The sport with big hits, big plays, and even bigger players is one of the most popular sports to bet on, and for good reasons.

We’re going to break down the best way to dive into the world of NFL betting and give you the best online options for making your bets and having a good time. 

Let’s dive in!

Top legal NFL betting sites

1. BetMGM (Available in: AZ, CO, FL, IL, IN, KS, LA, MD, MA, MI, MS, NC, NV, NJ, NY, OH, OR, PA, PR, TN, VA, WA, WV, and WY)
2. BetRivers (Available in: AZ, CO, CT, IL, IN, LA, MD, MI, NJ, NY, OH, PA, VA, WV, and WY)

How we chose the best NFL betting sites

There are countless options for wagering on your favorite team from the comfort of your couch. We’ve assembled a list of the best NFL betting sites based on the following criteria so that you can spend time watching the game and betting with confidence. 

Available football markets

The NFL is the biggest league but for football fanatics or fans to the north, sites offer gambling on the CFL (Canadian Football League), College Football, the NFL Preseason, and other smaller leagues. Many NCAA players make their way to the NFL or other leagues and, apart from being a young, talent-heavy league, wagering on college football helps you learn the future players of the game and their stats so that when they arrive in the NFL, your betting is less gambling and more informed by the data of their previous seasons. 

Odds and wager options

With an active roster of 53 players, a wide range of player roles, and several unique modes of play, the NFL lends itself to several betting options. The best betting sites allow you to wager on all of these, from betting on totals to prop betting on an offensive drive,  to futures betting, where you are looking at the grand scheme of a season. We’ll cover each way of betting later on, but the best sites typically have them all, though some offer a simpler approach with fewer options.

Availability of bonuses

In an effort to sway prospective bet makers their way, sites frequently offer bonuses. Nearly all offer an incentive to place your first bet, whether in the form of a guaranteed return or credit toward future wagers. Online betting sites also offer additional bonuses for referring friends, depositing money in your account, and daily bets made. Promotions also give every gambler, new or seasoned, an incentive to jump in and take a risk on a bet or discover a new way to play.

State licensing and security 

Online betting sites are all about transactions and each holds huge amounts of personal and financial data. Cybersecurity is understandably crucial and betting sites go to great lengths to keep data safe with two-factor authentication, by utilizing industry-standard SSL (Security Socket Layer) and partnering with credible, secure financial institutions. Sports betting is still relatively new and since its inception, there has been required state licensing to hold sites accountable. Each site that we chose holds licenses in several states and actively updates its offerings following changing laws. 

Customer support 

Each site has a host of online resources, mainly articles and videos, to aid the enthusiastic bidder. These range from deeper explanations of types of bets to account help and everything in between. We also looked at the ability to move beyond an online article and get in contact, whether via email, on-site chat, or phone call, with a customer service representative for a quick and easy answer. The onsite/in-app chat features offer an easy way to reach out while a phone call option is ideal for those with a unique question or the desire to speak directly with a representative. 

Option to bet from app/responsive site

Football is fast-paced and can change with one dropped pass, interception, or sack. The best sites offer the option to whip open an app or mobile responsive site and make on-the-fly bets. The apps and sites that stuck out the most on this front were ones that also included live streaming of games, allowing bids and game watching to happen simultaneously. The user experience for each site is crucial and each of our picks has gone to great lengths to make betting simple and effective while also making it easy to find the wide range of bet types offered. Utilizing every bit of a relatively small screen is something the best betting sites have mastered down to the pixel!

Payment options

Depositing money can make or break a user’s experience and engagement with a betting site. All NFL betting sites attempt to make it as quick and easy as possible, typically by offering many different payment types. Apart from the assumed credit card, debit card, and bank transfer, betting sites give options like Venmo, PayPal, eCheck, and Bitcoin (or other digital currency).  The speed of payout is also crucial as customers want to realize their winnings as quickly as possible when they decide to withdraw.  Many sites have a greater number of deposit options than they do withdrawals. 

NFL betting sites: In-depth reviews

1. BetMGM

Beyond having Jamie Foxx as their spokesperson, BetMGM is a division of MGM, the longtime player in the gambling scene.

