Ontario Online Casinos

Until recently, the Canadian province of Ontario, on par with other provinces, didn’t have strict regulation of online gambling, except for the monopoly of the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation. OLG provided a very small selection of local online casinos, and overseas online casinos were the only way for Canadians to get a gaming choice. But in 2022, the government of Ontario licensed some of the world’s leading online casino operators, ‘ending’ OLG’s monopoly and creating a diverse and competitive online gambling market in Canada. MyBestCasino’s experts bring you a list of the best online casinos in Ontario that provide popular games, unique user experience, fast payouts and many useful gambling features.

TOP-15 Online Casinos for Ontario Players

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Legality of Ontario Online Casinos

Innovations in the law were reflected in the gaming activities not only of online gambling operators, but also of gamblers. Let's explore the most important points.

Game taxes

If we talk about taxes for gamblers, then here the situation remains the same: if a gambler is not a professional player and doesn’t earn money by playing in an online casino, they don’t have to pay taxes on winnings. Even if a gambler breaks the bank on one particularly lucky day, they won’t have to pay tax on this jackpot. In the case of poker players (where the skill of the gambler is more dependent on winning than luck), this takes into account the experience of the player in terms of profit and loss in previous years, as well as the possibility of making a profit and any poker training that the gambler may have taken. When it comes to online casino taxes, regulators require the gambling sites in Ontario to pay tax to the provincial government. At the moment, the tax for sites is lower than the tax for land-based casinos.

Geolocation

Under the new laws, a gambler needs to be in Ontario in order to be able to run a game process on their smartphone, laptop or tablet for legal online gambling. Online casinos will be able to check the geolocation using special geolocation tools - apps that a gambler needs to install on their smartphone, tablet or laptop so that the online casino can accurately determine the location of the gambler. The system won’t be able to enter if the gambler lives outside of Ontario, they will need to come to this province in order to be able to wager for real money.

Rules for Online Gambling

iGO has published the rules and requirements for online casinos, which specify the standards for playing games. For example, a number of requirements for game design have appeared (a ban on autoplay). Now the gambler needs to enter each game separately and perform actions to launch the game manually. Slots have a minimum rotation speed of 2.5 seconds. Split-screen or multi-screen slots are not allowed. It is forbidden to disguise a loss as a win, that is, if a gambler won less than their bet, the online casino cannot offer them the same animation as when winning.

Changes After Online Casino Regulation in Ontario

Regulation of online casinos in Ontario has resulted in operators and third parties being required to comply with Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Center (FINTRAC) and Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (PCMLTFA) standards since the new laws come into force, as well as the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) and iGaming Ontario (iGO) standards. The provisions of these standards cover a wide range of issues that are of great importance in the iGaming industry, namely KYC requirements, recommendations for data storage and anti-money laundering, launching geolocations, responsible gaming programs, and the like. All this is intended to ensure that the player can count on the guarantee of the safety of the gameplay. Also, the regulation of online casinos in Ontario has placed a number of responsibilities on foreign operators. For example, only a legalized foreign online casino has the right to advertise its services in Ontario, but the advertising is not intrusive, but strictly regulated. We are talking about the fact that in order to promote the policy of responsible gambling and guarantee the protection of gamblers, AGCO prohibited the media and various partner websites to advertise online casino promotions and offers. A gambler can find out all the advertising info only by registering at an online casino and subscribing to receive advertising mailings.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Regulation

Every coin has two sides, so even legal online casinos can find something to complain about. Let's take a closer look at the benefits and drawbacks of regulation.

Advantages of Regulation

  1. Online casinos in Ontario are perfectly legal and therefore gamblers are protected by the gambling law in the event of a dispute.
  2.  Bets, deposits and winnings are indicated in CAD, so the gambler doesn’t need to worry about conversion and exchange rates.
  3. Local user and technical support for players.
  4. Slot tournaments are not as numerous as in foreign online casinos and serve smaller pools of players.

Disadvantages of Regulation

  1. The first regulated online casinos can be represented by smaller operators.
  2. Progressive jackpots can be small.

What Makes Ontario Online Casino Different From Other Online Casinos

The Ontario gambling market is not large due to its size, but it allows the provincial government to pay more attention to detail. For example, when comparing the Ontario market with large markets such as the UK and others, Ontario has introduced more stringent KYC requirements. Operators that operate and offer their services in Ontario are required by law to develop a more thorough customer screening system. Gamblers will be expected not only to provide official government documents, but also fresh photos and personal live video, in other words, liveness. This is quite different from the UK market and some other major markets, which require gamblers’ personal data such as name, date of birth, address, phone number, which are based solely on official government documents.

