Is Bingo Really Random?

You might be wondering if UK online bingo sites are truly random and whether you have any chance of winning the game you are playing. Fairness is one of the main concerns of online gambling for punters and with good reason too. No player wants to spend their money on something where the outcome is fixed.

Most jurisdictions worldwide require online bingo and other types of lottery games to be randomly generated. Having said this, is bingo truly random? Let’s explore this question and how sites guarantee randomness.

How is Randomness Guaranteed?

In a game of online bingo, operators will use Random Number Generators or RNGs. These machines ensure all letters and numbers in a game of bingo are completely random.

Any bingo site needs to have a license from the UK Gambling Commission and it needs to have a regularly-tested RNG. This is how it is ensures that results are not against the players at any time.

An RNG will create number combinations that don’t follow any pattern. This means that results will be unpredictable. However, as bingo is a game of chance, randomness does not guarantee that you won’t fall into a losing streak. RNG only ensures that the game is not rigged, so if you are not winning, it doesn’t mean that the game is not fair.

Independent audits ensure that online bingo sites and software developers offer only fair games. These companies will conduct tons of tests on the games offered on sites to make sure that they don’t have unusual patterns, and that they are consistent with the expected returns.

 

Requirements for Random Bingo Results

A bingo’s RNG needs to deliver unpredictable results and not reproduce the same patterns repeatedly. Any online bingo site needs to have a license from the UK Gambling Commission, and operators need to fall in line with plenty of conditions that ensure:

• Fair Gaming
• Player privacy and security
• Effective management systems

Unlicensed sites will lack these requirements, and there is no protection policy for players in case of fraud at such sites. Moreover, there are penalties in place for punters who are caught gaming at such operators. In short, it is essential for your security that you don’t play at a site that is not licensed.

The UK Gambling Commission introduces rules to protect players from the dangers of gambling. The licensing process is very strict, so bingo sites need to tick many boxes to obtain a license. The following are the license types for bingo operators:

• A remote bingo operating license
• A remote bingo (game host) license

The first one will enable any bingo site to offer bingo games to all UK punters on plenty of platforms. On the other side, a remote bingo (game host) license will allow the licensee to operate a remote bingo site and offer bingo games in the jurisdiction of the licensor.

 

Testing the Bingo’s RNG

As you know by now – without a fully functional RNG, there cannot be any system that can determine the outcome of a bingo game. The RNG is a key component of a bingo site, and it must be tested to ensure that the outcome is completely random.

Trusted testing agencies, such as Gaming Labs International, are in charge of testing the RNGs of bingo games and sites.  Companies like GLI use custom-made software for testing RNGs, and they perform certain calculations and estimations with data from the evaluation.

You can also easily check whether any bingo site is fair and has integrated an RNG. This is a type of information that you will easily find on the site, along with the license information. You are entitled to do a bit of research before you decide to register on any site and start to play bingo games. If you don’t find any information regarding an RNG or a license, then leave the site immediately and search for another one.

 

Final Thoughts

It is important to note that there is no magic card or strategy that will help you win a game of bingo. Sometimes gamblers believe that because they have lost 50 games in a row and their friend has won twice in a row the game is conspiring against them. This simply isn’t true. As is the case with any fair and reputable operators, bingo sites need to have functional RNGs to make sure that the outcomes of each game are completely random and unbiased.

Last updated: Feb 20, 2023