The Honest BetOnline Sportsbook Review

BetOnline Sportsbook is among the better bookies out there. With a really wide range of sports, teams and lines, plus some highly competitive odds, BetOnline certainly has a lot going for it. But at the same time, it could benefit from a few improvements to really break through into the elite tier of operators.

The user interface is decent, but there are some minor annoyances. Generally speaking though, it’s a really solid product. Everyone in the US, or indeed anywhere, should definitely have an account, if only for the lightning-fast cryptocurrency withdrawals.

BetOnline is definitely among my top three favorite sportsbooks. Are there any notable features or specializations of BetOnline compared to other sportsbooks? Not really.

In the areas they’ve chosen to focus on, BetOnline delivers an excellent product. Payouts in minutes, early odds releases, early lines, and generous odds. What more can a sports bettor really need?

I tend to prefer sites that let me use cryptocurrency to deposit and withdraw anyway. The guarantee of a same-day payout here is hugely important to my mind. The lack of withdrawal fees is also a big plus point, though I’m sure those of you that prefer to use plastic will not share my view.

The main reasons why BetOnline isn’t my outright favorite are mostly minor details. The sports coverage is extremely comprehensive with some of the best odds available.

The bet slip is annoyingly large on the desktop site, where I do most of my betting. A couple of other layout glitches are not dealbreakers, but they do bug me a little. The customer service could be better, but I rarely need to use them.

Overall, I’d recommend giving BetOnline a try, especially if you’re a fellow crypto lover. With a little work, it could easily become the country’s top online betting site.

Deposit Bonus

The sportsbook deposit bonus is not the biggest in the world, but the headline amount is in line with the market. New registrants can pocket up to $1,000 worth of Free Play courtesy of a 50% first time deposit match. However, there are a few points to note here.

First of all, the minimum qualifying deposit is an unreasonably high $55, so this won’t suit the more casual punters. Next, there’s a 10x rollover requirement attached to your bonus.

While that’s not an entirely egregious request, it’s certainly a lot more than sites like Bovada, which only requires half that amount. Finally, don’t forget to use the promo code BET1000 when depositing.

Other Promotions

It’s not just sports betting promos available at BetOnline. There are many others too, linked to specific areas of the site.

For example, a new poker player can earn up to $1,000 in bonus funds thanks to a 100% poker bonus. Similarly, the casino welcome bonus offers up to $3,000 across your first three real money deposits, with a 100% match for each.

If you’re enjoying your experience at BetOnline, you might want to tell your pals all about it. That can be valuable, since the friend referral bonus here is a 200% match on their first deposit.

Regular users can benefit from a 25% reload bonus worth a potential $250 simply by topping up using the code LIFEBONUS. What’s more, the wagering requirements for this are just 6x.

Crypto Bonus

If, like me, you prefer crypto deposits, there are a couple more bonuses you’ll want to hear about. To begin with, there’s a possible $1,000 up for grabs when you fund your BetOnline account with cryptocurrency for the first time. Deposit the equivalent of at least $20 using the promo code CRYPTO100 to get involved, but take note of the 14x rollover requirements.

Secondly, there’s an enhanced version of the aforementioned reload bonus, where you can pocket a 30% match up to $300. Use the bonus code CRYPTO30 to qualify for that.

BetOnline Betting Lines

What types of sports and events can I bet on at BetOnline? Everything. It’s one of the most complete sportsbooks available, offering a choice of more than 30 different sport categories.

Every betting opportunity you’d expect to see is present, with thousands of lines every day. Especially when it comes to the USA’s favorite leagues and competitions, like the NFL and Super Bowl, NBA or MLB.

In terms of depth, BetOnline isn’t quite on a par with the very best sports betting sites. If you drill down into a football game, for example, you’ll probably find around 50 different betting opportunities. That’s still more than most people will ever need, since most of these markets are essentially just wallpaper. But the likes of Bovada offer 200 or more.

Unfortunately, the site lacks a search function, meaning you’ll have to manually look through the list of competitions in the navigation menu. A pet hate of mine is how unnecessarily large the bet slip is on the desktop site. I instinctively want to click it away somehow, but there’s no way to minimize it like at other gambling sites.

