So much has changed for the gambling industry in America over the last couple of years. One of the biggest and most exciting changes has been the exponential growth the industry has seen in the online gambling sector. Setting aside the recent addition of online sports books, online casinos have been and are now readily available for people who crave the opportunity to gamble from home or on the go.
Before going into how to find the top casinos sites in America, a couple of important aspects of online gambling warrant some degree of clarity. First, to say that online gambling has been illegal at any point in the last 20 years would be a bit misleading. The reality is no one was ever prosecuted for gambling with an offshore online website. What has been prohibited is the ability to fund online betting accounts via any type of wire transfer (see Wire Act of 1961 and Online Gambling Act of 2006). That would include credit/debit cards, wire services like Western Union and direct bank wire transfers.
The other aspect that needs clarification is related to the Wire Act. Based on a policy memo issued by the Department of Justice in January 2019, it looks like the DOJ is choosing to interpret the Wire Act as being applicable to all forms of online gambling. If the courts uphold that opinion, online gamblers will have to fund their online gambling accounts in person with cash. That could be applicable to poker sites, horse racing sites, online sports books, lottery sites and online casinos.
The Criteria for Identifying the Top 10 Online Casinos in America
The relationship one has with an online casino needs to be built on something more meaningful than whim or the online casino’s ability to market its bells and whistles. With that in mind, here’s some criteria you can use to help you find the top 10 online casino sites in America and subsequently help you find the one that best meets your needs. The criteria include: Reputation, Access, Games and Bonuses.
Reputation
It must be stipulated that only online websites regulated and licensed to operate in America are worthy of consideration. Even after only a short time in business, America’s online gambling industry is already under scrutiny by several viable review and watchdog websites. Pay attention to the reviews and evaluations. As long as there’s a reasonable chance there’s no reason for bias, these are great resources for quick evaluation of what each online casino has to offer and how they offer it.
Access
Assuming the DOJ’s interpretation of the Wire Act is upheld, the top online casino sites on an individual basis would be the ones that make it as easy as possible to fund an account. It’s also important to remember that an online casino licensed in New Jersey in only to be accessed by players in New Jersey. Each state is now or will be operating under the same guidelines. With that in mind, access for your personal purposes must be considered.
Games
Since New Jersey’s online gambling industry is currently leading the way among the states, it makes sense to use the online casinos operating in that state as an example. There are now more than a dozen online casinos licensed in the state of New Jersey. Each casino has its own game software platform, which is being supported by at least one of the top online game software developers in the world. As a player, your enjoyment of playing online casino games would likely be enhanced if you have access to hundreds if not thousands of games. Furthermore, you will likely enjoy having access to games from top software developers like Playtech, NetEnt and Microgaming. The online casino selection process has to include the quality and quantity of available games.
Bonuses
When all other things are equal, the bonuses an online casino is offering are the perfect tie-breakers. As a player, you deserve as much value for your gambling dollar as you can get. However, a word of caution is warranted. You can’t rely solely on the monetary value of a bonus offer when comparing them. A huge $1,000 matching deposit bonus offer might look delicious until you find out the terms and conditions make it utterly impossible to turn the bonus into real cash. The best bonuses are the ones that offer good monetary value AND player-friendly terms and conditions.