Websites Like Bovada

Are you looking websites similar to Bovada Betting? ⚡ We have already added great sites related to Bovada Betting in our casino top list in 2021. ⚡ Click and get great bonuses on our website! The reason we list websites similar to Bovada is mainly for sports punters and Live dealer fans, as neither of these products can be found in Bovada sister casinos. Below you can find sites which are similarly to Bovada. When it comes to sportsbetting, Bovada is the only site that is also a bookmaker. Well, Bodog and Bumbet as well, but they do not accept US players. So if you are looking after a place to bet on your favorite NFL team, check our list of sportsbook sites similar to Bovada at the bottom of this page. Whether you’re jinked to the pits of hell on Bovada or you don’t like paying the high juice and high rake, let’s talk alternatives.First off, let me state that this article is intended for sites that offer a sportsbook, casino and poker site. BetOnline and Bovada are the only major USA sites charging for credit card deposits and most allow one free check cashout per month – some, like True Poker, allow a free check withdrawal.

• Casinos Like Bovada
• Best Gambling Websites 2020
• Gambling Websites Like Bovada

Are you looking for the most complete review of Bovada.lv casino and
sportsbook? Do you want to know if Bovada.lv is a safe gambling site?
If so, then you’ve come to the right place. We’ve built this honest Bovada review
to provide you with an independent look at everything this site has to
offer. By the time you wrap up this review of Bovada, you’ll have an excellent
idea if it’s the right fit for your unique needs.

Before you proceed, we’d like to make you aware of one key piece of
information. In the interest of being able to offer you a reliable and
trustworthy review of Bovada, we’ve not accepted funds to write this review. Thanks
to this, you’ll get a real-life look at their operation that
isn’t sugar coated or skewed. We’re big fans of telling it to you like it is,
and that’s precisely what you’ll get below.

If you’re looking to get the most out of this page, then be sure to hang
around to check out everything we’ve included. However, if you’re tight on time,
you can use the jump links below to quickly get to the parts of this page you
want to view.

Ratings Breakdown

Overall

There’s no doubt about it that Bovada is one of the safest online
sportsbooks and casinos. As you’ll read below, there’s a ton to love about their
site and not much we can suggest for them to improve upon. If you don’t
currently have an online gambling home, their site is worth a hard look to see if
it’s the right one for you.

Banking

Banking is one of the areas where we noticed some room for improvement when doing our
Bovada review. While they do offer some excellent banking options at this time, the
list is rather short. Moving forward, we’d like to see them add in a broader
assortment of methods so that their clients have more flexibility when making
deposits and withdrawals from the website.

Bonuses

There’s no question that Bovada.lv offers some of the best bonuses in the online
gambling industry. This is especially true when it comes to welcome bonuses.
Thanks to these, you’ll have the chance to earn upwards of several thousands of
dollars while gambling on their platform. Our only small gripe is that we’d like
to see a more extensive variety of other bonus options to allow current players
more chances to earn additional promotional funds.

Customer Service

We absolutely love the customer service provided. For starters,
their team is there around the clock to help you with your questions and issues
24/7. On top of that, you can reach them via a contact form, telephone, or live
chat, making it simple to reach them in whichever way is most convenient for
you. Finally, we never waited too long for help. Each of their support team
members was highly knowledgeable and willing to assist, which helps speak volumes to the legitimacy of this site.

User Interface

The user interface is top-notch. This is true for both the standard
version of the website as well as the mobile-friendly one. One of the best parts
of the website’s user interface is how quickly pages and casino games load.
Also, the site’s menus and pages are well laid out, making navigation
effortless.

Mobile Compatibility

If you’re interested in betting at Bovada from your smartphone or tablet,
you’re in luck. Their team has developed an excellent mobile-friendly version
of their website allowing you to bet from mobile devices. Our only suggestion
for them in this area would be to add even more of their casino games to the
mobile version of the website.

Bovada Overview

Since 2011, Bovada has been one of the top online sportsbooks and casinos in
the industry, being well known for being a legit company. With so many years in operation, they have more experience and
know-how than many of the newer operations which have popped up in the last
couple of years. As you’ll see in the sections below, Bovada has built an
excellent online gambling operation since they were first established.

Are you wondering if you can enjoy all of the awesomeness that they bring
to the table? The good news is many folks from around the globe can get in on
all of the betting action safely. However, as is common in the industry,
Bovada doesn’t accept players from all countries. Click below if you’d like to
see the latest list of countries excluded from playing at Bovada.

