Setting deposit limits in a casino app

Setting deposit limits in a casino app: the short version

A deposit limit is a cap you choose on how much money you can pay into one gambling account over a set period. Once you reach it, the app blocks further deposits until the period resets. It doesn't stop you playing with money already in the account, and it doesn't limit how much you can win or withdraw.

In Great Britain these limits aren't optional extras. The Gambling Commission's technical standard RTS 12 on financial limits (opens in a new tab) sets out what every online operator must provide, and the same rules apply whether you use the app, the mobile site or a laptop. Our glossary entry on deposit limits gives the one-line definition; this guide is about doing it well on your phone.

What UK rules say about deposit limits in apps

RTS 12 was first published in its current online form in February 2021 and has been revised since. The current version, last updated on 30 September 2026, includes these requirements:

• Limit tools must be easy to reach from registration onwards, linked directly from the home page and visible on or linked from deposit pages.
• Limits must be available for at least 24 hours, 7 days and 1 month, at account level.
• Setting a limit is the default. You must actively decline before you can deposit without one.
• You type your own amount: the Commission's rules call for free-text entry with no pre-filled suggested figures.
• Where you set more than one limit, the most restrictive applies.
• Decreases take effect immediately; increases need a cooling-off period of at least 24 hours and your positive confirmation at the end of it.

The Commission's news piece on new deposit limit rules (opens in a new tab) explains the prompt that began on 31 October 2025. Its later blog on changes to customer-led financial limits (opens in a new tab) adds that only gross limits may be called deposit limits, with the deadline for offering them extended to 30 September 2026.

There are reminder rules too. If you have limits, the operator must prompt you to review them at least every six months; if you don't, at least every 12 months. More context is on the deposit limits page in our safer gambling section.

Gross, net, loss and stake limits explained

Apps may offer several kinds of financial limit. Only one, the gross deposit limit, is required, and it's the only kind allowed to be labelled simply as a deposit limit. Any others must be clearly named for what they are.

Why gross limits are the stricter choice

Say your weekly gross limit is £60. You deposit £50 on Monday, withdraw £30 on Wednesday and try to deposit £20 on Friday. Your gross total is already £50, so only £10 more is allowed. Under a £60 net limit, your net position would be £20 after the withdrawal, so the full £20 would go through.

That's why a gross limit is the firmer brake: withdrawing a win doesn't free up room to redeposit it. The idea of net deposits and a loss limit both have entries in our glossary if you want to compare.

How to choose a deposit limit amount

Start with money, not with the app. Work out what you can spend on gambling in a month without touching bills, savings or anything you'd miss. That figure is your monthly limit. Our guide to budgeting for casino apps has a simple way to do it.

Then decide whether shorter limits help. A monthly cap alone lets you use the whole amount on the first night. Adding a daily or weekly limit spreads it out. RTS 12 gives this example of overlapping limits: a £10 daily limit with a £100 weekly limit means you can deposit at most £10 a day, and so no more than £70 a week.

How quickly a deposit can go

Online slots must allow at least 2.5 seconds per spin, so the fastest possible pace is 1,440 spins an hour (3,600 seconds ÷ 2.5). At 50p a spin that is up to £720 staked in an hour. On a slot with a 96% RTP, the expected loss is 4% of that, or £28.80, and real results swing far wider than the average. Most people play slower, but the sum shows why a limit set in calm moments matters.

Step by step: setting a deposit limit on your phone

Every app lays things out differently, so these steps describe what to look for rather than exact button names. The rules require the limit tools to be reachable from the home page and the deposit screen, so you shouldn't need to hunt.

1. Open the app and sign in. If you're new, the app should prompt you to set a limit before your first deposit.
2. Find the deposit limit option, usually in your account settings or a safer gambling area, or via a link on the deposit page.
3. Choose the period: 24 hours, 7 days or 1 month. Set more than one if you want both a ceiling and a pace.
4. Type the amount yourself. There should be no suggested figure filled in for you.
5. Confirm, and look for a message saying when the limit starts. Reductions should apply at once.
6. Write the limits down or screenshot the confirmation so you remember what you chose.

If you use the same account on a website and in the app, the limit should cover both, because the rules set limits at account level as a minimum. Our guide to safer gambling tools in casino apps shows how limits sit alongside time-outs and reality checks.

Where partner apps say their limit tools are

Operators publish varying amounts about their tools. This is what the store listings and help pages say for five apps; where nothing more specific is published, look in the app's account or safer gambling settings.

Coral and Ladbrokes also cap single deposits at £2,000 in the UK, according to their help centres. That's an operator ceiling, not a personal limit, so it's no substitute for setting your own.

Raising or lowering a limit: the 24-hour rule

Lowering a limit is meant to be instant. RTS 12 says decreases apply immediately unless a technical fault prevents it, and in that case you should be told when the change will take effect.

Raising a limit is deliberately slower. The operator can only increase it at your request, after a cooling-off period of at least 24 hours, and only once you've positively confirmed you still want the change. If you don't confirm, the old limit stays. That pause exists because decisions made mid-session, especially after a loss, are often ones people regret.

If you're asked to confirm an increase and you're unsure, simply don't. The existing limit remains in place.

Deposit limits across several casino apps

A limit protects one account with one operator. If you have three casino apps, each needs its own limit, and money blocked in one can still flow into another. Our guide to managing several casino apps looks at keeping track.

For a single cap across everything, the tools have to sit outside the apps. Many banks let you block gambling payments on your debit card; the Gambling Commission's list of banks with gambling blocks (opens in a new tab) includes Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, Monzo, NatWest, Santander and Starling. Our page on gambling blocks in banking apps covers how they work on a phone.

You can also check your spending inside each app; our guide to checking your net deposits in an app shows where that figure usually lives.

When a deposit limit isn't enough

Limits work best for people who are broadly in control and want a guard rail. If you keep reaching your limit, think about raising it often, or feel uneasy about how much time or money goes on gambling, a stronger step may help.

• A time-out in a casino app pauses one account for 24 hours up to six weeks.
• Reality checks in casino apps remind you how long a session has lasted.
• Self-exclusion from casino apps, including GAMSTOP, blocks every UK-licensed online operator for at least six months.
• Blocking software and phone settings can stop gambling apps installing or opening.

Operators also run their own checks. Since 28 February 2025, net deposits above £150 in a rolling 30 days trigger a background check of public records such as bankruptcy. Credit-data affordability assessments are not live. See the signs of problem gambling if you're unsure where you stand.

Deposit limit problems and how to fix them

If a payment fails for other reasons, the guide to a casino app payment declined covers card and bank issues.

Support if spending feels hard to control

Setting a limit is a sensible step for anyone, not a sign that something is wrong. If money worries are building, though, talking to someone helps. The National Gambling Helpline, run by GamCare, is free and open 24/7 on 0808 8020 133, with live chat and WhatsApp through GamCare (opens in a new tab).

Our help and support page lists NHS clinics, Gamblers Anonymous and services for family members. The guides hub has more on managing apps on your phone.

18+. Every casino game has a built-in house edge, so over time you should expect to lose what you stake. Set a budget before you play and stop when it’s gone: safer gambling tools and support. Free, confidential help: National Gambling Helpline 0808 8020 133.