How We Review Online Casinos: The Process in Detail

At Gamblenator, our goal is to help our readers pick the best casino sites for their gambling needs. We do this by providing honest and impartial reviews created by our dedicated team of casino experts. To give you insight into the way we work, we’ll give you a detailed look into how we analyse, review, and rate online casinos, as well as a breakdown of how our rating system works.

Main Reasons to Trust Gamblenator

So, why should you trust Gamblenator and what sets us apart from the other gambling websites? Well, we provide an unmatched level of knowledge and expertise and are committed to creating the very best casino reviews for our readers. There are plenty more reasons why you should always come to Gamblenator for the best casino information.

  • 📌 Our team is independent: We are not employed or owned by any external gambling company, allowing us to write reviews on any casino site we please.
  • 📌 We are professional gamblers: Our experts have decades of combined experience in the world of online gambling; we know the games inside out and what to look for when auditing the latest Australian casinos. Our reviewers are able to see through the marketing gimmicks and give you the straight facts that will help make an informed decision about which casino is right for you.
  • 📌 Our experts are unbiased: As our professionals are completely independent, we’re free to give our real and honest opinions about each casino. You won’t find any sugar-coated reviews on our site; our professionals aren’t afraid to tell it like it is.
  • 📌 We stand for responsible gambling: Player safety is incredibly important to us and we believe every player should always gamble responsibly. That’s why we will not recommend any casino that does not offer responsible gaming tools.

Our Process for Rating Online Casinos

To ensure that all of our reviews are consistent, our experts must follow a pre-approved list of criteria focusing on the aspects of online casinos that are most important to every Australian player. Below, you can find the main criteria used when evaluating casinos.

🔒 Security and Trust

Your safety and security are our top priority when creating each casino review. We only recommend casinos that are deemed safe, legal, and secure. To ensure that each recommended casino meets the highest security and player safety standards, we pay particular attention to the following features:

  • License from a legal authority: Our pros look for a licence from a respected gaming authority, such as the Curacao eGaming or the Malta Gaming Authority.
  • Valid SSL encryption of the site: We check the certificates to ensure they’re valid and up to date in order to keep your data and funds secure. Any site that does not offer the latest SSL encryption technology will not be recommended by our team of experts.
  • Independently regulated: Our reviewers also look for certifications from independent regulators such as eCOGRA. These companies test the random number generator (RNG) of casino sites to ensure they offer provably fair games that payout at the appropriate rates.
  • Responsible gambling tools: We provide additional credit to online casinos that provide these tools ensuring the safety of their gaming experience. That’s why we check each site's deposit limits, time-outs, loss limits, and self-exclusion to ensure you have everything you need to manage your gambling. We also pay attention to responsible gambling disclaimers, access to self-assessment tests, and contact details for gambling counselling organisations.

🎁 Bonuses and Promotions

Another important aspect of online casinos is promotional offers for new and existing players. Many users choose their next casino solely on the basis of the rewards. Also, Ts and Cs need to be clear and comprehensive for everyone. So, it’s important we provide up-to-date bonus information. As part of our process, we check each site for:

  • A variety of bonuses: To ensure our recommended casinos appeal to the largest number of players, sites need to offer a variety of bonuses. Whether it’s no deposit bonuses, free spin bonuses, or matched deposit bonuses, we try to make sure there’s something for everyone.
  • Fair & transparent terms and conditions: We thoroughly read the terms and conditions, checking aspects, such as wagering requirements, maximum win limits, and expiry dates are fair and transparent to get the most out of casino bonuses.
  • Availability of a VIP or loyalty program: Our gambling experts check each site to apply a VIP or loyalty program to reward consistent play. We assure casinos in our lists not only favour high rollers with a personal manager or increased withdrawal limits, but also suggest comp points for wagers to move on the reward levels.

🎲 Games and Software Developers

The range of games on offer at an online casino is arguably the next important feature; after all, if there aren’t any decent games to play, why bother signing up? We evaluate a number of features in the game library to provide our readers with the best options on the market.

  • A wide range of games: The first thing we look for is the variety. The best casinos offer a wide selection of games, including the latest online pokies, instant win scratch cards, classic table games such as online blackjack and online roulette and state-of-the-art live dealer games.
  • Games by the best software providers: We also look at the collection of providers. We check the tops in the industry, such as Pragmatic Play, Microgaming, and RTG supply to the platform and cater to a positive player experience.
  • Progressive jackpot is available: Who doesn’t love a huge jackpot? These games, such as Mega Fortune or Mega Moolah are one of the most popular amongst Aussie gamblers. Our pros always verify online gambling platforms to display progressive jackpots with huge cash prizes.
  • Free game options: If you’re new to the world of online casinos, it can be daunting to start playing unfamiliar games for real money. That’s why we look for sites with free game options that allow you to familiarise yourself with how each game works before you start risking your cash.
  • Fairness of the game: Our team checks the RNG software certifications of each casino to ensure that they’re offering fair, trustworthy games and advertised payout rates. Trusted independent third-party companies, like iTech Labs, and Gaming Laboratories International (GLI) can prove everything is down to chance.