• Afghanistan
• Aland Islands
• Albania
• Algeria
• American Samoa
• Andorra
• Angola
• Anguilla
• Antarctica
• Antigua and Barbuda
• Argentina
• Armenia
• Aruba
• Asia/Pacific Region
• Australia
• Austria
• Azerbaijan
• Bahamas
• Bahrain
• Bangladesh
• Barbados
• Belarus
• Belgium
• Belize
• Benin
• Bermuda
• Bhutan
• Bolivia
• Bonaire
• Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Botswana
• Bouvet Island
• Brazil
• Brunei Darussalam
• Bulgaria
• Burkina Faso
• Burundi
• Cambodia
• Cameroon
• Canada
• Cape Verde
• Cayman Islands
• Central African Republic
• Chad
• Chile
• China
• Christmas Island
• Cocos (Keeling) Islands
• Colombia
• Comoros
• Congo
• Cook Islands
• Costa Rica
• Cote d’Ivoire
• Croatia
• Cuba
• Curacao
• Cyprus
• Czech Republic
• Denmark
• Djibouti
• Dominica
• Dominican Republic
• Ecuador
• Egypt
• El Salvador
• Equatorial Guinea
• Eritrea
• Estonia
• Ethiopia
• Falkland Islands (Malvinas)
• Faroe Islands
• Fiji
• Finland
• France
• French Guiana
• French Polynesia
• French Southern Territories
• Gabon
• Gambia
• Georgia
• Germany
• Ghana
• Gibraltar
• Greece
• Greenland
• Grenada
• Guadeloupe
• Guam
• Guatemala
• Guernsey
• Guinea
• Guinea-Bissau
• Guyana
• Haiti
• Heard Island and McDonald Islands
• Holy See (Vatican City State)
• Honduras
• Hong Kong
• Hungary
• Iceland
• India
• Indonesia
• Iran
• Iraq
• Ireland
• Isle of Man
• Israel
• Italy
• Jamaica
• Japan
• Jersey
• Jordan
• Kazakhstan
• Kenya
• Kiribati
• Korea
• Kuwait
• Kyrgyzstan
• Lao People’s Democratic Republic
• Latvia
• Lebanon
• Lesotho
• Liberia
• Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
• Liechtenstein
• Lithuania
• Luxembourg
• Macao
• Macedonia
• Madagascar
• Malawi
• Malaysia
• Maldives
• Mali
• Malta
• Marshall Islands
• Martinique
• Mauritania
• Mauritius
• Mayotte
• Micronesia
• Moldova
• Monaco
• Mongolia
• Montenegro
• Montserrat
• Morocco
• Mozambique
• Myanmar
• Namibia
• Nauru
• Nepal
• Netherlands
• New Caledonia
• New Zealand
• Nicaragua
• Niger
• Nigeria
• Niue
• Norfolk Island
• Northern Mariana Islands
• Norway
• Oman
• Pakistan
• Palau
• Palestinian Territory
• Panama
• Papua New Guinea
• Paraguay
• Peru
• Philippines
• Pitcairn
• Poland
• Portugal
• Puerto Rico
• Qatar
• Reunion
• Romania
• Russian Federation
• Rwanda
• Saint Barthelemy
• Saint Helena
• Saint Kitts and Nevis
• Saint Lucia
• Saint Martin
• Saint Pierre and Miquelon
• Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
• Samoa
• San Marino
• Sao Tome and Principe
• Saudi Arabia
• Senegal
• Serbia
• Seychelles
• Sierra Leone
• Singapore
• Sint Eustatius and Saba
• Sint Maarten
• Slovakia
• Slovenia
• Solomon Islands
• Somalia
• South Africa
• South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
• South Sudan
• Spain
• Sri Lanka
• Sudan
• Suriname
• Svalbard and Jan Mayen
• Swaziland
• Sweden
• Switzerland
• Syrian Arab Republic
• Taiwan
• Tajikistan
• Tanzania
• Thailand
• Timor-Leste
• Togo
• Tokelau
• Tonga
• Trinidad and Tobago
• Tunisia
• Turkey
• Turkmenistan
• Turks and Caicos Islands
• Tuvalu
• Uganda
• Ukraine
• United Arab Emirates
• United Kingdom
• Uruguay
• Uzbekistan
• Vanuatu
• Venezuela
• Vietnam
• Virgin Islands (British and US)
• Wallis and Futuna
• Western Sahara
• Yemen
• Zambia
• Zimbabwe

Banking Options

While reviewing Bovada, we set out to find if this site was truly legit. One
thing we noticed that there are a few different ways you can move your money onto and
off of their website. We’ve added in details below about the various deposit and
withdrawal methods we located at the time of our complete review of their site.
It’s worth noting the options you find might vary from what’s below depending on
where you reside.

Deposits

• Bitcoin
• Visa
• Mastercard

Withdrawals

• Check by Mail
• Bitcoin
• Bitcoin Cash

Overall, we feel there is some room for improvement in the banking department
after doing our complete Bovada review. While they have some excellent banking methods which will work for
many individuals, the list of options is very limited compared to many other
online gambling sites. In the future, we’d love it if Bovada would add in other
popular variants like Neteller, Skrill, and PayPal.

