Some are offered exclusively to new registrants while others can be claimed repeatedly by existing customers. Some allow you to bet on any type of casino game you deem fit, others can be used exclusively on slots. We outline the differences between the separate types of wager-free bonuses below.
Welcome Bonuses
All acclaimed casinos offer attractive welcome bonuses in an attempt to incentivize new players to sign up, play the games, and possibly continue wagering real money on the websites. When stripped of wagering requirements, these welcome bonuses are quite valuable to players.
Players are required to register at the casino, make a first deposit, and opt in for the welcome bonus on offer. Entering a valid promo code is sometimes necessary. The deposit is then matched with a specific percentage in free credits, usually 100%, although some operators would offer you 150% or 200% welcome bonuses.
Some casinos would extend this generosity to players’ subsequent payments, granting them bonuses on their second, third, fourth, and even fifth deposits. Sometimes, the welcome bonus may be a combination of free spins and a deposit match. Of course, there is a minimum deposit amount (usually between $10 and $20) to comply with when opting for a deposit-related welcome offer.
To protect themselves against bonus hunting on behalf of unscrupulous players, casinos without bonus wagering implement fair-play policies, which prevent customers from using low-risk betting patterns like hedge betting, making zero-risk wagers, and low-margin betting.
Some new players register and deposit solely for the purpose of welcome bonus redemption without intending to wager the real money loaded into the accounts. Such actions are also not tolerated at casinos that are free of wagering requirements. And it goes without saying that each new customer is entitled to a single welcome bonus only.
No-Deposit Bonuses
No-deposit bonuses free of wagering requirements are the best offers you can possibly come across at an online casino. However, they are still a rarity, with only a select few operators offering them to players. Such bonuses are available to new customers immediately after registration and, as the name suggests, there is no need to load real money into your account to become eligible.
They are usually granted in the form of free spins or free credits, which players can use to try out the newest or the hottest games on the casinos’ portfolios. There are no strings attached to such offers where wagering is concerned but sooner or later, you will have to deposit into your casino account to release your winnings.
This way, you can get a good feel of what the casino is all about in advance and potentially earn yourself some real cash. Of course, to hinder bonus hunters from abusing these generous offers, the online casinos would sometimes restrict the maximum amount you can cash out in winnings. If you have earned $135 but the cap is $100, the remainder of $35 will be removed from your balance after you cash out. This is hardly an amount to drool over but hey, it is still free money.
Reload Bonuses
Reload bonuses work roughly in the same manner as welcome bonuses, the only difference being they are granted to existing customers of the casino upon their subsequent deposits. Sometimes these bonuses are offered exclusively via email to the most loyal players at a given casino.
Some gambling websites would offer one reload bonus per month while others would do it more frequently. There are even smaller payment-method bonuses of 
around 10% to 20% for players depositing vie specific banking solutions.