Guide
How we rate Curacao bookmakers
We rate each bookmaker out of 5 from six weighted criteria. Every score rests on facts from the bookmaker's own pages and the licence register. The rating sits on each review, and every bookmaker we cover is listed on the Curacao bookmakers A to Z page.
What we check first
Before any rating, we take the licence number and the licensee company from the bookmaker's own terms. We then look both up on the Curacao Gaming Authority online gaming licence register, by licence number, licensee name and company registration number.
Each review gives the register line as it stands: licence number, licensee, type, issued, expires and status. When no line matches, the review says so plainly. The licence check guide walks through the same steps.
A bookmaker whose operator or licence cannot be confirmed from any source is held back.
Our team tests every bookmaker and checks each fact before a page is published, and a timed test result appears only where the team has recorded one.
A Curacao licence is not a licence from the UK Gambling Commission. GamStop covers sites licensed in Great Britain, so a bookmaker abroad is never a way around a self-exclusion. Anyone who has self-excluded should not open an account with one. Help is on the responsible gambling page.
The rating and its weights
Each criterion is scored 1 to 5. The rating is the weighted average of the criteria that could be scored, out of 5, to one decimal place, rounded half up. A criterion the pages do not let us score is left out, named on the review and never counted as a low score. Where a criterion has more than one measure, its score is the average of the measures that could be stated, rounded half up. Amounts are compared as printed, in the currency the bookmaker prints, with no conversion.
The bands below were written down before any bookmaker was scored. They are not changed to reach a target number.
| Criterion | Weight |
|---|---|
| Payout speed and limits | 25% |
| Payment options including crypto | 20% |
| Licence status | 15% |
| Welcome offer | 15% |
| Markets and features | 15% |
| Support | 10% |
Payout speed and limits
How fast and how much a bookmaker pays out, across three measures. The highest maximum payout is the highest figure printed for a bet, a day or a win. Weekly and daily withdrawal limits are shown on the review but not scored.
| Measure | Scores 5 | Scores 4 | Scores 3 | Scores 2 | Scores 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fastest withdrawal time, by its upper bound, across all methods including crypto | 1 hour or less | Up to 24 hours | Up to 2 days | Up to 3 days (including 3 banking days) | Longer |
| Highest maximum payout | 1,000,000 or more | 500,000 or more | 250,000 or more | 100,000 or more | Less |
| Monthly withdrawal limit | 100,000 or more, or no limit stated as a cap | 50,000 or more | 20,000 or more | 10,000 or more | Less |
Payment options including crypto
How a customer can pay and withdraw, crypto included, across three measures. Kinds of payment are counted among cards, bank transfer, e-wallets or wallet apps, prepaid vouchers and crypto. The minimum withdrawal is shown where stated but not scored, because too few bookmakers state it to compare fairly.
| Measure | Scores 5 | Scores 4 | Scores 3 | Scores 2 | Scores 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kinds of payment named | 5 kinds | 4 kinds | 3 kinds | 2 kinds | 1 kind |
| Crypto coins named | 15 or more | 8 or more | 4 or more | 1 to 3, or crypto accepted with no coin named | No crypto found while other methods are listed |
| Lowest minimum deposit, at face value | 5 or less | 10 or less | 20 or less | 50 or less | More |
Licence status
Scored from the register line and read fairly for the Curacao re-licensing. The bands are set out in the next section.
Welcome offer
The sports welcome offer only. A casino-only welcome offer is mentioned on the review but not scored. There are up to four measures, each scored when the bookmaker states it: the wagering requirements multiplier (the rollover), the time allowed (the shortest expiry stated for the offer or its free bets), the qualifying odds, and the reward size (the largest "up to" amount in the headline offer).
| Measure | Scores 5 | Scores 4 | Scores 3 | Scores 2 | Scores 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wagering multiplier | 10x or less (including none) | Up to 25x | Up to 35x | Up to 50x | More |
| Time allowed | 30 days or more | 14 days or more | 7 days or more | 3 days or more | Less |
| Qualifying odds | 1.5 or shorter | Up to 2.0 | Up to 2.5 | Up to 3.0 | Longer |
| Reward size | 2,000 or more | 1,000 or more | 500 or more | 200 or more | Less |
Markets and features
Two measures. The sports count is the number the bookmaker prints (for example "50+ sports"). Failing that, it is the number of sports its pages name, when it names 10 or more. A shorter list is an example, not a count, and is not scored. For features, we look for in-play betting, cash out, bet builder, live streaming and odds boosts, and give one point for each found, from 1 to 5.
| Measure | Scores 5 | Scores 4 | Scores 3 | Scores 2 | Scores 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sports | 30 or more | 20 or more | 10 or more | 5 or more | Fewer |
Support
One measure: the best channel the bookmaker lists.
| Measure | Scores 5 | Scores 4 | Scores 3 | Scores 2 | Scores 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Support channels | Live chat stated as available 24 hours | Live chat | Two or more other channels (phone, email, a form) | One channel | None listed |
What the rating leaves out
Best odds terms and each-way terms, the mobile app, responsible gambling tools and complaints routes are not scored on this site. They are still reported on the review where the bookmaker's pages state them. Odds margins need live price sampling, so they are not part of the rating either.
How we read licence status
The Curacao Gaming Authority is re-licensing the market, and the register shows many licences as Assessment in progress. The bands read that status fairly. The register lines of the bookmakers we review are laid out on New Curacao betting sites.
The base score follows the register line's status:
- Active scores 5.
- Assessment in progress scores 4, and the status alone lowers it no further.
- Expired, Revoked, Suspended or any ended status scores 1.
One point is taken off, never below 1, when the line was found only by matching the company, meaning the licensee name or company registration number, because the bookmaker's pages print no licence number that matches the line. Nothing is taken off when the licence number printed on the bookmaker's own pages is the number on the register line.
A bookmaker with no matching register line scores 1, shown as "none confirmed". The expiry date in an Assessment in progress line is shown on the review but not scored, because the line itself marks the licence as under assessment.
How we choose pros and cons
A pro comes from a criterion scored 4 or 5. A con comes only from a sourced weakness, such as a withdrawal fee the bookmaker states, or from a criterion scored 3 or lower. We add no filler cons, so a review with no con lists pros only.
Questions
Do bookmakers pay for a better rating?
No. No bookmaker can pay for a rating or a place on a page.
How often do you check the bookmakers?
Each page shows when it was last updated, under its title.
Why is a bookmaker not rated?
A score needs facts to rest on. Where the pages give none, the review names what is missing and does not guess a low mark.
Why does a licence under assessment still score well?
Many licences share that status, so it does not set one bookmaker apart from another.
If you think we are wrong
When a bookmaker changes a term, or a fact here is wrong, our team checks the source and the register again. We then correct the page. How we check is set out on this page.
Sources
- Curacao Bookmakers team tests of each bookmaker's offering
- gamstop.co.uk Used for safer gambling help. One page.