Live Dealer Casino Games for Real Money - USA Guide

Casino Licenses

The very first thing you’ll want to check before choosing your online gambling partner is the license they operate with. Different regulatory bodies supervise their licensees in a different manner, and some impose far stricter rules and procedures than the others.

You’ll want to feel confident that your interests are well protected, and assistance is available in case of any misunderstandings. Most of the sites that accept US players operarte with an off-shore license and have one in either Antigua, Costa Rica or Curacao.

These don’t really hold a lot of weight on their own, and we’d argue that the opinion of the gambling community on a particular site is worth more than any of these licenses that can be bought within a month.

The state of New Jersey, where online gambling is now regulated, has a very valuable license that also does a great job in protecting the players and ensuring that the operators have the necessary liquidity to accept wagers and pay their players.

USA Players

American players, at the same time, have to make do with a confusing legal environment in which the federal law deems gambling legal, but individual states impose various restrictions.

These days, Nevada and Louisiana are the only US states which have made casino-style gambling legal everywhere; others have restricted it to specific areas such as Atlantic City (New Jersey) and American Indian reservations.

Then, you’ve got the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 which makes interstate and international online gambling-related transactions illegal and prohibits operators from accepting deposits from US residents. Players themselves are not directly forbidden to wager online, but still, need to make sure they chose a reputable site licensed in one of the recommended jurisdictions.

They can also do their gambling at casinos such as Betfair NJ, explicitly designed with a goal to offer legal online gaming services in the state of New Jersey. In 2014, the Casino signed an agreement with the Golden Nugget Atlantic City and was subsequently able to start operating under their internet gaming license.

Betfair NJ is currently regulated by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement and as of 2018, also offers live dealer games from Ezugi, namely Blackjack, Roulette and Baccarat.

Other casinos that operate in the United States market and offer live casino games for real money are MYB Casino, Bovada and Drake Casino.

Game Selection

Once you’ve made sure both your personal information and your money will be safe, check which live dealer games have been made available. Ideally, you’ll find a wide assortment provided by a top tier game supplier.

The challenge is that there are only two providers in the US live dealer market – Arrow’s Edge and Visionary iGaming. All sites are offering tables from one of these, and both have tables of pretty solid quality too.

Banking

The money angle is no less important, so you’ll want to check how deposits and withdrawals are handled. The bigger selection of banking methods, the better.

There should be alternatives to paying with a credit card and options offered to those who like using options like Western Union, gift cards or one of the many crypto currency options.

Support

Last but not least, make sure to check direct assistance options and availability. The best online casinos offer different ways to contact their support staff, Live Chat included, they employ multilingual agents, and make their people reachable 24/7.

You should be able to communicate with a person you can understand and receive immediate help no matter what time day or night, so don’t settle for anything less.

Despite the increasing number of alternatives, debit/credit cards remain one of the most frequently used online payment tools.

This has a lot to do with the highly advanced and continuously improving security measures implemented by the likes of Visa, American Express and MasterCard, their wide acceptance, high transaction limits, and instant funds availability at ATMs found at every corner.

Not to mention the fact we all already own at least one credit and/or debit card and use it to pay in physical outlets as well as online on a daily basis.

PayPal as a casino deposit method is only available for residents of New Jersey. PayPal is probably the most famous e-wallet, an option that enables fast, safe and simple online transactions. In order to use it, you will have to first open an account with the service provider.

However, the process is quick and easy, and all following financial transactions can be done simply by using your email address and PayPal password.

Not having to share credit card details with the vendor is an additional safety enhancer on top of advanced security measures implemented by the company.

PayPal is frequently available for both deposits and withdrawals, and when cashing out, one can transfer money to a credit card or a bank account, or alternatively use PayPal debit card to collect cash via an ATM machine.

Bitcoin is a well-known digital currency available for purchase via regulated exchanges. You can alternatively buy them at marketplaces from other individuals or at Bitcoin ATMs, paying either in cash, with credit/debit cards, or by wire transfer. One has to start by setting up an online or offline wallet such as Coinbase, or Kraken, and filling it with crypto currency.

A Bitcoin address is then used to fund the casino account. Online players also like this payment option because the lack of intermediaries enables faster transactions and digital currencies are not affected by inflation.

Blackjack

Blackjack is a skill-based game with fairly simple rules. The goal is to come as close as possible to 21 and at the same time, score a better hand than your dealer. Go over 21 and you’ll bust. The dealer will have to stand on either soft or hard 17, depending on the variant and the developer. Just to remind you: a soft hand contains an Ace, which can be counted as either 1 or 11 without busting.

Having been dealt the initial two cards, you’ll be given the option to stand (you’re happy with what you’ve got), hit (ask for another card to come closer to 21), double down, or split, the latter offered when your hand consists of cards of equal value.

