I stopped trusting the big number on a no deposit bonus South Africa banner a long time ago. It's the part built to make you click, which makes it the least reliable thing on the page. Instead I read five terms in a set order, and the headline isn't one of them.
I start with the wagering multiple, because it decides whether the rest is worth reading at all. A 20-rand bonus at 45x is 900 rand of staking before a cent is withdrawable. If that number is hidden behind a phrase instead of a figure, I treat the whole offer as suspect and often close the tab right there.
Second, the max cashout. South African no deposit deals usually cap what you keep around 500 rand, no matter how high the screen climbs. A cap that respects a good run is fair. One set barely above the bonus means the headline was theatre, and I'd rather know that before I spin than after a strong night.
The three that decide the grind
Third is the expiry. I've watched a nearly-cleared bonus die because I had 72 hours and a packed week. Thirty days is honest, a week is workable, and anything under 48 hours I weigh hard against the wagering, because a bonus I can't finish in time is worth zero rand regardless of its headline.
Fourth, game weighting. Slots almost always count in full, tables often a tenth or nothing, so I clear on slots and keep tables for my own money. Half the players I've seen come up short at the end did their wagering on a game that barely counted, then blamed the site for a rule printed plainly in the terms.
Fifth, the one most people never open, is the max stake per spin while the bonus is live, often capped low. Spin above it on autopilot and the whole bonus can be voided, winnings included. I set my stake to that cap before the first spin and don't move it until the wagering is done.
Running those five on the last offer I looked at took about four minutes and exposed a 60x requirement paired with a two-day window, which told me the math was built to beat me. I passed. The glossy number up top never entered the decision, and on a South African no deposit offer it rarely should.