Best Sportsbooks For Beginners
You may be jumping off of the deep end. Let’s make sure you’re at least comfortable!
If you’re new to the world of betting on Sports, you may feel a little intimidated. You can feel as though you’re just jumping off into the deep end of the pool without a buoy or even a swimming lesson! For that reason alone, it’s a good idea to start off with books that cater to newer folks that want to bet on sports.
If one were to look around they would find sportsbooks that do actually offer players useful how-to tips, detailed betting guides, and other resources that make the whole experience more enjoyable (and profitable)! Now, here comes the challenge.
Finding them.
Luckily, I have been doing this for many years now and have put together this short list of sportsbooks to check out if you just want to know where to safely and easily bet online for the first time.
You need tools to find the top Sportsbook. Here, I’m going to give them to you. You’ll learn what to look for, what to avoid, and how to tell if a book is worth getting involved with. Ideally, this will be before making your first deposit.
Along the way, I’ll point you to a few sites I’ve personally used for my own betting needs that are highly-rated by other sports bettors, beginners and veterans alike.
Here’s a quick short list of the best 3 for the new bettors out there, and then I’ll talk about the why they all belong on this list!
Bovada
It’s no secret that I find Bovada to be easy to use, extremely safe, secure, and comes with a pretty nice Deposit Bonus.
Use my Exclusive Code to get yourself a 50% Welcome Bonus of up to $250 with lower-than-average playthrough requirements, making it quite attractive for the new player. That code is 130347.
If you want to learn more specifically about Bovada, click on this link to check out my full review.
The landing page over at Bovada. Don’t forget to use the code 130347 for your Welcome Bonus!
BetOnline
Another great selection here for the gambler looking for a new site to place their bets. BetOnline accepts not only the same payment methods as everyone else, but they’re also good about accepting players from any U.S. state. As you will see, thanks to various laws and rules, not everyone can do that!
Safe and honest, BetOnline has been around and running a legitimate business for many years now.
And if you want to take a look at their full review, you can find it right here.
You can see here that BetOnline is by far one of the easiest sites to navigate and find whatever you’re looking for!
MyBookie
MyBookie is a fantastic site for those that have maybe placed a few bets and are looking to “up their game” a little bit.
You would still find great Bonuses for those that are just starting out and are looking to get their feet wet but also ongoing promotions for those that are into making some recurring deposits and are looking to really get some bang for their buck.
And speaking of bonuses, once you’re over at MyBookie you will see that they’re another site that really comes through with the “reload bonuses”, meaning that you can use them more than once.
To check out their review, take a look here.
You can see here that MyBookie gives some pretty sweet action to their returning players!
A Few Quick Notes For First-Time Sports Bettors
Legality
Let’s go ahead and take a moment to clear up some minor issues. First off, a lot of people would like to bet on their favorite sporting events, but there may be some fear that doing so is in violation of certain laws.
In reality, betting on sports is NOT illegal.
There are no laws that prohibit you from placing any wagers. In the past, U.S. prosecutors have tried to use the Federal Wire Act of 1961 to outlaw the operation of a bookmaking business, but that has nothing to do with individual sports bettors. After all, it’s highly unlikely that you’re running your own bookmaking operation!
Now, this is of course not legal advice. You may live in a state that has an unusual problem with gambling. To see whether or not you live in one of one of those, you can always check this out (updated in late 2023).
Security
Another issue that concerns many new bettors is security.
It’s your money, you worked hard for it. As an example, you want to know that your account details will not be stolen as a result of using your credit card to fund your account. To get a head start on protecting your account (or to handle the problem if it’s too late) take a look at this article!
Now, to be fair, security is always going to be a reasonable concern whether you’re placing some bets over at Bovada or doing some shopping at Amazon or ordering food from DoorDash, anything online, really!
The best sportsbooks for beginners and the seasoned pros alike use encryption when storing sensitive information, real-time monitoring, and identity verification. I can honestly say that I have never had a problem with any of the books that I work with.
If you find yourself overly thinking about security, why not check out this “Bovada Bitcoin Guide” and get yourself started out betting with crypto, easily the safest method around! While that post is Bovada specific, it’ll still give you a great starting off point with just about any site.
It’s your money. You’re going to want to know that it’s as safe as possible!
Variety
Most bettors are going to want to bet on the big professional sports: football (NFL), baseball (MLB), basketball (NBA), and so on.
Then there are the bettors that want to put most of their action on, say, college games, arguably “better” in the opinions of some, (the players work harder, blah blah blah, fill in the argument here).
Every once in a while you’ll find the bettor that just absolutely loves betting on some of the crazier, or just odder action, such as water polo, cricket, ultimate frisbee… That list could go on and on. In fact, check out this article about some of the odder sports offered by Bovada.
Taxes
One issue that the truly upright people will wonder about is their taxes. One may wonder if they need to report their winnings on their taxes, and the short answer is “yes”.
You see, the government considers profits from sports betting as taxable income. Now, technically, that’s the case whether you’re betting at MyBookie or with your next door neighbor!
With that said, I’m not a lawyer, I’m not an accountant. You’re going to want to check with the person that does your taxes to make sure you’re doing things by the book, so to speak.
How To Choose The Best Sportsbook For Beginners
You probably already know that there’s no shortage of sportsbooks in the U.S. where placing wagers could involve jumping through some hoops. There are also an absolute ton of sportsbooks that all want your business. Naturally, this means that not every one of these is a trustworthy, quality operation. In fact, most of them are going to turn out to be downright shady!
