Rakeback explained

What rakeback means

Rakeback means getting back part of the ‘rake’, the cut the house takes from your gambling. The word comes from poker, where a card room takes a small amount from each pot as its fee. Casino sites have since borrowed the term for a refund worked out from the house edge on your stakes.

In both versions the refund is tied to how much you play, not to whether you win. That separates rakeback from cashback, which only pays when you have lost, and makes it a close cousin of comp points, which also follow your stake. It sits with other existing-customer rewards in our bonus types guide.

None of our partner casinos advertises rakeback. This page explains how it works so you can judge an offer if you meet one, and points to the nearest UK-licensed alternative. All offers mentioned are for adults aged 18 or over, and terms apply.

Rakeback in poker: where the term comes from

In peer-to-peer poker, players compete against each other rather than the house. The operator earns its money by taking rake: a small slice of each pot, often with a cap per hand, or a fee per tournament entry. Poker rakeback returns an agreed percentage of the rake attributed to you, usually paid weekly or monthly.

How rake is attributed matters. Some rooms split a pot’s rake between everyone dealt into the hand; others count only players who put money in. The same rakeback percentage can therefore pay different amounts depending on the room’s method. As an illustration, if a room attributes £50 of rake to you over a month and pays 20% rakeback, you receive £10. Your poker results that month could still be well below zero.

Our poker bonus page covers poker offers more broadly. We don’t list partner poker products, so check each operator’s site for what it runs.

Casino rakeback: a share of the house edge

Casino games have no pot to rake, so casino rakeback is based on the house’s expected take instead. That is your turnover multiplied by the house edge of each game, sometimes called theoretical loss. A slot with 96% RTP has a 4% house edge, so £1,000 staked on it has an expected cost of £40. Rakeback pays a percentage of that figure.

The formula is simple: rakeback = stake × house edge × rakeback rate. At 10% rakeback, £1,000 on a 4% house-edge slot returns £4. On a table game with a lower edge the same stake earns less, because the theoretical take is smaller. Some sites pay it instantly after each bet, others daily or weekly; some pay it as cash and others as bonus funds.

Rakeback worked out in pounds

The table runs the formula for an illustrative 10% rakeback scheme on slots with 96% RTP (a 4% house edge). It shows how slowly rakeback builds compared with the average cost of the play behind it.

Even at a generous rate, rakeback trims the expected cost of play without removing it: 90% of the house edge still applies. The last row also shows why large rakeback figures in adverts need context: £200 back sits beside £2,000 of expected cost on £50,000 of turnover. Real sessions swing far above and below these averages; the expected value is only the long-run centre.

Rakeback at UK casinos and our partners

None of Coral, Ladbrokes, PlayOJO, Casumo or 10bet publishes a rakeback scheme in the details we checked on 5 October 2026. Regular-player rewards at UK-licensed casinos can take other forms too, such as cashback, points or tiered loyalty schemes, and each is covered by the same Gambling Commission rules.

The closest model among our partners is PlayOJO’s OJOplus, which the operator describes as money back on every game played, paid with no wagering and collected from a separate balance. Like rakeback, it pays on play rather than on losses. We don’t quote a rate because PlayOJO sets it by game; see how OJOplus works. PlayOJO is run by Skill On Net Limited, whose entry on the Gambling Commission’s public register (opens in a new tab) shows its UK licence under account 39326.

Rakeback vs cashback vs comp points: same play, three outcomes

The quickest way to see how rakeback differs is to run the same play through three reward types. Assume £1,000 staked on slots with a 4% house edge in a week, and three illustrative schemes: 10% rakeback, 10% cashback on net losses, and comp points worth 0.1% of stake.

Rakeback and points pay regardless of results; cashback pays more the more you lose. That makes cashback the most closely tied to losing and rakeback the most predictable. None of them pays anywhere near enough to cover the house edge over time. See our comparison of OJOplus and cashback for a real UK example.

Rakeback offers from sites outside UK licensing

Rakeback is often marketed with large percentages and instant payouts. If you see it advertised by a site that isn’t licensed by the Gambling Commission, the offer is the least of the problems. A site without a GB licence doesn’t have to follow the 10x wagering cap, the stake limits, the rules on clear terms or the duty to stop bonuses for people showing signs of harm. It isn’t part of GAMSTOP, and you can’t take a dispute to a Commission-approved ADR provider.

Before claiming anything, check that the operator appears on the Commission’s public register; our guide on how to check a casino licence shows how. The risks are set out in more detail in offshore casino bonus risks and in our comparison of UK and non-UK bonuses.

