How to Decide on the Sports Betting Site for You

Although the United States has its fair share of land-based casinos, certain restrictions and other limitations can make it difficult for some gamblers to visit an in-person establishment.

If you can’t make it to the sportsbook and are considering switching over to an online sportsbook, you’re in luck. There are a plethora of options at your disposal. There are a few things to consider when it comes to picking the rights sports betting sites for you.

Here are seven tips on how to choose a reputable sports gambling website.

1 ‒ Pay Attention to the Site’s Reputation

Picking the right online sportsbook for you can be tough, but eliminating the ones with terrible reputations is simple. There are almost too many sports betting sites to count. And some of them are out there to scam new gamblers out of their money.

These sites typically boast introductory offers that seem too good to be true. The fact is that they are. Individual sites will continuously change their website name or URL to avoid proper scrutiny from gamblers they steal money from. I would like to say that it’s just a few bad apples, but multiple sites will use deception to pocket sports bettors money.

A common practice amongst these sites is to claim to be under new management or simply rebrand when things go south. They are prone to refuse to honor wins and delay payouts for months on end. The best thing you can do is go with a reputable website that has a legitimate gambling license. Don’t get sucked into an unknown site’s promotions. As I said, they’re usually too good to be true.

2 ‒ Read Customer Reviews

Hell hath no fury like a gambler scorned; well, it’s something like that. When you’re trying to decide on where you should deposit money, the easiest way to narrow down the field is to read online reviews of each sportsbook. The internet comment section and review sites aren’t necessarily the most trustworthy sources of information, but it will give you a crowd consensus of each book.

Reading reviews from ordinary sports gamblers and professional writers will tell you all you need to know about the sportsbooks in question. When reading, focus on important variables like the quality of customer service and time it takes to receive a payout.

Several online sportsbooks should be avoided. By reading these reviews, you will get a glimpse of some horror stories other gamblers experience so you can avoid them. As I said, the internet is full of lies and deceptiveness, so don’t read one review and think it’s sufficient.

3 ‒ Pay Attention to the Layout

When you eventually decide on a sportsbook, you will be the one who has to navigate the site to place your bet. Sports betting can already be convoluted for inexperienced gamblers, so make sure the layout is user-friendly. Most sites won’t let you explore it until you create an account, but in most cases, you are not required to deposit money during sign up.

During your exploration of any given site, make sure it’s not challenging to navigate between different sports and games. Also, you must be able to track your bets in one specific area. If a website is lacking in either of these areas, move on to the next one.

Being able to feel comfortable while gambling is imperative to your success. If you struggle with how the site is laid out, it can make it complicated to place your bets on time and correctly.

4 ‒ Get the Best Promotion

Most sports betting sites have a slew of promotions they offer potential gamblers to lure them into doing business with them. You’ve heard all the ads on drive-time radio and your favorite podcasts. If you aren’t taking advantage of one of these promotions, you’re making a huge mistake.

Not all promotions are created equally; some sports betting sites offer you an introductory bonus or complimentary risk-free wagers. Whatever they may be, scour the internet to ensure you are getting the best bang for your buck.

However, when you’re signing up for a site strictly based on a promotion you heard or read about, tread lightly. Some of the worst sites will use tantalizing offers that are hard to refuse. Additionally, you must read the fine print because most of these offers are not as they appear, and the payoff of “matching bonuses” is done over a long period.

5 ‒ Make Sure It’s Easy to Use

Ease of use is one of the most critical parts of whichever site you use. This goes for figuring out odds, deciding on a bet, placing and monitoring a bet, and receiving a payout. Some online sportsbooks streamline the process to deposit money but will drag their feet when issuing payouts.

Some of my most significant issues with sportsbooks have come after winning big and requesting a payout. I won’t mention names here, but a particular sportsbook took five weeks to transmit a payout to my book. Suffice to say I will never do business with the site again.

Outside of making sure the layout is clean on a web browser, check out each book’s mobile device capabilities. Who knows when and where you’ll be making your bets, so you need to be sure that you can place your wagers on the go. There is a significant disparity between mobile device capability between books, and I can’t overstate the importance of a streamlined, user-friendly betting application.

6 ‒ Make Sure You Can Bet on Your Sport

Many sports gamblers prefer to bet on obscure sports. Not every online sportsbook has every single line for each sport. If you deposit money into a particular website only to find out they don’t offer odds on the sport you know best, you can tie your bankroll up for weeks, ruining the possibility to place wagers.

Depositing with a book that doesn’t offer lines on your sport is inconvenient and can also result in a loss of funds. Some new gamblers will have an impulse to throw money at a wide variety of action. If you have money tied up with a book, instead of withdrawing it, you might feel inclined to bet on sports you’re unfamiliar with.

The popular and reputable sites offer a majority of sports, so this shouldn’t be too big of an issue. As I said earlier, most sports betting sites will allow you to peruse the site without depositing money. So be sure to start an account and explore the site to make sure it offers everything you need.

7 ‒ Test Them Out

Despite everything you’ve read today, the only way to figure out which sports betting site works for you is through trial and error. At the outset of your online sports betting career, deposit a small amount of money in a few books and see which one you prefer.

When I first got into online sports betting, I split my weekly bankroll into thirds and deposited each third into a different site. To this day, I still gamble with all three sites, because each offers different odds and props on a day-to-day basis. The diversity of these odds will benefit you in the long run and provide maximum value when placing wagers.

Opinions vary between gamblers, and one person’s favorite website might be your least favorite. There are several reputable online sportsbooks on the internet that are worth your business. As long as you’re getting competitive odds and timely payouts, choose whichever one you’re comfortable with.

Conclusion

With a wide variety of sports betting sites around the internet, there is virtually no reason to get stuck with one that doesn’t appeal to you. There are several reputable sportsbooks out there, but also some seedy entities that continue to exist and take gamblers’ money.

When selecting a sportsbook, be sure to do some initial legwork, so you know you’re choosing the right one. Focus on the site reputation and read customer reviews from professionals as well as casual gamblers. Getting the best deposit bonus or promotion is critical, but don’t fall for an advertisement and get stuck gambling with a less-reputable book.

Before settling on a site, consider creating an account to check out the layout and mobile application. Finally, be sure to test out a few of your top choices to gain a better understanding of which one you prefer. It’s always preferable to deposit money with multiple books so you can shop for the best lines.