Sports Betting Free Money
A sportsbook will usually issue a deposit bonus in the form of free bets or bonus dollars. It is unlikely that you would receive the match in straight cash. One of the defining characteristics of most deposit. Actually 20 betting websites are offering no deposit bonuses to new players, this mean that every time you signup to a new sportsbook you will receive real money for free to play and cash out!
The chance to bet on sports for free is an enticing one to an otherwise-hesitant gambler. Many sportsbooks, therefore, use free-to-play sports betting or free-to-play contests to ease the transition.
There are several ways potential bettors can take a shot at free money with sports betting predictions. Pick’ems, trivia quizzes, and social gaming challenges can be a clever way for sports bettors to break the ice with a particular sportsbook or a few different sportsbooks.
If you’re curious about sports betting but nervous about putting your first few bucks on the line, you’ve come to the right place. Here’s a handy guide to the types of free-to-play sports betting contests you can find online in the US.
Top sportsbooks for free-to-play sports betting
What is free-to-play sports betting?
As its name implies, free-to-play sports bets are contests in which sportsbooks offer real money prize pools or specific bets for new or current customers to play without having to contribute any funds of their own.
Given that gambling operators are not known for their generosity, the idea that you could win actual prizes without risking anything may seem hard to believe. In general, the only thing that you will have to contribute is your contact information and the time required to establish an account with the sportsbook.
However, a sportsbook has two main goals in mind when it offers a free-to-play opportunity. The first objective is to expand its roster of player accounts, and the requirement that you sign up for an account makes such an event possible.
The other goal for the sportsbook is to show you how it does business. It hopes that, with any luck, you’ll like the format and feel of the book enough to invest some of your funds later. As it turns out, according to numerous sources, this strategy is fairly successful.
It isn’t nefarious for you, though. Nothing says that you have to play beyond the event itself, and you don’t even have to answer any of those marketing emails that you’re destined to receive. If you end up liking the sportsbook, anyway, then that’s fine.
Types of Free-to-Play Sports Bets
There are three main types of free-to-play sports bets that you may encounter. One of them — event-based contests — is a free-to-play option that you will find more often than any of the others. However, when there’s a possibility of free cash and prizes coming your way, it’s important to know what you might see.
Pick’ems, Predictions and Quiz Contests
Free-to-play contests revolving around major sporting events are quintessential offerings at online sportsbooks. They usually take the form of Pick’em or Survivor games that revolve around the outcomes of the games or player performances.
A classic example of an event-based, free-to-play contest is a March Madnessbracket. Many sportsbooks offer a big guaranteed prize pool to be split among anyone who registers and submits a free bracket.
Your picks compete against everyone’s else to see who picks the most games correctly. The players accruing the most points for picking games right split the prize pool.
DraftKings Sportsbook‘s free-to-play March Madness bracket, for example, had a $64,000 prize pool last year with no entry fee required. It was also open to players in all 50 states not just legal sports betting states.
Another popular free-to-play contest is the predictionquiz. In this type of game, you’re given a set amount of money you must bet on a series of yes or no propositions. At the end of the quiz you keep whatever winnings you have left.
Finally, there are also quiz contests that feature a series of questions that escalate in difficulty. Any wrong answer eliminates you from the competition. At the end of the series, any players who have successfully answered all the questions split a predetermined prize pool.
To be fair, the chance of winning any money in one of these contests can be low. There are always major elements of chance and uncertainty involved, and it takes quite a bit of luck to get things just right.
Because these contests qualify as sweepstakes, you will also be playing against a wider group of people. So, even if you live in a state with legal sports betting, you will have to defeat competition from most states in the country, irrespective of the legality of sports betting.
Free bet giveaways
Another type of free-to-play sports bet is the freebet. A sportsbook will often give away vouchers for free sports bets of a certain value if a player meets certain conditions.
In many cases, the condition for this type of giveaway is merely to register for an account, and perhaps enter a special free bet bonus code. This type of free-to-play sports bet is accurately described as a “no deposit bonus,” also.
A sportsbook may also give away free bets if you like and share a sportsbook’s post on your Facebook feed, for instance, or retweet and comment about them on your Twitter profile.
In any case, this free-to-play bet is a nontransferable voucher that you can only use on specific types of bets. Usually, the sportsbook will mandate that you place your wager on bets that are not enormous favorites to win.
You can’t cash out your free bet voucher. You have to use it for a bet, and if you happen to bet less than the full face value of the bonus, you will lose the remainder. So, there’s no reason to try to divide the amount of the free bet.
The most value you can hope to realize from a free bet will be the profit from a successful wager. You don’t get paid back the amount of the voucher. However, free bets are wonderful ways to build your bankroll for no risk at all. As stated earlier, they are also a great way to see how the sportsbook does business.
Free fantasy sports contests
A third common free-to-play promo is the free fantasy sports contest. While this type of betting is a blood relative with the pick’em contest, it tends to involve a regular group of matches or games, rather than a special event.
The platforms that host these kinds of contests tend to allow both public and private contests to run. So, you can can choose to play against the public at large or simply compete against a group of friends. In this regard, the free fantasy contest is much more along the lines of social gaming, rather than true sports betting.