How to judge a rakeback offer, step by step

1. Confirm the operator holds a Gambling Commission licence by checking the public register.
2. Find the basis: poker rake attributed to you, or the casino house edge on your stakes. For casinos, check which house edge figure each game uses.
3. Note the rate and any cap per day, week or month.
4. Check how it is paid: cash you can withdraw, or bonus funds with wagering (no more than 10x under UK rules).
5. Work out a realistic figure: your usual monthly stake × house edge × rate. Compare it with the expected cost of the same play.
6. Check expiry, minimum payout and whether bonus-funded play counts.
7. Decide whether the offer would change how much you play. If it would, skip it.

Rakeback terms: rate, basis, payout and wagering

• Basis: rake attributed to you, house edge on stakes, or a fixed percentage of stake.
• Game coverage: which games count, and at what house edge.
• Rate and tiers: whether the rate rises with volume, which rewards heavier play.
• Payment form: cash or bonus funds, and the wagering on bonus funds.
• Timing: instant, daily, weekly or monthly, and any claim window.
• Caps and minimums: a maximum payout per period or a minimum before payment.
• Exclusions: bonus-funded stakes, certain payment methods or certain games.
• Changes: how much notice the operator gives before changing the rate.

Commission guidance says operators must notify material changes to terms before they take effect, and can’t vary a promotion for someone already opted in except to prevent fraud. Our guide to reading bonus terms shows where these clauses usually sit.

UK rules that would apply to a rakeback scheme

A rakeback scheme run by a GB-licensed operator would count as an incentive under LCCP social responsibility code 5.1.1 (opens in a new tab), which covers any reward scheme under which a customer may receive money or any other advantage. Since 19 January 2026 that means clear, transparent, fair and readily accessible terms; no wagering above 10x on bonus funds (the 10x wagering cap); no mixing of casino, betting, bingo or lottery in one incentive; and no increase in the reward for reaching the qualifying spend sooner than the full period.

Rates that rise with volume would also bring in the high-value customer rules. Since 31 October 2020, operators must check that a VIP customer’s spending is affordable and sustainable, look for signs of harm, and hold source-of-funds evidence; the Commission’s high-value customer guidance (opens in a new tab) sets out what it expects. Marketing and new bonus take-up must stop for customers showing strong indicators of harm. Our page on VIP scheme rules covers this in more depth.

Rakeback and the cost of volume

Rakeback rewards volume by design, so the risk is that it nudges you to play more. Every extra £1,000 on a 4% house-edge slot costs about £40 on average; 10% rakeback hands back £4 of that. Playing more to earn more rakeback always costs more than it returns. Treat it, at most, as a small discount on play you had planned anyway.

A deposit limit caps spending whatever a reward scheme suggests, and a time-out pauses play. If gambling has stopped feeling like a choice, the National Gambling Helpline (0808 8020 133, run by GamCare) is free and open 24 hours a day, and GAMSTOP blocks all UK-licensed gambling sites. The guide to when to say no to a bonus lists other signs that an offer is steering your play.

The closest partner alternative to rakeback

PlayOJO is the nearest match: its OJOplus feature pays money back on every game played, with no wagering, which mirrors the play-based logic of rakeback. New UK customers aged 18 or over (excluding Northern Ireland) also get 80 spins on Big Bass Bonanza at 10p each, £8 of spins, on a first deposit of £10 or more, with winnings paid as cash and no wagering. The welcome offer can’t be combined with other offers and is available only through the designated offer link. See our PlayOJO casino bonus review.

Coral and Ladbrokes offer no rakeback, but their welcome deals are simple and wager-free on spin winnings. Coral (1 October 2026 to 1 February 2027): deposit (certain types excluded) and bet £10 or more on slots for 100 spins at 10p (£10 of spins) on selected games, 48 hours to accept, valid 7 days; Neteller, PayPal, Paysafe, Skrill, prepaid cards and certain debit cards don’t qualify. Ladbrokes: deposit and spend £10 or more on slots for 50 spins a day for 10 days (up to 500, £50 at face value), 10p each on selected games, claimed before 23:59 each day, valid 7 days; prepaid cards, PayPal, Paysafe, Neteller, Skrill and Moneybookers deposits don’t qualify. Both are run by LC International Limited. Terms apply to all three, and no reward changes the house edge.

18+. Gambling should be entertainment that costs money, not a way to make it. Decide a budget before you play: set a budget. Free, confidential help: National Gambling Helpline 0808 8020 133.