Here’s a rundown of the best sports betting sites in the US, which states you can access them in and the entire slate of betting options and sportsbook bonus offers available to you.
Best US sports betting apps
There are dozens of sportsbook apps that you can access in the US now. But not all of them are created equal. Four major sportsbooks tend to stand above the rest in terms of features and popularity among bettors. These are:
FanDuel Sportsbook
FanDuel Sportsbook has established itself as one of the stalwarts of the industry in the past few years. It has accomplished this feat through its much-appreciated betting app, its brand recognition as a daily fantasy sports pioneer, and its near-ubiquity in states with multiple apps.
FanDuel is a great choice for sports bettors of all levels due to the following elements:
- App design is clean, easy to navigate, and very user-friendly.
- Large selection of same-game parlay options.
- A diverse set of bonuses and promotions, including the rarely-seen free bet, offers that are divisible among multiple bets.
- Partial integration of sports betting and DFS offerings, albeit without a shared wallet due to regulatory hurdles, hassles, and restrictions.
You can bet on FanDuel Sportsbook in the following states:
- AZ, CO, CT, IA, IL, IN, KS, LA, MA, MD, MI, NJ, NY, PA, TN, VA, WA (retail only), WV, WY
Click here to register an account at FanDuel Sportsbook and claim your welcome bonus
BetMGM Sportsbook
BetMGM Sportsbook is one of the largest and best sportsbooks in the US, full stop. Its app design is not flashy, but certainly acts as an excellent representative for its parent casino giant, MGM Resorts.
BetMGM Sportsbook is also one of the better places to go for promotions and offers unparalleled flexibility for live bets and parlays. Here are the most pressing reasons to try BetMGM:
- The long list of sports contains an extensive set of betting options within each market.
- Open wagers are largely changeable due to “Edit My Bet” system.
- Promotional offers give away a free bet each Monday and allow players to rack up MGM Rewards points and status.
- A deep and varied group of in-play betting options.
You can bet on BetMGM Sportsbook in the following states:
- AZ, CO, DC, IA, IL, IN, KS, LA, MA, MI, MD, MS (retail only), NH, NJ, NV, NY, OR (retail only), PA, PR, SD, TN, VA, WA (retail only), WV, WY
Click here to register a new account at BetMGM and claim your welcome bonus
Caesars Sportsbook
Caesars Sportsbook needs little introduction, as its pedigree and prestige are known to anyone with a passing interest in gambling. Even though Caesars has loads of experience in sports betting, though, its app is still rather meat-and-potatoes.
Nothing is out of place, but you might be forgiven for expecting the Roman-themed company to produce something more lavish. Nevertheless, here are some of the high points for Caesars’ bettors:
- On average, the most generous bonuses, promotions, and odds boosts are available.
- Odds are both precise and quite competitive compared to other apps.
- A sizable selection of wagering options, including several same-game parlay possibilities.
- Play on app is eligible for placement and position enhancement within the Caesars Rewards loyalty program.
You can bet on Caesars Sportsbook in these states:
- AZ, CO, DC, IA, IL, IN, KS, LA, MA, MI, MD, MS (retail only), NC (retail only), NH, NJ, NM (retail only), NV, NY, PA, TN, VA, WV, WY
Click here to register a new account at Caesars Sportsbook and claim your welcome bonus
How to sign up at an online sportsbook
Regardless of the sportsbook app or apps you choose as your own, the first thing you have to do is sign up for an account. The process at each site is similar, so here’s what you need to do to get started.
1. Access your online sportsbook through our link
The first thing to do is use our link to access the site you have chosen. It’s important to use our link because in many cases, our bonus offers are triggered only through the link itself. Before you leave this page, however, be sure to copy down any bonus codes we’ve listed. You’ll need them in a moment.
2. Register for an account
Once you reach the site, you’ll want to proceed immediately to the account creation process. So, here’s what to do:
- Look for a button on the top portion of the site’s main page. It will have a phrase like “register,” “sign up,” or “join” written on it.
- If you do not see a button like this, click on the button to log into your account, which should be in roughly the same area. The login screen will have a text link with language regarding new customers.
