The Best Sports Betting Apps 2020 

Quick answer: It depends where you’re located. Among the 32 jurisdictions where sports betting is legal—31 states, plus Washington, D.C.—only 21 permit online wagering. And four of those 21 locations have limited mobile betting (more on that below).

Why the piecemeal approach? In 2018, the United States Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992, which had effectively outlawed sports betting in the U.S. outside of Nevada. However, the Supreme Court’s ruling didn’t authorize sports betting across the board. Instead, PASPA’s downfall meant that individual states could decide if they wanted to legalize sports betting.

Those jurisdictions that chose to pass sports betting legislation also got to decide how bettors could place their wagers: in-person only at a brick-and-mortar sportsbook; online via computers and mobile devices; or a combination of both.

As of summer 2022, the online betting component is offered in the following states:

• Arizona
• Arkansas
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Louisiana
• Michigan
• Nevada
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New York
• Oregon
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• Tennessee
• Virginia
• Washington, D.C.
• West Virginia
• Wyoming

Residency in any of the above jurisdictions isn’t required; as long as you’re physically located within the borders of one of these markets, you’re at least 21 years old, and you sign up for and fund an account through a sportsbook, you can make online sports bets.

A Bit of Fine Print

As noted above, four of the 21 locations that permit online sports betting do so with limitations. Here they are:

• New Hampshire, Oregon, Rhode Island: Each offers just one mobile betting option. DraftKings is the only mobile operator in New Hampshire and Oregon, while William Hill/Caesars has the market cornered in Rhode Island. The lack of robust competition in these states is not the best model for bettors, who can’t shop multiple books for the most optimum betting lines and odds.
• Washington, D.C.: The nation’s capital has three online options for bettors: through the GamBetDC app (can place mobile bets anywhere in the D.C. area); William Hill/Caesars (can place mobile bets only when within Capital One Arena, home of the Washington Capitals and Washington Wizards where William Hill’s retail sportsbook is located); and Nationals Park (home of the Washington Nationals where BetMGM has a retail sportsbook).

Also worth noting: Nevada, which is the grandfather of sports betting states, still requires in-person registration at any of its sportsbooks that offer mobile betting. In all other places where online sports betting is legal, customers can register for and fund their accounts through their mobile devices.

Sports betting apps provide similar services but different experiences. Therefore, we recommend being discerning as you search for the app(s) that best fit your preferences.

Whether you’re a brand-new bettor or a seasoned odds shopper, it helps to seek out certain qualities in an online sports betting platform.

Looking for a good starting point? Try operating systems. Most sportsbooks offer Android and iOS apps. You can check the App Store or Google Play to confirm. Any sports betting site worth your while will have an app available for download on either platform.

From there, dig into the details. Almost every sports betting site will offer a sign-up bonus, throwing some free money on top of your initial deposit. Compare bonuses from multiple sportsbooks (where available), and ask yourself: Which one gives me the best bang for my buck?

Also, be sure to check the rules associated with the offer. Is a hefty deposit required to trigger the bonus? Am I required to bet a certain amount before the freebie hits my account?

Then jump straight to the features and functionality, including odds and market coverage. A solid online sportsbook will offer plenty of lines with competitive odds. Plus, it should be easy to find your desired bet. A sportsbook shouldn’t require you to complete the equivalent of a scavenger hunt to find a particular game or bet.

Finally, consider the betting ecosystem. For instance, if you live near a Caesars-owned casino, you might want to use the William Hill/Caesars sportsbook app (if available) to earn rewards via both channels. This isn’t a dealbreaker for most bettors, but it can be a deciding factor—and a nice added perk—if all other factors are equal.

No single sportsbook is the best. It’s all about the user experience—and every user has a different experience.

The truth is that there are numerous sports betting apps worth investigating. You’ll find the app(s) you like best by trying different options and figuring out which best fits your betting habits and preferences.

The bottom line is that the “best” sportsbook can depend on many factors, including the state you live in (or can most reasonably visit), promotions and market depth. All this said, the sports betting landscape has some clear frontrunners when it comes to mobile apps.