Bovada.lv Bonuses and Promotions

If you’re looking to make some bonus cash while gambling online, then you’re
going to love all of the bonuses and promotions that Bovada brings to the table.
Below, we’ve added the details on the promotions we found live at the time of
our review. As you’ll see, you can earn upwards of several thousands of dollars
in bonus cash if you choose to play at a legit site like Bovada.

Casino Welcome Bonus

Those of you new to Bovada can take advantage of their casino welcome bonus
if you’re planning to wager on casino games. What’s nice about this bonus is
that you can earn up to $3,000 of bonus funds thanks to a very generous 100%
match on your first three deposits. The maximum bonus amount is $1,000 per
deposit. Therefore, you’ll want to deposit at least $1,000 or more for your
first three deposits if you’d like to maximize the amount of bonus funds.
Compared to other online casino bonuses, this is a stellar casino welcome offer.

Sportsbook Welcome Bonus

If sports betting is your thing, our unbiased review of Bovada has got you covered. You can score up to $250 in bonus funds when making your initial deposit
for sports betting. With their sportsbook welcome bonus, they will match your
sportsbook deposit at a rate of 50% up to $250. To get the maximum amount out of
this bonus, you’ll want to deposit $500 or more. Once you have the bonus funds
in your account, you can use them to bet on your favorite sporting events.

Poker Welcome Bonus

Fans of poker will really enjoy the poker room that is brought to the
table. However, you can also earn a great welcome bonus if you plan on playing
poker on their platform. Thanks to their poker welcome bonus, they will
give you a 100% match on your initial deposit up to a total of $500. This means
if you deposit $500 or more, they will toss you an additional $500 to use for
the enjoyment of poker action. Based on our experience, this is one of the best
poker welcome bonuses which currently exists in the industry.

Bitcoin Welcome Bonus

Those of you looking to get the most out of the welcome bonuses should
consider depositing with Bitcoin. The reason for this is because you can receive
substantially more bonus funds for sports betting and casino action by using
this deposit method over the credit card options. Even if you’re not currently
using Bitcoin, it’s worth looking into thanks to the added value their website
brings to the table.

Up first, let’s focus on the sportsbook-related bonus. Instead of being
capped at $250 like you are with the traditional sportsbook welcome bonus
mentioned above, you can receive a 75% Bitcoin welcome bonus up to $750 by using
the Bovada bonus code BTCSWB750 if your initial sportsbook deposit is made with
Bitcoin.

Bovada.lv didn’t just stop there with sports betting. You can also earn a
considerable amount of bonus cash when making a casino deposit using Bitcoin as
your banking method. With Bitcoin, you can receive up to $3,750 of bonus funds
thanks to a 100% match good for up to $1,250 by using Bovada bonus code
BTCCWB1250. This bonus can also be replicated three times like the standard
casino welcome bonus included above. Last but not least, by using Bitcoin, you
can also earn a referral bonus. With this referral bonus you will receive 200%
of a referral’s first Bitcoin deposit as well as an extra $25 just for you.

Referral Bonus

Once you try out Bovada and see how great their operation is, you might want
to invite your friends to join in on the action. The great thing about their website is
that they’ve got a pretty killer referral bonus program where you can score some
extra cash simply by referring your friends to gamble on the website.

Through this offer, you’ll receive bonus cash amounting to 200% of your
friend’s initial deposit. The cap on this promotion is $100. This means if your
friend deposits $50 or more, you’ll receive $100 of bonus funds. The best part
about the referral bonus at Bovada is that there’s no limit to how many friends
you can refer. You can refer dozens of friends and still pick up the extra funds
every time.

Rewards Program

Another great way to earn bonuses is through their excellent
rewards program. As is common in the gambling industry, the more you wager, the better your potential rewards become. You can earn
substantial cashback amounts on all poker, casino, and sportsbook action. You
can also make cash bonuses along the way. You can learn more about the rewards program by
visiting the rewards landing page.

Be sure to check out the promotions page on their website to see the most
up to date list of their bonus offers. There, you can also view the fine print
of each offer to make sure you’re fully aware of the terms and conditions
associated with any promotional offer. As is common in the industry, the offers
described above each have associated rollover requirements which must be met
before you can withdraw the bonus funds from your account.

Despite not having a long list of promotional offers, Bovada still offers
some of the best bonuses in the industry. No matter if you’re into sports
betting, poker, or casino games, they have an excellent welcome bonus which can
help you jump start your betting account on their website. Our only suggestion
after doing our review of Bovada would be to provide their clients with more bonus offers outside of
the welcome bonus realm. With the addition of some reload bonuses and other
special offers, Bovada will add even more value for their clients.