You need a list of parameters to determine which sites are the best for beginners. Here are some of the things you should be looking for (and possible some things to avoid)!
Customer Support
If you place enough bets online, you may eventually run into some minor issues that need to be resolved and maybe you won’t.
You see, I have said this before, but customer service is like car insurance. You may find yourself not ever needing it, but in the case that you do, you’re sure going to be glad that it’s there!
Even if the problem turns out to be something that you did and you need someone else to take a look at, it’s important to have access to support reps at your chosen book that can help to get things back on track!
To that end, MyBookie may be the best option here with their MyBookie VIP+ program. Getting involved with that offers you a ton of benefits that come with it, but the number one point they bring up with it is the 24/7 VIP Support that comes along with it. Is this support any better than anyone else’s? I don’t know. I’ve been lucky in the sense that I haven’t needed it, may your betting adventures go the same way!
And speaking of “odd things” to bet on, did you know you can bet on the existence of aliens?
Promotions and Bonuses
All of the top sportsbooks go to great lengths to attract new customers and encourage them to place some bets. Quite often they’ll do so by offering generous “new account” bonuses and regular promotions.
As an example, BetOnline offers a $50 Live Betting Free Play. This offer makes it so that you can try out betting on some Live Action risk free and get up to $50 back if your bet loses.
Another example is over at MyBookie where you can get a 50% Welcome Bonus of up to $1,000 for the sportsbook when you make your first deposit with the code MYB50 and also get a $10 Casino Chip with that so that you can give that a test drive with no risk to you.
Banking Options
One of the biggest hurdles that new players are going to run into is funding their new accounts.
By far the most convenient option is to just reach into your wallet and grab a credit card. Thanks to legislative roadblocks set up by U.S. politicians, these transactions often get declined. Everything is going to get so much easier when you come across a legitimate site that offers several options in the way of not only credit cards, but can also give the options of money transfers, bank wires, crypto, and so on.
Once again, crypto is one of the safest options and once you get used to what you’re doing, one of the easiest as well!
Great Odds
As a gambler, it’s going to do you no good to find yourself a book that offers great support, big bonuses, lots of banking options, but horrible odds! That’s a recipe for just losing a bunch of your money on some bets whether you’re winning or losing.
Any books that I work with are well known for consistently offering attractive lines, and the thing is that I would be a liar if I didn’t say that some are better than others! For example, if you want to go and check out BookMaker you’ll see that often they have some of the best lines you’re going to find on popular sports markets.
Easy-To-Use Interface
The interface at any sportsbook you choose should be easy to use and navigate. It should be apparent that this is doubly important if you’re just starting out. If the software at a site is “clunky” or otherwise hard to use, it can make the entire experience unpleasant for you.
Sites like Bovada and BetOnline have been catering to sports bettors for so long that they’ve both got an incredible grasp on how to design a seamless betting environment.
Rollover Requirement
If you decide to take a bonus, there’s a solid chance that you’re going to have a Rollover Requirement.
This reflects the amount of money that you will be required to wager before you’re able to make a withdrawal. This requirement is an industry standard and isn’t unheard of for those that are chasing bonuses of any kind.
This amount varies by site and can be very low, like the Bonus I pointed out toward the top of this post where you can get a 50% Welcome Bonus with low requirements when you use the code 130347!
There are other sites out there that may have very high requirements making it much harder to get to your money once you place some winning wagers. You’re going to want to make sure that if you take a bonus or otherwise get involved in a promotion that you check out the Terms and Conditions that come along with said bonus and make sure that you’re willing to live by said Terms.
Track Record
Not the most important thing to look for, but definitely up there on the list, is the Track Record of any sportsbook.
You want to work with books that have a history in the industry. If a site has been serving its customers for years, there’s a good chance that it has gained the loyalty of their customers with a high quality, dependable service. Given the sheer number of “new sportsbooks” that can pop up year after year, I’ve seen many books turn out to be “here today, gone tomorrow” sites that just up and disappear with people’s money.
When a site has been around for literal years, that says something in itself. They would have been chased away by now if they were known for not paying out to the players that win.
Casino? Race Book? Poker Room?
Many of the top sportsbooks for beginners are going to offer opportunities beyond your traditional sportsbook, namely a Casino, a Race Book, or a Poker Room.
You might be completely uninterested in these features. At the same time, you may be surprised at just how many people felt the same way and (for example) walked into the Poker Room and discovered a great way to blow off some steam and add a little variety to their betting rotation. Besides, you need something to do while you’re waiting for the next big game, right?
Once you get used to some sports betting and you’re looking to add to your repertoire of sites, you should go and take a look at Everygame where you’re going to find not only some of the wildest Casino and Poker Room promotions, but also some of the greatest Contests to get involved in while you’re taking care of your sports wagers.
While I haven’t really mentioned it in this post, make sure that you check out the Live Betting over at MyBookie to really get in on the action!
My Favorite Sportsbooks For Beginners
Throughout this post I have mentioned a number of sportsbooks that meet specific criteria that I consider most important to the “beginner bettor”. From Bovada to BetOnline and everything in between, I am confident that the novice sports bettor will have a great experience.
This is your money! Don’t just blindly take my word for it. Ultimately, I recommend visiting all of them and checking them all out for yourself! Take them all for a test drive of sorts and take a look at the various interfaces, software, bonuses, any of the other features that you find at each one. There’s really nobody that knows specifically what you’re looking for in a sportsbook but you!
With all of that said, I do recommend that you not only use the sites here that I have mentioned, but also take a look at this list here to take a look at all of the sites that I work with.
As always, good luck in your gambling adventures!
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