Since the original three-reel fruit machines, the online gambling scene has grown to encompass five-reel games with thousands of paylines as well as action-packed themed slots. The industry’s rapid expansion brought on many new innovations within it, such as the best bonus buy slots.
Bonus buy slots are ideal for players that don’t bother too much with gameplay and are in it to win it! The option to purchase special features in slots rather than spinning the reels can dramatically reduce the time spent playing. And these are just some of the advantages bonus buy slots pose.
Today, we’re exploring the basics of these games and how they can benefit you best. You’ll also learn where to look for titles on the market and who the most well-known creators are. Let’s get started!
What Are Bonus Buy Slots?
Feature-buy slots are the best way to boost your bankroll when playing online. For example, free-spins slot games are among the most frequent types of bonus buy slots players come across.
While you can always earn a bonus buy feature the difficult way (via forming the right winning combination), many players prefer to purchase the deposit bonus to use it right away.
To enter a bonus round, we recommend you check out the paytable of the slot machine first. You’ll become familiar with bet levels and min and max win amounts. This makes it easier for you to determine whether purchasing those bonus spins is worth it!
How to Play Bonus Buy Slots
Activating a bonus buy feature is a piece of cake. You’ll have to open up the paytable in the game and look through the available features. It’s a good idea to calculate how much you’ll spend, how big the risk is, etc.
Some slots let players choose how many free spins they want to purchase or trigger a higher win multiplier. When satisfied with the setup and price, press the ‘Spin’ button to begin the bonus round.
The restrictions are usually the same when the feature is in use, whether you paid for it or activated it manually. Still, online slots with bonus buys frequently offer statistical advantages to players (better payouts).
Our Top Slot Reviews
There’s an ever-expanding list of options for those searching for a unique gambling experience. If you’re eager to play with an online slot that’s been tried and tested by our team, we’ve made it easy. Start by clicking through to the reviews in the list below to discover what’s on offer from each. You’ll then be confident knowing you’ve chosen from the best available.
Bonus Buy Variations
You’ll encounter various bonus features at the best bonus buy slots. We’ll now go over the types of bonus game features most often found in online slots:
Free Spins
The free spins feature is present in almost every slot game. Players can either purchase extra free spins or earn them via a bonus round. Usually, the game will offer a specific way to enter a free spins round (by matching the proper symbols).
Special Symbols
Scatter or Wild symbols open the doors to better prizes and payouts. Players can purchase different types of symbols when playing online slots with bonus buys. They then use the said symbols to enter bonus rounds, claim free spins, and spin the wheel to hit jackpots. Most come at a fixed price, while others may differ in cost depending on the game paytable rules.
Bonus Games
A bonus game allows you to claim special prizes like free spins and progressive jackpots. They require players to land the correct matching symbols on the reels to form a winning combination. Most of the time, this means players have to focus on higher-paying symbols in the game like Scatters and Wilds.
Types of Bonus Buy Online Slots
Online casinos offer a broad range of feature-buy slots. That means you’ll come across three-reel and five-reel slots, branded games, and online slots with progressive jackpots. We’ll now explain each type separately to help you determine your final preference.
Classic Slots
Classic slots are the most sought-after at an online casino. They mainly cater to first-time players, as they boast only three reels and are the easiest to play. There are no special rules involved here: you click a button to spin and wait to see whether you match three identical symbols.
Five-Reel Slots
Five-reel slots or simply video slots hold a couple of primary advantages over three-reel slots.
First, they have more paylines, which means you face increased odds of landing a winning combination. In addition, your bets will last longer when spinning five reels rather than three.
Additional features like coin value, RTP, and volatility will always be more profitable because five-reel slot creators continuously keep up with the latest inventions in the online casino market.
Progressive-Jackpot Slots
Progressive jackpots accumulate over time, and the values reset when a player hits the largest jackpot. In short, when you bet on a progressive jackpot slot, you contribute towards the jackpot value. These slots also feature perks like the bonus buy option and bonus rounds you can enter simply by spinning the reels and matching symbols.
Virtual Reality Slots
These types of slots are the most innovative and are a huge hit at new online casino sites. They work just like regular internet slots, except they simulate a real-life gambling experience. They can be themed based on the latest pop-culture trends like popular movies and TV shows.
The Most Popular Bonus Buy Slots Online
Playing bonus-buy slots is just like spinning the reels of any other online slot – you click the ‘Spin’ button and wait for winning combinations. You have to pay the price separate from the minimum and max bet amount to purchase a bonus feature.
