Alternative Payment Methods at UK Visa Casinos
Although Visa is a solid choice for your casino deposits, there’s now a broad range of alternatives to consider — whether you’re looking for extra security, quicker withdrawals, or one of the many other benefits you might find with an alternative payment method. We’ve rounded out some of your options below.
e-Wallets
Deposit speed: Instant
Withdrawal speed: Instant – 24 hours
Availability: Most sites
Some of the most widely used alternatives to Visa are e-wallets. If you’re unfamiliar, an e-wallet is essentially a virtual or digital wallet that has many of the same features as a regular bank account. You can send and receive payments, store a balance, and link all your bank cards and accounts together in one place for seamless online transactions.
And as you can buy goods and services online using just an email address and password, you won’t have to share any other sensitive bank details with the site — perfect for those who would rather keep that information under wraps. e-Wallets generally offer some of the fastest withdrawals too, so if you’re in a hurry to cash out, they’re an excellent choice.
There are three e-wallets that you’ll most often find at our recommended UK Visa casinos, and a couple of less widely used options too.
- PayPal is the most popular e-wallet around. It’s been on the scene since 1999 and offers many additional benefits and features to its customers today, including two-factor authentication (2FA). Unfortunately, PayPal’s penetration among consumers doesn’t always translate to the online gambling world, and it’s not available at every site.
- Skrill tends to find itself available where PayPal is not. This e-wallet is owned by the Paysafe Group, and is offered in broadly a similar way to PayPal, although it also offers prepaid Visa and Mastercard debit cards. One drawback is there are sometimes fees associated with withdrawing your e-wallet balance to a bank account.
- Neteller is also owned by the Paysafe Group and functions much like Skrill. It also has some fees attached, but these can be lowered by verifying your account to become a Neteller True member. There’s also the Net+ prepaid Mastercard.
- MuchBetter and ecoPayz are two other e-wallets you might find at Visa casinos, and they function much like the other options on this list.
Of course, e-wallets aren’t without their drawbacks. As previously mentioned, availability can be a little hit and miss for specific services, although all Visa sites generally offer at least one or two options.
Secondly, e-wallets are one of the most commonly excluded payment methods when claiming a bonus at a Visa casino. Always check the terms and conditions — you might need to choose another method in order to be eligible.
Prepaid Cards
Deposit speed: Instant
Withdrawal speed: Not supported
Availability: Most sites
A prepaid card functions a lot like a Visa debit card. The main difference is you’ll have to first acquire the card, and then top it up with money. There are plenty of great reasons to choose a prepaid card, and the headline here is definitely security. The prepaid card has no ties to you — it can even be purchased with cash if you wish — and can never be overdrawn. You’ll never have to share any bank details with the casino, and once it’s spent, that’s it.
Of course, that could be a drawback for some. You’ll need to get another prepaid card in order to further top up your casino account, so if you’re a high roller or have a larger bankroll to play with, this method may not suit. Conversely, this does make it a fantastic responsible gambling tool, helping players keep a close eye on their total spend.
Paysafecard is the most widely available prepaid card at Visa casinos, and you can buy the vouchers at participating retailers in denominations from £10 to £100. Then, just key in the 16-digit PIN on the casino’s deposit page and the balance can be instantly transferred to your casino wallet. Paysafecard is sometimes excluded from claiming offers, so always check the T&Cs beforehand.
Another drawback to Paysafecard is it’s pretty much never a withdrawal option, so you’ll need to combine it with another payment method. A newer prepaid card service, AstroPay, could hold the solution though — as well as offering virtual prepaid cards that can be generated and topped up on the fly from within your account, AstroPay functions a lot like an e-wallet so can be used to withdraw your casino balance. As it’s a little younger, you won’t find it at many Visa casinos yet, but it’s worth keeping an eye out for it if you prefer to deposit with a prepaid card.
Cryptocurrencies
Deposit speed: Instant
Withdrawal speed: Instant
Availability: Very few sites
Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum are one of the latest methods to grow in popularity at online casinos. Using blockchain technology, these digital currencies offer blazing-fast deposits and withdrawals, and all transactions are anonymous so there’s a strong degree of security. You won’t find this payment option at many sites, but its availability is on the rise.
It’s worth doing your research before investing in a cryptocurrency as the value can fluctuate dramatically. It’s important to also be aware that there are some fees associated with transactions.
Pay by Phone
Deposit speed: Instant
Withdrawal speed: Not supported
Availability: Some sites
Those prioritising convenience may want to consider a pay by phone service such as Boku for their casino deposits — just enter your phone number and confirm via SMS, and the money is taken straight out of your airtime credit or added to your monthly bill.
Pay by phone is supported by most major UK networks, but there are strict limits of around £30 a day. This makes it less suitable for high rollers, however it may be a useful budgeting tool for some. Keep in mind pay by phone options are sometimes disqualified from claiming bonuses, and there’s no support for withdrawals.