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Ontario’s top American Express casinos

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Checked by Jovana G.

American Express casinos in Ontario can currently only be accessed by using Amex through online wallets such as PayPal. You can’t use Amex directly. 

Although often transacted via payment providers like PayPal, Amex payments are a solid choice for Canadian players, with quick payments and impressive transaction limits. Here are the perks and drawbacks of using American Express, along with how and where to deposit.

Casino logo Odds rating Bonus Go to casino Button Show more T&C
1
BetRivers casino review
92/100 Payments rating by Elena I. 88% Playscore based on Top loyalty rewards
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Good to know

  • Use Amex via PayPal
  • Quick and professional support
  • Accepts Mastercard and VISA

6 payment methods

Visa
Mastercard
Interac
PayPal
Trustly
Bank Transfer
2
Betano logo
Betano casino review
87/100 Payments rating by Elena I. 87% Playscore based on Rich live dealer lobby
Play

Good to know

  • Over 1,500 casino games
  • Fast transaction times
  • Live chat available 24/7

7 payment methods

Visa
Mastercard
Interac
Apple Pay
American Express
PayPal
eCashout
3
betmgm logo
BetMGM casino review
85/100 Payments rating by Elena I. 85% Playscore based on Excellent games library
Play

Good to know

  • Amex via PayPal accepted
  • Other payment methods available
  • Secure and reliable

6 payment methods

Visa
Mastercard
Interac
PayPal
Apple Pay
Bank Transfer
4
pokerstars casino logo
PokerStars casino review
85/100 Payments rating by Elena I. 85% Playscore based on Best casino for poker
Play

Good to know

  • Amex via PayPal deposits
  • 8 other payment methods
  • Same-day withdrawals

11 payment methods

Visa
Mastercard
Interac
InstaDebit
PayPal
MuchBetter
eCheck
Paysafecard
Skrill
Apple Pay
Bank Transfer

Editor's note

At the moment, you can only use Amex to deposit through other wallets such as PayPal. The casinos here are listed in order for who gives the best experience with the Amex payment method, rather than just being a remodeled version of our overview of Canadian real money casinos.

If the casinos with the highest scores aren’t at the top of the list, it simply means that the other casinos offer better American Express payment terms.

Top casinos that accept American Express: Categories

When picking between the best American Express casinos online, everyone’s a little different. So, apart from our overall approach, we split the best Amex casinos into categories.

That way, you can find your best online casinos that accept American Express. Whether your focus is quick withdrawals, the freshest site, or you only want to trust your money to the casino that takes the #1 spot in our safety ratings, there’s an Amex online casino for you.

So, what’s your ideal online gambling website?

 

CategoryTop American Express casino
Our favourite Amex casinoPokerStars casino
Largest range of payment methodsBetMGM casino
Top alternative card paymentsBetRivers casino
Fastest withdrawalsPokerStars casino
Best mobile appPokerStars casino
SafestBetMGM casino
Newest siteBetRivers casino
Best for high rollersBetMGM casino

Choosing online casinos that accept American Express

Similar to when we’re knocking together the best online casino reviews,  we use a set of concrete criteria to identifying the top online AMEX online casinos. This section’s all about sharing those criteria with you.

Our goal here is to illustrate exactly what we look for when ranking online casinos that accept American Express, and clue you in as to what’s good and what’s not-so-good in the gambling market. The info here should help you to be able to go into a new Amex casino site you’ve never seen before and decide whether it’s good enough to be worth your deposit.

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    Deposits and withdrawals

    The ability to move your money into and out of online casinos that accept Amex is obviously important. Apart from being American Express casinos, seeing a good selection of other online casino payment options is a massive green flag in terms of trust. Amex casinos that rank well here are BetMGM and BetRivers with around 9-10, while FanDuel and Caesars lag behind with 4. Deposits should be instant, and are across the board. Withdrawals can take longer. BetRivers and FanDuel are among the fastest, often paying out within a day, while BetMGM and DraftKings can take up to 5 days. 

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    Fees and payment terms

    The best American Express casinos have clear info and T&C’s, and this is something all the ones we recommend do very well. While deposit and withdrawal fees are largely and rightly a thing of the past, always check the terms to make sure you aren’t caught out by any surprises. Other terms usually include the limits you can make when depositing and withdrawing. Standard transaction minimums are around C$10 for both, but Caesars goes up to C$20, and Draftkings drops as low as C$1 for withdrawals.

  • Safety

    Any safe and secure casino site must adhere to some core characteristics. A license and a clickable seal from iGaming Ontario (iGO) are mandatory, and all the stuff required to gain that license in the first place must be visible and easily accessible on the site. These include clickable safety seals taking you to iGO’s site, and to third-parties like Connex. Two-factor authentication for logins should be available, and there should be a suite of responsible gambling tools offering stuff like deposit limits and self-suspensions available. All the American Express casinos we recommend hit these marks. If we had to give one the edge, it would be BetMGM, their help section is a bit more expansive when explaining the gambling safety tools.

