And legit South African online casinos must prove their honesty, security, licensing and certification, reputation and safety levels before we deposit our hard-earned money there.
Your search for legitimate South African online casinos where you feel safe and secure may reveal few results. The per capita income and population of South Africa is not nearly as enticing to many online casino providers as other countries. That means there are fewer total Internet gambling opportunities, and therefore the number of reputable and trusted South African casinos is also limited as well. But the same criteria used to spot a reliable and enjoyable online casino experience in the United States, the United Kingdom or any other country is the same for finding the top casino providers operating with a high sense of integrity, while still delivering an enjoyable and secure experience, for players in South Africa.
The same respected licensing bodies, software providers and security platforms which are found at legitimate USA casinos and trusted UK casinos are also present at many of the virtual casinos we found offering 24/7 access to gamers in South Africa. Secure South African online casinos use proven and industry-leading online casino software providers like RealTime Gaming, PlayTech and Microgaming, because those companies use independent third-party testing labs to verify their Random Number Generator (RNG), as well as their entire software system.
This guarantees a fair-play experience, as does locating those safe South African online casinos which employee 128 or 256 bit SSL data encryption technology for all your personal and financial information, login info and each and every payment and withdrawal transaction you make. This is the same level of care used by leading financial institutions, and speaking of finances, reputable South African online casinos will always offer you multiple deposit methods to open and fund your account. The savvy gambler should be wary of any online casino, poker room or sportsbook that expects South Africans to use a single or nontraditional banking method.
You feel safe and secure when your preferred financing method is supported, and you get an extra layer of security on your end from the bank or financial provider you use. In the section below we detail exactly what criteria we review before we ever consider recommending a particular virtual casino. And legit South African online casinos must prove their honesty, security, licensing and certification, reputation and safety levels before we deposit our hard-earned money there. You should be just as demanding, and if you want your online casino sessions to be safe and secure, these are also the areas where you should focus most of your research.
Is it easier just to find an online casino supporting South African players, open an account and start playing? Sure it is, but as veteran online and off-line gamblers we demand more than just 'any experience' in our online wagering. If you are reading this post, you too probably value honesty, reputation and integrity as highly as we do. We have reviewed numerous websites supporting South African players, but a very limited number could actually be considered legitimate and honest South African online casinos. With a respected reputation as knowledgeable online casino consultants and players, we stake our hard-earned reputation on the legitimacy of the online casinos listed below.
Legit Gambling Online
Please note that from the list of trusted South African casinos you see below, Bet365 is the only brand that allows players from South Africa to gamble using Rands (ZAR). They are a part of the legit Playtech casinosnetwork and cater to a wide variety of nations, including South Africa. The other brands listed do accept South African players, however you will need to use either the USD or Euros to play there.
We've chosen Betonline Casino as the most reputable South African casino for a few reasons. First, they are the most trusted online gambling brand that caters to many countries including South Africa. They have exceeded industry standards with an impressive and sophisticated security profile, which proves they care a great deal about protecting their players and their investment.
They are also one of the very few online gambling sites that allows South African gambling in Rands (ZAR). Betonline offers players the full online gambling experience with a full service casino, sportsbook, poker room, bingo hall, skills games and even financials wagering. No matter what you want to play, this brand will deliver it in the most secure and responsible manner possible. They willingly submit to regular audits of their games and software solutions, ensuring that their technology and fair gaming practices are always operating optimally. We can easily recommend them as an honest and trusted option for South African players.
Most Trusted And Secure South African Online Casinos
For 2020 (Play In SA Rand)
| Casino/Rating | Bonus | SA Friendly | Visit/Review |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 100% up to | ||
| 2 | 100% up to | ||
| 3 | 100% up to |
How We Rate South African Online Casinos - Our Approval Process
We prefer a great all-around personality to just another pretty face. And that comes through in our demanding vetting of online casinos supporting South African players. Next-generation video and audio, amazing 3-D rendering and gorgeous live dealers offering a real-time casino experience are absolutely worthless if a site is not honest and secure. We also track down licensing and certification info, as well as a particular website's reputation for safety and integrity in the online gaming community before we tag it as a legitimate South African online casino.
