Navigating the gambling market in the US can be more than a little confusing nowadays. It used to be so simple; back in the days when gambling was prohibited virtually everywhere, anyone who fancied some casino time needed to plan a full-scale trip! The choices were downtown Las Vegas, Atlantic City, or on a Louisiana Riverboat.


While American legislation remained stubborn, citizens were waking up to the possibilities of online gambling, and people were finding fun and entertainment from the comfort of their own homes. The problem was that in the US, because gambling was so tightly restricted, people were playing on offshore, unregulated sites. Far from onerous regulations keeping people safe, it could be argued that it laid them open to risk.


As Hannah Cutajar writes,


"Gambling prohibition did not stop people from trying out new-fangled online casinos, but it did prevent them from doing so safely. Around the world, online gambling sites were popping up and tempting people with huge bonuses and staggeringly large jackpots. If policymakers were not inclined to act to guide people to safe, reliable sites, then someone had to do it."


She goes on to say,


"Casino.org was established decades ago to guide people to online gambling sites with the correct licenses, which were reputable, and understood that having the customers' best interests at heart was good for business. Gambling and online casinos are supposed to be fun – after all, entertainment is supposed to be entertaining. If iGamers find themselves on shady or deceitful sites, the fun comes to an end pretty quickly. The same is true if a site does not present users a fair chance of winning or makes the terms of bonuses and special offers unobtainable".


Hannah knows what she is talking about – she leads the team of online casino experts at Casino.org, and her goal is to ensure that players have the best online experience. She explains,


"Legal real money online casinos in the United States might be relatively new, but our expert team has over thirty years of industry experience. Our team reviews legal and regulated casinos that offer high-value bonuses and great cashout potential. We are independent, so we are not afraid of telling the truth."


"Because there have been, and continue to be, unscrupulous operators in the market, iGamers can be wary about where to play and reticent to try anything new. We understand that trust needs to be earned and set out to find the best operators. Our twenty-five-step review process is the most comprehensive in the industry. We strength-test sites for fair play, rewards, and excellent gaming. Our aim is to offer players a comprehensive picture of what individual online casinos offer so that there are no nasty surprises."


"Trust works in both directions. The online casinos trust that our reviews will bring them the customers they are looking for, and our honest feedback means that they will review any weaknesses we highlight. Unfortunately, some online casinos do not want to improve, and we are not afraid to call out the ones that fail our tests."


"Some online casinos are borderline scam sites, and some are just badly run. We do not mind why they are not up to standard; a failure is a failure in our books. We accept that sometimes there can be an element of human error or a player not understanding how to navigate a system. For example, I often hear users complain that an online casino is slow to pay out. Nine times out of ten, it's the verification process that delays the payment. So, I recommend submitting all necessary details and documents as soon as possible. If you do this as soon as you sign up, you shouldn't run into any issues when you want to withdraw cash."


"However, there are some sites that never intended to offer a level playing field, and we actively tell our readers which sites to avoid. It might be because of unprofessional customer support, sites being linked to questionable practices, or winnings not being paid out. We are also very hot about misleading licensing claims and slow response times."


"Our readers can take a Casino.org recommendation as a trust mark; our reputation is on the line, so we are never going to link to an online casino that does not come up to our very high standards. We review all aspects of the experience, so our readers can get on with the fun side of iGaming. We consider everything from site security to sign-up experience and customer service. We stress test the sites to see how easy it is to redeem bonus offers and whether the terms and conditions are fair".


"We need players to trust us and to come back to our site to find the latest news and most up-to-date offers. If they do not have a good experience, they won't return to us in the future. Our reviews are about building trust by painting an honest picture, so players do not get any nasty surprises."


We asked Hannah why players should trust Casino.org, and she told us,


"Well, I have already told you about our twenty-five-step review process, but I didn't say we have a dedicated team of 10 US market heavyweights. They keep our pages and guides bang up to date and are focused specifically on all things stateside. We have complete US coverage for all kinds of casinos. We do not only review the real money ones, but also sweepstake casinos. In addition, we review free games and the best sites to play them on. This allows players to hone their skills and learn their way around before wagering real money."


She concludes by telling us not to just take her word for it,


"We have been featured on Fox News, USA Today, Forbes, and the New York Times as a trusted voice. We are highly regarded in the industry as the go-to place for gambling news and commentary".