Promos & Bonuses

Practically every single online sportsbook in the United States offers some kind of sign-up bonus for new bettors. Books have learned that to stay competitive in the betting space, they need to offer us, bettors, something to pick their app or online platform instead of that of a competitor.

It’s a good marketing tactic that attracts new users to their online platforms and apps with the hope that they will keep us there long enough to make their money back. For us who bet on these sites, it is an efficient way to put money into your online wallet and let you place some risk-free bets that you don’t have to sweat out.

If we are being honest, deposit bonuses are what attract new users and are often a deciding factor for new bettors that are in the process of choosing the right sportsbook. The other critical factors – like overall odds and the user interface – may be secondary to the amount of money new players can get for just depositing some money.

How to use a sports betting bonus

Conditions for each kind of sign-up bonus may differ for each sportsbook and for every offer, but what you should remember is that each bonus is usually attached to depositing money or creating a new account.

So the first thing that you typically should do is download the app or visit the sportsbook website, create an account, link a bank account, credit card, or online payment service, and make a deposit. Make sure to make the minimum deposit you need to cash in your bonus.

A couple of things to bear in mind

Read the terms and conditions. Sometimes you can only make a bet of a certain amount or the odds can only be so high for you to play a certain bet. Just know that when you get these bonuses, it doesn’t act as a typical bet, and the rules may be a bit different. With that being said, read up on the bonus or free bet Ts&Cs and learn what you must do to fulfill those.

There are many different kinds of sign-up bonuses; some are more confusing than others. Nothing is worse than thinking you are getting one deal when in reality you aren’t getting that at all. To make sure that isn’t the case with this, we are going to break down some of the most common and popular sign-up bonuses and explain exactly what they mean.

Free Bets

Who doesn’t love these? Short and simple, a free bet is exactly what it sounds like. As an example, if a bettor wagers $10 of free money and profits $10, they will have gained $10 that they can later cash out. Some bettors may opt to bet big since they are using free money, such as with a parlay, but sportsbooks will sometimes have rules limiting payouts.

Books like DraftKings will sometimes give you $100 in free bets but that doesn’t mean you get to make one $100 bet. They will split the bets into chunks of $25. This is common for other books too and protects them.

Risk-Free Bets

This can be a confusing bonus so we are here to explain it. Typically here is how it works: You make a bet – you get insurance on it.

If your first bet is for $500 and it loses, the sportsbook will give you a credit for $500. This doesn’t mean you can just deposit that money back into your bank account. This money must be used to place another bet. Most of these risk-free bets are only up to a certain amount and the most popular amount is $1000.

This is not a great bonus for people who are just visiting a state where betting is legal and don’t plan on doing a ton of gambling. This is much better for those who are staying in a legalized gambling state and will be doing this for a longer amount of time. The risk-free bets are not always automatic either so if you lose your first bet, it may take you a day or two to see that other money enter your account.

No Deposit Bonus

This is the best-case scenario for new bettors as a no-deposit bonus gives new users cash without having to deposit anything themselves. This means you can take that bonus they give you, gamble it, lose it, and never play again. Of course, the hope is that you will use that bonus, win, and use those winnings to continue to gamble.

The no deposit bonus does have a big con which is typically smaller amounts of bonus. For instance, these usually come in increments of $10 to $25 which makes sense as they are just trying to draw you in and they aren’t guaranteed to get any of your money back in return.

Generally, sportsbooks don’t offer no deposit bonuses as often as other incentives because they completely favor the customer.

Deposit Match

If you deposit $100, the sportsbook will give you another $100 in credits. This is great for bettors who know they are going to use the sportsbook quite often and will be gambling on a consistent basis. If you are going to always be depositing money, think of this as a friendly 401K match from your employer.

Instead of depositing money every week, how about just depositing it once and letting a match come in and boost those savings? Like all other bonuses, this is typically only good for a certain amount. That is usually between $500 and $1000. If you deposit $10,000, the sportsbook will likely still only match up to $1000 of that deposit.

Enhanced Odds

This is emerging as one of the most popular kinds of bonuses and it is typically applicable to all users and not just new users. Barstool Sportsbook for instance always offers enhanced odds for big events. On Sundays, sportsbooks like FanDuel and DraftKings will offer better odds on different kinds of parlays that they know will draw wagers in. Bookmakers will usually apply a maximum stake to an enhanced odds bet to ensure they won’t have to deliver a massive payout. Sometimes, there will be a minimum stake, too.

Bet Insurance/No Sweat

This is when a sportsbook will offer you your wager back in bonus bets if your bet loses. So if you place a $10 bet on the Arizona Cardinals to beat the Houston Texans and the Texans won you would get your $10 returned in bonus bets.

Boosted Odds

This is a bonus that is offered to all users so if you have an existing account you can get in on the fun for this one. Sportsbooks will often offer something like a 30% profit boost on certain bets. It’s a way to help move the odds in favor of the bettor and get more bettors to place wagers on that particular outcome.

There are so many pros of legal online sports gambling, including being able to place a bet wherever you are, access to thousands of different bets, and maybe most importantly: sign-up bonuses. Now that you have a little more information about how they work and what you need to do to get one, you’ll be able to get the most out of your betting experience!