The Bovada Sportsbook

If sports betting is your thing, then Bovada’s sportsbook is one for you to
consider as a potential option. In this section of our review, we’ll give you a
quick look at their sportsbook and what you can expect to find. For a more
in-depth analysis of their sportsbook, be sure to check out the page linked in
the “Other Pages” section above.

Sports You Can Bet On from Bovada

You’ll find a long list of sports you can bet on. In total, we
located nearly 30 different ones when we completed our Bovada review. With this many sports, they offer more than most other online
sportsbooks. Below, we’ve included a list of all of the sports they offers
action on.

• Aussie Rules
• Badminton
• Baseball
• Basketball
• Boxing
• Cricket
• Curling
• Cycling
• Darts
• Esports
• Football
• Futsal
• Gaelic Games
• Golf
• Handball
• Hockey
• Horse Racing
• Motor Sports
• Numbers Game
• Rugby
• Snooker
• Soccer
• Table Tennis
• Tennis
• UFC
• MMA
• Virtual Sports
• Volleyball
• Winter Olympics
• Wrestling

In their sportsbook, you’re able to bet on all of the most popular
sports including football and soccer. However, we love that they also allow
their clients to enjoy wagering on smaller sports like table tennis and
handball. No matter what sport you’re into, this sportsbook most likely has
you covered!

Before we proceed, we should point out one thing about the list of sports you
can bet on above. This list showcases the options we found available at the time
of our in-depth review of Bovada. It’s possible that not all sports were listed based on
whether they were in season at the time. If your favorite sport wasn’t listed
above, try checking again once that sport comes back into season.

Live Betting

If you’re looking to place sports bets on in-play action, then you’ll be
happy to know this site has you covered. You’ll find an extensive
collection of available live betting options at all times. With this betting
format, you can place wagers while the sporting events happen instead of only
being able to do it before the action begins. To check out the current live
betting options, click on the “Live” icon from any sportsbook page.

Betting Limits

The amount of money you can bet on any wager varies quite a bit at Bovada.
Things such as what sport you’re betting on and what type of wager you plan on
making all play into the betting limit. However, in many cases, you’ll be able
to bet up to $5,000 on individual bets. Since there are so many variations to
the Bovada betting limit policy, we’ve included a copy of the latest one below
for your reference.

Bovada Sportsbook Wrap-Up

As a whole, we’re mega fans of the sportsbook. With a monster list
of sports you can bet on coupled with live betting and great bonuses, you’ll
most likely love it too. Check it out for yourself to see if their sportsbook
is the right fit for you.

The Bovada Casino

If you’re into online casino games, then you’ll love what Bovada has
assembled on their platform. You’ll be able to enjoy all of your
favorite games in one convenient location. Below, we’ll give you an overview of
what you can expect to find in their casino section. To get a deeper dive into
their casino setup, be sure to check out the link in the other pages section
above. There, we’ll go into more detail about Bovada’s casino.

In the casino, we found nearly 300 different casino games to select
from at the time of our review. This is an incredible lineup of games that’s
larger than what we tend to see from the average online casino. We’ve included a
list below, showcasing the number of different casino games available:

• 214 slot machines
• 26 table games
• 22 specialty casino games
• 17 video poker variants
• 6 versions of live dealer casino games
• Live poker sit n go and full tournaments

What we like about the casino lineup is the massive overall assortment
of games. Thanks to this, players will find a vast variety of options. We’re
most impressed by the over 200 slot games on Bovada. This is many more than we
usually see on competing websites.

Software and User Interface

From a software standpoint, Bovada.lv is working with some of the most legitimate providers
in the industry. In the casino, you’ll find games from Betsoft, Rival,
and RTG. We’re huge fans of all three of these providers. What this means for
you is that you’ll find top-notch games across the entire portfolio of their casino.

After considering the user interface of their website, we were huge fans.
One of the things which stuck out the most to us is how quickly everything
loaded. Unfortunately, many online casinos have a slow load time for their
games. However, that wasn’t the case here. On top of that, the website is
easy to use and navigate.

Mobile Compatibility

We had an excellent experience with the mobile compatible version of Bovada’s
website. If you want to play casino games from your smartphone or tablet, you’ll
want to check it out for yourself to see just how good it is. The layout was
simple to understand and navigate. As an added bonus, the mobile version of the
casino was high-speed.

On the mobile-friendly version, you can enjoy almost all of their
casino games. Based on our assessment, roughly 80% of all casino games available
on the standard website were also available to their mobile customers. This
percentage is higher than many other online casinos which is a great thing. Be
sure to check the website to make sure they offer you all of the games you’re
looking to play.

Bovada Casino Wrap-Up

Overall, we love their casino. Thanks to a
vast and diverse collection of high-quality casino games, Bovada.lv would make an
excellent online casino home for most individuals. Check it out for yourself and
see just how good it really is.

