Our Methodology
How We Rate Online Casinos
Every casino in our rankings undergoes the same structured evaluation. Five weighted categories, real CAD deposits, and documented results. No shortcuts, no paid placements — just the data. Here is exactly how we arrive at every score.
Final score = weighted average of all five axes, calculated out of 10. When a casino has a clear specialty (live dealer, sportsbook integration, etc.), we may substitute one category with a tailored metric — always noted in the individual rating breakdown.
Every casino on The Link is evaluated through actual deposits and withdrawals using Canadian payment methods — Interac e-Transfer, Visa, Mastercard, and crypto. We never rely on demo accounts, operator-funded balances, or promotional credits.
Game Variety
Library depth, provider range, and filtering tools
A large game count means nothing if every title feels the same. We evaluate not just how many games a casino offers, but the diversity of providers, mechanics, and formats — from high-volatility slots to niche live dealer tables.
What we look at
- Total catalogue size — A baseline number, but we weigh variety across mechanics (megaways, cluster pays, bonus buy) over raw count.
- Provider mix — Presence of tier-1 studios (Pragmatic Play, Evolution, NetEnt) alongside smaller innovators like Hacksaw, Nolimit City, and Push Gaming.
- Table game depth — Blackjack, roulette, baccarat, and poker variants. Canadian-facing tables and low-stakes options matter.
- Live dealer coverage — Number of active tables, streaming quality, hours of availability, and multi-provider support.
- Lobby UX — Can you search by RTP, volatility, provider, or theme? A sprawling library with no filtering is a negative, not a positive.
- New release cadence — We check whether the catalogue is actively updated by tracking additions over a 90-day window.
Payout Speed
Measured withdrawal times, not advertised ones
Advertised payout times are marketing. We measure the real elapsed time from clicking "Withdraw" to seeing funds land in our account — across multiple payment methods and on different days of the week.
What we measure
- Interac e-Transfer speed — The go-to for Canadian players. We clock the total turnaround from request to receipt.
- Internal processing delay — Many casinos impose a hidden "pending" window of 12-72 hours before they even initiate the transfer. We time this separately.
- Crypto cashout speed — For BTC, ETH, and LTC withdrawals: how quickly the casino broadcasts the transaction and how many confirmations are needed.
- First withdrawal vs. repeat — The initial cashout almost always triggers KYC verification. We document how much extra time this adds and whether the verification process is reasonable.
- Weekend and holiday handling — Some sites stop processing on Friday evening. We test both weekday and weekend withdrawals to detect this.
- Withdrawal caps — Daily, weekly, and monthly limits. A big win loses its shine if you can only withdraw C$5,000 per week.
User Interface
The full experience from signup to cashout
Great games and fast payouts are undermined by a frustrating interface. We evaluate the complete player journey on both desktop and mobile — from the first page load through registration, deposit, gameplay, and withdrawal.
What we evaluate
- Load performance — Time-to-interactive measured on real devices using Canadian LTE and broadband. Lab scores alone do not tell the story.
- Navigation clarity — Can a new player find the game lobby, deposit page, bonus section, and support within three taps? Is account management intuitive?
- Mobile experience — Tested on both iOS and Android. Buttons in the thumb zone, legible text without zoom, responsive layouts in portrait and landscape.
- Registration flow — We count every step from landing to first playable spin. Unnecessary screens, confusing opt-ins, and forced bonus acceptance all cost points.
- Visual polish — Consistent design language, proper contrast ratios, clear call-to-action hierarchy. We flag dark patterns like hidden withdrawal buttons or misleading bonus checkboxes.
- App quality — If the casino offers a dedicated app, we test it for native performance, biometric login, and notification behaviour. Browser wrappers posing as apps get a lower score.
Bonus Value
Expected value, not headline numbers
A "C$10,000 welcome package" is meaningless if the wagering makes it impossible to cash out. We break down every bonus by modelling real play scenarios — factoring in wagering multipliers, game weighting, time limits, and withdrawal caps — to calculate what the bonus is actually worth.
What we calculate
- Effective expected value — The realistic dollar amount a player can expect to withdraw after satisfying all conditions, assuming optimal game choice.
- Wagering requirements — The playthrough multiplier and whether it applies to the bonus alone, the deposit, or both combined.
- Game weighting rules — Slots typically count 100%, but table games may contribute as little as 0%. We model how this changes the actual play volume needed.
- Bet size restrictions — Max-bet rules while wagering is active (often C$5-C$10 per spin) significantly extend the grind.
- Expiry windows — A 50x wagering requirement with a 7-day deadline is effectively unachievable for most players.
- Ongoing value — Reload bonuses, weekly cashback, loyalty tiers, and free spin offers that provide value beyond the initial deposit.
Security & Licensing
The non-negotiable foundation
No score in Game Variety or Payout Speed matters if the casino cannot be trusted with your money and your data. This category is a hard gate: unverifiable licensing disqualifies a casino from our rankings entirely, regardless of how well it performs elsewhere.
What we verify
- Licence authenticity — We independently confirm every licence claim with the issuing body (MGA, AGCO, Kahnawake Gaming Commission, Curacao eGaming). Unverifiable or lapsed licences are disqualifying.
- Encryption & HTTPS — SSL/TLS certificate verification, HTTPS enforcement on all pages including cashier and payment forms, and a check for mixed-content vulnerabilities.
- RNG audit trail — Independent testing certificates from eCOGRA, iTech Labs, or GLI. If audit results are not publicly accessible, points are deducted.
- Responsible gambling tools — Deposit limits, loss limits, session timers, cooling-off periods, and self-exclusion. We check both availability and ease of access.
- KYC process — Document verification should be thorough but proportionate. We evaluate turnaround time, accepted ID types, and how the casino handles uploaded personal documents.
- Operator history — Regulatory actions, unresolved player complaints, and data breach history across all jurisdictions the parent company operates in.
- Payment segregation — PCI DSS compliance, proper tokenisation of card data, and whether player funds are held separately from operating capital.
Meet the Review Team
Every score you see on The Link comes from hands-on testing by analysts who deposit their own money and document each step of the process.
Leads bonus breakdowns, payout verification, and comprehensive casino scoring across our full roster of reviewed sites.
Runs mobile app benchmarks, UI/UX audits, and load speed testing across iOS and Android for every platform we cover.
Times every withdrawal method, evaluates KYC processes, and analyses payment infrastructure for Canadian-facing casinos.
Read more about our analysts on the casino reviewers page.