Online sportsbooks compete fiercely for users, and in order to stand out from the pack many offer unique bonuses. These can come in a variety of forms – second chance bets, deposit bonuses, and free bet credit are among the most common. Each of these offers is different, and each comes with its own terms and conditions that should be read carefully.
The first step to utilizing a bonus offer is signing up at an online sportsbook that offers the particular type of bonus you are interested in. This can be done by visiting the promotions page of your desired site. From here, you can see all of the available bonus offers and their respective requirements. In most cases, you will need to meet a minimum wager requirement in order to redeem the bonus. Some of these minimums are very low, while others may be as high as $250 or more.
Some sportsbooks will give you a bonus bet simply for making a straight wager on a specific market. For example, some sportsbooks will give you a $5 bonus bet every time a baseball player hits a home run during a game. This is a great way to increase the value of your bets while not risking any additional money.
Another great way to get free bets is by signing up for a sportsbook’s loyalty program. Most of these programs are relatively simple to understand, and they offer a wide range of benefits. Some rewards are as small as a 5% cash back on futures, while others can reach 50% or more. These perks are worth checking out, especially when you consider that they are available for every bet you make at the sportsbook.
Signing up for a sportsbook’s loyalty club will often also provide you with unique promo codes that can be used to claim a bonus. Some of these codes are only valid for a certain period of time, so it is important to check the promotions page regularly. Other promotions, like the MLB Dinger Tuesdays offer mentioned above, are good to keep an eye out for as well.
Finally, some sportsbooks will give you a bonus simply for referring friends to the site. These are typically called Refer-A-Friend bonuses, and they can be very lucrative if you are able to take advantage of them. In most cases, the maximum value that you can get from these bonuses isn’t huge, but they can be very helpful if you are serious about betting on sports.
Aside from these types of bonuses, most legal US sportsbooks will also offer some kind of sign up bonus for new players. These can vary widely, but most will require a rollover rate before the bonus funds become real, withdrawable cash. These requirements are meant to prevent people from making one big bet and then just grabbing their bonus money. Some offshore sportsbooks have predatory rollover requirements that can be as high as 10x or more, which is why it’s important to find a reputable, regulated site.