Customer Support

Before we wrap up our review of Bovada, we didn’t want to leave you without
offering some insight into the customer support they bring to the table. The
good news is their site provides top-notch customer service. As you’ll see below,
we’re big fans of their industry-leading customer support.

Before you even contact their team, you might want to check out their
excellent “Help” section. There, you’ll find a large collection of frequently
asked questions. To help you find what you’re looking for more quickly, they
have it broken up into different categories such as sports, poker, bonuses, etc.
To see the help section of the website, simply click on “Help” located at
the bottom of any webpage.

One of the ways you can reach the customer service agents is
through live chat. We used this feature more times than we can count while we
completed our review of their operation. What we love the most about the live
chat support is that we can get help quickly right there on the website. The
live chat agents always helped us get the answers we needed in a
timely fashion. If you’d like to use the live chat functionality,
click on the “Live Chat” link in the Help section of their website.

If live chat is not what you’re looking for from a contact perspective, you
can also reach them via a contact form on the website. On the main “Contact Us”
page, you can fill out a form with your question or issue, and it will be sent
to their team. One of the nice things is that you’ll be able to select a
department using a drop-down menu so that your questions get to the right team
faster than using a general inbox. While the website states they answer all
questions in 24 hours or less, we’ve received replies much quicker.

The other option you have for contacting the support team is by
telephone. We called in to test out their phone support agents on a few
different occasions during our review process. On each call, we were connected
with an agent in record time, and we received quality answers to our questions.

• Bovada Customer Service: 1-888-263-0000

One other thing worth mentioning after doing our Bovada review is their customer service agents are
there to help you 24/7. Thanks to this, you won’t have to worry about waiting a
long time to get help as you will with some other online sportsbooks and
casinos. We hate waiting for help which is why we love the fact that we’ll never
have to wait when working with their team.

If you didn’t get the memo, we’re monster fans of the customer service
offered. With multiple contact options, around the clock support, and
quality support agents, Bovada is tough to top in this department. No matter
what your question or issue may be, we’re 100% confident Bovada’s team will
assist you with it in a quick manner.

Conclusion – Do We Recommend Bovada?

Absolutely. For many individuals interested in gambling online, Bovada would
make an excellent option to call home. Thanks to a considerable collection of
casino games coupled with a leading online sportsbook, Bovada offers enough to
satisfy just about anyone. For those reasons, along with their top-notch bonuses
and customer service, we’re huge fans of their site. Check it out yourself
and see just how quality it is.

Popular Questions Related to Bovada.lv

Are you still unsure about some things when it comes to Bovada? It’s okay, that’s natural even when
we’re discussing a site with such a safe reputation like Bovada. It’s a good thing to be cautious! That being said,
you won’t want to miss out on the frequently asked questions we’ve included
below. We hope these FAQs can assist you in locating the missing bits of
information you’re searching for.

How Can I Place Bets on Bovada?

With Bovada, you’ll have your choice of how you’d like to place your wagers.
One way to go about it is to do it from your laptop or computer at home.
However, many of us are not always close to these machines all the time. The
great news is that thanks to the mobile-compatibility of Bovada, you can also
place your bets from mobile devices like tablets and smartphones. Thanks to
this, wagers can be placed on their website from the palm of your hand in a
small amount of time.

How Quickly Can I Start Gambling?

When you’re ready to begin, it’s not a long process at all to get going with
Bovada. In most cases, you can have your account opened, funded, and ready for
betting action in less than 10 minutes. Just remember that if you’d like to bet
ASAP, you’ll need to use an instant funding option like Bitcoin or Visa.

Does Bovada Offer Free Casino Games?

Yes. If you’re not prepared to wager real money on online casino games just
yet, Bovada does allow players to enjoy free versions of nearly all of their
casino options. The main exceptions are their live dealer games. By using the
free play option, you can get a good feel for the quality of the casino
games without having to risk your real money. One of the excellent benefits of
Bovada.lv is that you can enjoy their casino games for free without even needing to
open an account. Simply click on the game you’re interested in, and you’ll be
playing it in no time at all.

How Will I Know If Bovada.lv is the Right Site for Me?

We’d suggest you check out their website to get a feel for everything they
have to offer. While we did our best to convey everything here, it’s ultimately
up to you to decide if they bring enough to the table to meet your unique needs.
To check out some ideas on how you can select the perfect gambling site for you, and to find out which site is a trustworthy option,
check out the link below.

Should I Use Another Gambling Website in Conjunction with Bovada?

Thanks to how much Bovada.lv offers their clients across casino, poker, and
sports betting action, we doubt too many of you will need to use another online
gambling site. Ideally, your goal should be to find one which allows you to do
all of your betting in one simple location. However, if you’re betting on sports
and would like to shop your odds and lines, you may consider using multiple
sites, just always remember to only go with our recommended safe and legitimate gambling sites.

