Like Euro and British players, Canada is sitting pretty when it comes to options for where to play. They can play at the casinos with the most blackjack games, the largest bonuses and casinos that actually have live dealer games and mobile blackjack apps. That’s sounds pretty good, right?! Well, if you’re ready to get started just choose from our list of casinos below. Based on our research they’re the best casinos for Canadian blackjack players.
Canadian Blackjack for Real Money FAQ
We receive a lot of questions regarding online gambling, blackjack and whether or not Canadians can participate. Furthermore, we receive numerous questions on how to get started, where to play and how to choose a site. So instead of answer these questions individually, we thought it’d be more useful to post them here along with our answers. That way everyone benefits.
Can Canadians play online blackjack legally?
According to my research it is legal for Canadians to play blackjack online. And so long as you’re playing blackjack for fun, you don’t even have to pay taxes on your winnings.
That sure explains why so many American poker players fled to Canada post-Black Friday.
Can you play in Canadian dollars (CAD)?
Absolutely. There are a number of casinos that let you deposit and play in Canadian dollars. Examples include:
- Bet365
- Spinpalace
- Roxy Palace
There are others. Just use our toplist above as reference. Definitely try to find a casino that lets you play in CAD. If you have to play in USD, Euro or Pounds, you will have to give up more in Canadian dollars than you stand to gain in the other currencies (as of 6/5/2013).
How do I make deposits / cashouts?
Very simple. Once you have an account you’ll head to the cashier. You’ll choose from a number of options including Skrill, Neteller, credit card, UKash, PaySafeCard, EntroPay and others, enter your details, the amount you want to deposit and hit submit. Most payment options will clear within minutes, if not seconds, which means you can start playing right away.
The benefit to being Canadian is that many deposit options double as withdrawal options. You can use most (if not all) of the same options to withdraw your funds. You can also use bank wires/transfers or request a check.
Do I have to play blackjack for real money?
Not at all. Almost every online casino I’ve been to allows you to play their games for free. In fact, there are Flash casinos that will let you play for free without even creating an account first. Then, once you’re ready, you can switch to real money games.
What the heck are bonus terms and why should I care?
Bonus terms are the casinos’ rules for their bonuses. These rules tell you what you have to do to complete the bonuses and other promotions in their entirety, and more importantly, if and when you can withdraw your winnings. This is usually expressed in terms of a number of times you need to wager your bonus or deposit plus bonus. For example, a 25x rollover on a $100 bonus would mean that you need to wager $2,500 to complete the offer.
In general, you should care to know the bonus terms because you might receive free blackjack money that you turn around and hit a big jackpot with. However, if you go against the terms and withdraw early, you can forfeit your bonus and winnings. That would suck!
In the case of blackjack, it’s important to be aware of the bonus terms because most casinos reduce the value of blackjack when played for a promotion. I think they do that because the house edge is so thin. The casino wants to make sure that they don’t lose money on the deal.
What you’ll find is that if you choose to play blackjack for the bonus, you’ll have to wager 10-50x as much as you would a game like slots. You’ll want to look for this number, either in their terms or our reviews, to make sure it’s even a promotion worth chasing.
How old do I have to be to play online?
For most casinos it’s 18. However, in rare cases it might be 21. You’ll also want to pay attention to the legal age for gaming in your own area to make sure you’re all-around compliant.
How do I know a site is safe?
I don’t think there is a way to know 100% that an online casino is safe to play at. There are clues, however, that will lead you down the right path more often than not. Just ask yourself the following questions:
- Does the casino pay their players?
- Does the company have shareholders?
- Is the casino licensed, regulated and/or tested regularly for fairness?
- Do your friends/peers like the casino?
- Does the casino have positive reviews in forums and on websites?
- Has the casino been around for, say, more than 5 years?
- Does the casino pay out it’s promotions like advertised, assuming the player followed the rules?
- Are withdrawals paid within a reasonable timeframe, say, within a couple of weeks (depending on the method, of course).
Although each question varies in terms of severity, if you answered no to any of these questions you’ll want to tread with caution. Answer no to more than one, or all, and you probably should avoid the casino altogether. And warn your friends!
You can also read our reviews. That’ll be the fastest way to determine if a site is safe or not.
What makes up the best blackjack casino?
This depends on a lot of things, some of which are more or less based on personal preference. But here’s what I want in a blackjack casino, just to give you an idea:
- More than 5 blackjack games to play.
- A bonus with reasonable terms that I can clear by playing blackjack.
- Mobile blackjack apps.
- $5-$10 deposit minimums.
- $1 table minimums (except for live dealer games).
- Live dealer games.
- More than 2 deposit and withdrawal options.
- A casino that is safe, licensed and supportive.
Basic stuff, really. You’d be surprised at how many casinos screw this up. It only makes the better casinos stand out more, though, making it easier for us blackjack players to find them.