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    Mobile offer

    In 2024, American Express casinos should have native Android and iOS apps, and should function on mobile browsers too. To get our top scores, Amex online casinos should offer a user-friendly mobile site that offers speedy load times with minimal glitches, and at least 90% of the desktop online casino games available. As a mobile-first casino, FanDuel certainly hits this mark. 

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    Customer support

    The best American Express casinos in Ontario offer 24/7 support. Live chat should be available, along with email. The best ones will have phone support too. Quick turnaround sweetens the deal. Queue times of 1-3 minutes are about average, and FanDuel and Caesars were both able to get to us in under 60 seconds on occasion. An FAQ and Help section is expected to deal with the more common problems, but some casinos clearly put more effort here than others do — BetMGM’s is incredibly detailed, and BetRivers isn’t far behind.

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    Overall offering

    When in doubt, look at everything else. Software is a good place to start. Look for top software names like NetEnt and IGT. In terms of game numbers, seeing over 1,000 is quite uncommon, so 500-800 is really good (though the best in Canada hit 3,000). That’s around the ballpark you’re playing in with the best Amex casinos. BetMGM and Draftkings both pass the 800 mark, with the rest hovering between 200-300. User interface is another area of American Express casinos you can consider. BetRivers and DraftKings are quite transparent in our experience.

Pros and cons of online casinos that take AMEX 

There is a healthy list of positives when it comes to using American Express at online casinos in Canada. Since you’ll have to use your Amex card through PayPal, you enjoy fast and super secure deposits, so you can be confident that your online casino transactions will go through properly. 

On the flip side, the biggest issue is that same PayPal thing. There are no casinos that accept AMEX directly, and it’s not found at any Canadian online gambling institution. You can get around this with PayPal, but it adds extra steps and costs to the process. 

Let’s take a closer look at both the perks and the hiccups of these online gambling sites.

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    Fast, secure transactions 

    Using American Express at online casinos in Canada is a slightly more tedious process than it should be, since you need to go through PayPal to do it. Still, loading up your PayPal account with Amex takes no time at all, and Amex casino deposits through the e-wallet are instant. You also benefit from the security features of both Amex and PayPal, including PayPal’s bespoke approval system for gambling partners.

  • Check Round Green

    Mobile apps make deposits easy 

    It’s apps all the way. Most online casinos that take Amex have their own app, there’s an online American Express app, and PayPal has its own app. From top to bottom, you can make transactions from your mobile device on platforms that have been specifically designed for user convenience. 

  • Check Round Green

    Larger transaction limits

    Since any Amex casino has to work with PayPal, Amex users can benefit from the larger deposit and withdrawal limits associated with e-wallets, and the speed of a PayPal withdrawal. Most casinos process e-wallet withdrawals in under 48 hours, and can have withdrawal limits of up to C$60,000.

  • Check Round Green

    Widespread availability

    There aren’t any online casinos that take Amex in Ontario, but the ability to get around that by using Amex through PayPal is great. The popular online wallet is highly available at casinos in Canada, and can quickly become your one-stop-shop, even if you do want to try a few different casinos.

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    Can’t use Amex directly

    Casinos that accept American Express directly in Ontario are virtually non-existent. No casino will be shining the Amex logo in their footer or in their cashier section. You can easily get around this by using PayPal as your intermediary between your casino and your American Express card. But you are obliged to go through that extra step every time.

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    Withdrawal options become more complicated

    You have to go through the e-wallet to get any online casino that accepts American Express, and it’s the same for withdrawals too. The big downside of this is that PayPal and other e-wallets will charge you fees to move your money from your e-wallet account back into the bank account that your American Express card is drawing from. The e-wallet is an extra step that slightly ramps up your costs. 

How to deposit and withdraw at Amex casinos

The deposit and withdrawal process at Canadian online casinos accepting Amex has a couple of extra steps to it, due to the fact that direct Amex casino deposits aren’t available. Even with that, it’s a fairly simple process and shouldn’t take you more than a few minutes. The trick is to use your Amex account through an accepted payment method, such as PayPal.

Let’s walk through the typical deposit + withdrawal journey you’ll go on at any of the American Express casinos.

