To answer "What is no deposit bonus?", start with how the offer is built. A welcome offer is rarely one bonus. It is usually a package spread across several deposits, each with its own match percentage, ceiling and conditions, and sometimes with free spins attached. The headline adds the parts together, which makes the whole look larger than any single step. Taking the package apart shows what each deposit actually earns and what it asks in return.
Every offer names a qualifying deposit, a minimum below which no bonus is paid. Some also require a code at the cashier or a tick in an opt in box before the payment, and a deposit made without it rarely earns the bonus afterwards. Certain payment methods, often electronic wallets and prepaid cards, are excluded from welcome offers in the terms. Checking the method and the code before paying avoids a deposit that quietly earns nothing.
A deposit bonus usually works as a match: it adds a percentage of the deposit, up to a ceiling. A hundred percent match up to a stated maximum doubles a deposit that stays under the ceiling, and adds nothing to the part above it. Higher percentages usually come with lower ceilings or heavier wagering. Comparing offers by the bonus a planned deposit would actually receive, instead of the largest figure in the banner, keeps the comparison honest and often reverses the order of two offers.
Some offers need a code at the cashier or at sign up before paying, and a deposit made without it rarely earns the bonus afterwards.
Some offers only apply when a box is ticked before payment, and a deposit made without opting in usually earns nothing afterwards.
Not always. Terms often exclude certain methods, commonly electronic wallets and prepaid cards, from welcome offers.
Each tier unlocks only after the previous one is claimed, often within a set number of days from registration, and later tiers usually match smaller percentages.