Sportsbook Bonuses Explained

What are Sportsbook Bonuses? – Types of Bonuses & Free Bet, Free Spins, FAQs & More!

While you’re looking for the best odds and the best ways to profit from your sports bets, one thing to consider is how to make your money work for you while you’re playing. The online betting industry is extremely competitive these days, and with so many sites vying for your business, organizations are throwing incentives and bonuses to players at a dizzying pace. 

But, when you see all of these offers, do you actually understand what they mean? 

We’re here to dispel the myths surrounding online betting bonuses, including how they work, what to look for, and which ones to take advantage of according to your gambling preferences.

Taking these offers and using them to your advantage is very smart and some of the best sports bettors in the world take every single offer they are given. When you get these offers, it is like you are receiving some free money with the ability to use the offers to either multiply your bets or make bets solely with the offered money. 

By looking through the text below, you can figure out exactly how to attack each offered bonus.

Do Bonuses Matter?

Many players simply make deposits at online betting sites and then proceed to the betting screens, disregarding any bonus codes or incentives that may have been applied to their account. 

With the help of websites like this one, we want to change that. When you wager, win or lose, every bonus that a site offers allows you to earn a little extra money. The ability to manage these offers in a way that maximizes value can frequently mean the difference between winning and losing. 

Each of the benefits that we’ll go over below is a different type of bonus and how you should be utilizing them. All bonuses should be taken advantage of because it is essentially free money.

Are There Different Types of Bonuses?

It can be daunting when looking at a betting site’s promotions page or the emails that seem to jam up your mailbox. Percentages, monetary numbers, and Terms and Conditions are all things that tend to confound rather than motivate players. So, let’s try to unravel the mystery around these perks and explain how they function. 

If you are unsure of what a bonus is or what you get from it, you are not alone. They are a very daunting venture, and we explain them below.

What is a No-deposit Bonus?

Let’s begin by obtaining something for free! 

To tempt you to provide them with your contact information, several betting sites offer a no-deposit incentive. The site will benefit from getting your information because you will now be added to their database, where their conversion team can take over. 

The most common no-deposit bonuses on betting sites are extremely tiny wagers on specific athletic events or Free Spins (which we will explain in more detail further on). 

In our opinion, you should take advantage of any no-deposit bonus you come across. We recommend that you set up a separate email account for your gambling accounts to avoid getting spammed at your personal or work email addresses.

How do I get a Welcome Bonus?

Once you’ve been added to a site’s database, the next stage is to get you to make a deposit. This is where the welcome bonus comes into play, as many sites will give you a very good deal for signing up and making a deposit. 

The majority of betting sites save their best deals for these Welcome Bonuses, including match bets, bonus money, or other products. 

You should examine all of the Welcome Bonuses you come across, checking all of the Terms and Conditions to see how many times the bonus money must be wagered before it can be converted to real money, and whether there are any maximum amounts of bonus winnings you may withdraw from the site.

Do I Get a Bonus if I Have More Money?

Once you’ve made your first deposit at a betting site, it’s up to the operator to persuade you to make more. Reload Bonuses are what they’re called, and if a site has a solid marketing department, this is where they may start to get more inventive. 

Reload bonuses can be as simple as a percentage of your account balance in bonus money, but we like sites that link the offer to certain events. 

For example, a site may offer a Superbowl-themed reload incentive that includes not only a free match bet but also an entry into a drawing to win a trip to the big game. These incentives appeal to a broader range of players because the possibility of earning or winning actual things is a significant pull for casual gamblers. 

What is a Free Bet?

The term “free bet” is a bit misleading. As the saying goes, there is no such thing as a free lunch, so check the terms and conditions of any Free Bet offer carefully to avoid being disappointed or caught off guard by a rule. 

You can’t just take a heavy favorite because most Free Bets demand you to place it on a particular minimum odds. We can see why a site would adopt this attitude because it reduces their risk. 

However, because each site that offers these types of promos has a different minimum, you should hunt for the sites that give you the best chance of winning that particular bet. Then there’s usually a wagering requirement tied to the profits, as well as a maximum that you may withdraw when you’ve played through it enough times. 

The good news is that all of these winnings were earned for free, no matter how small they may be. This allows you to make some extra money as long as you end up winning your bet.

Can I Use Free Spins?

If a betting site also features a casino, they may use a series of Free Spins on a slot machine to persuade you to play more regularly. If you aren’t a casino player, this may not appeal to you, but there is no reason not to try your luck. 

These Free Spins, as well as any winnings that arise from them, will be subject to a set of Terms and Conditions, but as we previously stated, anything you get for free is worth taking advantage of. Who knows, maybe you’ll hit a big jackpot while spinning the reels.

How do I Get a Match Bet?

At most betting sites, a match bet is more popular on a regular basis. The match bet demands you to place a wager of a specific amount, after which the site will double your wager. 

