How we rate casinos

Mission and Vision

• Mission: To give players in Canada outside Ontario and Alberta a transparent tool for comparing casinos, so you can make informed, safe decisions.
• Vision: To become the gold standard for casino ratings for Canadian players, promoting a safe and fair environment.

Four core principles

1. Evidence-based: Ratings are based on facts and publicly available information.
2. Transparency: We openly show a casino's strengths and weaknesses.
3. A player-centred approach: Your safety and fair play come first.
4. Continuous adaptation: We update our criteria regularly to keep pace with market changes.

How the rating is calculated

Every casino gets a score out of 5, with one decimal (for example 3.9). The score is the sum of seven parts. Each part has a fixed maximum, and a casino earns points only for facts we can show.

1. Licence - up to 1.2 points

We look up the licence in the regulator's public register.

• 1.2: the licence is in the register and its status is current.
• 0.6: the casino claims a licence, but it has expired, the casino's domain is not on it, or the register cannot be read.
• 0.3: no licence is shown, or it cannot be verified.

The casinos we list hold licences from regulators such as Curaçao, Anjouan, Kahnawake or Tobique, not from a provincial regulator. Provincial regulators do not supervise these casinos and cannot resolve disputes with them. That is why the licence carries the most weight.

2. Interac - up to 0.8 points

• 0.8: Interac e-Transfer is named on one of the operator's own pages (cashier, payment page or terms).
• 0.5: only a third-party source mentions Interac.
• 0.2: no source mentions Interac.

3. Canadian dollar account - up to 0.6 points

• 0.6: you can hold your account in Canadian dollars.
• 0.3: it is unclear.
• 0.1: Canadian dollars are not offered.

4. Provinces - up to 0.5 points

This site is for players outside Ontario and Alberta, so every casino here is listed for the other provinces and the territories.

• 0.5: the casino's terms refuse no province beyond Ontario and Alberta.
• 0.3: the terms refuse more provinces. We name them on the casino page.

5. Responsible gambling tools - up to 0.6 points

• 0.6: the casino offers deposit limits, a time-out, self-exclusion and reality checks.
• 0.4: it offers some of these.
• 0.2: we could not find out.

More on these tools on our responsible gambling page.

6. Support - up to 0.5 points

• 0.5: live chat in English, 24/7.
• 0.3: support is limited, or we could not confirm the hours.

7. Complaints - up to 0.8 points

We read public complaint sites such as AskGamblers and Casino Guru and judge the pattern of complaints, for example withdrawals that are delayed or cancelled. These sites are third-party sources, and we say so.

• 0.8: light complaints.
• 0.5: moderate complaints.
• 0.2: heavy complaints.

In plain words

The best possible score is 1.2 + 0.8 + 0.6 + 0.5 + 0.6 + 0.5 + 0.8 = 5.0. The licence counts for about a quarter of the score. Interac and complaints count for about a sixth each. A Canadian dollar account and safer-play tools count for about an eighth each. Provinces and support count for a tenth each.

Bonus size, wagering, payout times and the number of games are not part of the score. A bigger bonus does not make a casino safer. Games have their own method: see how we rate games.

How we research

Our ratings come from research, not first-hand testing. We do not open accounts, deposit or withdraw at the casinos we rate. We read the operator's own terms, cashier and payment pages, help centre and site footer, and the regulator's public register. We use third-party sources only where the operator's own pages say nothing, and we label them as third-party. Who does the research is on our editorial team page.

Facts checked on

Every casino page shows a "Facts checked on" date: the day we last read the sources behind its facts and its score. Terms change. When a fact changes, we update the page, the score and the date. If you spot something out of date, tell us through the contact page.

Where offer terms come from

Bonus offers, free spins, wagering, minimum deposits and bonus codes come from the operators' affiliate programs we work with, and the operator's own terms always apply. SpinsPilot earns a commission from some of the casinos it lists. The commission is not part of the score, which comes only from the seven parts above. Read our affiliate disclosure.