Best Online Casinos UK (2021)

Welcome to this guide detailing the best online casinos available to use in the United Kingdom.

In this guide, we’ll take a brief look at the big picture of online casinos in the UK, what they are, what they offer, how they work, and how they are governed.

Then, we’ll go into the nitty-gritty of how the best online casinos in the UK stack up against each other. We’ll compare things like the games on offer, the fun factor, reward programs, and how easy it is to deposit and withdraw money.

We’ll also run through some FAQs to give you guidance on how best to use online casinos and because we’re super-kind people, we’ll give you some exclusive sign up bonus codes to get you off to a flying start!

By the end of this guide, you’ll be fully clued up as to which UK online casinos are rocking it the most at the moment. You’ll also know exactly how to go have some fun at the virtual tables and hopefully win some money - fingers crossed!

What Are Online Casinos?

If you’ve ever been inside a real-life casino (or you’ve watched pretty much any James Bond film), you’ll know what a casino looks like and the kind of games you can expect to see there.

Online casinos are not all that different. You get the same range of primary games in most offline and online casinos - blackjack, roulette, and slots. In some brick and mortar casinos and online ones too, you get extra games such as Punto Banco, 3-card poker, Craps, etc.

All the games offered in an online casino are games of chance, which means that the outcome of any given wager is completely random. The payouts vary from game to game as the probabilities (odds) are different for each.

To play at an online casino you first need to deposit some real money which can be used to wager at the tables. Most online casinos have a minimum deposit of £5 or £10 and many will match (double) your initial deposit after you have wagered a certain amount of money.

You can withdraw your money at any time from online casinos. Depending on the withdrawal method, you may get your withdrawal instantly or wait for up to 5 working days to receive it.

The guide to UK online casinos that follow has been made by comparing various features and factors.

Range of Games

Let’s face it, the main reason people gamble is for fun, excitement, and the chance to possibly win some money. That’s why we compare the range of games on offer at each online casino and how fun they are to play.

We also take into account any unique features offered by the online casino, loyalty schemes, or innovative technology, for example.

At the end of the day, we wouldn’t want to play at a casino that’s boring or dull, so we don’t expect you to either!

Safety, Security & Licences

One of the most important things to consider is safety and security when playing on online casino sites. Fortunately, here in the UK, there are tough licensing laws in place that make it easy to find gambling sites that are regulated properly.

We recommend that you only play at online casinos that are fully licensed by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC).

The UKGC license means that the casino is fully legitimate, handles customer funds responsibly, has fair games, and promotes responsible gambling. All of these factors are important to ensure that you have a good time and you’re also protected by a good level of security.

Any online casino that wants to operate legally in the UK and take payments from UK players, needs to apply for and obtain a UKGC license. The UKGC logo will be displayed on the website of online casinos that hold this license.

The casinos on our list of top online UK casinos are all UKGC licensed.

Fair Play

In this guide, we compare casinos to make sure that they are providing fair play to their customers.

The principle of fair play covers:

• the randomness of the casino games
• player’s deposits and funds are protected
• fairness of bonus release systems
• compliance with regulations, laws, and licensing rules.

All UK licensed casinos must use effective random number generators (RNGs) and offer an acceptable Return to Player (RTP) rate, as set out by the UKGC. They must be tested and approved by independent third-party testing companies, such as eCOGRA, to qualify for a UKGC license

The UK government sets out guidance for gambling bonuses and promotions which should be followed by the online casino.

Payout Percentages

The Return to Player (RTP) rate or payout percentage is a percentage value of the money that will be returned to players for each wager that they make. For instance, let’s say the RTP is 97%, which means you would get back £0.97 for every £1.00 that is wagered.

However, this doesn’t mean you’re always guaranteed to get that amount back each time you play. The RTP is calculated over a large sample of events, often in excess of 1 million plays. For example, you may bet £1.00 on each spin of a slot machine, but lose £100 with no return, or win £200. But if you had enough money to play 1 million spins, you would get back approximately £970,000 if the RTP is 97%.

The RTP is a good measure of the fairness of online casino games and you should always look for the games and casinos that offer the highest overall RTP percentage. In this guide, we take RTP into consideration when comparing online casinos to find the best one.

Welcome Bonuses

Most online casinos that are licensed to operate in the UK offer some kind of welcome bonus.

