Methodology
How this register works: criteria, sources and funding
Every score here is produced the same way from the same five criteria. This page sets out what they are and what each is worth. It also covers where the underlying figures come from, and how the site is paid for.
The five criteria, and what each is worth
| Criterion | Weight | What it measures |
|---|---|---|
| Payout window | 30% | The operator's stated processing time, and whether withdrawals are supported on the methods it accepts for deposits. Weighted highest because it is the term players most often discover too late. |
| Licence and recourse | 30% | Which body regulates the operator and what escalation it actually offers. A Canadian regulator scores above an offshore one, because recourse is realistic rather than theoretical. Raised from 25% because it is now the most consequential thing recorded. |
| Catalogue and live coverage | 20% | Whether live tables are genuinely available at peak hours rather than merely listed. It also covers which game categories distinguish this operator, beyond the slots-and-tables list every casino can claim. |
| Platform reach | 15% | Whether there is a native app or only a mobile browser, and whether a sportsbook shares one wallet with the casino. Both change day-to-day use and neither changes month to month. |
| Support reachability | 5% | Whether help is reachable at the hours people actually play, in a channel that answers. |
Swipe the table sideways to see every column
Where the figures come from
Licences, minimum deposits, withdrawal windows and live-dealer availability are read from each operator's own published terms and recorded against a date. The current set was read in April 2026. Each operator page shows that month, so you can judge how stale a figure might be. Where a number could not be confirmed in the operator's own documentation, it is left out rather than estimated. That is why some fields are blank rather than filled with a plausible guess.
Bonus offers are quoted verbatim and never paraphrased, because paraphrasing an offer is how a condition quietly disappears. Payment-method behaviour is described generically where it varies by operator, and the cashier is always named as the final authority.
Where we have not verified an operator, we say so on its page and withhold a score rather than inventing one. The My Empire page is the clearest example. It is the most-searched brand we cover, and it carries no score. A score there would be a guess, and one guess would devalue all 6 of the real ones. The same rule keeps a number off Lataamo, which does not serve this market at all. It also keeps one off Slots Hammer, whose payout reports contradict its stated window.
How often it is re-read
Monthly. Operator terms change without notice. Payment support changes more often than anything else an operator publishes. It is therefore recorded per operator, rather than stated once across the 15 methods we document. A monthly cycle is frequent enough to be useful, and honest about its own limits. If an operator changed its terms yesterday, this register does not know yet.
Why the order is not for sale
No operator pays for a position or a score, and none can. Placement is not a product here, and the footer of every page says so rather than leaving it to this page alone.
What that means in practice is testable. The ranking follows the weighted criteria above, applied to figures recorded before any commercial consideration. You can test that claim against the register itself. The entry we rank second holds a Canadian licence, while the leader does not. The entry we rank last states the same 24-hour payout window as the leader. Neither position would survive if the order were for sale.
Who writes this
An editorial desk rather than named individuals. That is a deliberate choice. The alternative available to us was inventing reviewers with fabricated credentials. A fictional expert on a gambling site is worth less than a stated method. What can be checked here is the criteria, the weightings, the source dates and the disclosure — all of which are on this page.
Which market this covers
Everything here is written for players outside Ontario. Ontario runs as a separate regulated market, with its own licensing and advertising rules. An operator licensed there is often a different legal entity. Its terms differ from the ones a reader elsewhere in Canada would reach. Listing the two side by side would misrepresent which terms are actually on offer. Five heavily advertised brands are absent for that reason alone, rather than on merit.
Common questions
Who is behind CasinoAlma?
An editorial desk rather than named individuals. The alternative available to us was inventing reviewers with credentials nobody could check. A fictional expert on a gambling site is worth less than a stated method.
Can an operator pay to rank higher?
No. Placement is not for sale. The order follows the weighted criteria above, applied to figures recorded from each operator's own published terms.
How do you decide which operators to list at all?
Two filters. The licence has to cover Rest-of-Canada, which excludes Ontario-only brands. And the figures have to be verifiable in the operator's own published terms. Where they are not, the operator appears without a score, or not at all.
What happens when an operator's terms change?
The entry is updated at the next monthly re-read and the source month changes with it. Some changes are material: a licence, an owner, a payout window. Those are made on the operator page straight away, rather than waiting for the cycle.
Why is there no Ontario coverage?
Ontario is a separate regulated market with its own advertising rules. Listing its operators beside Rest-of-Canada ones would misrepresent which terms a reader would actually be offered. It is left out entirely rather than footnoted.
How should I report an error?
Name the operator, the field and where the correct value is published. The operator's own current terms take precedence over anything recorded here.
Corrections
If a figure here is wrong, the operator's own current terms take precedence and we would rather know. The most useful correction names the operator, the field and where the correct value is published. A licence number, a cashier page or a terms clause is enough to check it against the source. Corrections to the 6 operator records are made on the entry itself. The source month changes with them, so a fix is visible rather than silent.