Now that you know how bonus buy slots work, we can move onto a top bonus buy slots list:
- Buffalo Rising Megaways (Blueprint Gaming, 96.5% RTP);
- Money Train 2 (Relax Gaming, 96.4% RTP);
- Dead or Alive 2 (NetEnt, 96.80% RTP);
- Genie Jackpots Megaways (Blueprint Gaming, 97.13% RTP);
- Medusa Megaways (Netgen Gaming, 97.63% RTP).
Bonus Buy History
So, how did online slots with bonus buys come to be? Up until a few years ago, players could form winning combinations to unlock special features. This required you to match Scatters or Wilds to earn free spins, for example.
However, more often than not, landing the right symbols on the grid is difficult. It is even more difficult with high-volatility slots, as winning combinations occur less frequently.
So, one software provider, in particular, decided to add a new feature to slot games – the ability to purchase bonus rounds and free spins instead of doing it the hard way!
That’s when Big Time Gaming trademarked the Feature Drop in its White Rabbit slot in 2017. It also released a bunch of other slots with bonus buy costing from 25x to 100x your stake.
Since then, many game providers have jumped on the bandwagon to deliver to players what they want most – a feature buy slot.
Where You Can Play Bonus Buy Slots
Bonus buy slots are available at almost every online casino operator. However, you may not be able to access them, depending on where you live. There are six states where iGaming is (partly) legal in the US. Finding the best place to play can be a challenge. However, most of the best USA slot sites feature a variety of bonus buy slot games.
Casino sites, poker, and sports betting are all permitted under New Jersey’s online gambling legislation. As a result, New Jersey is one of just three states in the United States to have allowed all three types of online gambling, including claiming casino bonuses.
New Jersey also allows players to sign up at casino sites, play poker, and bet on sports. The state only implemented this change in 2019. Many of the state’s land-based casinos have already launched their iGaming sites, making it possible for players from New Jersey to deposit at their favorite home-based operators.
US players can also register at iGaming sites in the state of West Virginia. That was made possible following the passing of the Virginia Lottery Interactive Wagering Act in 2019. With this Act, the state legalized casino sites and poker games; before that, players could only bet legally online on sports.
Indiana legalized online sports betting in 2019. However, bettors cannot play casino games, claim a welcome bonus, or participate in any other form of iGaming activity.
In New Hampshire, players can bet online on sports. However, this is the only form of iGaming legalized within the state, and gambling sites and online poker are not accessible to players.
Nevada residents can participate in online sports betting and online poker. It’s unclear whether the state will pass a bill to allow casino sites to operate.
Finally, in Delaware, players can perform all iGaming activities. That includes registering with casino sites, playing poker, and betting on sports online.
Feel free to refer to the table below for easier navigation:
| State | Legal form of gambling |
|---|---|
| New Jersey | All forms |
| West Virginia | Casino sites, poker games |
| Indiana | Online sports betting |
| New Hampshire | Online sports betting |
| Nevada | Online sports betting, poker games |
| Delaware | All forms |
Top Bonus Buy Slot Software Providers
Since BTG’s Feature Drop release, bonus slots have become a staple at casino sites. For that reason, plenty of software providers put a unique spin on these slots by creating their own versions. Below, we’ll explore some of the most popular game creators that offer the best bonus slots.
NoLimit City
NoLimit is a Malta-based software provider supplying licensed casinos for the past decade. They offer only top-tier slot games, licensed and regulated by the UK Gambling Commission, which ensures fair play. One of the most popular feature-buy slots the NoLimit has released is Das xBoot.
NoLimit City locates and focuses on improving recurring flaws within casino games like outdated graphics and animation styles, laggy gameplay, and incompatibility with mobile. Its slots are available on multiple devices and boast flawless graphics and visuals.
Pragmatic Play
Pragmatic Play strives to supply online casinos with the best bonus buy slots. It also creates live titles for blackjack, baccarat, and roulette devotees! What’s more, all their games are available via one single API, which ensures smooth gameplay. They accept many currencies and are a perfect option for both US and UK players.
Pragmatic Play offers more than 200 HTML5 slots at the best online casinos globally. One game by the company you’ll inevitably stumble upon is Sweet Bonanza – one of the most popular feature-buy slots. The award-winning creator recently launched a sportsbook for betting fans to enjoy.
