How to stop gambling at online casinos: 10 steps
Start with the step that feels easiest. Each one you add makes the protection stronger.
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Close your casino accounts
Take your time. Withdraw your money first. Then log in to each casino account, including any on crash game sites. Open the responsible gambling page and pick permanent closure, or the longest break you can. Save a screenshot of the confirmation: that is your proof.
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Ask your bank to block casino payments
Call your bank or use their app to ask for a block on casino payments. Give them the code MCC 7995. It is the bank code for gambling. Some apps have a gambling block button you can switch on yourself. Ask: the answer is usually yes.
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Block casino payments on your mobile money account
In several African countries, people pay with mobile money. Orange Money, Wave, MTN, Airtel and M-Pesa can all block payments to casino sites if you ask. Call your provider's support line and ask them to block gambling.
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Install a site blocker on your phone and computer
BetBlocker is free and blocks gambling sites on every device you install it on. Install it on your phone, tablet and computer. Set it up now, before the next urge hits, so it is ready when you need it.
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Call a helpline where no one will judge you
You can call at any time, whatever your situation. These services are confidential. They are there whenever you are ready. You can chat online if calling feels too hard.
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Tell someone you trust
Tell a partner, a friend or a family member, in your own words. Hidden gambling tends to get worse fast. Telling someone early protects what matters most. They can hold the password to your blockers, check in with you or go through your bank statements with you if you want.
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Face your finances
Keep the money for rent, food and bills away from gambling, along with any money that belongs to someone else in your household. Write down every debt linked to gambling: credit cards, loans, money owed to people. Accept your losses instead of borrowing more to win them back. Borrowing only digs the hole deeper. If keeping to a limit is too hard, stopping completely is the safest choice. Free debt advisers can help you build a plan.
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Know what makes you want to play
The most common triggers are boredom, stress, payday, loneliness, late nights and drinking. Make your own list. For each trigger, plan something you will do instead. When the urge hits, wait 30 minutes before doing anything. Most urges pass on their own.
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Fill the time and get support for the long term
Gambling used to fill hours. Now those hours are yours again. A daily walk, exercise, anything physical lowers cravings. Peer communities like r/problemgambling are open 24/7, anonymous and free. Gambling Therapy runs a free online chat. Ask your doctor about therapy for gambling disorder. Also stay away from loot boxes and social casinos for at least 12 months.
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Sign up to your country's register
Find your country in the directory below and open its official register. A single registration blocks you from every casino licensed there. Self-exclusion only works on licensed casinos, so sites with no licence in your country stay open. They keep advertising to you and still take your deposits, which is why steps 1 to 9 matter as much as this one. No register in your country? The other steps still apply.