How to Take Advantage of Risk-Free Sportsbook Offers

With MLB, NBA and NHL action back, we wanted to let everyone know how they can best take advantage of risk-free sportsbook bets. Sportsbooks in your local area are giving away a one-time, risk-free bet where they will immediately place the money back in your account if you lose.

The sportsbooks only give away a risk-free bet for your first bet, so you need to make sure it counts. If you are new to sports betting or new to betting at a legal sportsbook in your state, make sure you read all the options we have outlined below because you can only use this risk-free bet once and you could be missing out on an amazing opportunity to build your bankroll.

As a disclaimer, we want to mention that all risk-free bets and promotions from these sportsbooks will be given to you in the form of site credit. Sportsbooks often will not allow you to withdraw site credit until you meet certain requirements, so we recommend depositing whatever you feel comfortable losing.

The main way to take advantage of these risk-free offers is to sign up for multiple sportsbooks and deposit as much as the limit allows. Since your bet will be refunded, you will be able to play with that money for awhile. Again, you only receive one risk-free bet, so we recommend placing as much money as they allow on that bet. If you do end up losing, you will have money in your account to bet the rest of the MLB, NBA, NHL, and may even have a bankroll ready to bet the NFL when it finally kicks off.

Betting on Big Favorites

Wait Time: Low
Risk: Low
Payout: Low

The most straightforward way to take advantage of a risk free-bet is to immediately use it to bet on a heavy favorite. This method is perfect for new sports bettors and someone who isn't willing to wait. Once your first bet is settled you will be given your risk free bet back so might as well get it out of the way early.

If you are a basketball bettor you may have your eyes on the Orlando Magic when they take on the Brooklyn Nets on July 31st. A $500 bet on the Orlando Magic moneyline could bank you over $200 totally risk-free.

Pros of Betting Heavy Favorites

The biggest pro of using a risk-free bet on a heavy favorite is that the risk in losing is low. There is a high probability that the heavy favorite will win and you will be well on your way with a nice starter bankroll. The second biggest pro to this method is that if for some reason the heavy favorite doesn't cover, you won't have to wait a long period of time to get your money back. Once your risk-free bet is settled, you will get your deposit right back into your account, so if you stumble out of the gates you won't have to wait to get back into the action.

Cons of Betting Heavy Favorites

The main drawback of using your risk-free bet on an early heavy favorite is that you don't stand to gain that much. Remember: you only have one risk-free bet with this sportsbook so you should look to make it count. In the Orlando Magic example above you only stand to win a bit over $200 when you are risking $500 which is not great return on investment. If you are willing to be patient you can build your self a real bankroll totally risk-free.

Place a Futures Bet

Wait Time: High
Risk: High
Payout: High

Betting on futures is one of the most popular bet types and it just got a lot more profitable with a risk-free bet. If you have a good feeling about who may win the NBA championship, you should use your risk-free bet on an NBA futures bet. Futures have a ton of value because there are so many possible outcomes, even the Lakers and Bucks who are both frontrunners in their conferences have positive odds. As long as you are willing to wait until the end of the NBA playoffs to get your money back, this bet type could be perfect for you.

With this bet type (win or lose), you will set yourself up to be ready to bet the NFL season at full force.

Pros of Betting Futures

There is a ton of value in betting futures and a bet on even the heavy favorites can pay you out big. Remember: you can sign up for multiple books at a time so you can even take this advice and use your risk-free bet on one book to bet an NBA futures bet and use another book to bet a parlay. A futures bet (even on the top favorites) can double your money and have you ready to bet the whole NFL season.

Cons of Betting Futures

When you are betting futures, you have to wait an awful long time to see the outcome of your bet. The NBA season resumes on July 30th and the Finals could end on October 13th. That could be 75 days that you would have to wait to see if you bet hit, so if you don't like your money being tied up for that long, this may not be for you. We may recommend that you don't place all of you initial deposit on a future and diversify your bets so you can still bet day-to-day. You just have to be sure that the futures bet is your first bet placed so you can recoup the funds if you lose.

Create a FanDuel Account to Place a Futures Bet

Build A Favorite-Heavy Parlay

Wait Time: Low
Risk: High
Payout: High

If you like the idea of betting on a big favorite but you don't think there is enough value in the option above, then building a parlay should be perfect for you. This method is perfect for a bit more advanced sports bettors who have a good feeling about a few different games. Parlays are notoriously the riskiest bet type, so if the sportsbook is going to remove all the risk, why not roll the dice?

Sportsbooks already have lines out for the first three days of the NBA restart so you have the ability to build out a favorable parlay. Below you can see a four leg parlay that has over +300 odds so a $500 bet could bank you over $1,500. Although there is considerable risk in a four leg parlay, you will be refunded if it does not win and you will have $500 in your account to bet the rest of the NBA playoffs, or you can save the money and wait for the kick off of the NFL season.

Pros of Building a Heavy-Favorite Parlay

The big advantage of putting your risk-free bet towards a heavy favorite parlay is that you stand to win a considerable amount of money in a short period of time. Any parlay is risky bet, but if you are going to get the money put right back into your account, why not? The two main things to remember with this option is to focus on heavy favorites and don't get too greedy! Attempt to limit your parlay to three or four legs; once you are betting a 5+ leg parlay you are asking for trouble and increasing your risk tenfold.

Cons of Building a Heavy Favorite Parlay

The main issue with creating a heavy favorite parlay is that there is a considerable amount of risk involved. For a parlay to hit, you need each leg to win and if only one loses, your whole bet is busted. Now for this reason we attempt to only bet sure-fire heavy favorites, but at the end of the day this is gambling and anything can happen.

Sign Up with DraftKings and Build a Heavy Favorite Parlay

Not Risk-Free, But Great Value

BetRivers does not offer a risk free bet promotion and instead will match your initial deposit up to $250. Although it is not risk free, it is still free money, and you can use any of the above methods to take advantage of this BetRivers offer.

Find the Best Sportsbook Offers in Your State Below

If you already have a DraftKings, FanDuel, or BetRivers account, you can click below to see all the sportsbook offers we have in your state. Creating accounts across multiple books is the best way to take advantage of their offers. Check out all the offers we have available below and start building up your bankroll.