With so many casino sites available, it’s useful to know what you’re looking for when you want the best casino site experience. These are some of the things that you need to consider:

Large games library – A large games library goes without saying. Naturally, the more games that are available, the more there is to try and enjoy. With literally thousands of different slots to play, there is little chance of boredom setting in.

A mix of low and high stakes – The best casino sites have something for everyone.

Top software being used – The software used by casino sites has a huge impact on the playability, usability, and overall enjoyability of the games you play. We talk more about software providers here.

Mobile app – The best online casinos also provide mobile app versions of their sites, allowing you to enjoy the thrill of a casino wherever you are.

Great bonuses on offer – Top online casinos offer a variety of bonuses to their customers. We have discussed these in more detail here, but they cover welcome bonuses for new sign-ups as well as ongoing bonuses and promotions for returning customers

A range of deposit and withdrawal options – To make the whole experience as user friendly as possible, the best online casinos offer plenty of methods to deposit and withdraw your funds.

Fantastic customer service – The best online casinos also offer the best customer service. Knowing that you can make contact through various channels such as email, telephone, and live chat provides reassurance should you ever require any assistance or experience any issues.

Appropriately licensed to operate in Ireland – Needless to say, any top online casino site will hold the appropriate licence to be able to operate in Ireland.

When reviewing casino sites available in Ireland, we want to make sure that we’re letting you know about the best sites that there are. Some of the areas we consider are:

The different available bonuses

The best online casinos have an array of offers and bonuses available. These are explained in detail here, but as we have seen, the offers include:

Free Spins – These are common slots reward giving players free spins on their favourite games. Free spins sometimes come in welcome packages to newbies or as rewards for existing players.

Matched deposit – Where a casino will ‘match’ your deposit with bonus cash, that comes in a percentage ranging from 50% usually up to 200%. There will be a limit on how much you can claim off these, such as 100% up to £100. These bonuses sometimes come with free spins attached.

No deposit – These bonuses don’t require a deposit from players but often come with hefty wagering requirements. They simply require you to create an account to receive and are usually more modest than their upon-deposit counterparts.

Reload – Similar to matched deposit bonuses but designed to keep players returning as they are given when you reload your account with more money.

Cashback – This is when a casino gives you back a percentage of your real money wagers in the form of bonus funds. 

VIP rewards – VIP bonuses are for frequent or high roller players on loyalty schemes that can come as birthday rewards, free spins, premium personalised support and other bonuses and perks.

When identifying the top online casinos, we consider the variety of bonuses offered as well as their worth.

Variety of games

As well as bonuses, to rank an online casino, we also need to consider the range of games that they have available.

Roulette

There are several variants of roulette, each with varying rules and odds. 

• American roulette – American roulette is similar to its European counterpart, but the additional 00 pocket means these wheels have 38 pockets.
• French roulette – French roulette is similar to the European version, but the felt has a slightly different layout.
• Mini roulette – This roulette variation isn’t quite as popular as regular roulette, but you’ll still find it at a selection of the top online roulette sites.

Blackjack

Whether you’re looking for low limit games or high stakes, here are some of the most popular:

• American blackjack also known as Classic blackjack
• European blackjack
• Vegas Strip blackjack
• Blackjack Switch
• Blackjack Perfect Pairs
• Progressive blackjack

Slots

The best online casinos have a growing list of slots available, these include:

Classic 3 reel slots are simple to play and resemble the game machines that you would find in land-based casinos. Generally, these tend to have 3 reels and 5 pay lines. You match the symbols across the lines to win.

5 and 7 reel slots are an extension of the classic 3 reel slots with an increase in the number of possible pay lines.

Progressive jackpot slots work by adding a small amount of money to the jackpot every time a player doesn’t win. The moment that a player does win, the jackpot resets and, the build-up starts again.

Megaway slots contain a random reel modifier that adds an increased number of symbols to a reel when it appears. This increases the number of ways a player can win.

Mobile slots are designed for specifically playing on mobile devices such as tablets and mobile phones. These are optimised for smaller screens and allow players easy access to enjoy online slots.

Payment methods

When ranking the best online casinos, we also consider the ease at which you can make deposits and, just as importantly, withdrawals. You can expect to see options available such as:

• Bank transfer
• Credit card
• Debit card
• Skrill
• Neteller
• Paypal

The ease and speed at which you can withdrawal your funds is also an important consideration. Once you win, you may want to withdraw your winnings. The best online casinos will clearly show how long any withdrawals take, with many being almost instant.

Usability

The overall usability and functionality of the casino sites are another important point when it comes to reviewing them.  Fast loading and easy to navigate sites make the casino site experience much more enjoyable.

The best online casinos complement their sites with great functioning mobile apps. These apps allow you to receive notifications and play your favourite game wherever you may be.

Responsible gambling

We like to make sure that you have fun at online casinos, but we also want to ensure your welfare too. The best online casinos have features in place to ensure that you are gambling responsibly. We have discussed this here, but the protections we’d expect the best online casinos to offer are:

• Product blocking
• Enabling reality checks
• Offering time outs
• Self-exclusion
• Deposit limits
• Loss limits