For instance, one casino may offer to 100% match your initial deposit, up to a certain amount, which means that if you deposit £100 you’ll get an extra £100 after you’ve placed a certain amount of bets. Some offer 200%, which means you’ll get an extra £200 if you deposit £100.

Other casinos offer things like free bets or free spins, up to a certain value. This means that if you win from these free bets or spins, you get to keep the winnings, and if you lose, you don’t lose a penny.

The type of bonus depends on the site and some are more generous than others. We compare the generosity of the welcome bonus, as well as how easy it is to clear the wagering criteria (how much money needs to be bet to release the bonus).

Banking Options (Deposits & Withdrawals)

We take into account the variety of banking options that online casinos offer for both deposits and withdrawals, as well as any fees, length of time taken, and limits on amounts.

In general, the more options an online casino provides and the speedier they process transactions, the higher we rate them in this category.

In the UK, in April 2020, the government banned the use of credit cards to fund online gambling accounts, to protect customers from irresponsible gambling.

Acceptable deposit and withdrawal methods in the UK may include - Visa debit, Bank Transfer, Trustly, PayPal, Paysafecard,  Skrill, Neteller, etc.

E-wallets such as Skrill or Neteller and open banking providers such as Trustly often offer the fastest deposits and withdrawals - usually instant deposits and withdrawals within 24 hours.

Customer Support

We only recommend UK online casinos that offer excellent customer support and service. 

Excellent customer support means:

• Providing multiple contact methods, including live chat, phone, social media, and email.
• Available 24/7.
• Dealing with requests and queries quickly, politely, and smoothly.

Mobile casino

We realise that most people want to be able to play casino games on a mobile device such as a tablet or smartphone. That’s why we include mobile-friendliness in our ranking of UK online casinos.

Some sites offer a mobile casino app that can be installed on Android or Apple iOS devices - the most convenient option. Others provide mobile responsive browser access to online casino games.

There are plenty of online casinos in the UK, but we have picked out the best that offer great sign up bonuses, state of the art graphics, and fantastic live casino games.

These online casinos are reviewed, trusted and played by millions of customers throughout the world. Take advantage of our exclusive sign up bonuses for the best start to your online casino experience.

888 Casino - #1 Best UK Casino Site

888 Casino tops our list of UK online casinos for three main reasons.

• Wide variety of exciting casino games, especially slots, with good payout percentages. 
• Excellent deposit and withdrawal system, with a variety of options, great bonus offers, and speedy processing. 
• Great-looking site and interface which is easy-to-use and has a really bright fun factor to it.

Range of Games

One of the main attractions at 888 Casino is the huge range of slots games, with over 50 unique games available to play at any time! Many of the slots are branded to favourite movies, TV shows, and music bands such as South Park, Nightmare on Elm Street, and KISS. This ramps up the fun factor, as do the large progressive jackpots, giving you the chance of a big payout if you’re lucky.

A cool feature of 888 Casino is the live dealer games, which uses live-streaming technology to allow you to get real-life casino action from the comfort of your own home. You can interact with the dealer and other players to make it even more life-like.

Banking - Deposits and Withdrawals

888 Casino offers over 15 easy ways to deposit and 6 methods to withdraw your funds. All transactions are processed quickly, usually instantly for deposits and within 24 hours for withdrawals, although this does depend on the withdrawal method used.

Bonuses

At the time of writing, 88 Casino offers an incredible “no-deposit” bonus of £88. This means you get £88 worth of free wagers for just signing up, without having to deposit any real money. On top of that, when you deposit up to £100, you get a 100% match bonus too. They also offer player points which can be redeemed for cash as you play.

Casumo - #2 Best UK Casino Site

Casumo is one of our favourite online casinos for the following three reasons:

• Huge range of casino games (more than 1500!)
• Good user interface
• No fees for deposits or withdrawals

1500+ Casino Games

With so many casino games on offer, there’s something for everybody and you’ll never get bored!

Choose from 100’s of table games such as blackjack and roulette, slots, video poker, and liver-dealer video games. All the games have top quality graphics and audio, so you’ll enjoy your online casino experience even more.

Easy-to-use and Navigate

Casumo has an excellent user interface. Even with 1500+ games on offer, it’s easy to explore and find what you want to play with a useful browse and search feature. The mobile-friendly platform means you can play the games you want, wherever you want.