Splitting them will create two hands, each of which receives one additional card. One can alternatively choose to double down by wagering twice as much and potentially winning more as the result.

The highest payout, however, is only 3:2, paid for a Blackjack consisting of a 10-value card and an Ace. If you’re looking to collect more, you’ll have to make use of optional side bets.

The majority of Blackjack variants offer Insurance, which players can purchase to secure their bets in the event that the dealer hits a Blackjack. It’s available when your opponent reveals an Ace, costs half of the initial wager, and pays 2:1 on the side bet.

Some games also come with a Surrender option one can use when facing a particularly bad hand. Paying the price of half of your stake will allow you to fold and save 50% of the initial wager.

Basic Blackjack strategy advises that you take this offer when holding a hard 15 against the dealer’s 10, or in case you’ve got a hard 16 and your host reveals a 9, 10, or an Ace. So how can one win more than the aforementioned 3:2? Most Blackjack games come with two side bets, namely Perfect Pairs and 21+3.

The first wins if you’re holding either suited or unsuited pairs and can win you up to 25:1. The 21+3 side bet is based on your first two cards and the dealer’s up card, paying if their combination happens to form a straight, a flush, a straight flush, or three-of-a-kind.

Get lucky and it could deliver a much as 100:1. While luck still plays a big role, applying the basic Blackjack strategy can change the house edge making it between 0.5 to 0.70% depending on the provider you choose. Make use of the available resources (which you’ll find tons of on the internet) and apply strategy to increase the game’s RTP.

Baccarat

Baccarat is a game played between two hands, the Player and the Banker. Do note that in this case the Player is not you and the Banker is not your dealer; these are simply two hands one can wager on.

The goal is to correctly predict which hand scores closer to 9. Cards 2 through 9 count according to their face value, 10’s and face cards are valued at zero, and Aces count as 1. Having calculated the total, the digit in the tens position is dropped to get the final result.

There are three basic bets one can place: the Player, the Banker, and a Tie. The standard variant pays even money on the first two though it charges 5% commission on Banker wins, while a Tie normally delivers 8:1. No Commission Baccarat disposes of the aforementioned commission but in the event the Banker scores a 6, you’ll only get paid 0.5:1.

The outcome in Baccarat is not as dependent on the usage of betting strategies as Blackjack, mainly due to the fact it features simpler gameplay and fewer betting options. However, there are game variants equipped with several optional wagers and significantly higher related payouts.

Arrow’s Edge Baccarat, for example, offers Player, Banker, Perfect and Either Pair side bets, as well as Banker and Player Bonus bets. Perfect Pair will pay 25:1 for two identical cards dealt to Banker / Player, and as much as 200:1 for two pairs.

Roulette

Roulette is essentially a game of luck, even though the creators of Martingale’s, Fibonacci, D’Alembert and other “sure-to-win” strategies try to convince you otherwise. It’s all up to a small ball and the slot it ends up picking after moments of completely random, nerve-racking hopping from one area of the wheel to another.

While there’s no certain way to predict where it will land, you can influence potential payouts by choosing from a range of available bet types and / or placing multiple wagers.

Before you start, though, make sure you know which game variant you’re about to play.

European and American Roulette are the two basic ones, the main difference being that the wheel used with the first features numbers 1 to 36 plus a single zero, while the other has an additional double zero slot.

What may look like a small deviation actually has a major impact on house edge – 2.70% (European) vs 5.26% (American).

European Roulette sometimes uses La Partage rule which softens the blow when the ball lands on zero while you’re betting on Red, Black, Odd or Even. Should this happen, you’ll only lose half of your wager instead of the entire amount.

Roulette players can choose to place so-called inside bets and wager on individual numbers or groups of numbers.

These include Straight up bet (betting on a single number), Split bet (betting on 2 adjacent ones), Street bet (3 numbers in a row), Corner bet (placing chips in the middle of 4 adjoining numbers), and Line bet (wagering on 6 numbers simultaneously).

Outside bets, as the name indicates, are those placed outside of the numbered area. They include Red / Black, Odd / Even, High / Low (1-18 and 19-36), Columns and Dozens.

The largest base game payout is obviously delivered by Straight Up bets which win 35:1. Before you get too excited, let us remind you that your chances of guessing the winning number are as low as 2.7%.

At the same time, outside bets like Red, Black, Odd and Even pay only 1:1 but the probability of picking the right one is as high as 46.4%. You’re welcome to go either way, just make sure to keep these odds in mind.