Users enjoy the sleek interface and the ability to stream games on the site/app, while placing and monitoring wagers made. It is an ideal site/app for beginners with information laid out clearly and requiring a small learning curve. 

Pros	Cons
An unmatched, elegant user interface.	Less frequent bonuses and promotions.
The ability to set limits on daily, weekly, and monthly play as well as a lockout period to ensure responsible gaming.
An easy-to-use ‘One Game Parlay’ feature

2. BetRivers

The BetRivers Sportsbook has expanded to a large number of states, gaining the most notoriety for the $500 in Second Chance Bet offer. New users can place a one time bet of up to $500 and if they lose, the initial bet amount will be credited to their account in the form of future bets, basically wiping out the initial losses.

BetRivers is also popular for the many types of prop bets offered, however, after the sign up offer, BetRivers is limited in the promotions offered on NFL bets.

Pros	Cons
An enticing sign-up offer	Longer withdrawal timeframe than rival sportsbooks (5-7 days)
A large number of prop and futures bet options	A less intuitive and easy-to-use app
Helpful live chat customer service option

Are NFL betting sites legal in the US?

Believe it or not, the story starts in 1992 when a law was passed banning sports betting in nearly every state. In 2018, that law was overturned in favor of passing the decision of the legality of sports betting over to individual U.S. States.

Unsurprisingly, while many states have legalized sports betting, each created a slightly different set of requirements for in-person and digital bookmakers. Many states have taken advantage of the change to create an additional state revenue stream. Thankfully, most of these states have added football betting and the NFL to the roster of acceptable sports betting types.

Most importantly, bookmakers, or digital betting sites, are the ones going through the legal and licensing hoops to make it easy for users to make bets. 

Currently, thirty-six states have legalized sports gambling and an additional three states have introduced legislation to legalize it soon. The remaining 11 have either had legislation shot down or refused to introduce it at all.

What states allow NFL betting?

Currently, online NFL betting is allowed in Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming. 

How old do I need to be to sign up for an NFL betting site?

The majority of legislation introduced to allow online sports betting restricted participation to those 21 and older. There are a few states that allow betting beginning at 18 years old.

These states are Montana, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Washington DC, and Wyoming.

How do I sign up for an NFL betting site?

Signing up for an NFL betting site and getting started on making wagers is a simple process that takes a matter of minutes. You can likely do it before kickoff starts!

1. Choose the site that appeals most to you. While it isn’t hard to have multiple betting sites on your mobile device or open on your computer, starting with one and getting familiar with it is the best choice. So first, navigate to the website of your choosing online. Alternatively, download the app of your choosing on your mobile device
2. Click the prominent sign up or join now button located on the home screen. 
3. Enter your personal information, including name, email, and phone number. 
4. Create a username and password.
5. If applicable, enter the promo code that you received (this often gets you that coveted sign-up bonus!)
6. Check or sign to accept all Terms And Conditions, including certifying that you are of legal gambling age, are physically in the state that the site registers you are in, and that you understand the legal and financial ramifications of betting online. 
7. Confirm your personal information, including your Social Security Number, Personal Address.
8. Add funds to your account! Technically, you do not have to immediately add funds to have an account, but it is a good idea to get this out of the way, and entering your financial information for the first time often results in securing a betting credit.

Once you have completed your registration, most sites have an initial tutorial that will walk you through the ins and outs of placing bets, tracking odds, and seeing your betting activity.

How to place a bet on an NFL betting site

Once you have gone through the steps of signing up for a NFL betting site including entering your financial information, it’s time to get started on making a bet! Likely, you will be excited, tracking a game or player and ready to make a bet you’re sure will be a win. 

1. To place a bet, you must first have money in your account. Prep yourself for game day by funding your account ahead of time. This also keeps you from spending more than anticipated in the excitement of the moment!
2. Choose the sporting event (game, draft, trade, etc.) and outcome 
3. Review the odds and add them to your bet slip. 
4. Review your bet slip, which will have all of your chosen bets in one place, and once you are satisfied, click place bet. 
5. Wait for the results and keep an eye on the game. 
6. Either withdraw your won/lost funds or use your winnings to start additional bets.

