Despite having only been online since 2012, DraftKings has emerged as a player-favorite among US punters. But what makes it so special compared to other US sportsbooks? Find out in our in-depth DraftKings review below!
- 1 DraftKings Review Quick Facts
- 2 DraftKings Sportsbook Short Overview
- 3 DraftKings Pros & Cons
- 4 DraftKings Promotions
- 5 DraftKings Bet Types
- 6 DraftKings Payment Options
- 7 DraftKings Sportsbook App Review
- 8 How To Sign up for DraftKings
- 9 DraftKings Customer Support
- 10 DraftKings Partnerships
- 11 Responsible Gambling on DraftKings
- 12 DraftKings Casino Review
- 13 ThePuntersPage Final Say
- 14 Resources
- 15 FAQs
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DraftKings Review Quick Facts
Website | https://www.draftkings.com/ |
Year established | 2012 |
Available in | 24 US states |
Betting options | Sportsbook, Casino, Daily Fantasy Sports, Pool betting, Live Casino |
Payment options | Apple Pay, Cash at Cage, Bank Wire Transfer, Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express, gift cards, online banking, PayPal, Play+ Prepaid Card, Venmo, VIP preferred, Trustly |
Customer service | Email, live chat, toll-free phone line |
DraftKings Sportsbook Short Overview
As expected from a leading US bookmaker, the betting experience at DraftKings lives up to the hype, with plenty of worthwhile bonuses, extensive sports coverage, a robust live betting arena, as well as a dedicated iOS and Android app.
But what we love most is the comprehensive yet diverse betting options. Aside from the 18+ sports to wager on, you can make your bets more interesting by indulging in same-game parlays, real-money betting pools, live betting markets, and even free-to-play pools, where you stand a chance of winning early cash prizes without the real-money investment.
Is DraftKings Sportsbook a Legit Platform?
With licenses in 24 US states, the DraftKings sportsbook is a legitimate platform. However, you must be physically present within the borders of these 24 states and of legal age to enjoy DraftKings' world-class offerings.
Beyond that, you'll also be glad to know that the operator keeps your data safe using up-to-date security practices. The comprehensive privacy policy, linked at the bottom of the homepage, explains exactly what happens to your information.
DraftKings Sportsbook Legal States
Below is a list of US states where you’ll find the DraftKings sportsbook legally operating:
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Arizona
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Colorado
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Connecticut
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Indiana
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Illinois
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Iowa
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Kentucky
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Kansas
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Louisiana
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Massachusetts
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Maryland
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Maine
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Michigan
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New Jersey
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New Hampshire
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New York
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Oregon
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Ohio
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Pennsylvania
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Tennessee
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Virginia
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Vermont
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West Virginia
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Wyoming
Do note that you can place in-person DraftKings wagers in Washington, New Mexico, and Mississippi, despite not having an online alternative.
Can You Claim Real Money at DraftKings?
Provided you have a verified DraftKings account, you can place wagers and win real money using deposited funds as well as bonus bets instantly. And as long as you satisfy the withdrawal requirements, you can withdraw these winnings. The minimum real-money payout limit stands at $1.
The list includes Apple Pay, bank wire transfer, Venmo, debit cards, PayPal account, online banking, and checks.
How Does DraftKings Work?
If you're in a state where DraftKings operates, the process should be straightforward. One account gives access to all the platform's products, including DFS, sports betting, casino, Pick6, Reignmakers, marketplace, or even buying DK merchandise. However, remember that what you can bet on is subject to your local gambling laws.
Here is the step by step guide:
Register your account
Complete verification
Browse available games
Place a bet or create a parlay
Enter the bet amount and Submit your bet
Wait to see if you've won or lost
If you win, the payout plus your wager will be credited to your DK account.
How To Read DraftKings Odds
As you read this DraftKings review, you may be wondering what odd formats are available and how to read them. This bookie features the three commonly-used formats: American, decimal, and fractional odds, all accessible under the ‘Settings' tab after clicking ‘My Account.'
American odds are custom in US sportsbooks, and it’s the default format at DraftKings. They have a plus or minus sign before the three-digit number, whereby the one with a minus sign is the favorite. Here, the three-digit number shows how much you should wager to win $100 (plus your stake).
Alternatively, competitive odds with a plus sign represent the underdog and how much you stand to win (plus your stake) by placing a $100 wager.
Sports Betting Leagues on DraftKings
Over 18 sports are available on the DraftKings sportsbook, ranging from basketball to volleyball. While the sports coverage is not as extensive, the available leagues and betting markets are sufficient for a thrilling sports betting experience. When writing this DraftKings review, there was a clear emphasis on mainstream sports and leagues, like the NBA, NFL, NHL, and college basketball.
