Best Online Casinos New Zealand (2022)

Comparison and Evaluation of 30+ Online Casinos for Kiwi Players

Oliver Mason  Updated: June 18, 2022

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Hello and thanks for visiting TopCasino.co.nz, a website focused on guiding New Zealand players in search of the best online casinos. I'm one of the writers for this website, and my name is Oliver Mason. I was born and raised in New Zealand and am an avid fan of online pokies and gambling at online casinos. During the last two years, my colleagues and I have evaluated 30+ online casinos scoring each using a variety of criteria. Based on this research, a listing of the top 10 picks have been established. It's decided that these are the most suitable options for Kiwi online casino fans.

Some reasons to consider why you might benefit from playing at one of the casino sites featured the TopCasino.co.nz listing:

• They offer the largest selection of online pokies suitable for players wagering either small amounts or large amounts.
• You can deposit, play and withdrawal winnings all in NZD currency.
• Customer support options that are available in the New Zealand time zone (NZ Standard Time or GMT+12).
• Attractive bonuses in NZD as well as free spins bonuses for all pokie fans out there.
• Opportunity to receive several bonuses and promotions beyond the initial welcome bonus offering.
• No restrictions on access to the casino, games or banking methods and fully welcoming of New Zealand players.

The listing of top sites as featured here on the homepage is a great place to start. More detailed information, which includes a first-hand look based on the real experiences of myself or one of my colleagues is available within the individual reviews for each casino.

The mission of this website is to provide New Zealand players with guidance and advice that is not influenced by anything other than real experiences. Kiwi players, as a result, receive a real objective first-hand look into what they too can expect when playing at one of the online casinos featured in the top 10 listings.

The only sure way to evaluate an online casino and provide a real opinion is to base it on real experiences. Achieving this requires registering, depositing and playing with real money and attempt a withdrawal. Most guides like TopCasino.co.nz that focus on providing reviews and ratings do not put the necessary effort into testing the sites they feature correctly. At Top Casino myself and my colleague's register, deposit, play for real money and examine all aspects of the online casinos featured here with our own money.

Key factors that my colleagues and I look for during the evaluation and rating process of online casinos featured on this website:

It was the late 90's when the first online casinos started to make their debut. At the time, there were a limited number of software provider options. These software providers back then only offered a few games.

In today's matured online gambling market where dozens of gambling software companies dominate the space, there are thousands of games to choose from now. The most popular among the game options available to Kiwi players these days are online pokies. Many software providers focus exclusively on pokies and providing world-class pokies that rival those found in land-based casinos.

TopCasino.co.nz looks at several factors when evaluating the software providers that power any of the online casinos featured here on this site. These factors include whether the software provider has undergone testing of their random number generator (RNG), whether games are tested for accuracy and fairness and whether the software provider has an excellent overall reputation within the industry and among New Zealand players. After reading this section you may like to learn more about online pokies which you can do so on this page we've dedicated to this game type.

Software Testing For Fair & Honest Play: Casino software providers that put a lot of emphasis on the transparency of their software gain a lot of points with me. Players benefit the most from the audits and testing that many online casino software providers endure. Software providers that receive regular testing are incredibly safe, secure, honest and fair. The gambling sites featured here on TopCasino.co.nz have all been fully tested and approved by one of many reputable third-party agencies which include: GLI, BMM, eCOGRA or iTech Labs.

Old Tried and Tested or Newbie Software Provider: Software providers in the gaming industry that have operated for a few decades such as Microgaming, Playtech and NetEnt all have fantastic reputations. The reputations among these software providers was earned and it didn't happen overnight. Well established providers such as these are safe bets and ones I'd recommend looking for when choosing an online casino. On the other hand, there are other well established older providers, which unfortunately are notoriously rogue. These would be the likes of Realtime Gaming and Rival Gaming. New software providers often won't have the backing of age on their side and although may not be as tried and tested can still make for some great options.

Microgaming Pokies

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Pros

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Vast games library with over 1,000 pokies and casino games to play.

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Among the first casino software providers which was founded back in 1994.

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Loved by players Microgaming software is always holds high rankings and wins numerous awards regularly.

Cons

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Progressive pokies such as Mega Moolah cannot be played in free play mode.

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Although Microgaming has an exapansive library of casino games many of these are simply re-branded versions of other games.

NetEnt Pokies

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Pros

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NetEnt online pokies are by far my favourite when it comes to gambling online.

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The game selection is big and growing. My favourite online pokie is Starburst and is definitely worth trying.

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The user interface of their online casino games are the best that I've seen among any software provider.

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Playing on mobile smartphone devices and tablet is incredible.

Cons

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Only in browser and mobile/tablet games are available. There no option to download and install software on your PC or Mac.

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Even though their library of pokies and other games is big it's not as big as that of Microgaming and Playtech.