Zero-fee Deposits & Withdrawals

Casumo does not charge any fees on deposits and withdrawals, which puts them ahead of a lot of the competition in this respect. On sign up, they offer a 100% match bonus up to £25, plus 20 free bonus spins on selected slots.

Mansion Casino - #3 Best UK Casino Site

Mansion Casino online is affiliated with Les Ambassadeurs Club, which is one of the premier real-world casinos in Mayfair. Mansion features in our top ten online UK casinos for the following reasons:

• Very generous bonuses and rewards
• Excellent customer support
• Wide variety of fun games and good jackpots

Excellent Bonuses

There’s no doubt that Mansion Casino offers some of the best bonuses available online, with a 100% match bonus for first deposits up to the value of £200. They also run regular promotions, such as the weekly Wednesday deposit bonus which allows players to double their winnings on the roulette or blackjack tables. There is also a refer a friend bonus of £50 for up to 20 referrals (a potential £1000 in extra bonus money!).

Top-Quality Customer Support

Mansion Casino offers consistently good customer support and service, regularly receiving industry awards such as “Best Customer Service Company 2020” and “Online Casino Operator of the Year 2018”. They are also well-known for applying extra diligence when it comes to safety and security.

Fun Games & Big Jackpots

Mansion offers almost 300 different casino games, with plenty of slots and progressive jackpot games. At the time of writing, there were jackpots of more than £30 million available to be won on the site.

Betway Casino - #4 Best UK Casino Site

Betway Casino is on the Microgaming platform, which is one of the longest-serving and most well-established real money online casinos out there. Here are three reasons why we have ranked Betway Casino in our top ten:

• Great for sports betting
• Highly responsive 24/7 customer support
• Excellent mobile version.

Plenty of Betting Action

Betway’s sportsbook is one of the best ones available in a UK online casino. There are more than 30 different sports you can wager on, with live in-action betting available. The casino is also very good with more than 400 high-quality games available.

Unparalleled Customer Support

Betway are industry leaders in terms of customer support, with multiple ways to contact support agents, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The response time is very low too, with live chat available through their website.

Play Anywhere

Another great thing about Betway Casino is the mobile responsiveness of the site. All of the casino games play perfectly on a tablet or smartphone.

NetBet Casino - #5 Best UK Casino Site

Netbet Casino is also on the Microgaming network, which means the interface is exceptionally high quality. Other reasons to play there include:

• Wide range of exciting games
• Excellent bonuses and promotions
• Zero fees on deposits and withdrawals.

Diverse Mix of Fun Games

Netbet has hundreds of casino games available through both desktop and mobile internet browsers, including roulette, blackjack, video poker, slots, sports betting, plus live-action table gambling through a video feed.

Generous Offers & Bonuses

As well as the typical deposit match bonuses and loyalty reward program, Netbet also offers some great tournaments and competitions, giving you an extra incentive to play and win.

No Transaction Fees

Netbet Casino does not charge any fees for any of its deposit or withdrawal methods. All transactions are processed quickly and efficiently too.

LeoVegas - #6 Best UK Casino Site

LeoVegas Casino is a well-established online casino licensed to operate in the UK. The main reasons we chose LeoVegas for our top ten are:

• Good coverage of sports betting
• Wide variety of fun casino games
• Excellent welcome bonus.

Tons of Sports To Bet On

Leovegas has one of the best sportsbooks available online with dozens of live-action sports, as well as esports to wager on, offering competitive odds.

Fun Casino Games

LeoVegas is host to dozens of casino games including traditional table games like roulette and blackjack, slots, and bingo, with plenty of progressive jackpots on offer too.

100% Match Bonus and Free Spins

LeoVegas offer a generous first deposit bonus of 100% up to £100, plus you get 20 free spins to use on selected slots. You can definitely get off to a flying start with that kind of bonus!

21.co.uk - #7 Best UK Casino Site

21 is a relatively new online casino that was launched in 2015, but it has quickly become a major player for the following reasons:

• More than 1000 casino games on offer
• Good 121% welcome match bonus
• Super easy-to-use software.

