Responsible gambling

The most useful tools are the boring ones, and nearly every licensed casino has them in the account settings.

Deposit limits. Set a daily, weekly or monthly cap on what you can put in. At many sites a lower limit applies straight away while a higher one only kicks in after a waiting period. That delay is the feature. It gives you a night's sleep between the impulse and the money.

Loss and session limits. Some sites let you cap net losses or the length of a session. Use both if you can.

Reality checks. A pop-up every so often showing how long you've played and what you've won or lost. Slots are fast and time blurs. Turn it on at a short interval.

Time-outs. A cooling-off break locks the account for a set period without closing it.

A few habits help too. Don't play to recover money you've already lost; that's the most expensive decision in gambling. Don't play when you're upset, tired or drinking. Keep gambling money separate from rent and bills. And remember the demo buttons on this site cost nothing at all.

Self-exclusion is a formal block. You ask, and for a set period you can't open or use gambling accounts. It's for when limits aren't enough, and there's no shame in using it.

UK. GAMSTOP lets you block your access to accounts on gambling websites and apps, and says it's free. There's a separate scheme for betting shops. GAMSTOP also points to bank gambling blocks, which it describes as free tools offered by most UK banks.

Slovenia. Under Article 9 of the Gaming Act (ZIS), you can give a written statement to a casino or gaming hall concessionaire asking to be barred for at least six months and at most three years. The ban can't be withdrawn during that period and it applies across the whole country: FURS passes it to every casino and gaming hall. Loterija Slovenije's website also has its own self-exclusion (samoprepoved igranja) page.

Germany. The federal advice site check-dein-spiel.de has a section on Spielersperre (player bans) explaining how to have yourself barred.

Blocking software on your phone and laptop is a useful extra layer, and the Slovenian service Mladi hazarder lists device blocking among its tools.

Slovenia's Ministry of Health describes gambling disorder as a recognised condition that needs treatment, like substance addictions, and lists criteria such as loss of control, withdrawal symptoms and money problems. In everyday terms, any of these is a reason to pause:

• You spend more time or money than you meant to, often.
• You feel restless or irritable when you try to cut down.
• You play to get back money you've lost.
• You hide how much you play from people close to you.
• You borrow, sell things or skip bills to keep playing.
• Gambling is the thing you think about when you're not doing it.

One sign doesn't make a diagnosis. Several, over weeks, is worth a phone call. The helplines below take calls from family and friends as well.

Every number here was checked on the official site linked, on November 3, 2026. Where the site says the line is free or anonymous, we say so; where it doesn't, we don't.

A note on the US number: the NCPG site now lists 1-800-MY-RESET as the national helpline number. We didn't find 1-800-GAMBLER on the NCPG pages we checked, so we've listed the number the NCPG itself shows.

If you're in crisis, not just worried about gambling, call emergency services. In the US the NCPG points people in crisis to 911 or 988. In Great Britain, GambleAware lists Samaritans on 116 123, free.

You can call most of the lines above about someone else. GamCare's line covers your own gambling or someone else's, the US helpline takes contact from loved ones, and Extern supports anyone affected by gambling harm.

Keep it calm and specific. Talk about what you've noticed rather than labels. Protect your own money: separate accounts, no lending to cover gambling debts. And look after yourself, because living alongside someone's gambling is hard on its own.