If gambling is affecting your money, time, relationships or wellbeing, support is available. You do not need a casino account with a site mentioned here, and you do not need to wait for a crisis to ask for help.
Free, confidential support in Australia
Call the National Gambling Helpline on 1800 858 858, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Gambling Help Online provides online counselling and self-help resources. Support is available for people who gamble and for those affected by someone else’s gambling.
Signs it may be time to step back
Warning signs can include chasing losses, spending money needed for essentials, borrowing to gamble, hiding transactions or finding it difficult to stop when planned. Feeling pressure to claim a bonus before it expires is a reason to pause, not a reason to spend.
Take a break
Close the game, step away from promotional messages and speak with someone you trust. A break does not require recovering a loss first.
Restrict access
Ask relevant operators about account closure or self-exclusion. Consider device blocking tools and bank gambling-payment controls where available. Check what each tool covers; one block may not cover every operator or payment method.
Protect essentials
Keep money for housing, bills and food separate from gambling. Do not borrow, use credit or treat a bonus as a solution to a financial problem. A counsellor can help you work through next steps.
Bonuses do not remove the risk
A no-deposit credit or promotional spin can still come with wagering requirements, cashout caps and an expectation of further spending. Free play is not evidence that real-money play will be profitable. Random games can produce long losing runs, and earlier losses do not make a win due.
For family and friends
You can seek support even if the person gambling is not ready to do so. Gambling Help Online offers information for people affected by someone else’s gambling. Consider your own finances and wellbeing as well as how to start a conversation.
Australian online casino context
The ACMA explains that online slots and casino-style services are among services prohibited from being offered to people in Australia. An offshore licence or a site accepting a registration does not establish Australian permission. Read the ACMA guidance.
Contacting this website
Nick McGrath can be contacted at [email protected] about harmful or misleading wording on this website. This editorial mailbox is not a counselling service and cannot apply a casino’s self-exclusion controls. For support, use the independent services linked above.