Once upon a time, the only way to play a casino game was to pay a visit to a land-based gambling venue, purchase physical chips, and face a limited number of tables to take a seat (if available). It was hard to imagine we would eventually be able to enjoy the same kind of experience from the comfort of our own homes, and yet the internet has made it possible to play any time day or night without having to travel anywhere.

The next breakthrough has allowed us to carry the casino in our pockets and place bets no matter where we are by using smartphones or tablets. Developing games in HTML 5 has made them accessible via mobile devices, though touch screens of much smaller size necessitated certain changes in terms of layout and functionalities.

In the beginning, it wasn’t uncommon to experience reoccurring freezing of the video and loss of connection, as well as accidental actions resulting from pushing the wrong button. That’s all pretty much in the past.

Developers are continuously upgrading their mobile offering and making their game interface more user-friendly with each new release. Today, online casinos are making mobile games available online via web browsers and /or provide downloadable native apps.

However, the experience is not quite as great for players in the USA. Arrow’s Edge is miles ahead of VIG in terms of mobile game-play. We tried their live roulette and blackjack on an old iPhone and were pleasantly surprised about the great overall user experience provided.

Deposit vs No-Deposit

Most online casinos welcome new players with a bonus offer expressed as a percentage match of their first deposit(s) and capped at a predefined amount the operator is willing to give players for free“.

As soon as you land on their website, they’ll try to convince you to join in by inviting you to collect 150% up to $1,000“, double your money up to x“, or claim a similar gift.

Sometimes you’ll eventually be able to cash out the bonus along with your winnings, and other times, bonus money will only be made available for playing and can never be withdrawn. Either way, prior to making a cash-out request, players will have to meet the so-called wagering requirements which we’ll discuss a bit later.

Occasionally you’ll find a gambling site offering a no-deposit bonus which becomes available as soon as you open an account. It’s a great way to test the casino risk-free, though these offers usually come with a maximum win amount and higher play-through requirements.

Cashback offers

Along with match bonuses claimable with a certain minimum deposit, online casinos frequently feature cashback offers which could be considered as an insurance against losing.

Should you happen to be unlucky and end up a day, a week, or a month having lost more than you’ve won, the casino will refund a portion of your loss. Cashback deals as a rule come with a maximum amount that the casino is willing to refund, so make sure you know what the cap is before gambling away millions.

Wagering Requirements

Being offered “free” cash might make a newbie believe bonus money is theirs to dispose of as they please, but more often than not, these treats come with strings most commonly known as wagering or play-through requirements. These basically tell you how much money you need to wager before you’ll be allowed to cash in the resulting winnings and potentially the bonus itself.

Strings attached to what is supposed to be a gift might cause frustration, but they are in fact the only tool casinos have available for protecting their bonus system from abuse. Imagine if hundreds of thousands of players opened an account, claimed the bonus offer, and then made an immediate withdrawal.

It would cost the casino huge amounts of money and probably put them out of business in no time. So while you’ll struggle to find an operator offering bonuses free of wagering requirements, you’ll be able to choose those with the friendliest terms. Make sure to read fine print, though! Play-through requirements could apply to bonus money alone, or alternatively to the sum of your deposit and the credited bonus amount.

Let’s say there are two gambling sites both promoting a 100% up to $1,000 welcome offer, one with 35x wagering requirements and the other with 50x. You’d think the first one was more favorable, right? However, reading on you’ll learn that you’re asked to wager both the deposit and bonus 35 times, meaning that having funded your account with $100, you’ll have to bet 35x ($100 + $100) or $7,000.

The other casino applies their requirements on bonus money only, asking you to wager 50x $100 or $5,000 before requesting a withdrawal. It just goes to show how important it is to read promotional T&C and understand what’s expected of you before saying “yes”. So what will happen if a withdrawal is requested before this condition has been met?

More likely than not, both your winnings and the bonus will be void. Checking if your wagering requirements have been completed or not can be done in one of two ways – either directly on site after logging in, or alternatively by contacting the casino’s customer support service.

One of the important wagering-related restrictions has to do with game contribution. Each and every casino out there rates your bets differently depending on what kind of game you play.

Normally, wagers made while spinning the reels of online slots count fully, meaning a $100 bet will contribute 100% to meeting your play-through requirements. But if you play a table game instead, the same $100 amount might contribute only 10% and make you only $10 closer to the target. Drake Casino for example will count your live blackjack wagers at 5% of their value.

This might seem low, but majority of US online casinos have excluded live dealer games from any contribution whatsoever. Some games, frequently including live ones, might not count at all.

It’s not done because operators like to make our lives difficult, but due to the nature of the game itself. Roulette, for example, allows one to simultaneously place bets on winning and losing outcomes, such as Red / Black and Odd / Even, meaning you could theoretically keep playing forever (and meet the requirements while at it) without taking a lot of risk.