Ethereum is one of the biggest alt coins, with many ranking it among the three most promising digital coins. It’s based on unique technology and has given birth to a variety of other coins and platforms. You can use Ethereum to gamble on a host of online casinos and we have listed all of them in this guide, along with many tips and tricks for depositing with Ethereum.
What is Ethereum?
Ethereum is a decentralised blockchain that works in a similar way to Bitcoin, albeit with a few key differences.
Its purpose is to execute and run smart contracts. What are smart contracts? They are contracts that can be executed when both parties have fulfilled their end of the bargain.
If someone pays you in Ether (the currency used by the Ethereum platform) to fulfil a specific role, smart contracts will automatically complete that contract and subsequent payment once the job has been completed.
Many of the most exciting crypto projects out there right now are based on Ethereum and exist thanks to its technology. NFTs are one of the best-known examples. These tokens have been used to facilitate the trade of billions of dollars.
I’m not going to get into what NFTs are, how they work, or why people are actually buying them (as far as the latter is concerned, I have no idea). Not only do you probably know those answers already, but by the time you read this, NFTs may have gone the way of the Tamagotchi.
Insane trends aside, Ethereum has created a wealth of opportunities for the cryptocurrency market and that’s why so many investors are getting excited about it.
The Best Ethereum Casinos
In most cases, if a site accepts Bitcoin, it will also accept Ethereum. There are some minor exceptions, but cryptocurrency casinos typically cast their nets wide and make sure they cover Ethereum, Litecoin, and even Dogecoin, in addition to Bitcoin.
At the top of this page, you will find a list of all the sites that currently accept Ethereum. These sites have been vetted and reviewed, and if you follow the links you can learn about everything from payment options to bonuses and more.
How to Get Ethereum
Ethereum casinos are not currency exchanges. In other words, you can’t deposit with USD or EUR and then withdraw using Ethereum. You also can’t sign up and instantly convert your funds into Ether.
That’s just not how they work.
If you want to use Ether on an online casino, you need to have it in your possession beforehand.
There are a few ways that you can do that:
- Mining: All Ether comes into existence through mining. You need a lot of computing power, though, and it’s generally not a viable option for the average home user working from a laptop or gaming PC. Ethereum is not as power-hungry as Bitcoin, but you still need to know what you’re doing, and that requires some prior knowledge and experience.
- Cryptocurrency Exchanges: You can purchase cryptocurrencies like Ether using exchanges. You will need to create an account, undertake a strict verification process, and then you can use debit cards and bank transfers to swap fiat currencies for cryptos.
- Sent Directly: One of the great things about Ethereum is that it can be sent freely to other people. It’s like cash, and it can be handed off with ease. If you know someone who has Ethereum, you can create a wallet and ask them to send you some. Of course, it’s not something they’ll be willing to do for free, but you can buy it off them. Some freelancers even get paid in cryptocurrencies, so if you work as a freelancer and have clients in the tech sector, you could ask them to pay you in Ether.
Pros of Ethereum Casinos
What are the benefits of using Ether to gamble on an online casino? How does it compare to other payment solutions? Let’s take a look.
Bigger Bonuses
Cryptocurrency casinos typically offer bigger bonuses than their fiat currency counterparts. You only need to look at the sites on this page to see what I mean.
I’m not sure why this is, but it likely has to do with the reduced merchant fees and other complications that come with establishing fiat currency payment systems.
Crypto casinos also want to give fiat currency players an incentive to switch over.
If a traditional site is offering them $100 and a crypto site is offering the ETH equivalent of the same, it’s not enough of an incentive for someone who is inexperienced in this sector and is wary of alt coins. But if that crypto casino offers a $500 or even $5,000 bonus, it should be enough to convince them to switch.
In many ways, you could argue that the cryptocurrency gambling sector is doing its best to promote crypto use, and has no doubt attracted a huge number of new investors and users over the years.
Secure Transactions
Ethereum transactions are very secure. There are some concerns regarding the storage of Ethereum, much like you would have with cash, but it puts everything in the user’s hands and that’s something that you just can’t say about banks and web wallets.
An Excuse to Invest
If you have been looking for an excuse to invest in and use Ethereum, this could be ideal!
If you’re playing with Ether, you have the perfect excuse to monitor the price, read those investment articles, and become part of the crypto community. Of course, you don’t need an excuse to do any of this, but if you’re a very busy person who uses gambling as a form of escapism—something into which you can invest your limited free time—then it helps to have that excuse.
I speak from experience. I work 10+ hours a day and 7 days a week, and I avoided investing in cryptocurrency for a long time because I didn’t have time to do my own research and stay on top of the price fluctuations.
By making it part of my hobby, I was able to learn while I played, and eventually I became an avid investor.
At the time of writing, I own both Ethereum and Bitcoin, as well as a few other alt coins.
I have made money from these investments, and I am hopeful for the future of ETH, which is my personal favourite. All of that was made possible by Ethereum casinos.
Huge Number of Casinos
You have many Ethereum casinos to choose from, as noted by the selection at the top of this page.
