UKGC Licensed

Find online casinos licensed by the UK Gambling Commission that offer exactly what you’re looking for with Comparasino

If you’re looking for UKGC licensed casinos, you’re in the right place.

Below, Comparasino has compiled a long list of online casinos that hold an active licence from the Gambling Commission.

Better yet, we give you the tools you need to compare UKGC licensed online casinos to find those that match your preferences for bonuses, payments and more.

In addition to providing you with a list of online casinos licensed by the Gambling Commission, we take a deep dive into why it’s important to only play at UKGC-approved brands.

We also cover how online casinos are regulated in the UK, what the Gambling Commission is and its role in licensing, and how you can tell if an online casino holds an active UKGC licence.

Let’s get into it.

Here’s a list of 10 UKGC licensed online casinos

These are some of the most trusted online casino sites available to players in the UK.

What do we actually mean by UKGC licensed online casinos?

Simple – it is an online casino that holds an active licence from the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC).

This means the online casino meets the standards set under the Gambling Act 2005 – the law that permits online casinos (and online gambling in general) in the UK.

An online casino must hold an active licence from the Gambling Commission if it wants to accept players from the UK.

All of the online casinos listed on Comparasino and on this page are UKGC licensed.

What is the Gambling Commission and what does it do?

The UK Gambling Commission was established under the Gambling Act 2005 and tasked with overseeing all commercial gambling in the UK.

This includes retail gambling (casinos, bingo halls, betting shops, etc) and remote gambling (online casinos, online bingo sites, online sportsbooks, etc).

The Gambling Commission has three core objectives:

– To ensure that gambling is fair and transparent
– That gambling is crime free
– That players and consumers are protected

It does this by setting rules and standards around advertising, bonuses, safe play, self-exclusion, deposit limits, affordability checks, etc, and then awarding licences to online casinos (and game providers) that meet its requirements.

In addition, it monitors for compliance and undertakes audits, issuing fines against online casino operators that breach licence requirements.

In short, the Gambling Commission sets standards that online casinos must meet, awards a licence to the brands that do, and then monitors them to ensure they continue to play by the rules.

What the Gambling Commission doesn’t do:

The Gambling Commission doesn’t handle player complaints about an online casino.

If you have an issue with an online casino, perhaps about a withdrawal or the terms and conditions of the bonus offer, you can’t log a complaint with the UKGC.

This needs to be done with the online casino’s customer support team, or with an alternative dispute resolution provider.

You can find a Gambling Commission approved list of ADR providers here.

Why it’s important to only play at UKGC approved online casinos:

UKGC licensed sites are reputable and trustworthy, and offer the best online casino experience for players in the UK.

This is how:

Strong consumer protections

Games must be fair – UKGC licensed casinos use a random number generator to determine outcomes, and this RNG has to be independently tested, approved and then audited on a regular basis.

What’s more, terms and conditions must be clear and concise, especially when it comes to bonus offers, and things like wagering requirements are capped at just 10x. Winnings must also be paid out promptly, too.

Fund protection

UKGC approved online casinos keep player funds in a separate bank account to operational funds, reducing the risk you lose your money in the event the operator goes bust.

There are several levels to this – low, medium and high – with most online casinos protecting player funds to the low and medium levels.

Safe gambling tools

Licensed online casino sites must offer tools for helping you stay in control of your play. I’m talking about things like deposit limits, loss limits, session limits, the option to take time out and of course to self-exclude via GAMSTOP.

They must also have a dedicated responsible gambling page where you can access information and resources about safe gambling, including direct access to charities and support groups.

Dispute resolution via ADRs

If you’re struggling to resolve an issue directly with the online casino, you can turn to an approved, independent, alternative dispute resolution body. This is certainly the case when it comes to things like disputed winnings and payouts.

Legal recourse if something goes wrong

You can even take a UKGC licensed online casino to court if you feel inclined to do so – a player at Paddy Power did just that over a disputed jackpot payout.

I’ve actually written a piece about the case, which you can find here.

No fear of playing at a rogue casino

Above all else, by playing at a UKGC licensed casino, you can be confident that the site is reputable and trustworthy.

Remember, the Gambling Commission is constantly auditing online casinos to ensure they meet its standards, dishing out fines and penalties against those that are breaching their licence requirements. In some cases, it will even revoke the casino’s licence.