However, some companies will set aside actual prizes for the winners of these contests so it is a form of free-to-play sports betting.
How to pick a free-to-play sports betting contest
At this point, you’re probably interested in checking out the possibilities for free money floating around these sportsbooks. Of course, not all free-to-play contests are created equally. Some of them might not be exactly free, so you need to follow these guidelines for having a good free-to-play experience:
1. The contest needs to be completely free
The first rule of thumb may seem obvious. However, before you commit to playing one of these games, you need to make sure that it is, in fact, completely free.
Though most sportsbooks are on the up and up, some might try to add language into the fine print that makes it difficult or impossible to collect on the prize money without making a purchase yourself. Nothing could be a nastier surprise than to come out on top of a contest only to find out that you have to come out of pocket yourself.
In reality, very few sportsbooks would try something like this, as it would likely draw the ire of regulators to do so. Still, it’s better to be safe rather than sorry, and you need to read the terms and conditions carefully before you sign up.
2. Free-to-play sports contests can be hard to complete
Before you say yes to a free-to-play contest, look at what you have to do to play. If you have to log onto the site every day for a month, for instance, you need to make sure that you can do that.
The truth of the matter is that when a chance to win money is free, you can’t afford to let the competition gain an advantage over you. Even a single missed day could be fatal to your chances, so you need to be able to play the game to its fullest.
3. Don’t play at offshore sportsbooks
You should also make sure to check out the licensing status of the sportsbook hosting the contest before you surrender your contact information. The last thing to do is supply a fly-by-night operator with your details.
4. The odds of winning free-to-play contests are high
The disappointing reality about free-to-play sports betting is that you can’t expect much when it comes to winning. These contests are promotional gimmicks that the sportsbooks use to build out their player lists and engender loyalty.
The odds involved with most free-to-play contests are prohibitively high in most cases. Even savvy sports bettors have a hard time playing in a meaningful manner here.
However, if you just want to have some fun or you find yourself a bit light in the wallet, there’s no harm in taking a shot at the big prize. After all, someone has to win it.
It’s no surprise that only the most experienced sports betting enthusiast has an opportunity to make a profit against the house in the long term. However, for the rest of us, there are more than enough chances to turn the odds in our favor in the short term.
Sports Betting Sites Free Money
The easiest way to achieve this is to take advantage of the free sports bets and other no deposit offers and bonuses available to new sportsbook players.
Most regulated online sportsbooks have free money offers that are custom made for new players to place the odds in their favor temporarily.
With more sports betting sites coming online every day, you should understand the potential of the bonuses available to you.
Whether you want to find a bonus or promo code to claim one of these offers, or you are combing the fine print to understand the playthrough requirements, we at PlayUSA have you covered with our comprehensive guide to bonuses available at online sportsbooks.
Top online sportsbooks with Free bets
How free bets work
Free bets sound too good to be true. Do sports betting sites really offer free money to their players? The simple answer is yes.
A free bet as an opportunity to place a wager without any risk, and receive a payout on the net winnings if you have a winning bet.
The main difference between a regular bet and a free bet is that you don’t need to contribute the stake when it comes to a free bet. Therefore, you won’t receive the stake as a refund along with your winnings if you have a winning bet.
There’s nearly an infinite supply of free bets available at reputable online sportsbooks. The easiest way to claim a free bet is to register for a new account with an online bookmaker. Reputable sports betting sites utilize free sports bets to encourage fans to register a new account and eventually make a deposit.
Online sportsbooks hope that by giving you something for free up front, you will continue placing bets on their site. This explains why you need to sign up for a new account and register a valid payment method before you receive your free bet.
How to claim the offer
To claim a free bet offer, most sports betting websites require a bonus or promocode.
Alternatively, you will need to make a minimum deposit before the free bet offer is credited to your account. However, the use of a bonus or promo code is one of the most popular methods utilized by online sportsbooks.
Should an online bookmaker require a code, you will need to provide it during the registration process or when you make your initial deposit. This process all depends on the nature of the bonus you wish to claim.
The promo code field is usually on the deposit or registration page. Once you locate the box, you enter the promo code that is associated with the free bet offer or deposit bonus before completing the registration or deposit. The bonus will then be credited automatically after that.
If you are on a sports betting site that doesn’t require a promo or bonus code, you need to gloss over the promo code field that is usually optional.
Please take note that you’ll still need to opt-in for the free bet or deposit offer to receive the bonus. This rule usually entails clicking on the “Deposit Now” or “Opt-In” button on the bonus or promotional page.
A promo or bonus code is essentially a coupon. However, instead of offering a discount on your purchased goods, it allows you to receive a better bang for your buck.
There’s plenty of online sportsbooks that offer unique promo codes. However, because we create our exclusive promo codes that are more generous when compared to the public offerings, we highly recommend that you shop with us first.
Types of free bet bonuses
You can treat yourself to a variety of free bet bonuses and promotions at some of the best sports betting sites in the industry.
To help you differentiate the types of free bet bonuses at reputable online sportsbooks, we will cover some free bet offers.