Honesty - When defining the word gamble, Webster's dictionary uses words like 'hazard, risk, chance and uncertain'. If you are a serious gambler you understand those parts of placing a wager. Knowing that you are already dealing with an uncertain outcome, why would you play anywhere that doesn't ensure the highest level of honesty? You may think it is difficult to verify the legitimacy of self-professed honest South African casinos, but a level of honesty can be discovered through due diligence. Checking online reviews (such as the ones we will provide here), grilling casino customer support staff, reviewing bonus wagering requirements and covering security measures like data encryption technology all help to form an overall determination of a particular online casino's honesty. We have done all this with the brands we feature, which may save you quite a bit of time and effort.
Security - We mentioned data encryption above, and suffice it to say that if a site delivers 128 or 256 bit SSL encryption, your personal and financial information is as safe as possible. You can uncover the security methods a particular South African online casino offers by looking for tabs or headings like 'security' and 'fair gaming' in a casino's lobby or on their FAQ page. And remember that the presence of respected, traditional banking methods to fund an account offers its own level of security for gamers from South Africa as well. We will cover the security profile of each casino we review so that you can easily access this information prior to considering them a potential option.
Licensing and certification - This element of the equation is very straightforward, and very difficult for an online casino to misrepresent. However, it is not always easy to determine where this is revealed on a particular website. Most secure South African casinos will make it very clear that they are licensed in Malta, Myanmar or some other location known for respected online casino licensing. But sometimes locating this info means researching reviews and other information online, and due diligence here is extremely revealing. This is one of the main areas where we critique online casinos supporting players from South Africa, and we recommend you spend significant time understanding just where a particular casino is licensed before making a deposit when opening an account. Once again, this information will be covered in our reviews of legitimate online casinos accepting players from South Africa.
Reputation - Recovering from a bad reputation in the online gaming community is virtually impossible. That is why reputable South African casinos work extremely hard to please their customers, offer a fair-play environment, and ensure they are viewed with the highest levels of respect. Anyone can say they are a reputable organization or company, and unfortunately, there is no licensing body you can turn to for a list of reputable operators. However, by checking user reviews and asking questions about customer support, banking options and ease-of-use depositing and withdrawing money, as well as by consulting fellow industry consultants, we can quickly get a picture of an online casino's reputation. Bitcoin casinos are often considered since they offer the fastest paying online casinos for South-African players.
Safety - Like reputation, safety is an important area where we critique perspective Internet casinos before including them in our list of legitimate casinos for players in South Africa. And also like reputation, there is no licensing or governing body which dictates safety. This is another important area where extensive player review research can give a great overall picture. Also, honest and secure websites supporting South African players will offer safety through industry-leading data encryption, and by using respected and reliable gaming software. Safety also means speedy and efficient banking, as well as licensing and regulation from an industry respected municipality or country. In our eyes, safety is first and foremost a feature you should look for when searching for some enjoyable online casino entertainment in South Africa, and the safety level of any particular online casino operator can be discovered by identifying the above criteria.
The South African online gambler can expect a flood of new casino operators in the local market over the next few months. These casinos will bring along a host of new game providers with a long list of casino games of all types and variants. The question that every online casino player will ask is: 'Are these new casinos legit?' This handy article will aim to make it easy for new and current online casino players to see which criteria an online casino must adhere to in order for it to be classified as a legit South African online casino offering fair gameplay in the ZAR currency.
The licensing aspects of the casino
The first and most important factor that will indicate the legitimacy of an online casinos is the casino's operating license. This license must be issued by an authoritative gaming regulatory body, such as the MGA, and will indicate that the casino meets the high standards to be able to operate in the South African market. These licenses are not easy to come by and are generally expensive. Evidence of the license should be publicly and prominently displayed in the footer of the casino's home page. Players are urged to confirm this and to further scrutinise the license if there is any doubt on the legitimacy of the issuing gaming authority.