That wasn’t always the case, and I still remember the days when the only crypto casinos were dodgy as hell and made grandiose and ridiculous claims. In fact, I reviewed a few of them, and those reviews weren’t very positive. But that changed after just a year or so, and it has been improving every year since.
Today, there are hundreds of great crypto casinos out there.
Cons of Ethereum Casinos
There are clearly a lot of positives here, but it’s not all hype and promise, and there are a few cons that may deter you from using Ethereum casinos.
Not Available in the UK
The anonymity of Ethereum, and cryptocurrencies in general, means that it’s not currently available on UK online casinos.
The UK Gambling Commission is very strict about this. It insists that its licensees (the casinos) verify the identity of everyone using their sites. In the past, this verification was often made during the first withdrawal, if at all. In fact, I have been a member of some UK sites for years and I have never sent a passport picture or utility bill.
In recent times, however, the law has forced casinos to verify before the player makes a deposit or spins the reels.
Most of the time, the process is actually quite simple and can be done automatically.
The player gives their personal details and confirms them with a Mastercard or Visa debit card payment. The casino checks against official databases, including the Electoral Roll, and their ID is verified.
But Ethereum casinos pride themselves on asking for only the most basic information, often just a name and email address, and Ethereum payments don’t provide any personal details, either.
It’s a nightmare scenario for UK regulators and it’s why they have thus far frowned upon cryptocurrency use.
More Scam Sites
There’s no denying it—there are more scam sites in the crypto sector than there are with traditional currencies.
The lack of verification and the lack of paper trails, bank accounts, and other such necessities mean that cryptocurrencies are often used by scammers. In fact, I guarantee that most scam sites use some form of crypto, as it’s much easier for them than it is to accept other forms of payment.
Those scam sites are still the minority, accounting for an infinitesimal fraction. But they exist, and that’s a worry.
If you want to avoid Ethereum scam casinos, make sure the site that you’re using is regulated (probably by the authorities of Malta or Curacao) and that it works with official and reputable developers.
Less Recourse if You’re Scammed
If you are scammed on an online casino, your payment option will dictate your next move.
If you used a credit card or certain web wallets, you could initiate a chargeback and get your cash returned. The same is true for many debit cards, although it will depend on the bank.
In the case of Ethereum, you don’t have much recourse. There is no centralised authority controlling the payment—that’s the unique selling point. You will lose out, it’s as simple as that.
Not Beginner-Friendly
Let’s be honest, Ethereum, and cryptocurrencies in general, are not very beginner-friendly.
I’ve heard lots of people argue otherwise and insist that it’s easy to buy, store, and use these coins if you have a little common-sense, but those people have never had to help their parent or grandparent set up a computer or send an email.
I once spent 30 minutes on the phone to my father trying to guide him on how to watch the Champions League Final on BT Sport’s YouTube channel.
He knew how to open his laptop and find the web browser, but visiting YouTube and searching for the words “BT Sport” was skin to breaking into Fort Knox with a spoon.
He didn’t even watch the final. I gave up trying to help him when he somehow ended up on the BBC news website.
In the end, he listened to the CL Final on the radio.
That’s the level of beginner that I’m talking about. There are generations of people who know how to access the internet, send emails, and even play a few casino games, and they know because those things have become a habit. If you try to introduce something new into all of that, something that requires verification and involves a lot of new words, they will break down.
They’re not stupid, they just lack basic tech skills.
For a player like that, investing in Ethereum and using it to gamble is basically rocket science.
FAQs
What is Ether?
Ether is the payment token while Ethereum is the network. When you invest in this cryptocurrency, you're investing in the Ethereum network, but you're buying Ether.
Can I Buy $20 in Ethereum?
One of the biggest misunderstandings about cryptocurrencies is that you need to buy or use the currencies in single units. Thankfully, those beliefs are much less common than they once were, and no one thinks that you have to drop at least 1 BTC every time you deposit. However, many are still confused about the investment process. The truth is that you can invest as little as $20. You won't get a full coin, but you will get a fraction of it.
Will Ether Reach $100,000?
It's hard to say. Experts seem to be split on whether it will be worth 6-figures or nothing at all. We're dealing with unprecedented technologies and currencies, and only time will tell. If the last few years are anything to go by, the future should be bright for cryptos. But if governments clamp down, as we have seen with Bitcoin in China, then it likely won't stand a chance.
Can I Use ETH Casinos in the UK?
As noted above, the UK Gambling Commission makes it difficult for UK casinos to accept and process cryptocurrencies. That might change in the near future and there are some positive signs on the horizon, but only time will tell.
Are Ethereum Casinos Safe?
You don't have much resource for action if you lose all of your coins, so make sure that you're only dealing with licensed and audited casinos, such as the ones on this list.
Play Ethereum Casinos Now
If you’re ready to start using Ether on online casinos, simply visit the casinos listed on this page and start playing. You can either click on the bonus links and collect or you can read our reviews.
Once you have finished with these casinos, you may also want to check the sites that use CoinsPaid, an online gambling payment solution based around cryptocurrencies.