Wagering requirement calculator

How wagering requirements work

A casino bonus is rarely free money. It comes attached to a wagering requirement — a multiplier on the bonus amount that you must wager (turn over) before any bonus-derived winnings can be withdrawn. A $100 bonus with 35× wagering requires $3,500 in total wagers. That's not loss — it's turnover. You can lose $3,500 in cycles of bet → win → bet, never going to zero, and still satisfy the requirement.

But cycling $3,500 through any negative-EV game costs you in expected value. At 96% RTP, that's $140 in expected loss. Compared to the original $100 bonus, you're underwater by $40 in expectation — even if you "clear" the bonus.

The EV math

For a wagering requirement to be EV-positive, the bonus must exceed the expected loss to clear it:

EV(bonus) = bonus_amount − (wagering_total × house_edge)

For our $100 / 35× / 96% RTP example:

EV = 100 − (3500 × 0.04) = 100 − 140 = −$40

Meaning that, in expectation, accepting this bonus costs you $40. The casino sells you a $100 bonus knowing the math runs against you. They are correct: most players who accept these offers lose more in clearing turnover than they gain in bonus value.

When bonuses do pay

The break-even RTP for any wagering requirement is calculated from the inverse:

break_even_RTP = 1 − (bonus_amount / total_wagering)

For 35× wagering: 1 − (100 / 3500) = 97.14%. Only games at 97.14% RTP or higher are EV-positive for clearing this bonus.

That's a high bar. On Stake.com, that means Stake Originals (99% RTP), select Blackjack tables (99.59% RTP), or Video Poker (99.54% RTP). Most slots fall under, ruling them out for EV-positive bonus play.

Game contributions and excluded games

Most operators apply a contribution percentage: slots typically count 100%, blackjack 5–10%, video poker 5–10%, live dealer 0–10%. A bonus that requires 35× wagering on slots requires 350× wagering on blackjack at 10% contribution. The math gets dramatically worse for low-RTP-effect games.

Read the bonus terms before accepting. Specifically check:

• Wagering multiplier (and whether it's bonus-only or deposit+bonus)
• Game contributions and excluded games
• Maximum bet during wagering (often $5)
• Time limit to complete wagering (often 7–30 days)
• Maximum cashout from bonus winnings

When to accept, when to skip

Accept a bonus when: the wagering requirement break-even RTP is achievable on games you'd play anyway, the maximum bet doesn't restrict your normal play, and you can complete wagering within the time window without forcing it.

Skip a bonus when: the requirement forces you into low-contribution games, you'd be tempted to chase wagering past your bankroll plan, or the bonus terms exclude games you actually like. The math of skipping a bad bonus is always: 0 EV beats negative EV.