Wide Array of Casino Games

If you’re looking for plenty of choices, 21.co.uk is a safe bet! They also have some innovative and fun game variants, such as Double Ball Roulette to make things more interesting.

Super-generous Welcome Offer

21 will match your first deposit, plus an extra 21%, up to the value of £300. In other words, if you deposit the full £300 and clear the bonus requirements, you get an extra £363 in your account! This is one of the best welcome bonuses available online in the UK at the moment.

User-friendly & Fun

21 has grown so quickly as it is focused on providing a great, exciting experience for its customers. The platform is very easy to navigate and there’s something there for everyone, no matter what you like to bet on.

bet365 Casino - #8 Best UK Casino Site

Bet365 has been around for a long time in the UK gambling market which tells you that it is a trustworthy and popular place to gamble and one of the top online casinos in the UK. Here are some more reasons to play there:

• Wide selection of fun games
• Huge progressive jackpots
• Excellent customer support

Tons of Fun Games To Play

Bet365 has hundreds of high-quality casino games, including all the usual favourites such as roulette, blackjack, slots, video poker, and live-action games. There are also some fun variants such as Quantum Roulette which includes prize multipliers.

Millions of Pounds In Jackpot Prizes

You can potentially win a lot of money on the progressive jackpot slots at Bet365 online casino. There are dozens of jackpot slots available, so take your pick and fingers crossed!

Second-to-none Customer Service

Bet365 has established itself as a first-class place to gamble online with 24/7 customer support, multiple contact methods, and super-fast deposits and withdrawals. They also offer a 100% match bonus on your first deposit, up to the value of £100.

Paddy Power Casino - #9 Best UK Casino Site

Paddy Power Casino is another well-established gambling provider in the UK that is well trusted amongst the gambling community.

• Lots of casino games are available
• Generous 200 free spins welcome bonus
• Mobile apps for Android and Apple iOS.

Wide Variety of Fun Games

Paddy Power has hundreds of casino games available to suit all tastes, plus they offer free bets each week to regular players.

200 Free Spins Welcome Bonus

Paddy Power gives you 200 free spins on selected slots, with no wagering requirements. In other words, any money you win on those free spins is yours to keep and withdraw whenever you like.

High-quality Mobile Apps

You can choose to play the casino games in your mobile browser or download the convenient mobile app.

Betfair Casino - #10 Best UK Casino Site

Betfair is one of the biggest names in the online gambling industry, launched over 20 years ago. They are well trusted and provide a safe and secure place to play online casino games.

• Wide range of casino games
• Fun tournaments with good prizes
• Excellent customer support

Over 400 Casino Games On Offer

Betfair has hundreds of high-quality, reliable casino games available, directly in your browser or through the mobile app. You also get 50 free spins as a welcome bonus.

Exciting Tournaments

If you enjoy the chance to compete against other players in slot tournaments to win free spins, Betfair is the place to be with tournaments starting every 20 minutes, 24 hours a day.

Top-notch Customer Support

As you’d expect from a company with more than two decades worth of experience, Betfair offers multiple support channels with super-fast response times.

Best Online UK Casino For Slots

Slots are a fun way to try and win some money in online casinos. The basic aim of the game is to get matching symbols when the slots reels stop spinning to win cash prizes, trigger a feature game, or even get a slice of a big progressive jackpot.

Betfair is one of the best casinos in the UK for online slots, with 100’s of different slots games available with a big variety of themes. The best thing about Betfair Casino’s slots is the regular tournaments which run every 20 minutes and give you the chance to win free spins.

Betfair Casino’s slots payout percentages range between 92% and 97%, which is a good range for an online casino. The lower percentage ones tend to be the jackpot slots as they take a percentage from the stake of each spin and add it to the progressive jackpot.

Best Online UK Casino For Roulette

Roulette is the most common table game in any casino - offline or online. It’s fun to play, easy to learn, and there’s a chance to win big if you pick the right number. You bet on the outcome of a metal ball spinning around a numbered and coloured wheel. You can bet on red or black, groups of numbers, or individual numbers.

Dream Vegas is a great site for roulette as they have great software, but they also have a fantastic three-stage welcome bonus offer with 200% match promotions, which can add up to more than £1000 if you clear all the wagering requirements. 

As well as standard roulette, Dream Vegas also offers Lightning Roulette which has prize multipliers of up to 500x, so you can win really big if you’re lucky!