Playtech Pokies

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Pros

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Players from New Zealand will be able to play over 600 pokies, video poker and talbe game options here.

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Fully transparant company that is publicly traded on the London stock exchange.

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Both the games and casino lobby of Playtech powered casinos are easy to navigate and find what you're looking for.

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Their software is compatible with PC, Mac, Linux as well as almost all iPhone, Samsung and other mobile/tablet devices.

Cons

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Playtech powered casino progressive jackpots will not be paid out in one single payment but rather spaced among many.

There are many banking options for Kiwi players to make use of when depositing and withdrawing funds from online casinos. Unlike other jurisdictions where casino payments are a problem in New Zealand, there are no such issues. What this means is that as a player from NZ, you can make use of whatever banking method you're most comfortable. For myself and most other Kiwi players credit card deposits along as well as POLi payments are the most often used.

The options below are a non-exhaustive listing of some of the options you'll find at NZ online casino sites.

Depositing Funds at Casinos

Withdrawing Funds From Casinos

As a means of attracting new players to sign up to an online casino and to get you to start playing in the real money mode, operators use several different types of casino bonuses. The initial bonus that you can claim when you sign up to an online casino for the very first time is known as the welcome bonus or sign-up bonus, which is often multi-tiered and could be spread out over more than one deposit.

Bonuses have become an essential part of online casinos, and they often determine which online casino a player will end up signing up to. However, if you’re deciding on which online casino to sign up to, purely because of the welcome bonus that’s currently on offer, it could be something that you later come to regret. I’ve found that the online casino bonuses that seem too good to be true often are. In other words, just because the casino is offering an amazing new player welcome bonus, doesn’t mean to say that the casino is any better than the rest.

With the casino bonuses that do appear to be amazing offers, you’ll generally find that they have extremely steep wagering requirements, or there will be other bonus terms and conditions that make it almost impossible for you to ever actually win anything from your welcome bonus. If you’re going to sign up to the online casinos just because it’s offering the biggest bonus, it’s advisable that you carry out as much research as possible on the casino before you sign up.

If you’re new to online casinos and don’t have a clue about how bonuses at casino work, keep reading below where you can find some useful explanations about deposit bonuses and free spins bonuses.

• Deposit Bonus
• Free Spin Bonus
• No Deposit Bonus

There’s more likelihood of something going wrong at an online casino that’s received a three-star rating or lower, which is why here at TopCasino.co.nz it’s recommended that you only stick to playing at the online casinos with a four-star rating or higher. Although this isn’t to say that problems can’t occur at a four or five star rated NZ friendly online casinos, but the chance of something going wrong is much less likely. Although there may not be any official New Zealand-wide government licensed and regulated online casinos, it doesn’t mean that you don’t have a leg to stand on should something go wrong, so don’t panic.

If something does happen at an online casino where you feel as though you need to make a complaint, there are several different avenues that you can choose to go down. If you signed up to an online casino using one of the external links that have been provided within the reviews here on TopCasino.co.nz and something goes wrong, try using the following simple steps to try and resolve your issue with the casino to begin with. The truth of the matter is that online casino operators don’t want any negative reviews of complaints about their casino’s being plastered all over the internet, so they will generally do everything they can in as little time as possible to try and resolve the issue.

How to Use AskGamblers.com to Solve Complaints

AskGamblers is one of the most recognized online casino information portals in the world, and I’ve always loved how effective their dispute resolution system is. I’ve also witnessed hundreds of other complaints being resolved on the AskGamblers website. If you are considering lodging a complaint via their website, here’s what you need to do:

Step 1.

Go to AskGamblers.com and then head straight to the complaint submission page which can be found right here: https://www.askgamblers.com/submit-complaint

Now all you need to do is click on the dropdown box which will instantly present you with a list of options and then click on the option that relates most to your complaint.

Note: To speed things up, make sure that you choose the correct category so that your complaint can be dealt with by the proper department.

Step 2.

The different options that are available include additional information that pertains to your specific issue. For example, you can find a general overview, symptoms and suggestions section, as well as a frequently asked questions section, which you should carefully read through before actually submitting your complaint. You may find that you won’t need to complain after you’ve read through these mini sections. If you don’t seem to find any useful advice, all you need to do is click on the “No. I want to submit a complaint” button which is located directly beneath.

Step 3.

If you do click on the “No” option, you will now be presented with an online entry form that must be completed with as many details as possible regarding your complaint. At this point, it’s also extremely important that any information you enter is correct. For example, make sure that you supply them with the correct name, username, casino account number (and name of the casino), so that they can verify this info with the casino when they contact them.

Note: Before you can do any of this though, make sure that you’re registered with AskGamblers. This is free to do, it can be done in less than a minute, and it only requires a name and email address. You’ll also need to create a password so that you can sign in. If you don’t register, you won’t be able to use the AskGamblers.com complaints service.