- Whatever link you use, you’ll arrive at the registration screen or screens for the site. Fill in your personal details as prompted by the various blanks. Be prepared to submit your name, address, email, phone number, date of birth, and Social Security number.
- You will also be prompted to enter a username, password, and (sometimes) the answers to two selected security questions. Make sure to keep these pieces of information safe.
- Finally, if you copied down any bonus code, enter it into the appropriate box. Generally, the bonus box is the only optional blank on the page. Make sure that you enter the code exactly as we had it written. Any typos, including missing capitalization, will likely result in your loss of the bonus opportunity.
After every piece of information is entered into the blanks correctly, hit the button at the bottom of the screen to submit. Your new account should be ready immediately, along with any bonus funds that you have acquired. In some cases, you may be instantly whisked to the deposit screen.
3. Fund your account
Your next step will be to fund your account. Although the site may give you bonus dollars as part of your welcome bonus, the reality is that you are almost certainly going to have to come out of pocket in order to bet on sports.
So, look for the cashier button on the site. It will either be in the same general location as the registration button on the main screen, or it will be accessible through your new account profile.
Deposits are the lifeblood of sportsbooks. Therefore, each site is going to try to offer you as many options to make a deposit as it can. You will always have multiple options, which may include:
- Credit cards
- Debit cards
- Electronic checks (ACH/VIP Preferred)
- Electronic wallets (PayPal/Skrill/NETELLER)
- Prepaid cards (Play+)
- Online banking
- Wire transfers
- PayNearMe (7-Eleven/Walgreens/CVS)
- Cash at casino cages
The exact list of options varies from site to site and from state to state. States without casino locations won’t have any way to accept cash deposits, for instance. Other states might not have retailers that participate in PayNearMe, which is another method for using cash to fund your account.
The list of options that you can use will also vary based upon your financial situation. Some banks will flatly refuse to allow deposits with credit cards, debit cards, or online banking. You may also have some sort of issues with PayPal or Skrill.
If you find that a site does not have an option for you, then play out any bonus money that you have in your account, and find a different place to bet. It’s not worth the headache when you have several options at hand.
4. Make your first bet.
The last step is to make your first bet. Head to the main lobby of the online sportsbook and size up your favorite odds markets. In general, online sportsbooks are organized with the following layout:
- Top ribbon – Account information and links
- Left column – Complete list of the sports for which the site has betting options
- Middle column – Live betting options that have boosted odds or are otherwise chosen by the sportsbook for special attention
- Right column – The betslip
To make a bet, simply click on the button corresponding to the bet you’d like to lock in. Your betslip will auto-populate with the listing, but your bet is not submitted or complete yet.
You must also select the value of your bet and finalize the choices you’ve made. If you’re trying to make a parlay bet, you keep adding bets on the same betslip after you make your first selection.
Your open wagers will remain on the betslip until they are resolved within the game, match, or contest. If you happen to become eligible for an early cash-out, the option to exercise that choice will appear in the betslip, too.
After you’ve made your bet, you can sit back and see how well you read the situation. Hopefully, you win more than you don’t.
How to download a sports betting app
Most online sportsbooks come in two different versions.
- The online sportsbook site is described above.
- The app version is available to download onto your iPhone, iPad, or Android phone/tablet.
If you prefer to access your book of choice through your phone or tablet, the procedure for getting started is largely the same as it is for a site. The only difference is you’ll have to download the app to your device.
So, click through any one of our sportsbook bonus links above to get started.
Follow the instructions or press the giant download button to move forward with the download. You’ll likely end up on a page incredibly similar to downloading pages for other apps. Sports betting apps behave identically to other types of apps, so go through your normal procedure to install the app on your device.
After the app is installed, open it up, and pick up the sign up procedure described above at Step #2.
Once you’re underway with sports betting, however you choose to do it, you’ll find that most sports with professional matches are available to you. Here is a list of all the different sports options easily found, but it would be hubris to suggest that other games are unavailable:
- Australian-rules football
- AFL
- Badminton
- Baseball
- MLB
- KBO
- NPB
- Basketball
- NBA
- FIBA
- Euroleague
- Etc.
