Common Depositing Options: Credit Cards Firepay PrePaid ATM Western Union Direct Bank Transfers Wire Transfers Check

These days more than ever it's harder to make a deposit to an online casino, mostly because a number of credit card issuers have stopped allowing gambling transactions. While credit cards have remained one of the most convenient methods and can still be used in many cases, there are many other safe alternatives for making a deposit to your account.

Many US players will have a hard time using them thee days, but Visa and MasterCard are still accepted at some venues, and are the most commonly accepted card types. Beware that although the casino (or its e-cash merchant) will usually record the transaction as a purchase, your credit card company may see the transaction as a cash withdrawal and apply their customary transaction fees.

For withdrawals (ie, "cashouts"), the credit card companies will not allow the casino to credit you for more than your deposit amount, so the balance is usually sent to you by check. For example, if you deposited $100 and later you want to cash out $500, the casino will credit you card $100 and send a check for the remaining $400. A few casinos have posted disclaimers that MasterCard will not allow any money to be credited back to your card; therefore, the casino sends the entire amount by check.

FirePay is a personal payment account that you fund with your credit card without revealing your credit card details or payment history. Because of industry-wide credit card restrictions, most casinos recommend that players user FirePay instead of credit cards. FirePay accepts Visa, MasterCard, or Check. With FirePay, your casino bankroll can be credited in minutes.

PrePaid ATM works like any ATM card, except the balance on the card has been pre-paid. You can fund these ATM cards with credit cards, wire transfers, and most other methods.

You can send cash via Western Union to most online casinos to fund your account. While WU transfers carry higher transaction fees, casinos will usually compensate with a bonus on your deposit.

This is simply a transfer from your bank to the bank account (or e-cash merchant account) for the casino. This is usually accomplished by entering all the necessary data into an electronic form in the Cashier section of a casino's Web site. ACH transfers are restricted to US bank account holders, and processing can take up to 7 days.

Like an ACH this is also a transfer from your bank account to the casino's account. But with Wire Transfer, you usually need to FAX or e-mail to the casino a form that will allow them to request a wire transfer on your behalf. They make the request of your bank, and you must then give your bank authorization to wire the money. This method typically takes quite a bit longer because of the extra processing times required.

This method is necessarily slow because the check or money order must be mailed, processed by the casino, and cleared by both banks before your account is credited.

Credit Cards FirePay PrePaid ATM Wire Transfers Check

Good day at the tables? There's a number of ways you can withdrawal your winnings from your casino account. Some casinos will support different pay out methods, and may have different processing times.

For withdrawals, credit card companies will not allow the casino to credit you for more than your original deposit amount made with the card, so the balance is usually sent to you by another method. For example, if you deposited $100 with a Visa and later you want to cash out $500, the casino will credit your Visa $100 and send a check for the remaining $400. A few casinos have posted disclaimers that MasterCard will not allow any money to be credited back to your card; therefore, the casino sends the entire amount by alternate means.

FirePay is a personal payment account that you fund with your credit card without revealing your credit card details or payment history. Because of industry-wide credit card restrictions, most casinos recommend that players user FirePay instead of credit cards. FirePay accepts Visa, MasterCard, or Check. With FirePay, your casino bankroll can be credited in minutes and your winnings can be delivered quickly as well.

PrePaid ATM works like any ATM card, except the balance on the card has been pre-paid. You can fund these ATM cards with credit cards, wire transfers, and most other methods.

This is a transfer from the casinos bank account to your bank account, and shows up as cash when received.

This method is a little slow because the check or money order must be processed by the casino, mailed, and received before you'll actually have the money. Some casinos will courier winnings via check for faster receipt of your winnings.