on a whim after spotting an advert. After playing on one or two sites, players start to develop a stronger idea of what they like and what makes a site on of the best slot sites. All the top online slot sites have certain qualities in common that prove popular with users. Welcome bonuses are naturally a big factor, as they tend to sway a player’s initial choice to join up. Though a welcome bonus only reflects your first few days of use on a site, it is important. A good site will offer a generous bonus with reasonable terms. If the requirements look a bit too high, chances are that future promotions will also ask a lot. Consider slot providers too Top slot sites also tend to have a mixture of slot providers. This is not always the case- some sites get a huge catalogue of slots from one source- but for longevity, a mixture tends to be best. Look for sites with at least three providers, including a big name like Microgaming, Playtech or NetEnt. This will ensure that the slots have variety in gameplay, artistic styles and jackpots. The best sites also have the best support. While you should technically never need it, it’s great to have easy access to a helpful team if anything goes wrong, or you just have questions. Trying to sort out identity checks or technical issues with only email correspondence is very frustrating. A good support team and FAQ means that your long-term enjoyment is more secure. Subjects like this and more are covered in our reviews as ‘categories’. Look at the filter on the left of our listings if you want to see sites listed by a specific strength, such as the best support or the best VIP rewards. New or established slot sites? Sometimes, players are a little torn between joining the newest online slot website out, or going with a more established, recognised name. There are pros and cons to both. The older sites are perceived as more trustworthy, after years of trading and being under the microscope. Newer slot sites tend to have the edge in terms of technology, but not always. The question of trust is tricky and it’s only natural for older brands to instil more trust than a brand-new site with no track record. If this is a concern, the main thing to do when looking at a new site is check their credentials, either on the site footer or in the ‘about’ area. You should only ever play at sites with a license. The best slot sites in the UK will also have the mark of eCOGRA or other independent reviewers, or a mark from a company that tests games for fairness, like iTech Labs. New sites tend to have the edge with welcome bonuses and no-deposit slot bonuses, as they need to make big offers to compete with established brands. A nice £10 bonus without any cash from you is sure to make you more likely to visit a new site. This competition works in your favour, as new sites need to offer larger amounts with lower wagering requirements. Always check the full terms first, of course. The flip side is that the older, bigger sites may offer more things to do day-to-day. Games galore The game selection on any given slot site depends on the slot providers they work with. These are software development companies that specialise in producing slot games and other digital games. Occasionally, a site will also develop in-house games too. Gamesys sites like Jackpotjoy are known for making their own games, with some exceptional, high quality results. The benefit of this is that when you join a Gamesys site, you have access to exclusive games that you can’t find on other sites. This naturally gives a player a solid reason to choose them over another brand. Gamesys sites typically have bingo too and chat games for all players. NetEnt is one of the top slot providers out there, producing some of the most recognisable slots of recent years. This company makes Starburst, which has become the first game that many new players see. Their Motorhead game is known for using actual music from the band. This company also produces several table games and even live dealer games, blending real casino gaming with online play. Microgaming was established in 1994 and is one of the founders of online casino play as we know it. There are hundreds of Microgaming titles, with more being released constantly. Beautiful Bones is a luscious Mexican-themed slot, while a Microgaming classic is Thunderstruck II, one of the most popular Viking-themed games. Playtech is a huge name and they tend to be a site’s sole provider, but this is not always the case. This company produces a lot of big jackpot games. As well as original titles like Age of Gods, Playtech makes licensed DC comics games such as Superman II and Man of Steel.