2026 UK bonus rules: wagering capped at 10x
From 19 January 2026, no casino licensed by the Gambling Commission can set wagering above ten times. Here's what that changed, what it didn't, and how to use it when you compare offers.
The rule in one paragraph
The Gambling Commission changed its licence conditions so that any bonus or free spins offer can require at most 10x wagering before the money becomes withdrawable. It applies to every operator licensed for Great Britain, for casino, betting and bingo alike. The same change banned mixed-product promotions, the kind where you had to bet on sport to get casino spins, for example. Both took effect on 19 January 2026 and came out of the government's gambling reform programme that followed the 2023 white paper.
Why the number matters so much
Before the cap, 35x was ordinary and 50x wasn't rare. Wagering isn't just a hurdle; every bet you place has a built-in house edge, so the more you have to bet, the more of the bonus you're expected to lose along the way. A rough illustration with a slot paying back 96% on average:
| £20 bonus | Bets required | Average cost of that play (4%) | What's likely left |
|---|---|---|---|
| At 35x (old, common) | £700 | £28 | Typically nothing: expected cost is more than the bonus |
| At 10x (now the maximum) | £200 | £8 | Around £12 on average, with wide swings either way |
These are averages over a very large number of spins. Your session could come out far better or worse, and short-term results on slots swing a lot. The point is the direction: under the old rules, many bonuses were designed so that on average you'd lose them before finishing. At 10x, that's much less true.
What the cap didn't change
Plenty of small print still shapes an offer, and none of it is limited by the 10x rule:
- Cash-out caps. Vegas Mobile and The Online Casino still cap conversions at £50 from the bonus and £20 from spins.
- Time limits. Seven days for spin winnings at the ProgressPlay brands, 30 days elsewhere on our list.
- What the 10x multiplies. Bonus plus spin winnings, spin winnings only, or each part separately.
- Max-bet rules, like the 10%-or-£5 rule at the Skill On Net brands.
- Game contribution, where some games count for less than 100%, or not at all.
- Eligible deposits, such as the Skrill and Neteller exclusions.
- First-deposit-only restrictions.
Online slots also have stake limits of their own since 2025: £5 a spin for adults aged 25 and over, and £2 for 18 to 24-year-olds. That's a separate rule from the bonus max bet, and whichever is lower applies.
Same 10x, different sums
All five offers we list are at 10x, so the headline multiplier tells you nothing when comparing them. What it's applied to tells you a lot. For a £20 deposit with an assumed £8 of spin winnings:
| Casino | Applied to | Target |
|---|---|---|
| Vegas Mobile Casino | Bonus ×10, spin winnings ×10 | £80 |
| PlayKasino | Spin winnings ×10 | £80 |
| Luna Casino | (Bonus + spin winnings) ×10 | £280 |
| The Online Casino | Bonus ×10, spin winnings ×10 | £200 + £80 |
| Swift Casino | (Bonus + spin winnings) ×10 | £280 |
How we use it when comparing
Since the cap, we stopped treating the multiplier as a score in itself. Instead we look at the target in pounds for a typical deposit, the deadline, and what you can actually take out at the end. That's why a spins-only offer with a small target can outrank a bigger-looking cash match on our table. The full method is on how we compare.
One last thing. A lower target makes a bonus fairer, not free. The money you deposit is still at risk, and the safest bonus is the one you'd have been fine not claiming.