What Makes Ontario Online Casinos Different From Land-based Casinos

In addition to obvious differences, such as the ability to play from anywhere in the world that has the internet and thousands of games, online casinos differ from land-based ones in some other ways. Let's take a closer look at the pros and cons of online casinos and their
Online Casinos in Ontario
Land-based Casinos in Ontario

Online casinos in Ontario: the pros

  1. Limitless system of bonuses and promotions. Unlike a land-based casino, where the gambler will never receive an extended bet limit or a bonus, in the best Ontario online casino, the gambler is immediately ‘handed’ a welcome package with additional bonus ‘gifts’. In addition, every online casino has daily, weekly and other types of regular bonuses.
  2. Availability of games. There are no queues at the online casino. At any time of the day or night, a gambler turns on a smartphone, tablet or laptop, goes online, enters an online casino and joins any virtual session, because a virtual table or slot is always available.
  3. Variety of payment methods. An online casino offers the possibility of instant transfer using a variety of payments, ranging from credit cards to vouchers and e-wallets. If betting in fiat currencies is a relic of the past for gamblers, in any hybrid and crypto online casino (of which there are a lot now) they can play for cryptocurrencies.
  4. Stimulation of the local economy. After the government of Ontario assumed the role of regulator of online gambling operators, legalized foreign operators began to pay taxes to the provincial treasury. And although the tax rate is still lower than for land-based casinos, the money still doesn’t go abroad.
  5. High RTP. The return to player in online casino slots is much higher than in land-based ‘one-armed bandits’. This is the ‘House Edge’ policy of the online casino.

Online Casinos in Ontario: the cons

  1. While online casinos can be truly addictive, they are still a solitary experience, not a social one. Of course, today online casinos strive to provide maximum socialization in terms of virtual communication: live chat in the game, the ability for gamblers to communicate with each other during tournaments, etc., but this won’t replace the atmosphere of a real casino.

Land-based casinos in Ontario: the pros

  1. Social atmospheric gaming experience. Even if a land-based casino has a rather modest interior, gamblers still come there to plunge into the atmosphere of live excitement, unique casino sounds and chat with other players and staff. And if the best casino in Ontario has a luxurious interior, then being in it is a special type of aesthetic pleasure.
  2. Stimulation of the local economy. Land-based casinos offer jobs for local habitants and thus create additional infrastructure around the casino. In addition, Ontario has a higher tax rate for land-based casinos than for online casinos, which also helps the local economy.
  3. Developed infrastructure. Of course, sometimes a casino is just a casino: a variety of slot machines, roulette tables, and so on. But most often it is also restaurants, bars, and concert halls, souvenir shops, and even the opportunity to rent a room in a hotel owned or collaborating with a casino. People can arrange a whole weekend in a casino resort and spend it doing various activities in between visits to the gaming hall.
  4. Lots of offers for non-gamblers. This paragraph is a continuation of the previous one. A gambler can go to a casino resort accompanied by friends or relatives who are not into gambling, and they will still find something to their liking – attend a concert, arrange shopping, etc.

Land-based casinos in Ontario: the cons

  1. A lot of time on the road. A land-based casino differs from an online casino precisely in the time it takes gamblers to get to a gambling location. Anyone who has a personal car gets faster than someone who is forced to use, for example, the subway but still, in this perspective, you can literally ‘get’ to the top rated online casino with lightning speed.
  2. Limited range of games. With the exception of the world’s piece of gambling entertainment giants (for example, Niagara Fallsview Casino Resort), most land-based casinos are territorially limited by the size of the building and physically cannot accommodate as many slot machines as an online casino can. Compared to a land-based casino, online casinos offer almost limitless possibilities for playing.
  3. Low RTP. Even at the best land-based casinos, the RTP percentage in slots is lower than in unremarkable online casinos. This is the policy of ‘House Edge’ in offline casinos.
  4. Restrictions on currencies. All land-based casinos accept fiat currencies and literally a handful of casinos around the world accept bitcoin for bets. This severely limits gamblers who can simply sign up to any hybrid online casino and wager in both fiat and crypto, with many cryptocurrencies for wagering.

TOP 5 Land-Based Casinos in Ontario

The iGaming industry is also developing thanks to new technological trends that it has adopted from different areas of life. We are talking about blockchain technology, streaming and gamification.

Niagara Fallsview Casino Resort

One of the largest casinos in the world, the Niagara Fallsview Casino Resort, located in Niagara Falls, Ontario and covers an area of ​​more than three football fields – 200,000 square feet. In the casino premises you can find a variety of slot machines, jackpots, table games, poker rooms, VIP rooms and much more. From time to time, gaming tournaments are held in the casino – both among beginners and among professionals. It should be noted that the Niagara Fallsview Casino Resort is not only the casino, but also has its own Avalon theater with 1500+ seats, a hotel with luxurious rooms, a fitness center for guests of the complex, more than a dozen restaurants for every taste and budget, lounge bars and discos – in a word, everything so that the Ontario players completely forget about worries, having come to relax or cheer up.