In addition to the casino's operating gambling license, similar evidence should also be present of the legality of the casino's game providers, i.e. the companies that develop and provide casino games to the casino. Similar to the online casino, the game developer and provider should also be licensed to have his games consumed in a relevant market such as South Africa. Not only does the game provider need to be licensed but its games and the underlying random number generator should also adhere to certain standards and must regularly be vetted and audited to ensure that there has been no tampering or changes to the game code.
Evaluating the games
Legit casinos that have game providers that are transparent with their games' information should display the relevant licensing and auditing information in the information page of each game. The player does not have to be signed up or even have deposited with the casino to check this information out. Most transparent casinos will allow for their games to be available for free play so that players can do exactly this without taking on any financial risk. Information of the game's return to player percentage and the volatility should be accessible to the player so that he can make informed decisions about establishing a long-term relationship with the casino.
The number of providers and the amount of games that they offer through the casino must also be evaluated. Online casinos are businesses and in the game to make a profit. If the players are happy with the entertainment that the casino offers then there is the possibility that they will become long term paying customers with that casino. The numbers of game providers shows the player that the casino is committed to providing a variety of games. It will also stand the player in good stead to visit the provider's web page to see the depth of the offering, more technical game information and the frequency of new game releases.
The casino's financial operations
Another good and important factor for the payer to evaluate is the casino's financial support, and the deposit and withdrawal processes that they offer to bona fide players. Players need to be able to seamlessly and effortlessly make ZAR-based deposits into their gaming accounts should they choose to play for real money. Aspects to look out for here is whether the casino offers payment methods that are popular in South Africa and the variety thereof. These payment methods should include the full range from credit and debit cards (e.g. Visa and MasterCard), web wallets such as Neteller or Paypal, cyber currencies such as Bitcoin and others such as EFT.
Probably more important to the player than deposits is the withdrawal process. Players should be able to effortlessly withdrawal their winnings at a casino. Like wagering requirements, withdrawals are probably the most misunderstood by players and can be a source of disputes. Players should take time to investigate the withdrawal terms and conditions and see if there are any limits or fees imposed in this process. Typically making a withdrawal back to the player's deposit payment method is the quickest way of getting his money, so if the casino offers this option, then half the battle is won. If the payment terms and conditions are unclear then players should clarify this with customer support.
Other important factors
On the topic of customer support, this is very important for the player to scrutinise as this is typically the only 'human face' of an online casino in an industry fraught by anonymity. The casino should offer various communication channels of which the Chat functionality is the safest and quickest way to raise an issue or question. The chat icon should be visible and available throughout the casino site both on desktop and mobile. Backup channels such as email and telephone support should be available. This support should be provided in a player's preferred language and customer support staff should be knowledgeable, empathic and available on a 24/7 basis.
All these support aspects can be initiated and investigated from the casino's free play games pages. However, they will be pretty useless if the casino is not safe and secure. The casino should employ the latest in online security, such as secure socket layer (SSL) encryption to ensure that this player's financial and personal data is protected from hackers. Furthermore if there is a fair-play and responsible gambling certification by an authoritative industry body then it is further evidence that the casino will be more legit that one without these credentials. Building of trust is important for the South African gambler that has traditionally been burned by illegal gambling operators.
Let's summarise legit gambling in South Africa
South African online gamblers have traditionally been a sceptical bunch due to the fact that legislation around online gambling has traditionally been vague. This caused many illegal casino operators to take advantage of the loopholes in the law to offer online gambling to the relative naive gambler. These conditions are set to change for the better and in order for the player to first establish a level of trust and comfort with these casinos, it is recommended he first plays the casino's games for free. This will allow the player to investigate a set of criteria that makes a legit casino that commits to providing fair game play in South Africa.
Legit Online Casino Canada
Of the list of criteria to investigate, the casino's licensing information is the first place to start. By checking the license of the casino and that of the providers that supply casino games to the casino, the player will get an idea of where the casino is licensed to operate and which gaming authority is regulating the casino's operations. the range of games provided also gives and idea of the casino's commitment to provide players with online entertainment. The financial processes need to be evaluated and when the player is positive that the casino will treat him like a valued customer, then he can safely sign up and deposit at the legit casino.