If you’re familiar with the expression, “the check’s in the mail,” you’re probably not familiar with using a 3rd party money transfer service for online bingo withdrawals. That’s because when making an online bingo payout request, a check isn’t always the fastest way to get your hands on the cash.

3rd party money transfer services have become popular choices for moving money in and out of online bingo accounts. And for good reason. It’s fast. It’s easy. And it’s secure. Here’s how it works.

Instead of setting up your financial information with your online bingo site, you set it up with a 3rd party money transfer service, like Moneybookers or Neteller. The site will give you what’s called an eWallet. Instead of funding your online bingo account directly, you fund your eWallet, either by bank transfer or using your credit card.

Then, when you want to make an online bingo deposit, you move the money from your eWallet to your online bingo site. When you want to make an online bingo withdrawal, you move the money back to your eWallet.

Still not convinced that the eWallet is the way to go for online bingo banking withdrawals? Here are three reasons why you should seriously consider it.

Your bank account info stays private

While most of the big online bingo sites have watertight security to keep your bingo banking and personal info private, it’s human nature to want to keep your bank account information out of the hands of people you don’t know, especially when you’re requesting a bingo payout.

By using a 3rd party money transfer service, only the transfer service will know your account details. And human beings will never see your information. Everything is fully encrypted, so even if your information falls into the wrong hands, it’s completely useless.

Cashout times are fast

When you request an online bingo withdrawal to a 3rd party service, the money is moved from your online bingo banking account to the 3rd party money transfer account fast—sometimes in a matter of minutes. Once the money is in your 3rd party account, you can move the funds to your bank account, or even transfer the money to another gaming site. Since you don’t have to wait for a check to be mailed out, your online bingo withdrawal is processed quickly, and you’ll have your funds extremely fast

You can use it everywhere

Let’s say you play at a specific online bingo site and you’re making a ton of cash. You’ve tried your luck at some table games, but you’re not really interested in casinos. However, you love poker. If your online bingo site doesn’t offer poker, you might want to find a dedicated poker site that has a huge pool of players.

Once you’ve found your site, you can either set up your financial information with the poker site (which might require sending them identification, scanning your utility bill, and even waiting a few days to process banking information), or you can simply move money in and out of your poker account using your 3rd party money transfer service. The same service you’ve already set up.

Fast. Easy. Multi-site friendly. Try a 3rd party money transfer service for your next online bingo withdrawal and find out why more and more people are choosing them when they play and win online bingo.

It’s amazing, isn’t it? Being able to play bingo with thousands of other people without ever leaving your house is an incredible proposition on its own. And when you actually end up winning real money, online bingo becomes even more unreal.

In previous posts, we discussed online bingo banking as it relates to funding your account and playing bingo for real money. Today, we’re going to look at the online bingo withdrawal aspect of bingo banking.

As you’re probably well aware, when you play bingo for real money, you use the money that’s in your bingo account, not money sitting in your actual bank account. How you fund your online bingo account depends on the bingo banking methods available—and what you decide to choose if you’re offered several online bingo banking options.

Depending on the site and your location, you should be able to choose from Visa, Mastercard, Neteller, Moneybookers, Prepaid Cards, and a number of other payment methods.

Once the money is in your bingo banking account, you can use those funds to play bingo online. And when you hit it big, your winnings are automatically deposited into your bingo banking account.

When and how you receive those funds is entirely your call. You can make an online bingo withdrawal every time you win. Or you could wait until you’ve amassed a nice fortune and make one large online bingo withdrawal. It’s your call.

Every online bingo site differs, but you’ll usually be able to initiate an online bingo withdrawal from the same place you funded your account. It’s usually called the Cashier or the Banking section. Most sites put the online bingo banking tab or button front and center in the software to make it easy for you to make an online bingo withdrawal.

Initiating an online bingo payout is as easy as choosing your payment method, entering the amount you want, and hitting send. Some sites will require you to fill out a banking information sheet prior to making your first online bingo withdrawal. This is done to prevent fraud, money laundering, and suspicious activity among those who want to use the site for intentions other than winning at online bingo.

For the most part, requesting an online bingo payout is as easy as funding your account (in some cases, it’s even easier because most of the paperwork is already out of the way). If you ever have an issue requesting an online bingo withdrawal, contact the bingo site’s cashier department. They’ll be happy to help you out.

So with so many online bingo sites to choose from, how do you know where to begin? Start right here, with our tips for choosing the right bingo room for you.

Look for reviews

Wondering if there’s anything beyond that fancy flash banner advertising fun money bingo? Concerned that your real money bingo cash might land in the hands of a fly-by-night bingo hall? You’re not alone. Those looking to play real money bingo, or even those interested in a site where they can play free bingo can’t be too careful. Remember, it’s your money, so you want to make sure you’re choosing to play free bingo or real money bingo somewhere reputable.

The Internet’s a great place to start. A simple Google research will yield tons of online bingo reviews that you can use to figure out whether the site you have your eye on is worth playing it.