FanDuel Sportsbook

Any experienced sports bettor will list FanDuel among their favorite sports betting apps, and for good reason.

For starters, after signing up, FanDuel offers customers a “no-sweat” first bet up to $1,000. The sportsbook lets you place a wager up to $1,000. Should the bet win, you receive your winnings in your account per normal. If it loses? You get the money back in credits, which you can use to make subsequent wagers.

FanDuel’s app is a top choice for any type of bettor, but especially newcomers, because of the seamless navigation. The interface on the home screen makes it easy to jump straight to a specific sport or league.

Sometimes you don’t even need to click on a specific sport, as the top games/events of the day are prominently displayed on the homepage. (For instance, on a Wednesday in July, the home screen was populated with several MLB games.)

FanDuel also has some of the best market depth. You can find countless player props in any sport. Plus, FanDuel has one of the most robust same-game parlay features of any legal sportsbook. If you’re feeling spicy, you can even combine multiple same-game parlays into a single megabet with astronomical odds.

DraftKings Sportsbook

DraftKings is one of the few sportsbooks that can rival FanDuel in ease of use and popularity. In fact, the two operators are often mentioned in the same breath because they have been fierce rivals since the early days of daily fantasy sports.

DraftKings is live in almost every legal U.S. market, making it a clear choice for bettors across the country. That’s all well and good, but DraftKings seals the deal with a streamlined app and an excellent user experience.

New users at DraftKings get $50 free with a $5, plus a 20% first deposit match up to $1,000. Of course, to take full advantage of the latter offer, you have to deposit a whopping $5,000 (as 20% of $5,000 is $1,000). Don’t worry, though, the bonus scales—meaning if you deposit $100, you’ll get $20 in free bets. For this reason, DraftKings is equally suited to new users and high rollers.

For all this, DraftKings is hard to beat. It covers all the world’s biggest sports, including every professional league you can think of. Top it off with international favorites such as rugby, cricket and darts, and you get a sports betting experience chock full of options.

BetMGM Sportsbook

BetMGM is the self-proclaimed “king of sportsbooks,” and there’s no denying that its platform backs up this slogan. BetMGM is right there with FanDuel and DraftKings as one of the most prominent sportsbooks in the U.S., as it operates in most of the country’s 21 legal markets.

BetMGM’s biggest strength is market depth. It has lines and odds that rival—if not beat—all of its competitors. In fact, the sportsbook often isn’t afraid to “take a stance” on a game or event, offering value on one particular side of a bet that you won’t find elsewhere.

Another impressive feature of BetMGM’s app: If you like to watch sports on the go and track your bets, you can stream a wide variety of events straight from the app. It’s a function other sportsbooks don’t offer on the same scale.

Like FanDuel, customers who open a BetMGM account receive a $1,000 risk-free first bet. Use it to get a feel for the app or make a risky wager, and you’ll get the money back in betting credits if you lose.

From a user perspective, BetMGM works seamlessly. It’s quick to load, and its menus are intuitive. You’ll be able to find your desired bet within seconds when using the BetMGM app.

Caesars Sportsbook

You may have seen comedians and actors J.B. Smoove and Patton Oswalt repping the Caesars brand on billboards, internet ads or television commercials. Caesars has the cash to advertise in a big way, and the app backs up its empire-size claims.

Caesars edges out some of its major competitors with its sign-up bonus: a $1,500 risk-free first bet. In terms of sheer profit potential, it’s one of the best bonuses at any online sportsbook.

Beyond its generous new-user bonus, Caesars has a lot going for it: competitive odds, incredible depth and a fast-loading app.

The biggest differentiator for Caesars, in our opinion, is the Caesars Rewards program. If you live in a state with a Caesars casino (or the Caesars Online Casino), you can earn rewards via the sportsbook and other Caesars properties in your market.

Caesars also boasts some excellent rotating promotions and odds boosts. In fact, it often offers more promos/boosts at any given time than most of its competitors. So if you’re a bettor who is looking to stretch the ol’ bankroll as far as possible, this is the app for you.

