Test duration and budget
Each initial review is built over a minimum of ten days with an editorial deposit budget of A$300 across the payment methods that Australian players would realistically use. That budget is treated as a gambling loss line item — if it is lost during the test sessions, the operator keeps it; if there are winnings, they are withdrawn through the same payment rail to measure payout speed.
The twelve stages
1. Licence verification
We take the licence number displayed on the operator's footer and look it up on the regulator's public register. If the regulator does not publish a searchable register, or if the licence number returns no result, we flag this as a blocker and do not proceed with a commercial recommendation. For Realz Casino, that means verifying Tobique Gaming Commission licence 0000071 on the TGC register.
2. Corporate ownership
We identify the registered operating entity, country of incorporation, and any parent group. This matters because the entity on the licence may not be the entity that holds player funds; when those diverge, the player's recourse in a dispute is weaker. Ownership is reported as observed on the day of review with a cited source.
3. Bonus terms and conditions audit
Every advertised promotion is read in full. We record the headline match percentage, the maximum bonus value, the wagering multiplier, the base used for wagering (deposit only, bonus only, deposit plus bonus), the bet cap during wagering, the expiry window, and any excluded game or payment method. Differences between the landing page copy and the clickthrough T&C page are documented as discrepancies.
4. AUD and PayID confirmation
We open the cashier, select AUD at registration, and verify PayID appears as a listed method with a real minimum and processing note. A small PayID transfer is used as a smoke test before a larger funded deposit.
5. Funded deposit test
Deposits are made from a real bank account or registered wallet held by editorial staff, not from operator-provided accounts. Deposit time is recorded to the minute, the transaction identifier is screenshotted, and any mismatch between quoted processing time and actual arrival is noted.
6. KYC walkthrough
We complete every identity-verification tier available to us — basic, standard, and full — and record which documents are requested, how long review takes, and how support responds when a document is rejected. We specifically probe how the operator handles Australian driver licences that now expire at different intervals by state.
7. Game sampling
A minimum of thirty spins are logged across three volatility bands (low, medium, high) and at least one live-dealer table is joined for ten minutes. We record streaming resolution, input latency on mobile, and whether demo play works without registration. RTP figures in game descriptions are sampled against provider-published values to surface claim mismatches.
8. Withdrawal test
At least two withdrawals are attempted on distinct payment methods: one local (PayID or card) and one crypto where available. The time between submission and arrival in the funding account is recorded. Any withdrawal that is held, reversed, or asked for additional documentation mid-flight is treated as a review-blocking event and documented prominently.
9. Support probe
Two live-chat sessions are opened with clearly distinct questions — one bonus-related, one payment-related. Response time, language capability, and willingness to escalate to a supervisor are all recorded. Email tickets are run in parallel to measure response latency.
10. Responsible gambling audit
Every RG tool on the site is catalogued. We try to enable each one, measure friction (number of clicks, whether support contact is required), and test whether settings survive a session refresh. Self-exclusion is attempted at the end of the review cycle to confirm it is actually honoured, then reversed only when permitted by the operator's policy.
11. Scoring rubric
Each review produces a weighted 100-point score composed of the following bands:
| Criterion | Weight | What we measure |
|---|---|---|
| Licence strength | 15 | Regulator tier and enforceability |
| Payout speed and reliability | 20 | Observed time from submission to arrival |
| AU payment support | 10 | PayID, AUD, local cards, fees |
| Bonus fairness | 15 | Wagering, bet caps, exclusions |
| Game library and providers | 10 | Breadth and RTP accuracy |
| Support quality | 10 | Response time and resolution |
| Responsible gambling tooling | 15 | Availability and friction |
| Terms clarity and dispute history | 5 | Public complaint record |
12. Re-test cadence
Every review is re-run at a minimum of six-month intervals. Any change in licence status, ownership, banking partner, or bonus headline triggers an immediate re-test regardless of cadence. The publication date of the last full re-test is visible at the top of every review.
What we do not do
- Accept operator-funded VIP balances, comp trips, or sponsored coverage
- Publish reviews written by operator marketing teams
- Remove negative findings in exchange for higher commission rates
- Rank operators that refuse to publish full bonus terms
- Rank operators that have active unresolved player-fund complaints on public databases
Correction log
Every factual correction is published on the affected page with the original text struck through and the correction dated. A site-wide change log is available on request at [email protected]. Silent edits are not policy.