  1. Make a PayPal account, and top it up  —  Setting up PayPal is as easy as making an account, and adding your Amex card as your default top-up method. All you’ll need apart from that card is an email address. Once you’re done, link your Amex cards, and add some funds.
  2. Sign up to a legal Amex casino—You can find licensed casinos that accept American Express by going to the regulator’s (iGaming Ontario) site, and looking at their registry, or right here at Time2play; we only recommend licensed spots. You’ll need to verify some details like your ID, so have that close by.
  3. Head to the cashier section and make your deposit — Use the ‘deposit’ or ‘cashier’ button on the casino’s site to head to their payments area. There, choose PayPal from the list of options. Use the PayPal balance that you’ve added from your Amex card beforehand. You’ll need to enter your PayPal login details to confirm the transaction.
  4. Withdraw any winnings — Much like depositing, you’ll head to the cashier section, only this time you’ll choose withdraw instead of deposit. The funds will be deposited in your PayPal account, and you can either spend them from there again, or withdraw them to whichever bank account your Amex is attached to.

Our top tips for American Express 

American Express has its perks, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing you can do to make life with it better. For instance, you should always be playing at a casino that is licensed and regulated within Ontario. Playing at one that doesn’t hold this license opens you up to all types of problems including slow and non-secure transactions as well as other scam issues. 

  • Stick to legal gambling sites — Make sure the casino is licensed by iGaming Ontario (iGO), a subdivision of the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO). You can check iGO’s website to do this.
  • Ensure that the casino accepts PayPal — There aren’t any direct Amex casinos in Ontario, so you’ll need to go through an e-wallet instead to make those deposits and withdrawals. If the casino doesn’t accept e-wallets, preferably PayPal, you’re stuck.
  • Re-use your PayPal withdrawals — If you’re depositing and withdrawing at Amex casinos regularly, you might as well leave the funds in your PayPal account, rather than withdrawing them to your bank. That will save you on PayPal withdrawal fees, so you can count it as a bit of deposit bonus cash for your next transaction.
  • Take advantage of free games — If your Amex casino has demo games with free spins available, try them out to see what you like before spending real money on it. No use risking good cash on something just to discover it’s not actually fun.

Best alternatives to American Express casinos 

The best PayPal casinos are basically necessary if you want to use Amex casinos in Canada. However, while PayPal spots accept payments via American Express, you’re not limited to using only Amex cards with your PayPal account — toss a MasterCard or something on there too. PayPal is known for speedy transactions and is highly secure. 

Visa casinos are probably the best option to go for if you can’t use American Express, or if you want to deposit into your casino account without going through any e-wallet. It’s available at practically all online casinos.

Mastercard casinos are the other obvious choice along with Visa. The both offer c credit and debit options, and are found practically everywhere. The only thing you need to watch out for is that some casinos have them listed as deposit-only methods.

Interac online casinos are the way to go if you prefer online banking. It’s available at almost all Ontario casinos, and is fast and low-cost.

FAQs

Which is the best American Express casino in Ontario?

BetMGM tops our list for American Express at Canadian casinos. It’s got over 800 games, lots of payment options, top software providers like Playtech, and 24/7 customer support. Check out the top 5 Amex casinos on our list for more details. Even the top American Express casinos in Ontario don’t let you directly deposit with Amex, so use your Amex card with PayPal instead to gain access.

Is Amex a safe payment provider?

Yes, it is. As one of the top payment methods in the US, American Express’s reputation speaks for itself. Amex itself uses features like multiple security codes for cards, both a CVV and a CIP, and has its own version of 3-D Secure called SafeKey. The best AMEX casinos will also have their own security features, such as requiring you to verify your ID before processing your transactions, and 2-factor authentication for logins. Security is certainly among the benefits of Amex casinos.

Can I withdraw from casinos using American Express?

You technically can’t withdraw from casinos with American Express, but there are workarounds. Ontario casinos don’t support Amex transactions directly, but you can use an Amex card to deposit through e-wallets such as PayPal. Correspondingly, you can withdraw via PayPal, and then withdraw from PayPal back to the bank account your Amex card is linked to. Of course, PayPal fees would need to be taken into account here. Check out our deposit and withdrawal section for more.

My Amex doesn’t work at online casinos. What other options are there?

If Canadian online casinos accepting Amex aren’t an option for you, then there are other high-profile credit card options among the Amex alternatives — Visa and Mastercard. They can be found at the majority of online casinos in Ontario, and allow you to deposit directly, without the need for an intermediary. American Express deposits are rarely directly accepted by casinos, so the other option is to use Amex to load up an e-wallet and make your casino transactions from there. 

Can I use AMEX at Ontario online casinos?

Yes, but not directly. Unlike Visa and Mastercard, you can’t make online direct payments in Ontario because American Express is unavailable at online gambling websites. However, you can make payments to PayPal with American Express. In this way, you can still use your American Express card to play, it just has to go through an e-wallet intermediary. If you do not wish to use e-wallets, then you’re going to have to find an alternative to AMEX

Sources

  1. https://www.americanexpress.com/en-ca/

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