PointsBet Sportsbook

PointsBet skyrocketed from its humble beginnings in Australia to become one of the most popular U.S. sportsbook apps.

The PointsBet interface is sleek and simple, making it easy to find your favorite sport. You can use the search function to find a particular team or game, scroll through the side menu that lists all available sports, or peruse the home screen for in-play matchups.

PointsBet’s new-user bonus offers two risk-free bets totaling up to $2,000. The first part of the bonus is a $500 risk-free, fixed-odds bet (that is, a traditional single-bet wager). The second part is a risk-free Points Betting wager up to $1,500.

What is “Points Betting”? It’s one of many features that sets PointsBet apart from the competition—a unique bet type that pays more (or loses more) based on the margin of victory or loss in a game. It’s high-risk, high-reward, making it an ideal fit for bettors who have a little extra “gamble” in them.

Don’t see your desired bet on the PointsBet app? Here’s where things get really cool: You can use the “Name Your Bet” feature and request the wager you’d like to make. PointsBet then will have its trading team drum up odds for your requested wager, at which point you can decide if it’s worth betting.

To our knowledge, no other U.S. sportsbook lets customers request their own bet.

BetRivers Sportsbook

New BetRivers users get a 100% deposit match up to $250. It may not seem like much, but a look at the fine print reveals BetRivers’ bonus to be one of the industry’s best. BetRviers only requires a one-time playthrough on that bonus, meaning you will get the full betting credit after you bet through your initial deposit one time.

At other sportsbooks, playthrough requirements can reach 5x, 10x, or higher. BetRivers’ bonus is tailored perfectly to new and/or casual bettors who don’t want to break the bank trying to earn a bonus credit.

Beyond a solid promo, BetRivers has all the trappings of a solid sportsbook. It offers all the staple betting markets, competitive odds and ongoing promotions.

BetRivers checks all the boxes of a customer-friendly sports betting app: great interface, quick to load, intuitive and available wagering for almost any sport you can imagine.

Sports Illustrated Sportsbook

Turns out it’s not just a magazine anymore. Sports Illustrated leaped from the page to your phone with the launch of its Colorado sportsbook. It later set up shop in Virginia, too.

This limited availability is the only big knock against Sports Illustrated sportsbook. If you live in Colorado or Virginia (or you’re just visiting), it provides one of the best online sports betting options.

Sports Illustrated offers a “Bet and Get” bonus in each of the states where it operates. In Colorado, a $10 bet gets you $60 in free wagers. In Virginia, betting $20 unlocks $100 in free bets. The catch? You have to win the initial bet to get the bonus credit. It’s a quirky offer but a nice option for new bettors who have confidence in their first wager.

When in Colorado and/or Virginia, Sports Illustrated sportsbook is a must-stop shop if you’re looking for the best odds. It won’t always have the best lines or payouts, but sometimes it will. That’s reason enough to add it to your roster.

As for the app, well … it leaves a bit to be desired, but overall it functions well. You can find sports with just a few taps of the screen, and placing a bet is easy enough. But Sports Illustrated doesn’t have the years of experience in the sports betting space to match some of its competitors, so it’s understandable that the app is a bit of a work in progress.

WynnBET

The hardest thing about using WynnBET is figuring out which letters in the name should be capitalized. Frankly, it’s the only negative, as everything else at WynnBET is a breeze.

When you sign up for WynnBET, deposit $10 or more, then bet $10 or more on a matchup with odds of -120 or longer, you’ll automatically get $200 in site credits. Bet and Get bonuses are few and far between, so WynnBET’s deal is solid if you like the bonus format.

After registering for and funding your account, WynnBET makes things simple. Not only is it easy to find the odds for numerous sports, but those odds are often among the best in the business from a bettor’s perspective. So if you’re a line shopper—and we recommend that you should be—adding the WynnBET app (where available) to your sports betting arsenal is a must.

If you’re looking for extra features and functionality, you might be better served with another sportsbook. But most bettors will find that WynnBET gets the job done.