📱 Mobile Compatibility

On-the-go gaming is becoming increasingly popular amongst Australian casino players; that’s why we test and review each casino we recommend to be mobile-compatible. We pay attention to these two features.

  • Optimised for all devices: Whether you use an Android, iPhone, or Google device, you need to know that you’ll be able to enjoy your favourite online casino games in high quality. Also, the desktop version needs to be accessed instantly. Extra points go to the websites with mobile casinos options or with a specially created app. We test apps and websites on all gadgets to ensure everything runs smoothly.
  • Intuitive user interface: Experts evaluate the website design and user interface to be easy to navigate, no matter the size of your screen. All the features need to be user-friendly, easily accessible and functioning without faults.

💳 Banking

Managing your bankroll is an important part of casino participation. Knowing that you will be able to move your money on and off the site easily will enhance your gambling experience, as you can spend less time worrying and more time enjoying yourself. The top casinos will tick all these boxes.

  • Variety of payment options: A wide choice gives you flexibility when making deposits and withdrawals. You get to choose the payment methods right for you, whether traditional Visa and Mastercard, popular e-wallets, such as Neosurf or modern banking options like PayID or Bitcoin.
  • Processing times: During each deposit and withdrawal, your casino will need to process the transaction. The faster your casino does it, the faster you will receive your money.
  • Data encryption: Making online payments requires you to disclose sensitive banking information, so it's important that your casino takes steps to keep your personal data secure. That’s why we suggest sites that offer encryption to keep your funds and your personal information safe.
  • Fast withdrawals: No one likes waiting around to receive their winnings; that’s why we vote for casinos that offer fast withdrawals.

🎧 Customer Support

In case of any questions you need to know you’ll have the support you need to get any issue resolved. Customer support is a vital part of any online casino site, so our professionals thoroughly investigate the options available to players. The fields we cover:

  • A variety of support options: Different questions and queries require different levels of urgency, which is why it’s beneficial to have a choice of support options, such as email support, phone support, and live chat support.
  • Fast response time and problem-solving: There’s nothing worse than waiting for ages or ending up speaking to someone who doesn’t know how to solve your problem! That’s why we evaluate each team based on their responsiveness and helpfulness.
  • Localised support: Getting help is much easier when you can do it in your native language. The best online casinos offer localised support, giving you access to the right people to settle your issue.

🌐 Localisation

Online gambling is a global experience, no matter what language you speak. However, trying to navigate an online casino in your second can be difficult and may lead to difficulties reaching preferred content. We also examine the availability of games and providers popular in the specific region. The top casinos offer their product in a variety of different languages and suggest country pages, banking options, and currencies, making you feel right at home on their platform.

Gamblenator Protect You From Unreliable Casinos

After completing our 7-step review process, we evaluate the information we gathered about each online casino to see if it meets our high standards. If it doesn’t match our tough security standards, it doesn’t get onto our list. By only recommending safe online casinos, we ensure that our readers always have a positive user experience.

Our Casino Rating System

Our experts assign a rating after each online casino’s test we provide, with 5 being the best and 1 being the worst. Below, we’ve explained our rating system so you know what to expect when checking out our casino reviews.

Rating 4.5 - 5

Ratings of 4.5 - 5 are reserved for only the very best casinos. These sites are as close to perfect as you can get; offering high-level security, a varied range of top games, generous bonuses, and much more.

Rating 3.5 - 4.4

A rating between 3.5 - 4.4 is given to above-average, fully licensed and regulated casino sites. They offer bonuses with fair terms and conditions as well as a good range of online games.

Rating 2 - 3.4

A rating of 2 - 3.4 is for online casinos that are fully licensed, but have a few things they could improve on; whether that’s a better library of games, terms and conditions, or a customer support team.

Rating 1 - 2

Ratings of below 2 are reserved for online casinos that aren’t licensed by an approved regulator. These sites also have other issues such as unfair bonus offers, withdrawal issues, and a lack of customer support.

FAQ

❓ How can I trust your online casino ratings?

Our casino ratings are given by our team of dedicated casino experts who have decades of experience in the casino industry. They use a pre-approved, step-by-step process to focus on the most important features for Australian players.

💰 How important are casino bonuses in your rating process?

Casino bonuses are a vital part of our review process. We thoroughly investigate the full bonus terms and selection of bonuses and promotions available to both new and existing players to ensure you get the best value for money possible.

❌ What makes a casino bad?

A bad casino is one that; doesn’t have a license from a respected gambling authority, doesn’t offer a customer support team, has unfair bonuses, and doesn’t offer high-tech security features.

🔝 How can a casino get a high rating?

A casino earns a high rating from our team by; being fully licensed and regulated, having the latest security features, suggesting an impressive game selection from the best providers, offering generous bonuses, and providing a dedicated customer support team.

❗ Are all of the criteria equally important?

No, not every criterion on our list is weighted equally when determining the overall rating of a casino. Some features, such as licensing, security, games, and bonuses are weighted higher as they’re more important to the Australian player.

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