Risk-free bets
Risk-free bets can be an excellent foundation of matched betting profit. This type of free bet will allow you to place a bet knowing if you lose, you’ll receive the money back in the form of a free bet, cash prize or even a bonus.
However, a risk-free bet will require you first to make a deposit and place a bet with your money before a risk-free bet will come into effect. For instance, most sports betting sites will offer a $10 risk-free bet promotion. However, you will first need to wager $10 of your money. Also, your bet needs to be on minimum odds of 2.00 or higher.
Should you lose your $10 bet, you will receive $10 as a bonus back into your account only if you meet the wagering requirements. The bonus amount you receive must then roll over a couple of time at 2.00 odds of higher before you can withdrawal it.
Free bets
Alongside deposit bonuses, free bets are the most popular form of bonuses in the online betting industry, especially to new players.
Free bets can be seen as wagers you can make on the house’s expense. As a rule of thumb, you can only withdraw the winnings made from a free bet, and will not be able to cash in the free bet amount as well.
You can spend your free bets in an assortment of betting types. For instance, you can use your free bet amount to place a moneyline favorite during an NHL match, or you can use your free bet on a four-leg parlay if you want to take a risk. Either way, there’s nothing to lose.
Free bets can come in a variety of shapes and sizes to accommodate all betting preferences. These include:
Match bet offers
A match bet offer can also be regarded as a risk-free bet. It’s a smart way to promote a risk-free bet.
You will need to wager your hard-earned money before a match bet offer will take effect. Should you lose your first chance, the online sportsbook will credit your account with the same amount your wagered, up to a certain percentage.
Most online sportsbooks usually promote a match bet offer of 100% of up to $500.
Free bet no deposit offer
No deposit free bets are free at most online betting sites. As an entirely free bet, there will be no need to make a deposit to claim the no deposit free bet.
It should come as no surprise that a no deposit free bet amount is usually minimal. For instance, most online sportsbooks will offer a no deposit free bet that ranges from $5 up to a maximum of $10.
Should you win with a no deposit free bet, please note that you won’t be able to cash in your winning immediately either. You will need to wager your winnings 10-15x to meet playthrough requirements.
Sports Betting Free Cash
Deposit match bonus offer
At an online sportsbook, a deposit match bonus mainly works the same way as a deposit bonus at an online casino.
Once you register for a new account and make a deposit, the online sportsbook will match your deposit, usually up to 100%. However, instead of the unachievable 40x wagering requirements at online casinos, sports betting sites will typically feature an easier way to meet playthrough requirements on the deposit match free bet offer.
Most online sportsbooks’ playthrough requirements are only one time. That is fantastic if you want a bonus with feasible wagering requirements that will allow you to cash out in a short time.
Advantages of free bets
The best advantage to claiming free bets at online sportsbooks is you’ll be able to test drive the sportsbook to ensure it’s smooth and reliable before making your initial deposit. You will also discover which sporting events and betting types are available on the sports betting site.
Apart from not having to spend your hard-earned money first, another advantage is you can place a bet absolutely risk-free. Furthermore, even if you do have to spend your money first, you can still be awarded a risk-free bet should you lose.
Last but not least, another advantage is you can prolong your betting experience by increasing your bankroll. Essentially, this allows you to make more bets than usual, which could lead to being more profitable.
Disadvantages of free bets
Although there are several reasons to take advantage of free bets at online sportsbooks, they do come with a handful of disadvantages as well.
For instance, most of the free bets have various terms and conditions that you must meet before you can cash in on your account. These terms and conditions are usually difficult to reach and will cause headaches if you wish to use them to profit on your account.
Apart from the terms and conditions, you will also notice that free bets offer little value or the amount you’ll receive in your account. Most free bet offers tend to range between $5-$10 as a no deposit free bet. If you find a higher offer, you will usually need to make a deposit first to receive the free bet credits in your account.
Sports Betting online, free Money
Also, most free bet offers come with restrictions that we’ll discuss in-depth.
Restrictions
Every sportsbook promotion, whether it’s a no deposit free bet or a deposit bonus, will have a variety of restrictions you will need to know before you claim the offer.
Unfortunately, this means you will need to comb through the terms and conditions to find out what you can and cannot do with your bonus.
Fortunately, here is the list of typical restrictions to make your free betting life easier on you:
Free Sports Betting Simulator
No splitting: Most of the free bet offers at sports betting sites cannot be split in any way. For instance, should you receive a $20 free bet, you will only be able to make a single bet of $20. Also, you are limited to one betting market.
Restricted odds: Free bets are also restricted by odds. Essentially, this means you will need to look for specific odds for your free bet to qualify. Even the best free bet offers require you to place a wager on odds no lower than 1.5 to meet the requirements.
Maximum win: Most free bet offers have restrictions on the amount you can cash in. For instance, a no deposit free bet offer will have a cap of around $200 that you can cash-in once you meet the playthrough requirements.
Free Sports Betting Contest
Time-sensitive: Most free bet offers will be available for a limited time. Once you register for a new account and claim the promotion, it may only be available for seven days before it expires.