Canada's Top Slot Sites 2023

Most slot titles have a fixed jackpot, but the top online slots casinos will also include progressive jackpots in their games libraries. Progressive jackpots have prize funds that build every time the game is played but not won, with contributions made by players from all over the world. You can think of progressive jackpots as a mix between spinning a video slot and playing the lottery, as the odds of winning aren’t too dissimilar. While progressive jackpots have the highest volatility of all online casino games, they offer an exciting dimension to the online casino experience.

Another exciting element of playing slots is the tournaments they allow you to take part in. Different online slots sites will have different types of tournaments, but they all tend to work in similar ways. 

To get started, you’ll need to opt in to a tournament from the slot site’s promotions page. Then, you’ll collect points whenever you play the selected slot: more points are awarded for larger wins, while some sites may also reward you with a little boost after suffering a run of consecutive losses. Be sure to check the terms and conditions before you opt in ‒ there will likely be a minimum bet amount required for your spin to earn points.

As you collect points, you’ll advance up the tournament leaderboard. Once the tournament period is over, if you finish in one of the prize positions, you can expect some juicy rewards to come your way — winners often receive a payout in the thousands. At LeoVegas, for example, there is a monthly prize pool of just under $100,000 CAD, so there’s plenty to play for.

Based in Sweden, NetEnt was founded back in 1996, and its CEO is Therese Hillman. It produces the full range of casino games, including a diverse selection of excellent slot titles known for their high-quality graphics. NetEnt also regularly teams up with major film production companies to deliver branded slots such as Narcos and Dracula, as well as delivering a broad selection of top roulette and blackjack site options.

Founded in Estonia in 1999, Playtech specializes in blockbuster movie-themed slots such as Gladiator, The Matrix, and The Dark Knight. Its CEO, Mor Weizer, has been in the job for almost 15 years, helping to position Playtech as a leader in the delivery of a full range of online casino games.

Located in Valletta, Malta, Betsoft is another prominent software developer at Canada’s best slots sites. In fact, Betsoft’s games feature at over 500 casino sites around the world, and its best known slots include Pharaoh King, Mega Jackpot and Sushi Bar. This studio won Game Developer of the Year at the Corporate Vision Awards 2019, but its work is not limited to individual games — its casino manager product is a back office platform used by several operators, including 7Red, which picked up the Slots Operator of the Year accolade at the 2017 Industry Gaming Awards.

Despite being relatively young, Malta-based Pragmatic Play has quickly developed into one of the world’s best slot developers. Since its inception in 2015, Pragmatic Play has produced multiple award-winning slot titles, including Gates of Olympus, Big Bass Bonanza, and Wolf Gold, with plenty more innovative games on the horizon. If you decide you want to try something else, Pragmatic Play also provides a number of top-quality table and live dealer games.

Play’n GO is without a doubt one of the biggest names in slot game development. The company’s origins date back to Sweden in 1997, which means it’s been producing slot software since the dawn of online casino games. Play’n GO has been at the forefront of software innovation ever since, and has firmly established itself as one of the iGaming industry’s leading slot developers. Among its most popular slot titles are Reactoonz, Fire Joker, and the hugely successful Rich Wilde series. 

Nolimit City has quickly become an established player in the online gambling world, releasing over 70 top-spec online slots since its 2014 launch. The cosmopolitan software provider benefits from offices in Sweden, Malta, and India, producing a versatile library filled with various types of slot. Renowned for inventive themes and brilliant mobile-friendly graphics, Nolimit City also specialises in unique xWays, xBomb, xPays, and xNudge gameplay mechanics. Its verve and creativity is best seen in San Quentin xWays, the multiple award-winning 2021 smash that won Game of the Year at the Casino Grounds, Gaming Intelligence, and BigWinBoard awards. 