Another minor issue is that the site still prompts me to switch to the old classic layout. I’ve been using the “new” version for a long time now and I don’t intend to go back. I wish there was a way to disable this space-taking banner!

Competitiveness of Odds

The odds for most major sports are really good at BetOnline. You’ll often find them in line with the industry top price on sports like football, basketball, baseball and horse racing. If they’re not, they won’t be far behind.

Best of all though, these lines go up nice and early. You might not be able to bet as much overnight, until the market has firmed up. But a casual sports bettor should easily be able to get as much as $200 or $300 on.

The lower-tier sports categories, including soccer and UFC, BetOnline won’t be among the most competitive. But for the majority of punters, that’s not likely to be an issue.

Player Props

Like any good betting site, the most common sports betting options are well covered. However, in addition to the totals, spreads and moneylines, you’ll also find plenty of player props. As I mentioned, there may not be as many as Bovada, for example. But compared to the average site, it’s certainly in line.

The “Props Builder” feature is one of my favorite aspects of BetOnline. Same game parlays are de rigueur nowadays, but this site also offers a good example of how to do it, in terms of user-friendly design. You’ll also find a number of odds boosters and teasers to get involved with.

In-Game Live Betting

Does BetOnline offer live betting options? You bet. Hit the “Live Betting” tab at any time of day and you’re sure to find something of interest. Whether it’s college football, NHL hockey, Korean basketball, or Australian soccer, you’ll never be short of in-game action.

A big plus point is that most of these games are streamed, too. It doesn’t matter how obscure the event is, there’s a much better chance that BetOnline will stream the game than at other sportsbooks.

Where there’s no streaming coverage, you’ll still be presented with a match tracker and plenty of stats, in a live betting console that’s really easy to use. The odds refresh quickly and I’ve never had any bad experiences with lag.

Mobile

The next section of this article covers all things mobile. Unfortunately, there’s no native iOS or Android app available for download. You can install a web app, but from my experience, you’re just as well off using the fully responsive mobile betting site. The exception is online poker, which does have its own app.

How does the user interface of BetOnline compare to other sportsbooks? It’s actually pretty good. Most of the gripes I have about the desktop site don’t apply to the mobile version. For instance, the bet slip is tucked neatly away at the bottom of the page, easily recalled or hidden with a quick tap. This particular optimization is a big improvement.

However, the lack of a search facility remains annoying, as its absence makes it harder to place a bet. But at least the navigation tree is user friendly and intuitive, adopting the tried and trusted layout of most other mobile betting sites. Reliability is never an issue, either.

Racebook

BetOnline offers a dedicated area of the site for horse racing, but it’s a little underwhelming. Perhaps it’s because I grew up around UK bookies, so I’m used to seeing sites pay a lot more attention to their racing offerings. But it’s always disappointing when a site doesn’t even show me the most basic form stats, like the finishing positions in the horse’s last few races. You can’t even see the colors of the jockey’s silks.

Although there’s no greyhound coverage in this racebook, I will say one thing; the horse racing product is comprehensive. It’s not only the North American stuff; you can find races from South Africa, Australia, France, the UK, Ireland and more.

If it’s top-class thoroughbred racing you want, either today or futures markets, BetOnline has it. And the odds stack up well against the competition, too. It’s just a shame there’s not a little more detail in terms of statistics and exotic wager types.

Signing up at BetOnline

The BetOnline sign-up process is one of the easiest and least intrusive around. After tapping the green “Join” button, you’ll be presented with a form containing just eight fields.

Naturally, you’ll need to supply your full name and date of birth, plus an email address and telephone number. You also have to supply a strong password. However, once this is complete, you’ll be taken straight into your account, with no need to even verify your contact information. The whole process takes literally 60 seconds.

New customers wishing to use cryptocurrency can simply head straight to the cashier and initiate their first deposit. However, for debit and credit card deposits, you will be prompted to complete your full address for license compliance purposes. You also get a convenient reminder about the various sign-up incentives at the top of the page.

Take note that, while BetOnline accepts players from most of the USA, sports bettors from the state of New Jersey are not permitted to join.