Types of NFL bets you can place

The NFL has a lot going on and with a digital sportsbook, you can place bets on all of it. Even beginners can explore the different types of betting that pique their interest before diving into the nuanced bets and lucrative winnings that can be had. On an NFL betting site, you can choose from these different types of NFL bets:

• Point spread betting: An incredibly popular way of betting on the NFL, you win by predicting the winner and loser of a match AND by how much they will win. Sportsbooks show each team’s handicap, indicated with a (+) or (-). This is called the ‘line’. The (+) shows how much a team is favored to win by and the (-) how much the other is favored to lose by. For example, if the line shows Chicago is favored over Detroit with a spread of -11.5, Chicago will need to win by 12 points for you to win the bet.
• Moneyline: A moneyline bet is betting on who will win the game. The simplest form of wager, odds are placed on each team based on the probability that they win. The higher the probability, the lower the odds and resulting payout. Similarly, the lower the probability, the higher the odds and resulting payout. Rooting for that underdog can be costly, or result in some big cash!
• Point totals: A points total bet is a wager on the total combined points scored by each team. It typically is shown as an over or under bet (see below), with a predicted number of points shown. Your bet is whether the teams combined will score more than that number of points during the game or less. 
• Over or under: An over or under bet is a wager on whether a certain statistic in a game ends up higher or lower than a proposed value. This can be for anything from points scored, touchdowns made, interceptions caught, or field goals attempted. You win if you bet over and the final number is over the proposed number or if you bet under and the final number is under the proposed number. 
• Parlays: A parlay is one bet that is composed of multiple wagers. It’s a create-your-own where you choose the set of outcomes but only win if all of the results come out as predicted. These can be across one game or a set of games on a given day and can get complex and lucrative.
• Prop bets: These bets are related to specific outcomes in the game and the possibilities are endless. These entertaining bets can be on anything from a particular action by a certain player to a certain play occurring. For example, will the kicker hit the uprights when attempting a field goal? Will a kick be returned for a touchdown? You can bet on any of these. 
• Futures: Betting on futures is just like it sounds. It is betting on future events that you’ll have to wait a bit longer to know your wins or losses. Most often, future bets are on who will win the Super Bowl, who will be MVP, or who will win the division.

The football action never stops – find the top XFL sites in your state!

What type of bonuses can I get on NFL betting sites?

One of the best parts about online betting sites is that they are constantly offering bonuses for a variety of things. Sign up? Bonus. Refer a friend? Bonus. For these NFL sites, it’s a tactic to keep you playing. For you, it’s the opportunity to take that money or those credits and make it bigger! Here are the various types of bonuses most commonly offered.

Welcome bonus

This is the bonus you will often regularly see advertised during commercials, sprinkled in your social media feed, and on billboards. The offer is clear, when you make an account, you get a bonus! Typically, to receive the bonus you will first need to fully create an account and deposit funds in it. 

Free bets bonus

Similar to a signup bonus, the free bets bonus is typically enticing you to make that first bet. Once you do, you receive several credits to make other bets as a bonus. Free bet bonuses can pop back up later on and always consist of meeting some criteria and receiving credit or free bets as a result. Remember, it’s not free money that you can withdraw, it’s credits or free bets. 

No deposit bonus

A no-deposit bonus typically has certain conditions tied to the receiving of either bonus funds or credits but does not require a deposit to be made by the user. Sharing an update about your NFL betting site on social media or following the site on its various social channels are typical ways to receive a no-deposit bonus. A welcome bonus that doesn’t require an initial deposit can also be a type of no-deposit bonus. 

Reload bonus

A reload bonus is several credits or funds given as a bonus for depositing additional money to bet within your account. 

Event or seasonal bonus

Event or seasonal bonuses are bonuses that are valid only for certain events or are time-sensitive in some way. These are offered to generate excitement around a certain event, say the playoffs or draft, or to increase user activity at a certain point. A bonus offered up one week leading up to the Superbowl that can be only used on bets for the Superbowl would be an event and seasonal bonus.

Do football bets include overtime?

