With more and more states in America legalizing sports betting, many people are cruising the NFL odds for the most popular state in the country, perhaps with the idea of making their first-ever online wager. While it may seem overwhelming to be a newbie to the online sports betting world, new customers actually have the most significant advantage over anybody.

Many times when you’re a new customer to an online sportsbook, they’ll provide deposit bonuses, free wagers, rewards points, and more. Those props have become basically an industry standard, but there are other factors that should be weighed in determining what makes the best betting site.

Types of Promos

Sign-Up promos are the best way to get free money into your account, but it should be noted that if you want to take full advantage of these, it’s best to go big. Basically, breaking that down means a site will offer a “100% deposit match to new customers” in the hopes that they’ll burn that on a $50 or $100 upload as a casual gambler just “tries betting out.”

If you’re ready to make the most of your money and deposit anywhere between $500 to $1000 as you open an account, then the best sites will give you the most return for your money. These are not just deposit bonuses either; many sportsbooks offer risk-free first bets where you can get a free second wager up to certain portions of the amount of your initial wager.

You don’t always have to be a fan of your in-state teams, but just know that many of the best sportsbooks consistently run promos of, say, the Bears, Blackhawks, Cubs, Bulls, and White Sox when you live in Illinois. These profit-boosting bets are a great way to earn extra ROI if you do follow the local squads religiously.

Bet Types

The good thing about the sports betting industry getting so competitive is that they are catering to the customer even more so than before. Where you used to have to shop around for a particular wager that you were interested in – now you can build your own bet.

It’s important to know that point spreads and totals are the most popular wagers of most casual gamblers – who the sportsbooks cater to. You can find some real value down the line, though, in prop bets such as over/under total yards in football or whether a team will score in the first run in baseball. The best betting sites will offer you every possible wager on a game, whether it be the team or individual players.

Paying Options

We’ve come a long way since betting on games in the early 2000s, where you had to send a Western Union deposit to some address in Costa Rica and then wait in a same-day check cashing place for your confirmation – to then drive home and put your wager in through a dial-up modem.

Payment options are almost universal now since sports betting is more and more legalized. It’s still essential to confirm that a book will take a Paypal or checking debit card deposit if that is more convenient – or cryptocurrency/gift cards if you want to keep your wagering a little more discreet. Speed of paying out is also essential, but any sportsbook worth a grain of salt will have the money where you want it to be (besides paper checks or gift cards) within minutes.

Ultimately what makes the best betting site is one that gives you as many options as possible. That starts with offering a lot of promotions but then moves forward to the different ways you can fund your account and all the various bets you can make. If you’re lucky enough to make money betting on sports, then you still want options on how you can pay out and collect that sweet, sweet victory loot.