Review & Rating Methodology
How Search-Casino.com builds its Trust Level and User Rating
Last updated: October 27, 2026
Every casino profile on Search-Casino.com carries two separate ratings. The Trust Level is our assessment of how far a casino can be trusted, built on facts we can check: its licence, regulator decisions about its operator, the responsible-gambling tools on its own site, its payment options and how long it has been running. The User Rating starts from our own player test of the casino and is updated as player reviews are approved. This page explains both, including the exact points behind the Trust Level and what we deliberately leave out.
1. Two Ratings, Two Questions
- Trust Level answers “can this casino be trusted?” It has six levels, from Blacklisted to Legendary Trust, and rests on checkable facts (sections 2–5).
- User Rating (0.00–5.00), shown on profiles as Player’s verdict, answers “what is it like to play there?” It comes from our player test and approved player reviews (section 6).
The two are kept apart: the User Rating does not feed the Trust Level, and the Trust Level does not change the User Rating.
2. What We Check for the Trust Level
Each check adds or removes points. The table shows every check we score and where the fact comes from.
| Check | Points | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Licence from the Malta Gaming Authority, UK Gambling Commission, Estonia (EMTA) or Kahnawà:ke | +2 | The regulator’s own register |
| New-type Curaçao licence (CGA, number OGL/…) | +1 | The regulator’s own register |
| Anjouan, Tobique or another offshore licence with a number | 0 | The regulator’s own register |
| Licence number not found | Not counted | — |
| A separate licence from a national regulator | +1 | The regulator’s own register |
| Responsible-gambling tools on the casino’s own site: four or more kinds | +2 | The casino’s own website |
| Two or three kinds | +1 | The casino’s own website |
| One kind | 0 | The casino’s own website |
| Responsible-gambling page read, no tools found | −2 (−1 where the regulator itself requires them) | The casino’s own website |
| Regulator decision: licence revoked | −4 | The regulator’s own decision or register |
| Regulator decision: fine | −2 | The regulator’s own decision or register |
| Regulator decision: warning, order or country ban | −0.5 | The regulator’s own decision or register |
| Regulator decision: passed regulator review, or a direct new-type licence | +1 | The regulator’s own decision or register |
| Regulator decision: change of brand ownership approved by the regulator | +1 | The regulator’s own decision or register |
| Sanction only for operating without a local licence | 0 | The regulator’s own decision or register |
| Payment options: four or more classes (cards, e-wallets, crypto, bank, local methods) or 20+ currencies | +1 | The casino’s cashier and terms |
| Payment options: three classes | 0 | The casino’s cashier and terms |
| Payment options: fewer than three classes | −1 | The casino’s cashier and terms |
| Launched in 2019 or earlier | +1 | Casino and operator records |
| Launched 2020–2024 | 0 | Casino and operator records |
| Launched later (0 if the operator already runs other brands) | −1 | Casino and operator records |
A sanction for operating without a local licence counts 0 only when that is all the regulator found. If the same decision also finds failures in player protection, such as missing age checks or obstacles to withdrawals, it counts as a fine.
The eight kinds of responsible-gambling tools we look for: deposit, loss, wager and session limits, reality checks, time-outs, self-exclusion, and participation in a national self-exclusion register (such as GamStop, Spelpaus, ROFUS, CRUKS, RGIAJ, OASIS or the Italian ADM register).
An extra, not a trust factor
Bonus terms add up to +3 on top of the checks above. Welcome-bonus wagering up to x20: +2; up to x35: +1; up to x45: 0; above x45: −1. A no-deposit bonus or a rare bonus mechanic (a wheel, quests, a points shop): +1. These come from the casino’s own bonus terms.
