A wagering requirement is the total amount you have to stake before bonus funds convert into money you can withdraw. It is expressed as a multiplier, and the multiplier applies either to the bonus alone or to the bonus plus your deposit, which is a difference worth reading carefully because it can double the obligation.
Take a £50 bonus at 35x. If the multiplier applies to the bonus only, you need to stake £1,750. If it applies to deposit plus bonus on a £50 deposit, you need to stake £3,500. Same headline, twice the work, and the terms page is the only place that distinction appears.
Game weighting is the second variable. Slots typically count 100% towards the requirement, table games often count 10% or less, and live dealer games are frequently excluded entirely. Playing blackjack against a slots-weighted requirement means ten pounds staked counts as one.
The third is the maximum bet while a bonus is active, usually around £5. Exceeding it is the most common reason a completed wagering run is voided, and it is enforced automatically rather than at anyone’s discretion.
Put together, a lower multiplier with a modest cap is almost always better value than a headline percentage in the hundreds, because the larger the bonus the more you have to turn over to see any of it.