Skip the Headaches and Play at a Legitimate Site

You’re looking for a legitimate U.S. gambling site, but can’t decide which site to trust with your hard-earned money?

Good news! We’ve been in the online gambling industry for over a decade (several decades, really, if you add all of our experience together), and we’ve spent countless hours to bring you a list of the most legitimate sites.

Here’s what all of these sites have in common:

• 10+ years in the business with strong reputations.
• Attractive promotions for first-time customers.
• Quick money withdrawals (relative to the U.S. market).

Why Bovada Is #1 in the U.S.

#1: Fastest Check Cashouts

Bovada gets 10 times as much traffic as its second best US competitor and still delivers check payouts faster than any of them. Bovada processes check withdrawals in 7 days; many of its competitors take weeks, some more than a month to do the same. (There are other fast options, like the #3-ranked BetOnline, which delivers checks in 14 days.)

#2: Service

An equally important aspect of Bovada’s operations is its customer service. If there ever was an indication of how much a company respects its customers, it’s the level of customer service the company provides. I haven’t found any US-friendly site doing this aspect of the business better (although 5Dimes is a worthy runner-up).

#3: All-In-One

Finally, all parts of Bovada’s business (sportsbook, casino, poker, racebook) are popular. Bovada is best-known for sports betting and casino games, however, even its online poker room has around four times as many players online as the second biggest US poker site. You can access all of their games with one player account.

… But You Should Know This

Bovada is recreational-friendly, perhaps more-so than any other US site. You’ll find few golden opportunities in their sportsbook (read more about their use of dual lines), they have a relatively high overall house edge (especially after recently increasing house edge in video poker games) and their online poker room only has “anonymous” tables.

Although not everyone agrees with me, the recreational-friendly part is an advantage for skilled poker players. Since Bovada appeals to recreational gamblers, you’ll be like a shark among regular fish.

Bovada charges a 4.9% fee for credit card deposits (a lot considering how most sites charge nothing). The impact of the deposit fee is slightly compensated by their welcome bonuses, which are better than average.

Casinos Like Bovada

All online gamblers look for entertaining games, attractive promotions and aesthetically pleasing software. To have a safe experience, however, you want a site to:

1. Serve its customers with safety and respect,
2. Operate with a reasonable house edge, and
3. Handle money transactions promptly.

Yes, the third point is included in the first point but it’s also such an essential part of the customer experience that it must be mentioned separately. Many online gambling websites operate without an adequate level of service so these points are worth considering. It’s rare to find a combination of all three points.

Bovada fulfills all of the above criteria better than other sites but 5Dimes does well, too. In fact, I’m confident in ranking those two as the best USA gambling websites specifically because they deliver so well in the areas related to safety and trustworthiness. A site without proper customer service and safety measures is not one you should deposit money to, regardless of its promotions and whatnot.

What Are Some Alternative Options?

For Sports Bettors

5Dimes.eu is the best betting site in the US for the following reasons: they’re professional-friendly and offer reduced juice betting lines (in other words, less house edge). Before betting on any game, I recommend taking a look at the odds 5Dimes is offering. They’ve been a reliable sportsbook for over 10+ years — you’ll find few complaints about 5Dimes online, and the ones you find have been resolved quickly.

For poker and casino games, I would go with Bovada. But for sports bettors, it makes the most sense to have an account at 5Dimes.

Another Solid Option

BetOnline.ag is my third suggestion. It’s not significantly better than the others in any area but they’re simply a solid option. Prompt cashout processing, decent poker traffic, good sports betting options and entertaining casino games. Additionally, I’ve had good experiences with their customer service.

For sports bettors, BetOnline is worth signing-up at simply to be able to compare betting lines among a few sites. For poker players, BetOnline may offer some good games every now and then (keep in mind: you can bet on sports and play casino and poker games with the same account, so plenty of gamblers will stumble on the poker games eventually). For casino gamblers, BetOnline has a basic but reliable offering.

BetOnline charges a 6% fee for credit card deposits.

Is It Legal to Play?

The definition of ”gambling” and the laws surrounding vary depending on which state you live in.

In Delaware, Nevada and New Jersey, some forms of online gambling have been legalized and regulated (only state-licensed sites are allowed to operate legally). In other states, it’s likely (although not widely agreed upon) that playing – and certainly operating – online gambling games for real money is illegal.

On a federal level, sports betting is the only form of prohibited gambling via the Wire Act of 1961. For several years, the Department of Justice (DOJ) maintained that the Wire Act applies to all forms of online gambling, but in December 2011, they corrected that stance by stating that the Wire Act only applies to sports betting – a result of a 13-page memorandum from the Office of Legal Counsel to the Criminal Division of the DOJ (source).

