The Most Popular Pre-Paid Deposit Methods for Online Casinos

Pre-Paid cards are similar to normal credit and debit cards, except they are not linked to a bank account; you just load the card with funds, and can then use those funds in any place that accepts Visa, MasterCard, or Maestro, which includes every online casino.  Think of it as working in the same way as a 'pay as you go' mobile phone contract, usually with a small set up fee.

Pre-paid cards are ideal if you have little or no credit history, as you are guaranteed to be accepted when you apply for one, or if you do not want to use your credit card online.  Unlike a card linked to a bank account, the spending limit is simply the amount you have loaded onto the card, removing any possibility of going over your limit, making pre-paid cards safer for you and the card supplier.

Highest-Rated Prepaid-Friendly Online Casinos

Of all the casinos we've reviewed on InstantSlotsMoney.com, here are the top-rated online casinos with no deposit or bonus offers that accept pre-paid cards as a payment method:

• Paddy Power ($5 no deposit)
• PocketFruity (£10 no deposit)
• Sky Vegas (£10 no deposit)
• bet365 Casino ($6k in bonuses)

Top Pre-Paid Cards for Deposits at Online Casinos

The best-known pre-paid cards, and the ones most widely accepted at online casinos, are UKash, Paysafecard, EntroPay, and EcoCard.  Although there are many more cards available, if you want to be able to deposit at a range of online casinos, without any hassles, these are the ones to go for.

You can get a pre-paid card in a number of different ways, including at many local shops and newsagents particularly in the UK, or you can apply for one online.  Pre-paid cards can be either a physical card bought at a shop, or delivered to your address, or a virtual card, where you top up and pay online without actually needing a piece of plastic.

Multiple currencies can be loaded onto pre-paid cards, and you can save on currency conversion fees if you load your card in one currency, and deposit in another.  Different cards work in slightly different ways, so let us look at the most popular, and widely accepted options.

UKash for Online Casino Deposits

Available from thousands of shops around the UK, and over 420,000 locations in 55 countries, a quick search on the UKash website identified five outlets with a mile of my location.  Go to any terminal with a Paypoint or Payzone logo, and simply ask for UKash between £5 - £200 (or currency equivalent).  You then receive a 19-digit code on a printout, which you enter when depositing funds at the casino.  The code is valid for 12 months, so you do not even have to pay it all in at once. 

Deposits into the casino account are free of charge, but withdrawals have to be made by cheque, as there is no bank account to send funds to, and this can take a few days.  UKash take no fees from the end user, instead the casino will pay a small amount to UKash when they receive a payment.

Paysafecard Overview

Paysafecard works in the same way as UKash, and is available at 450,000 locations worldwide.  You simply pay at the retail outlet, receive a 16-digit code, and enter that code when paying online.  Again, the funds are instantly credited to your casino account, with no fees, but withdrawals are sent out as cheques, which takes several working days, although there is no fee for this either.  The retailer takes a small fee when you buy the card, although it can vary from place to place.

Using EcoCard for Casino Deposits

EcoCard can be used either as a pre-paid card delivered to your address, or as a virtual card.  Getting a card delivered can take up to 2 weeks, but the advantage is that it can be used anywhere that accepts MasterCard, whereas the virtual card is instant, and can be used to pay online, such as when making deposits into casino accounts.  The big advantage of an EcoCard is that deposits are instant, while withdrawals are processed within 24 hours, and free of charge.  EcoCard fees are 2.9% for a card deposit, and 2.99% for currency conversions.

Casino Banking With EntroPay

EntroPay is a virtual Visa card.  The EntroPay virtual visa card can be used to make purchases, deposits online, or by phone.  Any merchant who takes a Visa card for payment also accepts EntroPay for payments.  You load your card from a bank account, or personal credit / debit card with the amount of your choice, and then use it like a normal card when making the payments.  Funds are instantly credited to your casino account, and withdrawals are processed within 24 hours, all free of charge.  EntroPay fees include 4.95% when loading it from a credit or debit card, and £3 or currency equivalent to transfer funds from EntroPay back to a card.

All of these cards can be used by players from most countries, with the big exception of the USA, while Paysafecard cannot be used by Canadian players.  They are a great choice if you do not have a bank account, or want to control your online finances easier.