The risks of playing at unlicensed online casinos:

Playing at an unlicensed online casino, whether intentionally or accidentally, comes with serious risks you might not be aware of.

These are the main ones:

1 – You might not get paid

Unlicensed online casinos don’t have to play by the rules and this means they can do things like delay or refuse payouts. They can also void winnings based on unfair terms and conditions, and even close your account without explanation.

If they do, there’s often no way of getting your money back.

2 – No independent issue resolution

If you have an issue when playing at an unlicensed casino, tough luck. These sites are not required to handle complaints fairly and there’s no independent third party you can turn to for support.

Unlicensed casinos can simply ignore your complaints and they certainly don’t have to answer to any UK authority. In short, once an issue arises, you’re on your own.

3 – High risk of unfair or manipulated games

If the casino doesn’t hold a UKGC licence, it doesn’t have to use a verified RNG to determine the outcome of each spin/hand/bet. This means it can adjust payout rates and operate games without any independent oversight.

4 – Little to no player fund protection

Unlicensed casinos often mix player cash with operational funds which means if the casino goes bust, your money goes with it.

5 – No data protection and limited payment security

An unlicensed online casino is unlikely to comply with UK and European Union data protection laws which can lead to things like personal data misuse, payment card exposure and you being subject to aggressive third-party marketing and potential scams.

6 – No safe gaming tools

Unlicensed online casinos tend not to offer deposit and loss limits, or the option to take time out and self-exclude via GAMSTOP. In most cases, they will allow players to continue to gamble even when they are showing signs of harm.

7 – No legal protection

If you play at an unlicensed online casino, UK law does not apply so there’s no legal protection should an issue arise. These casinos tend to be located outside of the UK and indeed Europe in locations like Curacao. This makes enforcement from the UK all but impossible.

The bottom line is that while unlicensed casinos often offer bigger bonuses and higher stake limits, they are unsafe with little to no accountability, no protections in place and with a real risk of losing your money.

You can still get big bonuses at UKGC certified casinos:

It’s worth pointing out that you can still get big welcome bonuses when playing at online casinos with a UK licence.

Not only that, but they are now limited to imposing wagering requirements of just 10x on all bonuses and promotions, so you have more chance of keeping your bonus winnings.

These are just some of the bonuses you can expect to claim when playing at UKGC-licensed casino sites:

⭐️ Deposit match and free spins combo

⭐️ Deposit match

⭐️ Free spins

⭐️ No deposit bonus

⭐️ No deposit free spins

⭐️ Cashback

How to tell if an online casino holds an active Gambling Commission licence:

There are a couple of ways you can do this.

The first is to look for the Gambling Commission logo in the footer of the online casino site or app. It should look like this:

If you click on the logo, you’ll be taken to the Gambling Commission’s website and licence register where you can find more information about the online casino, including any fines that have been issued against it.

Of course, the easiest way to tell if an online casino holds a UKGC licence is to sign up and play at those listed on Comparasino.

We only work with UKGC licensed online casinos and a member of the team vets and verifies each brand we list to ensure that its licence is active and that it meets our own high standards.

How to find new UKGC licensed online casinos:

We know players are always looking for new online casinos to play at, and that’s why we go to great lengths to bring you the newest UKGC licensed casinos first.

Our team works hard to discover the latest licensed brands to hit the UK market so you can play them before anyone else.

You can then use our Casino Search Tool to filter new UK licensed online casinos based on your preferences for things like bonuses, minimum deposits, payments and more.

Our Recommendation Engine then generates a list of online casino matches in seconds – this makes them the best UKGC casinos for you.

Better yet, join the Comparasino Member Zone (it’s free!) and we’ll drop your list of matching brands into your own dedicated portal.

We even automatically add new matching casinos as soon as we onboard them. h UKGC licensed online casinos and a member of the team vets and verifies each brand we list to ensure that its licence is active and that it meets our own high standards.

Play at UKGC licensed online casinos:

So that’s it – everything you need to know about playing at UKGC approved online casinos.

All that’s left to do is to scroll back to the top of the page and find your next online casino or casinos to play at, confident they are licensed, reputable and trustworthy.