3. How the Points Become a Level
We add up the points of every check in section 2. The total and the conditions in the table below set the level.
| Level | Points | Additional conditions | Bonus terms | What overrides the score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Legendary Trust | +6 or more | All at once: a licence worth at least +1; no regulator decision with a minus against the operator; at least 4 kinds of responsible-gambling tools found on the casino’s own site; no open question about the licence or operator that we are still checking | An extra of up to +2: wagering counts at most +1, a no-deposit bonus or rare mechanic +1 | A Blacklisted decision (last row) |
| Trusted | +3.5 or more | None | Counted in full: an extra of up to +3 (wagering up to +2, a no-deposit bonus or rare mechanic +1) | A Blacklisted decision (last row) |
| Good | +1 to below +3.5 | None | Counted in full: an extra of up to +3 (wagering up to +2, a no-deposit bonus or rare mechanic +1) | A Blacklisted decision (last row) |
| Average | −1 to below +1 | None | Counted in full: an extra of up to +3 (wagering up to +2, a no-deposit bonus or rare mechanic +1) | A Blacklisted decision (last row) |
| Questionable | Below −1 | None | Counted in full: an extra of up to +3 (wagering up to +2, a no-deposit bonus or rare mechanic +1) | A Blacklisted decision (last row) |
| Blacklisted | Any total | None | Not relevant | A regulator decision on licence revocation, non-payment to players or fraud, which we quote and link |
Our editors set the published level, using the score as its backbone. The score is recalculated from current facts every time and shown to our editors next to the published level, so any difference is visible and can be reviewed.
4. Where Our Facts Come From
- First-hand sources only: regulators’ own registers and decisions, and the casino’s own website — its terms, cashier and responsible-gambling pages.
- Review sites, ranking sites and casino catalogues are not counted. A fact we find only there waits until we confirm it on the casino’s own site or in a register.
- When sources disagree about a licence, the regulator’s register decides.
- Every fact is stored with its source and the date we checked it.
- Brands with several country versions share one licence, one set of responsible-gambling tools and one record of regulator decisions. Their bonuses are counted per version.
5. What We Do Not Score, and Why
| Not scored | Why |
|---|---|
| Complaint counts on third-party sites | We cannot verify them. |
| Payout-speed claims | What a casino advertises often differs from its terms. We report the times its terms state, but they do not add trust points. |
| Support quality, game portfolio, site technology | They belong to the review and to our player test, not to the Trust Level. |
| Player ratings | They form the User Rating, which is kept separate. |
We do not publish a score table for every casino; on our Trusted Casinos page we show worked examples of how the points add up. Each profile shows the level, and the review sets out the facts behind it.
6. User Rating — Our Player Test and Player Reviews
Before a casino is rated, a member of our team goes through it as a player: registers an account, makes a deposit, plays and contacts customer support. Withdrawals are tested over time, as winnings allow. This first-hand test gives the starting User Rating, shown on profiles as Player’s verdict. Our test counts as one score, and approved player reviews are averaged in with it.
6.1. Rating Categories
Each player review rates five areas:
- Reliability
- Withdrawal speed
- Assortment of games
- Support
- Convenience of the interface
6.2. Calculation
A review’s score is the average of the five areas: (R1 + R2 + R3 + R4 + R5) / 5. The User Rating is the average of our test score and all approved review scores, rounded to two decimals (for example, 4.13 / 5). Next to it, each profile shows what it is based on: our test plus the number of player reviews.
6.3. Review Moderation
We moderate all reviews. We remove:
- spam and irrelevant reviews;
- duplicates from the same user;
- bot-generated 1-star attacks;
- reviews containing insults or advertising;
- reviews not based on real casino experience.
We never remove honest negative reviews unless they break these rules.
7. When Ratings Change
The Trust Level score is recalculated whenever a fact behind a check changes:
- a licence is added, lost or changes class;
- a regulator decision about the operator is recorded;
- responsible-gambling tools are added or removed, or found on the casino’s own site;
- the payment options change;
- bonus terms change (they add up to +3).
The User Rating changes as new player reviews are approved.
8. Independence and Affiliate Relationships
Search-Casino.com earns affiliate commissions from some of the casinos we list, as explained in our Affiliate Disclosure. Commercial relationships can affect which brands are featured more prominently on some pages, but never the Trust Level: no payment or partnership enters the points, and casinos cannot buy a level or a rating. Our editorial team works independently, and editors must disclose any potential conflict of interest.
9. Ask Us to Review a Rating
If you believe a rating is inaccurate or out of date, you can request a review. Tell us which casino and which fact you think has changed.
Email: [email protected]