IGT is a bona fide slots veteran, playing an instrumental role in the industry since the 1950s. An expert in crafting classic slots alongside more modern options, the US company is responsible for legendary titles like Cleopatra and Da Vinci’s Diamonds. Although its land-based slot machine footprint is more extensive, IGT online slots are also regularly available at many of the best online slots platforms. Players enjoy various high and low-volatility slots alongside multi-levelled progressive jackpot games and other exciting options. 

Scatter icons generally trigger online slot free spins bonuses. Players must encounter a certain amount of scatters to activate the free spins. We suggest reading through the paytable and game rules to identify how the scatter symbols work in your particular game. 

The best online slots feature bonus rounds where punters are given opportunities to land the biggest jackpots. Bonus rounds are usually triggered by a certain combination of symbols, such as three wilds appearing in sequence on the reels, and reward players with free spins which they can then use to try and win big. While prizes in the main game tend to stay relatively small, it’s often the bonus round that pays dividends.

Avalanche reels, also known as cascading reels, allow players to potentially score multiple wins on the same spin. All symbols involved in a winning combination disappear from the reels, allowing new icons to fall in their place. This can trigger successive wins, often involving progressive multipliers. 

Expanding reels are some of the most innovative slots bonuses. Big Time Gaming is arguably the most pivotal software developer here, blowing the industry wide open with its pioneering Megaways mechanic. Random reel modifiers change the number of symbol positions on each reel during every spin, ultimately enabling up to 117,649 ways to win in most cases, and sometimes even more. ReelPlay’s Infinity Reels concept is also worth mentioning. Each winning spin adds a new reel and an additional multiplier. As the name suggests, this can go on infinitely as long as you keep hitting consecutive wins.  

NetEnt pioneered the cluster pays mechanic with Aloha! Cluster Pays. Instead of traditional payline-based gameplay, winning combinations require a cluster of identical symbols. The concept is similar to classic mobile games such as Candy Crush.

Multipliers are available in most online slot games. These bonus features increase your potential winning by a set amount and are common during free spins, re-spins, wild-based bonuses and more. 

If you’re here to find out about the best online slots in Canada, you’ll also want to know about free spins. Free spin bonuses typically require a minimum deposit, which the casino will reward with extra spins. For example, 100 free spins when you deposit $50.

Just like matched deposits, minus the deposit! These bonuses are entirely at the casino’s expense, but usually come with more stringent terms and conditions.

Understanding wagering requirements is crucial to enjoying casino online slot bonuses. These demand players bet through their bonus funds or free spins winnings a number of times before they can be withdrawn as real money. For example, to withdraw anything from a C$1,000 deposit match offer with a 40x wagering requirement, you must stake C$40,000. Naturally this is one of the most demanding of terms and conditions and one that usually renders it impossible to withdraw any bonus winnings.

Most casino bonuses have strict time limits on how long players have to use free spins or bonus funds and fulfil the wagering requirements. We highly recommend checking the time limits out via the terms and conditions before making a deposit. Some platforms only give you 48 hours to use the bonus, which can be extremely unrealistic.

Game restrictions are particularly common with free spins offers at online casino sites. These platforms generally restrict free spins to a few chosen games, with titles like Starburst and Book of Dead being two of the most common.  

Be wary of using e-wallets like Skrill and NETELLER when claiming deposit bonuses, as these banking methods are often excluded. This is partly due to fees placed on the casinos from the payment provider but equally because of potential bonus fraud. Ensure you check the terms and conditions to avoid any unwanted surprises.

Game weighting is another key clause in the terms and conditions. It relates to how much of the wagering requirements a certain game covers. Slots usually account for 100%, although some high RTP games can be less. On the whole, you can expect wagers on table games and live dealer options to count for significantly less, often lower than 50%. This means that only half of your stake goes towards the overall wagering requirement amount needed to claim bonus funds or winnings. 

Don’t forget about winning caps. Many gambling sites cap the maximum win from a free spins or deposit match bonus. This can be frustrating if you don’t read up on it first, so be careful. The upside is that it can make wagering requirements easier to fulfill.