Deposits

The selection of possible deposit methods is relatively small, in that there are no e-wallets like Neteller or Skrill, vouchers or mobile payments. But for the vast majority of players, BetOnline has everything you need. You can use any of the four major card processors, plus an array of 16 different cryptocurrencies.

The latter is definitely the way to go, since card transactions carry a prohibitive charge of 9.75%. However, not only is it fee-free to transact with cryptocurrency, the deposit limits are really impressive.

You only need to fund your account with the equivalent of $20, which is perfectly reasonable and in line with most bookmakers. But the highest-rolling punters can pretty much do as they please, with a staggering $500,000 maximum deposit amount.

Payouts

In terms of payout options, the available banking methods are similarly limited, although it is possible to cash out via check, money order, and bank wire. Not that I’d recommend these payment methods due to the associated fees.

You’ll need to pay a $50 charge to request a check, for instance, and the minimum withdrawal amount is $500. It’s even worse for a money order, rising to $80. Bank wire transfers will set you back at least $45, depending on the value of the transaction.

Bitcoin Withdrawals

Once again, it’s all about the cryptos at BetOnline. Most of the tokens available have a fair minimum withdrawal limit of $20, though it is higher for bitcoin at $200. However, there are no fees attached to any crypto withdrawals and the maximum possible payout amount is $100,000.

Best of all though, you’re guaranteed to receive your winnings within minutes using cryptocurrency as your withdrawal method. Aside from Bovada, I’m not aware of a US gambling site that processes withdrawal quicker. Talk about convenience.

Casino

It’s fair to say there are bigger casinos available, but BetOnline still gives you plenty of choices. There are almost 600 slot machines to choose from, for example, in addition to roughly 50 old-school table games.

These are supported by a variety of video poker titles, plus keno, scratch cards and other specialty games. There’s also a live casino, plus progressive jackpot slots where the prize pool continues to grow.

The majority of slot games are supplied by Realtime Gaming, but you’ll also find titles from the likes of BetSoft, Rival, BGaming and Digital Gaming Solutions. In total, there are ten reputable casino software providers offering their products, available to play at a range of stakes and RTP values.

Among the other products, you’ll find a selection of traditional favorites, including no fewer than 13 video poker games. There are some interesting variations of classic games too, such as Dragon Roulette, which offers random multipliers, and Supreme 777 Jackpots Blackjack.

Live Dealers

There are three different live dealer suppliers to be found at BetOnline. Visionary iGaming and FreshDeck Studios supply a limited number of popular games like blackjack, roulette and baccarat, but little else. Although the streams are reasonable, the quality isn’t as high as the likes of Evolution.

However, the addition of BetGames products in 2023 really took things up a notch or two for the BetOnline live casino. Along with a number of classic table games, streamed in high definition, this supplier is known for its lottery-style live dealer games. They also offer some inventive sports-themed games, like T-Basket and Football Grid.

Casino players can enjoy a wide variety of stakes, starting from just $0.50 at the roulette tables. The upper limit is $20,000 when playing VIP blackjack. That’s certainly big, but it’s not as high as the $50,000 maximum at Bovada, for instance.

BetOnline Customer Support

There’s one last thing I need to cover, but it’s an important one. If you need assistance in the event of a problem, what are the customer support options provided by BetOnline? Well, like most sites these days, there are a number of possibilities, but they really want you to use the live chat option.

However, I haven’t had the best experience with this. Upon entering my name and typing my question, I was a little surprised to find myself 19th in the queue. After waiting for a solid ten minutes or so, I was greeted by a fairly sterile agent who insisted I go through a security check, even though my question was completely unrelated to any specific account.

After more than fifteen minutes of waiting, I still didn’t have an answer, so I gave up. Looks like there’s a little work to do here for the BetOnline support team, a pretty big flaw in an otherwise excellent site.

If you don’t fancy running the gauntlet with the live chat feature, you do have some flexibility. There’s always the phone number (1-888-426-3661) for instance. Or you can email help@betonlinecs.ag if your query isn’t especially urgent. There’s also a reasonably useful “Help Center” containing a number of FAQs.