Guides for Canadian players
Plain guides for players in the provinces and territories SpinsPilot Canada covers: how bonuses and wagering work in dollars, how odds and the puck line are calculated, and what to check before you deposit. Each guide names its sources.What changes from month to month, such as new casinos and current offers, is in our articles.
Start here
Three guides that everything else builds on. Read them before your first deposit.
Beginner's guide
Choosing a casino, the Canadian cashier, ID checks and setting limits before your first deposit.
Is online gambling legal?
Who runs gambling in each province, what offshore licences mean, and the gambling age everywhere.
Wagering requirements
What a wagering multiple means in dollars, with worked examples.
Getting started
Where to begin if you are new: how to choose a casino from outside Ontario and Alberta, how Interac works at the cashier, and the words you will meet on every casino site.
Beginner's guide
Choosing a casino, the Canadian cashier, ID checks and setting limits before your first deposit.
Interac at casinos
Which casinos show Interac e-Transfer on their own site, which only on review sites, and who pays out by Interac.
Casino glossary
The terms you meet on casino and sportsbook sites, from parlay to payout percentage.
Casino games
How each game works, what it costs you in house edge, and which choices change the odds and which only change the swings.
Online slots
Payout percentage, volatility, paylines and bonus features, and how to read a game's info panel.
Online roulette
European, American and French wheels, the house edge of each bet, and why systems do not change it.
Online blackjack
The rules, the rule changes that move the house edge, and what side bets cost.
Blackjack strategy chart
Hit, stand, double or split for every hand, as a colour-coded chart.
Online baccarat
Banker, Player and Tie, the commission, and the house edge of each bet.
Live dealer casino
How live studios and game shows work, table limits, and how live games count towards wagering.
Plinko
Where the ball lands, what rows and risk change, and why every setting costs the same.
Bonuses and wagering
What an offer is worth once the terms are counted: wagering in dollars, caps, maximum bets and the bonus types you will see.
Wagering requirements
What a wagering multiple means in dollars, with worked examples.
Welcome bonuses
How deposit matches and free spins work, and the terms that decide their value.
No deposit bonuses
What a no deposit bonus really gives you, and how bonus codes work.
No wagering bonuses
Offers paid out without a playthrough, and the limits that still apply.
Cashback bonuses
How cashback is calculated, and when it is cash or bonus money.
Sports betting
Reading a betting line the Canadian way: American odds, the NHL puck line, parlays and what sportsbook bonuses pay.
Odds formats
American and decimal odds, converting between them and implied probability.
The puck line
How the NHL puck line works, compared with the moneyline and totals.
Parlays
How parlay payouts are calculated, and why the margin adds up.
Sports betting bonuses
Bonus bets and free bets at sportsbooks, and how they pay out.
Safety and the law
Who runs gambling where you live, what an offshore licence means, how winnings are taxed and how to step away when you need to.
Is online gambling legal?
Who runs gambling in each province, what offshore licences mean, and the gambling age everywhere.
Casino licences
Kahnawà:ke, Curaçao, Malta and Anjouan: what each licence means and how to check it.
Gambling winnings and tax
How the Canada Revenue Agency treats recreational winnings. Framing, not tax advice.
Self-exclusion in Canada
Self-exclusion programs province by province, and tools that block gambling sites.
