Betting at a sportsbook is fun, and can be very profitable if you have a good combination of skill and luck on your side. Still, there is always a chance that you can be wrong in your predictions—even if you are very good at what you do. The easiest way to overcome this problem is with the free money you can instantly get from a promo code. Most of the major online sportsbooks will allow you to type in a code when you deposit money and get extra bonus cash on top of what you initially deposit into your account.
| SportsBook | US Bettors | Promo Code | Information |
|---|---|---|---|
|  | 50% up to $250 Bonus | Bet Now |
| | Free $100 Bet | Bet Now |
Each book will have slightly different requirements when it comes to their bonuses. These can vary in the amount that you get, the percentage of your deposit that will be given to you, when you can get them, and how long you have to wait before your bonus cash is available for withdrawal. The thing to remember is that you will want to research each site you are considering and read their fine print. Some books have a 25 percent bonus of up to $500, for example, while others will only have a 10 percent bonus, but up to $750. These are just examples, of course, but the point is pretty clear—you want to know the rules of what you’re doing very well before you do it.
The other thing to keep in mind is how you can unlock your bonus. You can’t just make a $500 deposit and then withdraw your $500 plus your $100 bonus right away. Sportsbooks would lose money very quickly if they allowed things like this to happen. Instead, the general rule of thumb adopted online is the play through amount. Most books have a play through requirement of about 30 to 40 times your bonus amount. So if you are waiting on $200 in bonus funds to clear and you have a 30 times unlocking requirement, you would have to play through by betting a total of $6,000 before that $200 is yours to withdraw. This might pose a serious problem for a lot of bettors, but the books have to do this in order to protect themselves. Plus, for an experienced bettor, this is just a cushion that will protect them from the book’s slight yet inherent edge when it comes to the vig. But either way, bonuses are still free money for you, and most sports books will allow you to use them to bet with right away—even if the funds are not yet available for withdrawal.
Signing Up
Most books have their bonuses available for just their first time depositors. Only a few will have reload bonuses regularly available. This means two things. One, to get a promo, you probably have to sign up for a new account. This isn’t a problem. There are a lot of really good online books out there, and signing up usually only takes a few minutes. Depending upon the site you choose, you will need to enter your name, address, and phone number, as well as come up with some account security items, like a unique username and password. Withdrawals may require you to fax a copy of your photo ID and a proof of residency. These things might seem like an inconvenience, but really, do you want to put your money somewhere where they don’t have these personal safeguards in place for you?
Once you sign up, go to the cashier screen. Here, you can decide how much you’re going to deposit and you will also be asked to enter any promo codes you have. This is important. If you deposit without a code, you’re not going to get your signup bonus! Also, this brings up the second point. If your book only regularly offers a first time deposit bonus, you will want to take full advantage of it. If their stipulations say that they offer a 25 percent bonus up to $500, for example, you will want to max this out as best you can. If you can put in $2,000 and get the full bonus, you definitely should. Free money is a great thing and you want to take advantage of this in order to help yourself as much as possible. Just don’t overstep your personal limits.