Information about Colombia casinos
If you're an online casino player in Colombia, then you'll find a selection of sites to sample online. To be able to have an enjoyable and safe experience, it is important to know how to find the best Colombia online casino to play on.
You can use this page to help you find the best option for you, with our experts rating each site according to its reliability and quality, and our latest filter system weeding out the casinos you don't want. Read on to find more about how you can do that, as well as information about gambling in Colombia.
Table of contents:
Land-based gambling in Colombia
Colombia has many casinos, particularly in its capital Bógota, but it wasn't until the 1990s when a process of regulation took place. The government recognized gambling as a potential source of revenue, and casinos were required to hold a license, as well as pay the correct form of tax.
The government set up a regulatory body, today knowns as Coljuegos, which monitors sports betting and casino games, although the national lottery is outside of its purview – instead being operated by the government itself. Coljuegos governs the industry on a national level, while locally each province is under the eye of its regional government.
Casinos must have a license to host games including slots, roulette and blackjack. Those, who don't, face punishment, which includes a heavy fine and the possibility of prison for the establishment's owners.
Note: Despite the rise of online gambling, land-based entities still made up the majority of the country's betting industry, as of 2019, and could partly be explained by Colombia's social nature. People enjoy visiting casinos in groups, and there are often other activities for people to enjoy, such as dining and salsa dancing.
As well as the large number of casinos in Bógota, there are also huge venues such as the Casino Rio in the city of Pereira which hosts hundreds of slot machines and around 20 tables. For casino fans, the country is one of Latin American's leading betting destinations, offering a wide variety of entertainment.
Online gambling in Colombia
2016 was a big year for online gambling in Colombia. Coljuegos, the regulatory body, and the national government drew up a set of guidelines for internet operators to follow. Like with their land-based counterparts, each operator was now required to apply for a license, as well as to follow certain recommendations, such as what types of practices would help them become a trusted entity.
The Colombian eGaming Act was passed in October 2016, which put these guidelines into law. The intention was to improve the safety of these domestic sites for players and, of course, to generate revenue from them in the form of a fixed tax rate. Coljuegos displays all licensed operators on its website, so it's clear which domestic sites players are allowed to use.
Foreign sites were obviously exempt from these demands, so there was still a risk of Colombian players falling victim to unscrupulous operators without a Colombian license. That's why local authorities started blocking offshore websites and why our list of recommended casinos only contains licensed operators for visitors from Colombia.
Online gambling is completely legal in Colombia. Players are at no risk of punishment for playing casino games online. They should, though, take care to pick one best suited to their preferences, which this page can help them do.
The Colombian online gambling industry looks set to continue growing for the time being, and its ability to weed out unsavoury operators means it's a safe place for players to try out new interactive gaming and betting services.
How to choose the best online casino for Colombian players
The growth of online gambling means the number of options keeps rising for Colombian players, but this also means that they have to be careful to choose the best ones. Being able to trust an online casino is important, and this page will help you do that.
To start with, we provide a comprehensive review for each online casino that accepts players from Colombia, as well as the relevant rating.
These can then be arranged according to your preference using our filters. The 'All' tab when selected will present you with a complete list of casinos in our database, but, seeing as only licensed casinos are permitted in Colombia, it's advisable that you choose the 'Recommended' tab which will draw up all the available licensed options that have been rated well by our team.
Note: The filters don't stop there. Ticking your desired payment provider in the 'Payment Method' section will show you only those Colombia-friendly casinos that accept deposits from that method. Casinos compatible with American Express and Mastercard, both popular payment methods in Colombia, can be found this way.
For extra information on finding the best site for you, make sure you check out our How to choose an online casino article. You'll get the full lowdown on how to sort through online casinos and make the best choice.
How to find online casino bonuses available to Colombian players
If you're looking for great online casinos to play on, you'll probably also want to find which casino bonuses are available, too. The deposit (welcome) bonus is a good way to get something extra from a casino, while a no deposit bonus is a great perk if used in the correct way.
To find bonuses available for players in Colombia, you can head to our list of casino bonuses and select 'Colombia' in the 'For players from' filter. You can filter these down further by their type: just go to the 'Bonus Type' section and choose your preferred option, so for 'No Deposit bonuses, just click the 'No Deposit Bonus' box. Another way to do this is by going to our list of no deposit bonuses and selecting 'Colombia' there.