Step 4.

As soon as you’ve finished lodging your complaint, it usually takes no longer than 24 hours for it to appear on the AskGamblers.com complaints system. It’s also very likely that someone from AskGamblers will get back to you personally so that you can provide them with additional information. Always try and ensure that you provide them with the correct information if you have to submit an official complaint.

Information found here is composed of questions and answers to those of thing that are commonly asked by New Zealand players just getting started at online casinos. These are just some of the most commonly asked and aim to assist you in getting started with gambling for real money online.

Can New Zealand players gamble in the real money mode at online casinos?

Yes. New Zealand players can legally gamble in the real money mode at any of the trusted online casinos that have been reviewed and recommended for you right here on TopCasino.co.nz. However, before you could just jump straight in and start playing, you would need to fill out the online casino application form and register a new real money account. To gamble in the real money mode online in New Zealand, you must be at least 18 years of age.

As soon as you have registered an account, and as soon as it has been activated, you can now go to the casino’s cashier section to make a deposit using one of several popular NZ online payment options. Your options generally include a wide range of credit and debit cards, e-wallets, prepaid cards and bank transfer methods.

What kind of deposit & withdrawal methods can I use at New Zealand accepting online casinos?

In the cashier section at any of our featured NZ accepting online casinos you will find a decent selection of reliable payment methods that are currently popular with New Zealand players. For example, you can use most major credit & debit cards such as Visa, MasterCard, Visa Electron and Maestro. Credit and debit cards are ideal for deposits and withdrawals, plus he direct bank transfers option is also a popular deposit option.

For players who prefer not to use their credit or debit cards to purchase chips at online casinos, you can deposit with popular prepaid cards instead, or for an even more convenient way of getting money into and from your casino account, you can use major e-wallets such as NETELLER and Skrill. Some online casinos have also now started accepting cryptocurrencies.

Are the games fair and are my funds and personal details in safe hands at NZ focussed online casinos?

All of our NZ friendly online casinos that have been reviewed and recommend for you here on this website are protected by the latest 256-bit SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption technology. This is the same kind of online casino security that banks and other major financial institutions use. In other words, you can always count on your money and your details being in safe hands 24 hours per day, seven days per week.

You may also be pleased to learn that the NZ accepting online casinos that are currently featured on this website are monitored by reputable third-party online casino testing agencies. eCOGRA (eCommerce Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance) is just one such agency that monitors the day to day operations at online casinos, plus it has several other important roles such as calculating the fairness of the games by testing them with their tried systems.

Do I have to download and install the online casino software to play on the games at NZ friendly online casinos?

No. Some online casinos give you the option to play either instantly in your web browser, or from within a perfectly secure download client. Back in the day, downloading and then installing the casino software onto your Windows operating desktop or laptop computer would be the advisable option. This would give you access to even more games and promotional offers.

However, this isn’t the case anymore. It seems as though more and more NZ casino site operators are opting to get rid of the download option, preferring the non-downloadable option instead. Instant play casinos are also often referred to as Flash casinos or HTML5 casinos, depending on which device you are playing from, and they are just as good as the downloadable version of the same casino. Back in the day I would have said download the software, where possible, but today I would say that playing instantly in your web browser is the better option. Just choose whatever is the most convenient option for you.

Is it possible to play from my smartphone?

Yes. You can play at any of our top-rated NZ friendly online casinos from your smartphone. You don’t just have to play from a desktop or laptop. You can use pretty much any modern smartphone or tablet device to access the mobile version of the casino that you decide to sign up to. If you prefer doing things on your mobile in general, rather than doing things on a clunky home computer, then the mobile casino option is going to be the better option for you as a player.

What happens if my connection is interrupted while playing on an online casino game?

Most players panic when this happens, but there’s actually nothing to worry about. If you’re playing on an online pokie and get disconnected halfway through a spin, because perhaps your battery died, or you lost signal, simply close the game and then when you next load that same game you should instantly be taken back to the point where you originally got disconnected.

Unfortunately though this doesn’t happen when you’re playing Live Dealer Casino Games such as Live Roulette, Live Blackjack or Live Baccarat. However, if you placed a wager on, for example, the roulette table and your bets had been confirmed when you were disconnected, and if you won the outcome, then you should find that the winnings have been applied to your balance when you next connect to the casino. The same thing can be said if you got disconnected after you made your final decision in Blackjack. If you were disconnected when you were waiting for the dealer’s cards to be shown but won the hand without knowing because you were disconnected, the winnings should also appear in your account when you next connect to the casino.

What are bonus wagering requirements and are online casino bonuses worth claiming?

The bonus wagering requirement is sometimes referred to as the playthrough requirement, and it’s something that you generally cannot avoid when accepting an online casino bonus. The wagering/playthrough requirement is the amount of money that you must wager before you can start the withdrawal process.