What Prepaid Cards Work for Online Gambling
Hello and welcome to this article discussing what prepaid cards work for online gambling. If you have such a card and wonder if you can use it or how to use it, read our article where we explore everything related to prepaid cards at online casinos.
So What Prepaid Cards Work for Online Gambling
The best way to evaluate an online casino is by checking its payment methods, the more the better is the mantra. This is because more payment options translate to more partnerships with proven payment providers, which consequently shows that the online casino is reliable.
Today we will focus on one extremely popular payment method for Canadian players – prepaid cards like Paysafecard, for example. We will discuss why Canadians prefer these payment options, as well as what prepaid cards work for online gambling.
What are Prepaid Cards
Before we begin discussing what Canadian prepaid cards work for online gambling, it’d be best if we first give you the definition of a prepaid card. A prepaid card is a payment card that stores monetary value within itself without being linked to an external source (e.g, a bank account), like Neosurf, for example.
A prepaid card significantly differs from a debit card. While you can only spend the money you already have with both cards, the money in your debit card is actually stored at the bank that issued you the card, which makes transactions faster. In addition, you can’t anonymously use a debit card, but you can use a prepaid card.
You are probably already familiar with prepaid cards in Canada, because you might have received them as a gift at some point in your life. For example, a prepaid card can be a gift card for a store, whether online or land-based, that you use to purchase items from the said store using the money straight from the card.
Types of Prepaid Cards
There are a few different types of prepaid cards you can choose from to play casino games online. We will use this section to list them and briefly explain the differences between each one of them and why they are the best prepaid cards for online gambling. So here they are:
- Non-reloadable or disposable prepaid card – As the name suggests, this card is for temporary use only; once you spend the money on it, it’d be just a piece of plastic. This is the most basic type of prepaid card and can be easily bought from many places like convenience stores.
- Reloadable prepaid card – The next one on our list is the reloadable prepaid card, which, quite obviously, allows the user to keep depositing funds to it, rather than throw it out once the original amount is spent. A reloadable prepaid works in a similar way to a prepaid sim card and it’s simple to use and add funds to. You can buy it from most grocery stores and other retailers.
- Virtual prepaid card – If you want to ditch the plastic altogether, the virtual prepaid card is the choice for you. It works just like the reloadable prepaid card, but since it entirely exists in the virtual world, you can only use it for online payment, such as online casinos, obviously.
- Crypto prepaid card – This is the newest type of prepaid card that you’ve probably never heard of. Again, as the name suggests, it’s a prepaid card that uses cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin. It is the most sophisticated prepaid card on the list and widely used across the best Canadian Bitcoin casinos. While other cards are topped with cash (plastic prepaid cards) or online payments (virtual prepaid cards), this one is topped by crypto, but the crypto is converted to regular currency.
Brands of Prepaid Cards
So, let’s return to the main question this article poses – what prepaid cards work for online gambling. The short answer is – it depends. Online casinos accept different forms of payment, so it all depends on the payment methods that the operator offers.
Before you register for an online casino, make sure to check if it accepts prepaid cards for gambling at all and if yes, then which types and brands. Not all casinos accept prepaid cards and you usually can’t withdraw funds with a prepaid card (although there might be exceptions).
Now that we got that out of the way, let’s mention some of the most popular prepaid cards used for online gambling in Canada. Here they are:
- Visa – Visa has recently even expanded the number of different prepaid cards it offers. It’s certainly one of the most popular options for reloadable prepaid payment cards on the market; it offers disposable prepaid cards as well. Many casinos accept Visa prepaid cards.
- MasterCard – MasterCard is another big card issuer that also specialises in prepaid cards and offers both reloadable and non-reloadable prepaid cards. Similar to Visa, MasterCard is well-received by the best Canadian online casinos, so you can easily find one that accepts its prepaid cards.
- PaySafe – PaySafe is a darling of online casinos. The company specialises in online payments, which include online cash, e-wallets, and also virtual prepaid payment cards under the brand “PaySafeCard”. However, you can also get a physical PaySafe prepaid card from a store.
- Vanilla – Vanilla is slowly becoming one of the most popular prepaid card options for Canadian casino players. Vanilla partners with Visa, which means that it’s not just a random issuer. The company offers both reloadable and non-reloadable prepaid cards.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Prepaid Cards
Now that you know all about prepaid cards in Canada and what prepaid cards work for online gambling, it’s time to evaluate them. We will specifically look into their usage in online gambling in Canada, so you can decide whether they are a good payment option for you.
Advantages:
- Transaction speed – Since the best prepaid cards for online gambling are not connected to a bank account, transactions are quicker, because they don’t require external authorisation. It also depends on the casino’s payout policy.
- Anonymity – This is perhaps one of the biggest pros of Canadian prepaid cards. Internet anonymity is a rare thing these days and if you want to preserve every bit of yours, a prepaid card might be the answer.
- Non-trackable – This point relates to the previous one; a prepaid transaction is not tracked by any bank or government agency, which is especially helpful for Canadian players, because some debit and credit card transactions to online casinos might be declined by the card issuer (bank). This doesn’t always happen, but it’s possible, because Canadian federal law allows banks to block any transaction they deem illegal or inappropriate.
- Budgeting – lt’s important to make a budget before you start playing, but it’s easy to forgo it sometimes. A prepaid card offers this additional protection, because you can’t spend beyond your means (aka the amount in the card).
- Easily disposable – You can always throw out your prepaid card, there are no strings attached.
Disadvantages:
- Deposits only – Perhaps the worst disadvantage of online gambling with prepaid cards is that most casinos only allow you to deposit funds with it, but not to withdraw them.
- Lower deposits – Some online casinos cap the amount you can deposit to your account via a prepaid card, which can be annoying.
- Fees – Usually, when you use a prepaid card for online gambling, there is a small fee for each transaction.
Popular Questions
Thank you for reading our article on what prepaid cards work for online gambling! We hope you now know everything about prepaid payment cards and whether they are the right choice for you. Below you can find the most popular questions relating to the topic, but if you have any others, you can always contact us.
1️⃣ What are prepaid payment cards in Canada?
The definition of a prepaid card is a payment card that stores deposited funds but is not connected to an external source like a personal bank account. What prepaid cards work for online gambling depends on the specifics of the services that they offer. They are currently extremely popular for gambling on the internet in Canada.
2️⃣ How many different types of prepaid cards in Canada are there?
So far, there are four types of Canadian prepaid cards that can be used at online casinos – disposable, reloadable, virtual, and crypto. There are major differences between the way they operate, but they are all easy to use at online casinos.
3️⃣ Which are the most popular prepaid payment cards in Canada?
The CA market for prepaid cards has been booming lately, especially for clients who use them for online gambling. The best prepaid cards for online gambling are too many to list here. However, some of the most popular choices for Canadian casino players are Visa, MasterCard, PaySafe, and Vanilla.
4️⃣ What are the advantages of using prepaid cards in Canada?
There are many advantages of using prepaid payment cards for online gaming in Canada. First and foremost comes anonymity, because your prepaid card doesn't store your personal data. There are also casino-related pros like transaction speed and better and more sensible budgeting.
5️⃣ Why do players prefer prepaid cards in Canada?
Many Canadian players choose to use prepaid payment cards and it's not just their convenience that makes them such a desired payment method at an online casino. Canadian banks are free to decline transactions, so Canadian players often make deposits with prepaid cards, rather than with their debit/credit cards.