Take each review with a grain of salt. While most reviews reflect how a site operates, some positive reviews might have been posted by employees of the site (especially if they’re dishonest). Negative reviews might have been posted by disgruntled players who don’t understand how bonuses work, or even ex-employees.

Check Facebook

Do a bingo search in Facebook and find out if your friends are fans of any online bingo pages or bingo apps. Even if no one you know plays bingo, you’ll find all kinds of large bingo sites that you might not have even been aware of.

Look for a site that will let you play for free

When you choose to play free bingo, you could either choose to play bingo just for fun, or you could choose to play free bingo and actually win big money?

Confused? Us too. But let us explain. When you choose to play real money bingo with someone else’s money, you’re actually playing free bingo with the chance to win real cash.

Still confused? That’s probably because you’re not aware of big bonuses that you could earn when you decide to play free bingo.

Just sign up for a fun money bingo account at the right online bingo site to get the bonus. Some sites will hand you as much as $25 in playable money, just for signing up.

From chatting with friends to scouring the net, there are countless things you could do to find the right place to play online bingo at. And remember, if you’re playing for free, there’s nothing stopping you from signing up with multiple online bingo sites. So go ahead and test the online bingo waters. You’ll be glad you did.

Not all bonuses are created equal. And not all bonuses are available to everyone. But by reading our inside look at online bingo bonuses, you’ll understand how to boost your bingo bankroll in ways you never thought possible.

The sign-up bonus

If you’re still a week or so away from payday and you can’t wait to drop into an online bingo hall to play everyone’s favorite 5-letter-word game, don’t worry. You don’t have to sell your stuff on Kijiji or Craigslist. Most of the big online bingo sites will actually hand you free bonus cash to play with. Yup, that’s a free bingo bonus, no deposit required. It’s not uncommon to see offers of bonuses as high as $25—just for signing up to play online bingo.

The first time deposit bonus

Burned through your free sign-up bonus? There’s plenty more where that came from. When you fund your online bingo account for the very first time, make sure you find a bonus code first. All of the big and reputable online bingo sites will actually match your deposit by a certain percentage. So if you deposit $100 and a site offers to match it by 200%, you’ll get $300 to play with. Most first time deposit bonuses come with some sort of rollover or clearance requirement. Online bingo sites incorporate those conditions so that you don’t just deposit $100 and then immediately withdraw your free money.

The reload bonus

Match bonuses aren’t just for first time players. If you’re a frequent player, make sure you sign up to your online bingo site’s newsletters and emails. When a new bonus becomes available, you’ll find out about it in your inbox.

The VIP bonus

If you’re a serious online bingo site regular—if you spend more time there than chat moderators and online bingo site employees—there’s a good chance you’re an online bingo VIP. Depending on the online bingo site you choose to play at, you could qualify for some incredible bonuses that are only reserved for the most dedicated players.

Social Networking Bonuses

If you want to stay up to date on the best bingo bonuses, follow your favorite online bingo site on Facebook and Twitter. Some online bingo sites post special bonuses for active members of their community, so don’t just rely on email to find out about the latest online bingo bonuses.

As you can see, playing online bingo requires less money than you think—as long as you know where to find all that bonus cash. So make sure you stay tuned into all channels of communication if you want to have more money to play with.

Is using a credit card at your favorite restaurant safe?

Strange question for an online bingo banking discussion? Not really. At a restaurant, you get your bill, you take out your credit card, you drop it into the billfold, and you hand it to the waiter.

It’s a good three to five minutes before the waiter returns with your credit card. That’s enough time for your waiter to write down your credit card number, text it to a friend, and rack up charges on your credit card without you having a clue.

Now let’s take a look at using your credit card to play online bingo.

You take out your credit card. It’s still in your hands. You type in some numbers. Again, the credit card number is still in your hands. You hit the OK button. And then boom. The money is in your account. And yup. The card is still, you guessed it, in your hands.

Nowhere during the process has your credit card left your sight. Ever.

By now, you’re thinking, “Yeah, but are those credit card numbers floating around through cyberspace safe?”

Absolutely. If you shop online for books, movies, clothing, or anything else, using your credit card to fund your online bingo works the same way. You enter your credit card number, type in your CCV code, and authorize your transaction.

Your online bingo banking transaction is encrypted with the highest level of security so that your credit card number and personal information are protected from hackers.

If you’re not convinced that using a credit card at an online bingo site is safe, don’t worry. The big online bingo sites have all kinds of other banking options to choose from. It’s not just Visa and Mastercard that can get you into the game.

Still worried about unauthorized transactions appearing on your credit card statement? Most credit card companies will take care of any unauthorized charges and conduct an investigation into who made the charge so that you’re not on the hook for it.

Alternatively, you could use a Prepaid Mastercard or Prepaid Visa to fund your account.

Bottom line? You don’t have to worry about a thing when using your credit card at an online bingo site, as long as the site is reputable.