State laws, however, often indirectly prohibit gambling. Or to put it another way: it would be difficult to claim any forms of online gambling legal with absolute certainty in most states (lotteries and such aside). Most state laws indirectly prohibit gambling simply by making all forms of gambling unlawful that have not been made lawful.

Purely based on history, it’s unlikely you’ll get into legal trouble; then again, if something is illegal, you can get into trouble, and someone probably will. Gambling online may be illegal where you live. Contact a local gaming lawyer to get a better idea of your local laws.

Legal Troubles

Industry-changing events have taken place in the online gambling world – mainly concerning online poker – such as the UIGEA and Party Poker’s exit from the US market, or PokerStars’ exit from the US market in 2011.

Those crimes were committed by online poker operators, though, not players. Still, the mere fact that online poker companies were targeted was enough to cast a shadow over the legality of US online poker, and furthermore, players grew more and more worried about one of these sites getting shut down along with the money on their player accounts.

In fact, there is a legitimate reason to worry about dishonest US gambling sites taking your money. Some sites have indeed taken off with the money – a recent example is Lock Poker, which currently may owe its customers over $15 million. I created LegitGamblingSites.com mainly to give more exposure to the sites with strong track records of honest business practices.

The lawmakers, in that regard, have a point about not allowing unlicensed sites to provide online gambling games to US citizens. While that may not be the reason, it’s likely one of them. (If I had to guess, I’d say they’re more concerned about losing out on tax dollars and protecting the interests of brick & mortar casino owners such as Sheldon Adelson, although through the RAWA – Restore America’s Wire Act legislation – he tries to do that by himself.)

How to Move Money Around

Ever since the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA) became a law, US citizens have had a more difficult time finding a suitable deposit method.

There are only a few left, actually.

The most common deposit method for US citizens is still credit card deposits, out of which VISA is the most widely accepted brand, followed by Mastercard, with American Express being a distant third. Cards must be eligible for both international and online transfers.

The alternative method is to use a money transfer service such as Western Union. Western Union is mostly a deposit-only method. (Bovada is an exception since they only allow you to withdraw money via a check.)

Why to use a money transfer service instead of a credit card?

• A card deposit fails to go through. This happens every now and then, and the only way to know if your card will be accepted is to try. According to various forum reports, Vanilla VISA is declined at most sites while Netspend VISA has been successful.

  Surprisingly, players have had problems with card deposits even at state-licensed sites due to banks like Bank of America outright declining all gambling transactions. Things will likely get better with the new MCC codes for VISA, Mastercard, American Express and Distant which will help casinos to identify gambling transactions more accurately. It’s unclear how much of a help this will be since banks still have the right to decline transfers marked with the new MCC codes, and due to not wanting to violate the UIGEA (according to which they’re prohibited from knowingly processing unlawful gambling transactions), banks may decide it isn’t worth it and keep cancelling transactions even if they were for state-licensed sites.

  This is expected to change once bigger states – perhaps even the biggest of them all, California – join internet gambling, since declining the transactions will then affect such a large percentage of any bank’s customer base.

• You want a faster cashout. While money transfer services cost more (many sites, like Bovada, allow one free check cashout a month), the money is usually delivered to be picked up at a local Western Union location in five days or less.
• You don’t want a check cashout. You need to go to a cashier to cash a check. Most people would rather avoid doing this, especially since banks aren’t allowed to knowingly process online gambling related transactions (unless in Delaware, Nevada or New Jersey, but people have had problems in those states as well).

In general, you’ll have higher transaction costs with money transfer services than with a combination of credit cards and checks. BetOnline and Bovada are the only major USA sites charging for credit card deposits and most allow one free check cashout per month – some, like True Poker, allow a free check withdrawal every seven days.

How to use a credit card/check combination?

1. Enter your credit card details online after which you have the money on your player account instantly.
2. When done playing, order a check cashout, which will take from a week to over a month depending on which site you’re dealing with.
3. Go to your local bank to cash the check.

How to use a money transfer service (like Western Union)?

1. Go to their website or a live Western Union location and send money to the gambling site. (You’ll need to contact the gambling site first to get their transfer details.)
2. When done playing, initiate the withdrawal from your player account.
3. Go to a live location to collect the money.

State-Licensed Sites

As mentioned, Delaware, Nevada and New Jersey have legalized and regulated some forms of real-money online gambling. Delaware started with online poker but has since expanded into casino games as well; Nevada offers online poker games only; New Jersey offers online poker and casino games.

As you can see, not a single one of these states offer online sports betting. In New Jersey – clearly the biggest market of the three – there’s a clause according to which sports betting may be considered to be added in the future.

