How to Claim Your Online Sports Betting Bonuses Today

If you walk into a brick-and-mortar sportsbook today, you will need to do so without the expectation of getting any extra benefits unless you can establish yourself as a "high roller." The U.S. retail sports betting community has been operating like this for close to 40 years now. With that said, the online sports betting community in the U.S. has adopted a very different approach to dealing with customers. That community has shown a willingness to offer customers extra value in the form of bonuses.

Types of Online Sports Betting Bonuses

After assessing what's important to online sports bettors, the U.S. online sports betting community has collectively come up with creative ways to reward bettors, both new and existing. Let's take a look at some of the ways that online sportsbooks help to keep bettors in action.

The Welcome Bonus

Universally, all U.S. sports betting operators are aware that they need to compete for business from new bettors. All other things being equal (betting markets, lines, etc.), bonus promotions are the only way that one operator can differentiate itself from the others. That's why all operators have something in the offering if new players come aboard.

Of course, each licensed operator will have to decide how much value they are willing to give away for the privilege of getting a new customers. If you look across he top six or seven sports betting operators currently taking legal sports bets in any particular state, it will become apparent that each operator approached the process a little differently. Let's take a look at a few of the most common bonus promos you might encounter in your quest to find a sports betting home.

The Matching Deposit Bonus - If you were to choose this option, you would start by completing the operator's registration process. After doing that, you would make your first real cash deposit. Based on the amount of that deposit, the operator will give you a bonus amount. In many cases, the bonus is usually set at 100% of the first deposit amount with a stated limit on the amount of bonus money that will be rewarded. If you were to choose such an option, you could expect to encounter conditions like:

• Time limits on when the bonus money must be wagered


• Restrictions on betting markets and types of bets allowed


• Playthrough or rollover requirement - the number of times the best bonus amount must be wagered before any winnings will be converted to real cash


• Limits on the amount of bonus bet winnings that can be converted to cash and withdrawn

Rebate on Losses - With this type of bonus, the operator will offer a rebate if a new customer's first bet ends up being a loss. While most offers promise a 100% rebate, one can expect there to be limits on the bonus amount that will be rebated. After a rebate is received, it could come with the same kind of conditions or restrictions that were mentioned under the matching bonus heading above.

Profit Boost - A profit boost bonus promises an increase in the net winnings on the bettor's first sports bet. The boost amount might range from 25% to 100%. Note: It's only going to apply to the net profit of a qualifying bet. Net profit excludes the actual bet amount. Example: Bettor wagers $110 to win $100 on a game or event with a profit boost promise of 50%. If the bet wins, the operator will pay the $100 in winnings, plus $50 for the profit boost on those winnings. It's noteworthy that profit boost bonuses are usually awarded without any additional conditions.

Free Bet with No Deposit Required - While not as common as the above options, some operators will offer a free bet as a way to motivate a potential new customer to check out the sportsbook. Such bonuses are awarded before any deposit is made and are generally quite small.

Intermittent Bonuses

Online Sports betting operators know it's just as important to reward existing customers as it is to reward new customers. With that in mind, any licensed U.S. online sports betting operator worth its salt will put forth intermittent bonus promotions to help keep good customers in action. Here are just a few ways a particular operator might do that:

• Reload bonus - a matching deposit bonus that's paid on ongoing deposits


• Profit boost bonus - similar to what is offered to new customers


• Sports betting contests - Allows the bettors to gain entries and compete against each other for prizes like cash, vacations, and free bets


• Sports betting quizzes - Allows the bettors to complete some kind of task to receive a reward from the operators. This might involve a sports trivia question or the selection of a certain number of winning teams on a particular day.


• VIP Programs - While VIP programs are usually reserved for online casino players, some programs will reward points based on sports bet amounts

How to Claim Your Sports Betting Bonuses

It's important to note that no one is required to claim an online sports betting bonus. It's always a choice, even when it comes to welcome bonus offers. Here are the steps you will likely need to take to claim a bonus:

• Always read the terms and conditions before taking the leap. This will help avoid confusion and misunderstandings


• Follow the bonus's terms and conditions to a tee. That might necessitate a deposit action, a betting action, or the inclusion of a bonus code.


• Pay attention to time limits to avoid having an offer expire before you have been able to take advantage of it.


• If you have any questions or concerns, don't be afraid to seek help from customer service. They exist to help

How to Make Bonuses Work for You

Remember, online sportsbooks are not in the business of giving away free money. They won't be in business very long if they do that. That's why it's easy to claim a bonus, but difficult to turn it into real cash that can be withdrawn at a later date.

The best way to derive maximum value from any bonus promo involves having a clear understanding of what is being offered. We would suggest you commit the following tips to heart:

• When a new promo pops up, give it a look and see if it's something that fits into your sports betting strategy


• Always pay attention to date restrictions, bonus limits, betting limits, and withdrawal restrictions


• Make sure you are physically located in your state of registration before trying to claim a bonus. All operators use geo-fencing software to confirm the locations of their customers.


• If you are going to claim a bonus, try to claim the largest bonus possible, assuming it's within your bankroll restrictions


• This is worth rementioning. It's incumbent on you to read the terms and conditions of an offer before claiming it. If you are confused about something, you have to ask customer service to clarify.


• Make that bonus money work for you. Because of restrictions, bonuses really have no value until you do what's needed to create the value. We would suggest using some kind of strategy that will most likely lead to a bonus turning into something of real value. If it's a free bet, make the safest bet possible as allowed by the terms and conditions
  

Above all, gamble responsibly and make sure you are having fun. Never gamble with more money than you can afford to lose.

See our resource for building money management skills for online sports bettors.