How We Keep It Real (Even Though Casinos Pay Us)
Okay, so here’s the weird situation we’re in: casinos pay us commission when you sign up through our links. But the second we start promoting sh*tty operators just because they offer fat commission checks, we’re toast. Our entire business depends on you trusting us, and trust evaporates pretty damn quick when you realize we’ve been steering you toward garbage casinos.
So yeah, there’s a built-in conflict here. How do we make money AND stay honest? Here’s how we’ve set things up to make sure commission rates don’t corrupt our reviews.
The Algorithm Doesn’t Care About Money
Every casino we review gets scored across eight different categories. Licensing gets 20% of the total score, payment processing another 20%, then bonus fairness at 15%, game selection 15%, customer support 10%, mobile experience 10%, responsible gaming 5%, and reputation 5%.
Here’s what matters: the algorithm scoring these casinos has no clue what commission we’re earning. Zero idea. A casino paying us 50% revenue share gets the exact same testing as one paying 25%. I’ve personally given higher scores to lower-paying casinos dozens of times because they simply performed better when we tested them.
Last year, BetRivers scored an 87/100 on our system while paying us a 30% commission. Meanwhile, some offshore casino offered us 60% commission and scored a 54/100. Guess which one we recommend? (Hint: not the one trying to bribe us with higher payouts.)
We Actually Test This Stuff
Look, I could write reviews by copying casino marketing materials and call it a day. Lots of sites do exactly that. Instead, I or someone on my team actually creates an account, deposits real money (usually $100-200), plays games, contacts customer support with annoying questions, and then tries to withdraw.
When we say “withdrawal took 4 days,” that’s not theoretical. That’s me checking my bank account every morning for four days wondering where my damn money is. When we say customer support was “unhelpful,” it’s because we actually sat through a 45-minute chat session where the agent kept pasting generic responses.
This costs us money and time. But it’s the only way to know what casinos are actually like beyond their polished marketing.
We Turn Down Money Constantly
In 2024 alone, I declined over 300 casino partnership offers. Three. Hundred. Most offered commission rates way higher than what our current partners pay. Some offered flat fees of $10,000+ just to add them to our “recommended” list.
Why’d I turn them down? Because they were sketchy as hell. Fake licenses, impossible wagering requirements, history of not paying players—the works. Yeah, I could’ve made quick cash promoting them. But then what? You lose your money, realize I sent you to a scam casino, and never trust anything I write again.
My reputation is worth more than any single partnership. That sounds like a motivational poster slogan, but it’s also just true. Once you lose credibility in this industry, it’s game over.
We’ll Pull the Plug on Partners
Here’s something that really pisses off casino operators: we’ve removed recommendations for casinos we were actively earning money from. Three times in 2024, we pulled casinos from our recommended list despite having active partnerships because their practices went downhill.
One started delaying withdrawals without explanation. Another changed their bonus terms to add hidden wagering requirements. The third got hit with a regulatory warning we discovered during a routine check.
Each time, we emailed them saying “fix this or we’re pulling the review.” Each time, they tried arguing with us. Each time, we removed the recommendation anyway. Lost thousands in potential commission. Don’t regret it for a second.
We’re Nobody’s Puppet
REKKR Casino Hub is privately owned. It’s just me and my team. No investment funds, no casino operators in our ownership structure, no parent company that also owns gambling sites. I’ve turned down acquisition offers specifically to maintain this independence.
Why? Because the second some investment fund that also owns three casino operators becomes my boss, my objectivity goes out the window. Can’t call out industry bullsh*t when your boss owns half the casinos you’re supposed to review.
Staying independent means I can write whatever I want, recommend (or don’t recommend) whoever I want, and not worry about corporate pressure to soften my coverage.
Yeah, We Make Money—But Here’s How
Full transparency on how this works: when you click our casino links and sign up, we earn commission. Every review page has affiliate links. Every “recommended casino” list includes partnerships. We’re not hiding it.
But here’s the thing: earning commission doesn’t determine what we write, how we score casinos, or what we recommend. Those are based entirely on our testing methodology. The commission pays our bills and lets us keep testing casinos without charging readers subscription fees.
Think of it like Consumer Reports, but instead of subscription revenue, we’re funded by affiliate commissions—with the crucial difference that commission rates don’t influence our reviews.
The Bottom Line
We need money to operate. Twelve people work here, we maintain testing accounts at 200+ casinos, and hosting this site costs real money every month. Affiliate commissions make that possible.
But we’ve structured everything so making money doesn’t compromise objectivity. Our scoring is algorithmic. Our testing is real. Our independence is non-negotiable. And our reputation matters more than any partnership.
If that sounds reasonable to you, cool. If you think we’re full of sh*t, that’s your call. But at least we’re being honest about how this whole thing works.