A bonus buy lets you pay a set price, often 100x your bet, to skip the base game and jump straight into free spins. On a $1 bet that’s $100 for one feature. Streamers make it look like a shortcut to big wins. I wanted to know if bonus buys are worth it for a normal punter, so I spent my own money finding out.
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How does a bonus buy work?
You pick your bet size, hit the buy button, confirm the price and the game drops you into the feature. The RTP of the buy is usually listed in the game info and is often similar to, or slightly higher than, the base game. Gates of Olympus, for example, lists a buy RTP close to its standard figure. Our Gates of Olympus review goes into detail.
Same long-run return, then. What changes is how fast you get there and how wild the swings are.
My test: five buys at 20 cents
I set a $100 budget, 20 cent bets, and a 100x buy price of $20 each. Five buys. Results: $3.60, $11.40, $52.20, $6.00 and $8.80. Total back $82, a loss of $18. One decent feature carried the session, the rest were ordinary. The whole thing took under ten minutes.
That’s the part that worried me. Spinning normally, $100 at 20 cents lasts me an hour or more. Buying features burned through it in the time it takes to boil the kettle twice.
Why they feel better than they are
Every buy guarantees the exciting bit, so your brain gets the fireworks without the boring stretches. That’s great for entertainment, terrible for self-control. Back in club compliance we’d watch for exactly this pattern on machines: faster spend, shorter sessions, bigger losses per hour. Bonus buys are banned on UK-licensed sites partly for this reason, and they’re notably absent from Aussie land-based pokies.
Can you use bonus buys with a casino bonus?
Almost never. Most offshore bonus terms list feature buys as prohibited while wagering, and doing it can void your winnings. It’s in the same category as the max bet rule. Check the terms before you tap.
So are bonus buys worth it?
For most people, no. They don’t improve your odds, they multiply your spend rate. If you do use them, treat each buy as a whole session. One buy at a price you’d happily spend on a night out, then close the game. Keep bets tiny, and pick lower-volatility games if the option exists. Our volatility guide helps here, and the bankroll rules still apply.
- Buy price Usually 50x to 200x your bet.
- RTP Similar to the base game, not magically better.
- Bonuses Feature buys are normally banned during wagering.
- Speed Burns a budget several times faster than spinning.
If you want the feature thrill without the cost, practise in demo mode or browse our free pokies. Honestly, it’s the same buzz.
A bonus buy is a feature, not a strategy. I treat one buy as my whole night.
Do bonus buys have better RTP?
Sometimes slightly, but usually they’re close to the base game. The long-run return doesn’t change much; the speed of spending does.
Can I use bonus buy with a welcome bonus?
Usually not. Most casinos forbid feature buys while wagering is active and may void winnings if you do.
Why are bonus buys banned in some countries?
Regulators like the UK’s worried they encourage faster, heavier spending, so they removed them from licensed sites.