- Boxing
- Collegiate athletics (NCAA Football, NCAA Basketball)
- Cricket
- IPL
- ICC T20 World Cup
- The Ashes
- ICC Twenty20 Big Bash
- Etc.
- Cycling
- Tour de France
- Milan – San Remo
- Paris – Roublaix
- Tour of Flanders
- Darts
- PDC World Championship
- Modus Super Series
- European Championship
- Esports
- League of Legends World Championship
- Football
- NFL
- CFL
- Formula 1
- GP Mexico
- World Championships
- Golf
- PGA
- FedEx Cup
- Ryder Cup
- Etc.
- Handball
- Elitserien
- Champions League
- D1
- Bundesliga
- World Championship
- Hockey
- NHL
- IIHL World Championship
- NLA
- Etc.
- Lacrosse
- Mixed martial arts
- UFC
- Bellator
- NASCAR
- Cup Series
- Xfinity
- F1 Futures
- Cup Futures
- Etc.
- Olympics
- Rugby League
- World Cup
- NRL
- Super League
- Rugby Union
- International Matches
- Top 14
- Premiership
- United Rugby Championship
- Etc.
- Snooker
- World Championship
- The Masters
- UK Championship
- English Open
- Soccer
- Champions League
- Liga MX
- English Premier League
- Serie A
- Europa League
- MLS
- World Cup betting
- Etc.
- Table Tennis
- TT Star Series
- WTT Cup Finals
- Tennis
- ATP
- WTA
- Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, US Open
Depending on the state and time of year, you may also find options for betting on awards shows, like the Academy Awards and/or the Grammys.
How to cash out bets from your online sportsbook or sportsbook app
At the end of the day, most sports bettors hope to put more money into their pockets than they take out. So, it’s important to know how to get your money back from your online sportsbook account.
Withdrawals work in much the same way that deposits do. You go into your cashier and select the appropriate tab, then choose the option for withdrawing that works for you.
The only catch is that cashout methods are traditionally fewer in number than deposit methods. Ascribe the deficit to the greedy sportsbook owners if you like, but it’s a near-universal fact.
Furthermore, one of the most common ways to receive a withdrawal is also much slower than any of the deposit methods. Many sportsbooks prefer to send your money to you in an actual paper check, rather than through any electronic means.
This trend is diminishing as time goes on, but even if you choose an electronic method, you’ll often find that the transaction takes longer than its counterpart on the deposit side.
Unfortunately, it’s all part of the game. At the end of the day, it’s your money, and they have to get it back to you. If you can’t get satisfactory action or answers from any sportsbook about the status of a withdrawal, head directly to the regulator in your state. The overseers don’t take kindly to any malarkey with player money.
How many sportsbook accounts can or should you have?
As we mentioned above, you can have as many sportsbook accounts as there are legal apps in your state. You may only have a single account per book, but there’s no harm in having an account with everyone – aside from the marketing emails. There are several good reasons why you should have an account on every legal sportsbook in your area.
- It’s good business policy as a sports bettor to shop the lines of the wagers you make. If you’re betting the spread, for instance, wagering on the favorite to cover at -6.5 is a much better deal than at -7.5 (assuming that the payouts are different). Sports betting is a numbers game. Profitable sports bettors typically win only 55 – 60 bets out of 100. Every little sliver of advantage is a worthwhile thing to pursue, and you can do so easily if you have an account everywhere.
- You want to be able to take advantage of bonus offers as they come down the pike. Different books will present different promotions during the year, and the target audience for those deals may be existing players or all players, not just the ones signing up for an account. If a good deal comes along, it behooves you to jump on it and realize as much value as you can.
- Maintaining a rotation of favorite apps can take on the role of golf clubs in a golfer’s bag, in that you’ll use different books for different reasons and wagers. You may want to use BetMGM, for instance, because you want the flexibility offered by the Edit My Bet feature. You might have an account at Caesars because of their great promotions. You may keep things going with FanDuel because you want to do some same game parlays.
