Top Independent Bingo Sites UK

What is Independent Bingo?

Independent bingo sites are those that focus solely on delivering an outstanding bingo service. Many online bingo games in the UK are run by big online gambling brands who spread themselves across a range of different betting markets, including online casinos and sportsbook betting, as well as online bingo. 

While these bigger sites offer lots of benefits for those looking to play a range of different casino games, independent bingo sites are an excellent alternative for those simply seeking an outstanding bingo experience. Rather than treated as an accessory – or even as an afterthought – bingo is front and centre at independent bingo sites, and these sites work separately to major gambling operators. 

The Benefits of Choosing an Independent Bingo Site

When playing at an independent UK bingo site, you can expect to come across some of the following benefits. 

Specially-Designed Sites

At a major gambling site, bingo is often seen as an extra, rather than a key part of the service. This means that bingo games at these sites often end up seeming a little underwhelming, with limited attention to detail and a homogenous style across sites. While this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it can be refreshing to mix it up and play at a site that’s clearly passionate about bingo. That’s exactly what independent bingo sites are: they’ll pull out all the stops to make the site look welcoming, attractive, and easy to navigate, with a high quality of design and a unique style. 

Exclusive Games

New independent bingo sites are likely to host exclusive games in their libraries, meaning that you may be able to play titles that aren’t available anywhere else in the world. These sites will be finely tuned to any new bingo formats that emerge and will work hard to bring the latest innovations to their members. 

Bingo-Focused Bonuses

Most betting sites and online casinos gear their promotions towards sportsbooks, slots, and table games. While there’s nothing wrong with this, it can sometimes feel as though bingo players aren’t getting true value for money as a member in terms of bonus offers. At a dedicated bingo site, all the offers are designed to benefit bingo players, so you should find great offers on a regular basis. 

Customer Support

Since bingo sites tend to be smaller than online casinos and other online gambling outlets, their customer support services should in theory be sharper. Not only is this because there should be fewer issues to deal with, but also because all problems will relate only to bingo games as opposed to another gambling vertical on offer at a bigger site. Players may also find that these sites have dedicated more resources to developing customer support networks through their social media accounts, and this can be a great way to communicate with any brand. 

Smaller Games

Whether or not this is considered a perk or a defect is a matter of personal preference, but the smaller the site, the smaller the number of players in a game. This should make it easier to win prizes, but of course the flip side of the coin is that jackpots will also be smaller as a result.

Bingo Site Bonuses

Keep a lookout for the following bonus types at an independent bingo site, bearing in mind that terms and conditions will always apply. 

Bingo Cash and Tickets

The most prominent bonus type at bingo sites are bonus cash and tickets. Cash in this instance can only be spent on bingo tickets, and conditions like wagering requirements may oblige players to make further deposits in order to cash out any bonus winnings. 

Matched Deposits

With a matched deposit bonus, players are invited to make a deposit and will see a large chunk of it met by their bingo site. For example, if you received a matched deposit offer of ‘100% up to £50’, you’d land a total of £100 in your online bingo account from a £50 deposit. 

Free Spins

If the virtual bingo halls are getting too much for you, you can spend some time hitting the slots with a free spins bonus. These are typically dependent on a qualifying deposit, such as an offer of 25 free spins when depositing £10.

Payment Options at Independent Bingo Sites

Just as you’d expect to find at an online casino, independent bingo sites also offer their customers lots of different payment methods. Here are some of the most used, along with their expected deposit and withdrawal speeds – for the latter, the times given don’t include the processing time on the bingo site’s end, which can take up to 24 hours. 

e-Wallets

With quick deposits, rapid withdrawals, and excellent security infrastructure, e-wallets are among the most popular payment methods at any gambling site. There are lots of options in this bracket, including PayPal, Neteller, ecoPayz, and Skrill, all of which offer customers similar benefits. The biggest of these is that withdrawals are usually received in an instant once the casino has processed the transaction, e.g. bingo sites with PayPal. 

Prepaid Cards

Prepaid cards such as Paysafecard tend to be used in conjunction with another payment method as this option typically isn’t able to receive withdrawals. However prepaid cards are great for those looking to keep a tight watch of their spending, with only preloaded funds being available to use. This option works on a voucher-based system with deposits working via unique PINs. 

Pay by Phone Bill

This payment method will also need to be used alongside another, since there are no opportunities to request a withdrawal with pay by phone bill services like Boku and Siru. These companies link up with leading mobile network providers which essentially pay for online gamblers’ deposits on their behalf before charging the bill to their monthly contracts. Strict limits on deposits – usually around £30 per month – mean this option probably isn’t suitable for high stakes players. 

Debit Cards

Last but not least, debit cards are an excellent option at UK bingo sites. These payments are accepted everywhere, and they’re rarely excluded from bonus eligibility. But if you’re someone who likes to get their hands on their withdrawals as quickly as possible, you should know that debit cards are slow in this department, sometimes taking as long as five working days.