Canada online casino apps are legal nationwide.
But Ontario has, by far, the most options. More than 80 online casino sites are available in Canada’s most populous province, including names like BetMGM, SlotsMagic, Caesars Palace, and BetRivers. And, online casinos are expected to launch in Alberta in 2025.
The good news for you is many online operators offer the biggest and best casino deals. These deals include no-deposit offers, bonus spins, matched welcome bonuses, and loyalty rewards.
That’s a lot of choice and PlayCanada is here to simplify online casino gambling in Canada.
Best Canada online casinos: Our top list
Download casino apps or play no-download casinos
Real-money casino games can be accessed on phones, tablets, or desktops. Some brands provide all their games via browser, using HTML 5 with a responsive design that adjusts to your screen size.
You will also find casinos with mobile apps specially produced for either Apple or Android devices.
For mobile gambling, it is worth comparing the pros and cons of apps and no-download games. A big advantage of apps is that you will be sure that the games are optimized for smaller screens and touch input. While most browser games will adjust, the detail of the layout can be hit or miss, especially for older games that were not created with mobile play in mind.
Load times are faster with apps, and in many cases, the gameplay will appear smoother.
The key drawback is game diversity. While the full website versions of online casinos can have up to 1,000 games, apps sometimes have as few as 50. That said, more and more games are being added to apps. Also, certain types of games work perfectly on smartphones, like online slots, video poker, and scratch cards. Other types of games — for example, live dealers — are better on a tablet, laptop, or desktop than smaller screens.
Bonuses at real money casinos in Canada
You do not need to spend a fortune to get an online casino bonus.
In fact, you can get cash with zero money down via no deposit bonuses.
Others have a big bonus package for just a minimum deposit, including free spins or bonus chips to try out different areas of their site.
No deposit bonuses give you the opportunity to check out the games — and even win money — without having to deposit any money. These offers are small amounts — not enough to be meaningful stakes to many players. To get a bigger bonus, you must make a deposit.
Online casinos will match your first deposit with bonus credits. The amounts can get big, with some brands offering up to $1,000 or smaller amounts over multiple deposits. You need to turn your bonus credits into real cash by meeting the playthrough requirement specified in the terms and conditions at each casino. This can get complicated by weightings and game exclusions — see the section below for a more in-depth explanation.
Other types of bonuses include no-lose offers. Here, any losses from your first day are returned in bonus credits up to a specified amount. You can find deals that give you bonus chips or refunds to try out mobile casinos or live dealer casino rooms too.
Loyalty schemes, VIP bonuses and ongoing promotions are a lot more important than many players believe. Those welcome offers are a great way to kickstart your bankroll. Over time, loyalty rewards reload, and regular promotions will have a far bigger impact on your balance.
Canada online casino games
You can play a lot more games when you visit online casinos. Their libraries are large and always growing.
By comparison, even the biggest retail casinos in Canada can only offer a few dozen gambling tables. This means only the most popular games like blackjack, roulette, and baccarat are offered at retail casinos, along with some casino poker variations. The 1,000 slots at the bigger casinos give you a mix of retro (reel slots) and multimedia games to choose from.
Online casinos curate their games from multiple software houses. The online brands compete with those from retail casinos that are rapidly moving their games online. The types of games you can find at online casinos are covered below.
After that, you will find an overview of some of the biggest software providers.
- Online casino games: With no dealers needed, there are hundreds of casino games available at online casinos. Popular formats like blackjack and roulette have multiple variations. You will find games with side bets, different rules, and single/multi-hand (or wheel) variations. Casinos also mix things up; examples include free bet blackjack, blackjack switch, or French roulette. Add in casino poker variants, baccarat, craps, casino war, and pai gow poker.
- Live dealer table games: You can gamble on casino table games that are happening in real-time at online casinos. Options include blackjack, roulette, baccarat, casino poker games (UTH, Three Card Poker, or Casino Hold’em are popular), and wheel spin-style games. The big plus of these games is the social/real casino feel. You can interact with the dealers and other players. Keep in mind that minimum stakes are higher and that your hand will be folded if you disconnect during play.
- Online slots: There are thousands of online slots to choose from, with new titles added every week. You can play slots found in live casinos online. These are joined by games produced with online casinos in mind. The range of games includes online versions of traditional (three-reel) slots, simple video slots, and games with complex bonus features. Look out for online slots that use well-known brands from TV, movies, and musicians. Many online slots have jackpots — some of the biggest progressive prizes reach life-changing money levels.
- Video poker: This traditional game works well at mobile casinos. You will find all the regular formats, including Jacks or Better, Joker Poker, and Deuces Wild video poker. There are multi-hand games, bonus poker-style-pay tables, and ultimate x-style bonus games available. Online casinos have innovated around the theme, creating titles with second chances, break-out bonus games, and real money video poker games based on poker formats other than ‘draw.’
- Other casino games: Many new casino games do not fit neatly into the categories above. There are keno and bingo variants — often with entertaining themes. You will find wheel spin games, scratch cards, novelty games based on game shows, virtual betting games, and hybrid games which mix the qualities of bingo and slots.
Casino game producers
You can play games from the biggest live game providers at real money online casinos. There is a separate list of games from online gaming specialists — some of which have been providing online casino platforms and games for over 20 years.
Here are the most popular software providers, along with highlights of their games:
Retail casinos in Canada
There are retail casinos throughout Canada, and more populated provinces have a lot of options. Licensing and control of casinos happen at the provincial level. There are small differences between regions. For example, the minimum age for gambling and responsible gambling policies. There are also loyalty reward schemes and jackpot pools that are shared between live casinos in a province.
Venues range from luxury resorts with hotels, entertainment complexes, and racetracks to smaller tribal casinos.
Here is a quick overview of what is on offer for live casino fans, broken down by province:
The biggest and best online casino brands combine with a huge list of of live gambling opportunities in Canada. This gives Canadians more choices than almost any country — especially when you compare Canada to the US.
Every province offers a legal online casino through the respective lottery corporations. But only Ontario offers an open, regulated and legal online casino sector that is home to more than 50 operators offering more than 80 different gambling sites. It is regulated by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario and iGaming Ontario. In Ontario, players have a massive choice. There is a huge selection of slots, table games (including live dealer options), and Keno online. Generously matched welcome bonuses can help get your bankroll off to a flying start.
It pays to find the best online casinos and bonus offers
Online casinos are legal across Canada via each province’s lottery corporation website. But, Ontario has, by far, the most choice thanks to an open online gambling sector.
That means it pays for you to know your options to find the best online casinos.
Remember to return to this PlayCanada page often to find the no-deposit offers, bonus spins, matched welcome bonuses, and loyalty rewards that work best for you.