Best Online UK Casino For Blackjack

Blackjack, similar to the British card game called Pontoon, involves a dealer dealing out two cards to each player face up, plus one card down and one up to himself/herself. The aim is to beat the dealer and double your stake, by getting as close to a total of 21 as you can.

On your turn, you can opt to hit (get dealt another card face up) or stand if you think you can beat the dealer with your current total. If your total exceeds 21, your hand is bust and you are out of the game. The dealer must keep hitting until their total exceeds 17.

Netbet Casino is the best place to play blackjack online as they have a payout percentage of 99.91% for blackjack, one of the highest of any UK sites, plus they have good promotions and bonuses.

Best Online UK Casino For Bingo

Bingo is a wildly popular game that is played in bingo clubs, casinos, or online. Organising bingo games is also a popular way for charities to raise money.

To play, you are given a bingo card with numbers on it. A bingo caller draws numbered balls from a bag or spinning machine, calls the number out and if it matches a number on your card, you tick it off. Online casinos use a random number generator. The first person to get a line of numbers horizontally or vertically wins a prize, and a bigger prize goes to the person who first ticks off all the numbers on their card.

888 Casino is widely regarded as the best place for bingo. They have a dedicated 888 ladies bingo site that is focused on providing the best promotions for bingo players online. They also have a good range of ticket/card prices and have some of the best bingo jackpot prizes available to be won online. 

Best Online UK Casino For Live Casino Games

Live-action online casino games are traditional casino table games such as roulette and blackjack that use a live video feed to a real croupier or dealer.

Live-action casino games add to the fun of online casino gambling, as there is more interaction and a realistic feeling. Also, people may trust live dealers more than software random number generators.

Mansion Casino offers the best live-action casino table games, with dozens of live games available at any time of the day, plus they have high stakes games running for any high rollers out there. 

Best Online UK Casino For Baccarat

Baccarat is a casino gambling card game that involves the player betting against the dealer, also known as the banker. The object of the game is to score 8 or 9 total across two cards and beat the banker, with cards valued ten or above valued at 0 and aces valued at 1.

Mansion Casino offers both low stakes and high stakes baccarat on their site. Baccarat is not offered widely online, but Mansion provides a safe and secure place to get involved in the action.

Best Online UK Casino For Video Poker

Video poker is an automated card game that involves being dealt 5 cards and trying to make the best hand by selecting 0 to 5 cards to re-draw. In other words, if you have 4 cards of the same suit, you can select to redraw the fifth card to try and make a flush and win a bigger prize.

888 Casino offers some fun and exciting video poker games if that’s what you’re looking for. The payout percentage is high for video poker on 888 Casino, standing at 97.79%. With a no-deposit welcome bonus of £88, you can’t go too far wrong with 888.

Best New Online UK Casino 

There are new online casinos popping up all the time in the UK. Several new online casinos are licensed to operate in the UK each year. Some don’t last long, but others go on to thrive, especially those that offer the best bonuses and most fun experience.

The Sun Play Casino is the best new casino, launched in 2021. We chose Sun Play Casinos as it has a really good selection of games and a 100% match welcome bonus of up to £400. You’re sure to enjoy playing there and with the big newspaper brand “The Sun” behind it, it’s likely to be a success.

Best Online UK Mobile App Casino

Mobile apps for online casinos are becoming increasingly popular. The convenience of being able to pull out your smartphone wherever you may be and play a few hands of a casino game is powerful.

888 Casino comes up trumps with its mobile app. The mobile app software is second to none, reliable, and is well-designed. Simply download it onto your Android or Apple device and off you go.

Online gambling in the UK is covered by the Gambling Act 2005 which was enacted to make sure that UK gambling is fair, safe, and free of criminal involvement.

All online gambling operators, including UK online casinos, need to be licensed by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC). The UKGC only issues licenses to online casinos who can prove that their games are fair and that customer funds are secure.

To prove the fairness of their games, UK online casinos need to be tested by third party testing agencies such as eCOGRA.

eCOGRA stands for eCommerce Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance and they run checks to make sure that online casinos offer games that are truly random and have a fair payout percentage.

All of the online casinos that we recommend are fully licensed by the UKGC and undergo strict testing by agencies such as eCOGRA.