Relax Gaming
Relax Gaming is all about living up to its brand name! The software provider focuses on creating online games with complete optimization on all devices. The company only operates in regulated markets, meaning you’ll only find their titles at top licensed casino sites.
One of the best releases by Relax Gaming is Dream Drop Jackpots, a five-fold progressive jackpot game with a plethora of bonus features. Besides slots, the software provider also creates poker and bingo titles, and their code lets them constantly update and improve the gameplay.
Hacksaw Gaming
Hacksaw Gaming is a software provider with a fine selection of casino games (around 80 titles as of now). It has partnered with over a hundred casino sites and operates in over 18 regulated markets. Moreover, players can have their share of slots, fixed-prize games, instant-win titles, and much more.
This game creator has one of the best scratchcard collections. You’ll find over 40 mobile-friendly scratchcards with instant wins. The Malta Gaming Authority, the UK Gambling Commission, eCOGRA, and many more legal bodies have given this company the green light.
Pros of Bonus Buy Slots
As with everything else, bonus buy slots also have advantages that drive players to purchase buy bonuses. We’ll now dissect the biggest pros these online games offer and mention some cons later on.
No Waiting Time
If you want to skip extra waiting time, your best bet is to purchase the buy feature instead of earning it the hard way. Plus, in most slots, the primary requirement is to match at least two, or three scatters to get free cash funds. For some players, that takes the fun out of the game, and they get easily bored.
Thankfully, most slots today let you use the bonus buy option and revel in the prizes ASAP – no waiting time involved.
Better Payouts
When spinning the reels in the base game, you have a limited choice of bonus features. To take advantage of all the special features in the game, we recommend using the buy feature. That way, your max win may double or even triple!
Ideal for High Rollers
Generally, the bet range of a slot game is between $0.10 and $100. To unlock a bonus buy feature, players have to place wagers closer to $100. This puts them in the high-roller category, which can also add excitement to the game.
Higher RTPs
Bonus buy slots often have separate RTP percentages for the base game and the bonus game. As you may have guessed, the RTPs of Buy Bonus feature slots are frequently higher. The best method to demonstrate this is to compare the RTP of the base game to the RTPs available when purchasing Free Spins.
Cons
We discussed some of the primary benefits that these slots offer to players. Still, there are a few points to consider when deciding whether or not it is worthwhile to play bonus purchase slots. Let’s look at some of the disadvantages.
There’s Still Risk Involved
As wonderful as the best buy bonus slots, playing them doesn’t 100% guarantee you a win. If you want more free spins, the feature isn’t the only way to get them. Sure, with action-packed slots, it can be a drag triggering the feature manually, but it’s better than spending more to receive nothing in return. After all, slot games tend to be highly volatile, which means wins occur less often. On the bright side, if you win, the payout will be better.
They Can Be Costly
The best thing about bonus features in slots is that players can work their way up to that max win! You don’t have to spend a single penny to claim some free spins. You never lose money this way (except for possibly your initial bet). So, when you’re using bonus buy features, you risk losing your initial stake and the money that went towards the progressive jackpot or whatever other feature you want to unlock.
Conclusion
A bonus buy slot lets you claim casino bonuses without the hassle of matching symbols. Your options are abundant, and you can win free spins, enter a bonus game, or spin for a progressive jackpot.
To take advantage of these slots, players must purchase the feature they favor and simply start spinning the reels. As such, bonus buy slots present one of the most convenient ways to generate funds via iGaming.
FAQs
Will I only find the bonus buy feature in Megaways slots?
No, bonus buy is available in slots that don't use the Megaways mechanic, too. However, many players prefer this slot type because it offers improved winning odds.
What can I win via the bonus buy feature?
That depends on the casino title you've chosen. Bonuses like free spins, expanding symbols, and progressive jackpot wheels are often available.
Are there playthrough requirements on bonus buys?
Not within the game. In many cases, though, bonus funds contribute to wagering requirements set by the casino site. You won't be able to withdraw your winnings until you fulfill them.
Where can I play bonus buy slots?
You can find the best feature buy slots at almost every legal casino site. We recommend aiming for fully licensed online casinos with a stable reputation within the community.
When was the first bonus buy feature released?
In 2017, Big Time Gaming released the Feature Drop in its White Rabbit slot. Following this event, many other software providers started incorporating the buy bonus feature on online slots.
Can new UK customers claim a slot bonus?
Yes, all they have to do is find one of the best bonus buy slots that payout real money and choose a deposit amount according to which feature they want to purchase.