In particular, the soccer, basketball, and tennis coverage was pretty impressive, with over 40 events and even more markets featured prominently. Further, the extensive markets are updated constantly, and you'll find plenty of niche sports leagues, like the World Jai Alai League and the Turkish Women's Volleyball League.
DraftKings Pros & Cons
- Myriad of products, including casino, fantasy sports, pool betting, and online sportsbook
- Decent coverage of novelty sports and their respective leagues
- Player-friendly parlay and player-prop better odds
- Outstanding customer service team
- Available in 24 US states
- Functional mobile apps for Apple and Android devices
- Available payment methods depend on your residing state
- Live betting odds could be updated faster
- Welcome offer could be better
DraftKings Promotions
When writing this DraftKings sportsbook review, we were impressed by the decent range of exciting promotions available for both newcomers and regular sports bettors.
One popular offer is the welcome bonus, where you can choose to claim $200 in bonus bets or a 20% deposit offer of up to $1,000. And all that's required is a minimum deposit of $5.
Regarding market-specific promotions, parlay bettors are in for a treat. Here, the bookie offers parlay profit boosts across various sports and markets.
For example, the Soccer Stepped up Parlay gives punters a chance to win at least 20% more in their soccer parlay with minimum odds of -500 or longer. Other parlay profit boost promos include the NFL Parlay Profit Boost Pack and UFC 297 Stepped Up Parlay.
Another attractive offer is their refer-a-friend scheme. With this, you receive up to $100 in bonus bets when you invite a friend to DraftKings via a referral link, who then creates an account and proceeds to deposit at least $25. Both the invited friend and referrer will receive the same maximum bonus bet amount equal to 100% of the invited friend's initial deposit amount.
Likewise, the bookie runs a loyalty program called Dynasty Rewards. Here, you're rewarded tier credits whenever you place a wager on the DraftKings sportsbook. The more real-money wagers you place, the more tier credits earned and the better the Milestone Rewards.
Of note, the program also applies to the DraftKings Casino and DFS platforms.
DraftKings Bet Types
When it comes to bet types, there’s more than enough variety for both novice and seasoned DraftKings users to explore. Let's take a look at what's available:
Spread
Spread or point spread betting is an interesting way to wager on the most likely outcome in a specific match without the need to guess the exact score. Here, you bet per point, meaning the closer your wager is to the actual match result, the more you win. So, essentially, you can lose or win more than your original stake.
Moneyline
A staple in sports betting, predicting and wagering on the exact outcome of a specific match is all there is to it. Moneyline wagers are the most straightforward bets since you can only choose between win, lose, or draw.
While a single money line bet seems like a simple test of your ‘gut instinct' and sporting knowledge, many prefer creating an accumulator bet for more thrill and higher payouts.
Totals
More popularly known as over/under bets, totals allow bettors to bet on the game's outcome being more or less than a specific number of goals. The best part: no need to predict the exact match score.
There are only two options to bet on: either over or below the bookie's set margin. And that's why winning chances in this market are especially high.
Props
This bet type tends to focus more on ‘micro-events' happening within a game, with the most popular being player props and team props. You can also place bets on the following events:
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Total hits of a player in an MLB matchup
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Which quarterback will first score 50 touchdown passes
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Number of home runs a specific team achieves
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The leading scorer in the NBA
Parlays
There's plenty of variation within parlay bets, and DraftKings allows bettors to combine anywhere from three to 20 bets or legs. A parlay, accumulator, or combo bet is where you place a single bet after combining multiple outcomes in the same or various games. But the trick is that all legs must be correct to win.
Parlays are rife on this bookie, with more emphasis placed on pre-built same-game parlays and progressive parlays, where you can still win a payout even when certain selections register as a loss. The number of legs that can lose (and the progressive parlay still pays out) depends on the total legs included in the bet, with the maximum being 12 selections.
The reliable sportsbook also has a helpful parlay builder tool to help you easily mix and match different scenarios while calculating the odds.
Live Betting
Live or in-play bets are wagers placed during an ongoing game. These bets make watching a game more exciting as they allow you to bet on the next yellow card, next corner, or the next goal — among many others — as the game progresses.
And it certainly helps that DKN (DraftKings Network) is a click or tap away, thanks to the ‘Watch Now' tab available in most live betting options. There's also a cashout for bettors to whisk away their winnings before a game's final verdict is reached.
Futures
If you're anticipating the outcome of future sporting events, DraftKings allows you to be among the first to wager on it through its futures bet type. This could be which team will win a specific division, which player will win Rookie of the Year, or which team will win the league.
While writing this DraftKings review, we found futures bets on Super Bowl 2024, NBA 2023-24, Men's UFC Heavyweight Championships, and World Series 2024, among many others.
DraftKings Payment Options
This DraftKings betting review cannot fail to touch on the bookies' supported payment methods. Fortunately, DraftKings features 10+ convenient payout options, all of which are only accessible after account verification.