Niagara Fallsview Casino Resort

Casino Rama Resort

Another best Ontario casino is Casino Rama. It’s an ideal entertainment center and a part of the hotel. On this territory, it was possible to successfully combine the passion and excitement of a gambling house, the luxury of hotel rooms, restaurants with excellent cuisine and a well-organized entertainment center with a concert venue, where real pop stars often perform. Rama is one of the best places for entertainment in the province of Ontario. It is equipped with 2,500+ modern slot machines and 100+ gaming tables. The casino has a special club card, which, in addition to the pleasure of gambling, gives the players the opportunity to win prizes: delicious food, a luxury hotel room, an invitation to a party, etc. Note that access to the casino is open to people over 19 years of age, which must be confirmed by an appropriate document.

Casino Rama Resort

Casino Niagara

Casino Niagara provides visitors with more than 1300 slot machines and electronic gaming tables seven days a week and around the clock. At the service of gamblers are such popular table games as blackjack, sic bo, mini baccarat and roulette. The casino has 3 restaurants, including a sports bar with large screens for fans, Market Buffet with popular dishes and Perks Cafe for those who have little time for food. The casino has a comfortable dress code: visitors are not required to wear evening dresses, but clothing must be appropriate for public places. Players must be at least 19 years old. Smoking is not allowed in the casino, but comfortable smoking areas are equipped on the territory. Address: 5705 Falls Avenue, Niagara Falls, Ontario L2E 6T3 Canada (Two hours sourth of Toronto)

Casino Niagara

Caesars Windsor

The casino was opened in 2000 and immediately received an award for the design of the building. Located on the banks of the Detroit River, the casino looks like one of those ships that pass by. White metal panels, green-blue glass, roofs like sails – the building is surrounded by a vast landscape and consists of 21 floors. Modern rooms with a beautiful view from the window, 3 restaurants, conference and concert halls, thousands of parking lots are designed for bright emotions, comfortable rest and an unforgettable gaming experience that gamblers get at the Caesars Windsor casino. The slot machines at Caesars Windsor are equipped with ‘Total Touch’ technology, so the gambler only needs to touch the slot to place an order for a refreshing drink. The slot uses the player’s card, which stores the details of the drinks ordered, and it’s easy to use the slot and the card to order ‘as usual’. Casino gamblers must be over 19 years of age. Address: 377 Riverside Drive East, Windsor, Ontario N9A 7H7 Canada (Four hours west of Toronto)

Caesars Windsor

Great Blue Heron Casino

The main goal of this casino is the constant participation in charity. To achieve this goal, the Great Blue Heron Casino regularly hosts all kinds of charity holidays, promotions, tournaments and other charity events. The gambling halls of this casino are located on an area of 25,000 square feet. In addition to electronic games and slot machines, the Great Blue Heron Casino offers its guests more than 60 games of chance on specialized tables. Also in this gambling establishment there is a special lottery counter, all the proceeds of which are sent to charity. The Great Blue Heron Casino building itself was created in a modern high-tech style using the most up-to-date materials. This approach attracts many guests, including foreign tourists. The institution itself operates around the clock, every day without holidays and weekends. The Great Blue Heron Casino has a drinks bar and two contemporary restaurants. Address: 21777 Island Rd, Port Perry, Ontario L9L 1B6 Canada (One hour northeast of Toronto)

Great Blue Heron Casino

Responsible gambling in Ontario

In regulating online casinos, Ontario requires all registered operators to adhere to a responsible gambling program for gamblers. AGCO has developed standards that cover areas such as advertising, marketing, culture and politics. This includes the self-exclusion program, which applies to all online casinos regulated by Ontario. Also, according to the responsible gaming policy, the player can set deposit limits during registration, as well as limits on the number of game rounds and losses. The gambler can change limits daily, weekly or monthly. If they understand that they need a break, they can request a fixed waiting period. According to the Responsible Gaming Policy, a gambler is advised to draw up a gaming budget that includes planned expenses, actual expenses, and information about winnings. It is also necessary to schedule gaming sessions so that playing in the casino doesn’t affect the social life of the gambler. There is a Help Center Helpline (1-800-387-0098) and an Ontario Gambling Helpline (1-888-230-3505). In addition, you can use the SPRinG mobile application for self-monitoring of gambling and behavior among Canadian gamblers. To ensure that gamblers enjoy the game and make smart choices, AGCO offers several resources to help make gambling safe.

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