One of the biggest advantages of playing at online casinos is the ability to play online casino games for free. Online casinos offer free play as a way of attracting customers to them. There is fierce competition among the casinos, especially as the Internet is becoming more accessible to a greater number of people.

Types of Free Play

There are a number of ways that online casinos offer free play. This may be in the form of no deposit bonuses that some online casinos offer to new players as they register with the casino. This means that without depositing any money into your account, the casino will give you a free money bonus with which to play at the casino. You must read the terms and conditions of this sort of bonus as there will be wagering requirements attached to it that may limit which games you play or at what stage you can withdraw your winnings.

A very common way that online casinos offer free play, is simply allowing players to choose whether to play in real money mode or free mode – sometimes referred to as fun mode. You can typically play for as long as you like in fun mode and can choose to switch over to real money mode at any point. Be aware however that once you have switched over to real money mode, you may not be able to switch back to free play so make sure that when you decide to play for real money that you feel ready to do so or that you are allowed to keep your free mode account.

Almost all of the major software providers such as Microgaming, Cryptologic, Wizard Gaming, Playtech, Real Time Gaming (RTG) and Vegas Technology allow players to choose free play. Commonly, this option also exists whether you choose to play the downloadable casino or in their instant flash version.

Benefits of Free Play

Playing in free play has many advantages for the player, especially for the novice or amateur player. Firstly, you can use the free play mode to try out the casino and the software provider. Before you are sure that you will enjoy the theme, the game selection, the graphics or the set-out of the casino, it is a good idea to play in free mode. That way, if you are not happy with the casino or the software, you can move on to another casino without having wasted any of your own money.

Another big advantage is if you are playing a game that is new to you. You may not have played games such as Craps, Caribbean Stud Poker or Pai Gow Poker before and so starting out in free mode will allow you to practice your game and strategy and improve your game play before you risk any of your own money. Of course, this is also true for the more common games such as blackjack if you are new to casino playing.

Many casinos that offer free play also offer rules, strategy tips and other articles related to specific games. It is worthwhile to read these articles before you begin to play so that you can practice the tips in free play. The more you learn the rules and tips and the more you practice, the better you will do when you play for real money.