You could, for example, utilize a Match Wager on your account to place a $20 bet on the Lions, with the site doubling your stake to $40. If you win, you will receive $40; however, only $20 will be deducted from your account if you lose. 

Because Match Bets are sometimes added to your account without warning, you should always check the lobby and your account screen when you log in to see whether there are any available, as they will almost certainly have an expiration date.

What are Loyalty Points at Sportsbooks?

The final bonus puzzle piece is more of a passive bonus. Loyalty programs are designed to reward players who spend the most time at a betting site with minor financial rewards. These points are acquired without the need to opt-in for a bonus and are usually displayed alongside your current balance. 

When looking at loyalty programs, keep in mind that the redemption rate for these points can vary from site to site. You should also check the expiration date of your points, as you don’t want to acquire them only to have them taken away from your account before you can utilize them. 

In most circumstances, accumulating points has little added value unless there is a points store to use them in. If that isn’t a possibility, we recommend redeeming them once you’ve reached the minimum required quantity. 

This will provide you with more money to wager with, which will improve your overall profitability.

The Sites with The Best Bonuses

Now that you’ve learned about the many types of bonuses available at betting sites, it’s time to focus on discovering the finest deals for your particular style of play. 

We have thoroughly reviewed the promotions departments of all the sites our staff has reviewed, so this is another method we can assist you in getting started. While every gambler is a little different, we’ve taken a more general approach to compiling a list of the finest bonus betting sites. 

All of the sites listed below offer the best combination of deposit, match, and loyalty incentives, all of which can help you become more profitable over time.

What to Look for in Bonuses

For losing bets, some sportsbooks credit you with your risk amount, and for winning bets, the lesser of the risk or win amount. This means that if you wager $10 on the Lions at -110 and they lose, you’ll get $10 towards your rollover requirement, but just $9.09 if they win. 

Most bookies prohibit betting on heavy favorites to clear the rollover, so don’t be surprised if you have to wager more than even money to get credit toward your rollover. It’s probably not a good offer if you have to wager at odds better than 2/1.

Another thing to keep an eye out for is a rollover time restriction. Rushing your bets to meet an arbitrary criterion is a certain method to lose money by placing bad bets. Calculate how much you need to wager per week to meet the criterion before accepting a bonus with a time limit, and see if it makes sense for the method you want to gamble.

There Might be More Parameters for your Offers

In addition to play-through restrictions, sportsbooks have several other terms associated with sign-up bonuses that you must be aware of to withdraw your bonus.

They differ from one sportsbook to the next, so study the fine print before hopping on one and trying to pay out before you’ve met them all. 

Some examples of additional needs are as follows: Bets with a price of less than or equal to -200 do not count against the rollover criteria for sportsbook bonuses. Within 30 days of claiming this promotion, no withdrawals are permitted. Sports, horse racing, and casinos are the only places to utilize it. 

At any given time, you can only have one active bonus. The current active bonus must be finished or closed before claiming another incentive. To count towards any turnover requirement, at least one pick must have odds of +200 or greater in multiple bets.

Essentially, you’ll want to keep an eye out at your sportsbook for the following requirements: Bonuses are subject to odds limits. Beyond a certain threshold, some bets may not count towards your rollover. This usually means that you won’t be able to meet your rollover requirement by betting on huge favorites again and over again. 

Before you withdraw your bonus, you may have to wait a certain amount of time. You may only be able to use your bonus in particular portions of your sportsbook. A sports betting information may provide various bonuses at times. If they offer ongoing bonuses, this is frequent. There’s a good chance you’ll only be able to have one active bonus at a time.

What Should I Do Now?

If you’re a savvy gambler, you’re constantly scouring the web for the finest odds available. This will ensure that you get the most bang for your buck. 

You should be equally as savvy when it comes to the benefits that a website offers. The more value you can get out of a site in the form of loyalty points, free bets, and deposit bonuses, the further you can stretch your money, giving you more money to gamble with when you find a line you can’t pass up.

Reading over this guide will help you understand bonuses that sportsbooks give out. 

It is paramount to understand how they work so you can utilize them to the best of your ability. After all, it is free money that you can win if you are successful at picking the right bets. Want to learn more about Sportsbook Bonuses? Follow us on Twitter

The main takeaway is not to get overwhelmed as there are so many options.

Sportsbook Bonuses FAQs

Are There Different Types of Bonuses?

It can be daunting when looking at a betting site’s promotions page or the emails that seem to jam up your mailbox.

How do I Get a Match Bet?

At most betting sites, a match bet is more popular on a regular basis. The match bet demands you to place a wager of a specific amount, after which the site will double your wager. 

What is a Free Bet?

The term “free bet” is a bit misleading. As the saying goes, there is no such thing as a free lunch, so check the terms and conditions of any Free Bet offer carefully to avoid being disappointed or caught off guard by a rule.