Yes, nearly all football bets include overtime. One exception is a 3-way moneyline bet where the wager includes the outcome of a draw at the end of the fourth quarter. 

What is moneyline football betting?

A moneyline bet is betting on who will win the game. The simplest form of wager, odds are placed on each team based on the probability that they win. The higher the probability, the lower the odds and resulting payout. Similarly, the lower the probability, the higher the odds and resulting payout. Rooting for that underdog can be costly, or result in some big cash!

How does NFL handicap betting work?

Handicap betting is a way of betting on an NFL game based on the margin by which a team will win and the other team will lose by. If there is a lopsided matchup, the odds that the better team will win are high, making the potential profit low, and vis-a-versa for the losing team losing. However, with a handicap bet, you are betting on the margin by which the game will be one, which makes a more competitive betting scenario. The bookmakers state a handicap before the game, say 6.5, and for you to win the wager, your team needs to win or lose by a margin of more than the stated amount, in this case, 6.5 points.

Also an NBA fan? Find the top basketball betting sites here.

Can I bet on the NFL Playoffs?

Yes, betting on the NFL Playoffs is an easy way to get excited about the NFL season. Bets can be made on how far a team will go, which teams will make the playoffs, and ultimately, who will win the Superbowl. 

Are there special bets for the Superbowl?

There are a variety of bets that can be made on the Superbowl. Regular moneyline, point total, and other bets are common on the Superbowl.

Gambling on more specific outcomes is also more frequent for the Superbowl with practiced bettors putting together same game parlays in the hopes of a big reward. Often, online betting sites will also put together event bonuses for the Superbowl around a unique scenario like a safety occurring or a team scoring on their first drive. 

Can I bet on football with my mobile device? 

The best online betting sites have an app so that you can bet on football with your mobile device.

Typically the app provides a simplified version of the site’s web betting interface, with crucial information readily available so you can make informed bets simply and with little effort.

What payment methods are available at NFL betting sites?

Payment methods for NFL betting sites include bank transfer, credit card, debit card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Venmo, Visa, Mastercard, Discover, Bitcoin, and more. 

What is the best football betting site?

DraftKings is the best football betting site because of its ease of use, frequently offered bonuses, and a wide variety of betting types available.

What is the best NFL betting app?

DraftKings is the best NFL betting app thanks to its robust features and user experience. Some new bettors will find BetMGM’s app easier to learn and make a bet. 

What does spread mean in NFL betting?

The spread in the NFL is the number by which a team is expected to win or lose. The spread is the predicted difference between the points won between the winning and losing teams. 

Our top 5 tips for NFL betting

If you are interested in NFL betting and are just getting started, here are our top five tips to get you in the game. 

1. Choose one site/app and stick with it at first. There will be opportunities to take advantage of different offers on different sites later on, but learning the ins and outs of betting on one site is the best way to familiarize yourself with betting on the NFL. 
2. Keep it simple, then get more complex. Start with some moneyline bets on your favorite teams and get a feel for simple bets like point spread betting or point totals before going all in with parlays and over or under bets. 
3. Get into a rhythm. Sporadic, undisciplined betting lowers your chances of winning as you aren’t tracking the game and results regularly. Put in some effort and do your research to make informed bets for better outcomes. Choose similar types of bets on certain teams and players and become an expert in their play.
4. Have fun with it! You undoubtedly already like the NFL for the action and excitement. Sports betting is an added layer of entertainment and gives the potential to get behind your team and players and get even more excited about the big games. 
5. Know your limits. You knew it was coming. Setting a limit for how many bets you’ll make, how much you’ll spend, and how much time you’ll invest in betting is something everyone should do. Drawing a line before you get started will keep you from making decisions that you may regret regardless of wins or losses and will let you be free to have fun. 

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Responsible gambling 

Remember to gamble responsibly
A responsible gambler is someone who:

• Establishes time and monetary limits before playing
• Only gambles with money they can afford to lose
• Never chase their losses
• Doesn’t gamble if they’re upset, angry, or depressed
• National Council on Problem Gambling – https://www.ncpgambling.org/
• Gamble Aware – www.begambleaware.org

For help with a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline on 1-800-522-4700 or go to ncpgambling.org/chat