You get the idea. There’s no reason to pledge to a single sportsbook app when others are a button press away. Use the different apps to leverage your winnings and opportunities as best you can.
Do I need to live in a particular state to bet at legal online sportsbooks?
No. Regardless of which state you choose to bet online in, you do not have to prove that you are a resident of that state to play. You need only be above the legal gambling age in the state and physically inside the state lines.
Now, you may wonder how an app will know if you are inside state lines. After all, it’s the world wide web, right? You can access the internet from almost anywhere, so nothing is stopping you from betting anytime you like, regardless of where your body is.
In short, you will be halted by the app’s geolocation verification software. Because it remains illegal to bet on sports across state lines, each state with legal online sportsbooks requires that its licensees verify every player’s position in the state.
Related Pages:
- Maryland sports betting sites
- Ohio sports betting sites
- Massachusetts sports betting sites
- California sports betting sites
How sportsbook geolocation software works
The software uses your phone’s GPS function to pinpoint your location. As it happens, geolocation verification software is quite accurate and can locate you within a few feet of your actual position.
Sportsbooks can use this software to create a virtual “fence” around their licensed areas. They typically set these boundaries conservatively, meaning they’d rather run the risk of falsely denying service to someone just inside state lines than take a chance that someone could wager from out of state. Sportsbooks that have failed to do so have faced fines and sanctions from their regulators, so using this software is a nonnegotiable thing for them.
If you prefer using a laptop or desktop and avoid using sportsbook apps, that’s fine. Be prepared to download geolocation software or otherwise verify your location to each sportsbook site’s satisfaction before you can play.
How to use a legal sportsbook site from out of state
As ominous as geolocation may sound, the reality is that you can access and make use of the vast majority of most apps’ functions from wherever you are.
There is no restriction on:
- Downloading the app
- Checking the day’s posted odds
- Setting up an account, or
- Making a deposit (in most places).
You can even set up a bet or a series of bets you’d like to make. Your betslip will auto-populate in the exact same way it would inside state lines. The only difference is that you won’t be able to finalize the bet until you enter your state of choice.
What’s the legal age for sports betting in the US?
Currently, there is no federal law mandating a particular age for sports betting in the country. Although it’s possible that lawmakers in Washington could pursue a similar arrangement as they did for drinking alcohol – where federal highway funds are withheld from any states who refuse to raise their age to 21 – it’s unlikely to become such a burning issue because of the less-obvious societal risk that sports betting bears.
Most states, however, have made sports betting an activity for those over 21. Sports betting tends to be set as a 21+ activity even in states with a wide selection of gambling activities available to 18-year-olds.
Some states are exceptions or will be exceptions to this trend when they launch. They are:
- Montana
- New Hampshire
- Rhode Island
- Washington
- Washington, D.C.
- Wyoming
Can I bet on college sports teams in my state?
It depends on where you are. Some states with online sports betting have no problem with you betting on college teams. Others have prohibitions on types of wagers or the teams you can bet on – in-state college teams are often the targets of these restrictions. A few states even ban betting on college games outright, regardless of the teams involved.
In the interest of clarity, the list below is for states that have some sort of prohibition on college betting. If your state doesn’t appear, you can bet on collegiate teams as much as you like.
- No sports betting at all
- Alabama
- Alaska
- California
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Kentucky
- Minnesota
- Oklahoma
- South Carolina
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- No betting on colleges at all
- Maine
- Oregon
- No betting on in-state colleges
- Delaware
- Nebraska (legal, but not launched)
- New Jersey
- New York
- Rhode Island
- South Dakota
- Virginia
- Washington
- Washington, D.C.
- No betting on college games inside the state
- New Jersey
- Rhode Island
- No betting on college games inside the state EXCEPT tournaments
- Connecticut
- Massachusetts
- New Hampshire
- No betting on individual collegiate athletes
- Colorado
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Massachusetts
- Nebraska (legal, but not launched)
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New York
- Rhode Island
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Virginia
- Washington
- Washington, D.C.
Changes to the law in any of these locations could occur almost any time. We will update the list as events occur.