Requirements

You must be physically located within a state’s boundaries to play at the licensed sites. If you’re currently located in California but live in Nevada, you’re unable to play until you return to Nevada; if you’re currently located in Nevada but live in California, you can play as long as you stay within Nevada’s state boundaries.

Licensed sites have to make sure nobody outside of the state can participate in the games. Geolocation – identifying exactly where a person is located – has been difficult, and there are still people who are unable to play even though they’re located within those states. This is one of the reasons licensed online gambling sites have done financially worse than expected.

Only existing brick & mortar casino owners within those states can apply for licenses, although they can apply together with an existing online gambling site in a software-licensing agreement, like Caesar’s Interactive and 888.com have done. If a poker site kept operating in the US after the UIGEA of 2006, it will be subjected to a ”bad actor” clause in Nevada and be prohibited from operating in the state for now.

Performance

Each state has had a rocky start, although New Jersey is doing OK. In March 2014, they did $11.87 million in revenue, which grew into $13.16 million in March 2015. A growth rate of 14.57% year-over-year is better than nothing, but still a far cry from the $1 billion within the first 7 months of operating Governor Christie expected (New Jersey gambling sites were launched in November 2013). In other words, his expectations were a little over $140 million a month on average, or about ten times the current revenue.

According to PokerScout.com, Nevada’s online poker revenue is going downhill. Year-over-year decrease in revenue of around 44% (from February 2014 to February 2015) is, no matter how you look at it, a disappointing result. Problems with card deposits and geolocation – both of which exist in other states as well – and player liquidity have undoubtedly contributed to the significant decrease. Players have to deal with fewer problems when playing at offshore sites, and as long as that continues, it will be difficult for state-licensed sites to gain major traction.

In Delaware, the state keeps all yearly revenue up to $3.75 million. Since total revenue for 2014 was around $2.1 million, gambling operators have made nothing. The main reason for such a low amount of revenue is Delaware’s population of 0.94 million (in comparison, New Jersey has a population of 8.9 million). Liquidity is important for online poker since you need lots of players to run games at various stakes, in several forms and throughout the day. Delaware is trying to improve its poker liquidity by combining player pools with Nevada but so far there hasn’t been a significant improvement to its online gaming revenue.

If all of the three states were to combine their player pools, it would create a poker economy of around 12 million people, which could add significant liquidity to the games and thus bring in more revenue to each of the states.

Offshore Sites

Gambling sites accepting US customers from outside of the three states are all ”offshore” sites, meaning they operate from outside of the US and have no license to operate within the US. They have obtained a license in some other jurisdictions – such as Antiqua & Barbuda or Panama – but many of those jurisdictions have less-than-stellar reputations.

The disadvantage of gambling at offshore sites is the lack of safety. For an outsider, it’s impossible to know how strict testing measures these sites go through to prove their legitimacy, and hypothetically, if one of them were to disappear from the internet tomorrow along with your money, what could you do about it?

Lock Poker, as already mentioned, is an ongoing example. They’ve now lost their license in Curacao (weirdly, they were able to keep the license easily over a year after refusing to process customer cashouts) and there’s nothing anyone can do to make sure Lock Poker’s customers have their money returned. All we can do is spread the word to the people who are considering signing-up and depositing money to their site.

The best thing you can do is consider the reputation of the site rather than the jurisdiction since all jurisdictions have had dishonest sites. The longer a site has been fully operational, and the fewer complaints it has generated, the better. Essentially, Bovada has been in the online gambling business since 2000 when Bodog.com was founded (the US-friendly operations of Bodog were re-branded as Bovada in 2011), and as mentioned, they’ve achieved an excellent reputation with a high level of customer service.

But there are advantages to playing at an offshore site, too, and you can legitimately argue that the advantages override the disadvantages. Offshore sites place fewer restrictions on customers, need less personal information and have to compete with lots of other sites (within US states, competition is limited) which forces them to be at their best in order to succeed. There are no geolocation issues either.

Safety and legality aside – although obviously, both are big considerations – offshore sites are the better option in almost every area. Since only three states have legalized some forms of real-money online gambling in the US, they’re the only places for internet gambling for around 96.4% of US population.

Best Gambling Websites 2020

What’s Next?

US online gambling is in a transitional phase: after a long wait of legalization, three states have done it, mostly with lackluster success. Suggesting geolocation and deposit issues are resolved, revenue streams may grow. With online poker, though, most likely at least one of the bigger states has to legalize it and combine player pools with the others to create a meaningful poker economy.

Gambling Websites Like Bovada

A federal legalization would create much-needed competition and player pools, which in turn creates a bigger incentive for operators to participate and, in many ways, a better environment for gamblers. If internet gambling was to be legalized nationwide, every operator and their grandmother would want a license. As of now, it’s more beneficial for most operators to stay outside of the US.