Deposits
As you can see from the screenshot above, this bookie accepts several popular deposit options, including Apple Pay, bank wire transfer, Venmo, debit card, PayPal, VIP Preferred (e-check), Play+ Prepaid Card, Trustly, cash at cage, checks, and online banking. However, there are no cryptocurrency options available.
For most methods, the deposit limits range from $5 to $2,000. But there are options like bank transfers, whose limits range from $100 to $20,000, and cash transfers, whose daily maximum deposit limit is $500. There are no deposit fees, and transactions reflect instantly in your bank account.
Just log in to your verified account and navigate to ‘Deposit' on the top corner of the screen. Once clicked, a new page will open with available deposit options and a range of amounts to choose from. Take your pick and complete the required financial formalities before hitting the ‘deposit' button at the bottom of the page.
Withdrawals
Do note the bookie only allows punters to withdraw money via the same option used for deposit. The good thing is you can withdraw as little as $1 with most methods — except for bank transfers ($20,000) and checks ($15). Cash at Cage and Play+ Prepaid Card have no minimum limit.
As for the maximum threshold per transaction, it depends on the method used. For instance, it's $25,000 for debit cards, Play+ prepaid cards, and Apple Pay, but $100,000 for Trustly, Cash at Cage, VIP Preferred, and online banking. Venmo has the lowest maximum limit of $20,000.
Withdrawals are available daily from 09:00 to 17:00 EST. However, requesting a payout after 14:00 EST means it will be processed the following day. Cash payouts may be expected in as little as one hour; however, this could extend up to 14 days for check withdrawals of less than $100.
The fastest options are debit cards, Apple Pay, and Trustly — which take 24 hours, followed by Venmo, PayPal, and Bank Wire transfers, requiring 48 hours.
Here is the withdrawal guide:
Log in and navigate to ‘Account Information‘.
Select ‘My Account’.
Click the ‘Withdraw‘ option.
Confirm which cash balance you want to withdraw from.
Submit the withdrawal request.
DraftKings Sportsbook App Review
Given the widespread popularity of on-the-move betting, having a high-performance mobile app is crucial for most sportsbooks. And this bookie offers its existing customers exactly this. Available on both Google Play and the App Store, the Draftkings mobile app features a coherent structure similar to the website.
Overall, we enjoyed the bookmaker's betting features thanks to the app's smooth technical performance. Whether it's the varied betting products, exclusive promotions, or in-play betting arena, everything on the mobile app was so accessible during our DraftKings app review.
How To Sign up for DraftKings
Embarking on your DraftKings journey is a simple three-step process, requiring only the submission of basic information.
To sign up, the first step is to provide your email address and phone number, as well as creating a username and password. There's also an option to enter a promo code if you have one.
Tapping ‘Create account' ushers you into step two: ‘Confirm your identity‘. This is where you provide:
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Your full legal name
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Date of birth
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Last four digits of your social security number
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Your physical home address
Ensure all your information is similar to what's displayed in your identification document.
Step three is submitting your ID by scanning or manually uploading it onto the online sports betting site.
You'll need a mobile device to scan the QR code after clicking ‘Get Secure Link.' You may also receive the link via text message.
Once you receive it on your phone, upload the front and back photos of your identification document. Then, go back to your desktop to click the ‘Submit verification’ tab.'
The next page requires you to enter your 9-digit social security number as required by federal law to ensure the safety and security of your account. Click ‘Next.'
To finish, agree to the site's terms and conditions, and a mere click of ‘Next' concludes the registration process.
In case the verification process wasn't successful, you'll see that your DraftKings account status displays ‘account under review.' A member of the support team will contact you to guide you through the necessary next steps to take.
DraftKings Customer Support
The DraftKings Help Center is a detailed section boasting remarkable depth. Essentially, it should be your first point of call if you experience any issues or have a problem on the site.
If you can't find an answer, there's a 24/7 live chat service accessible on the screen's bottom-right corner. You'll receive a set of questions to further pinpoint your issue. Although the responses are automated, you can contact the friendly support team via an online contact form.
For the sake of this DraftKings review, we tested the live chat service and opted to contact the customer support by filling out the contact form.
Although we expected the response in as many as four hours, we were happy to receive a warm yet valid answer in less than 30 minutes.
Do note that the support options don't end there — you can also post your issue or query using the address US Office, 222 Berkeley St, Boston, MA 02116.
DraftKings Partnerships
For a sports betting brand to operate legally in a US state, it has to partner with a physical betting location. And that's what DraftKings has done, granting legal access across the 24 US states where it has a license to operate legally.
The bookie has also partnered with several sports leagues and professional teams, despite its announcement of cutting costs on its collaboration deals in early 2023. Nevertheless, it has still managed to keep several betting partners in the NFL game, PGA Tour, NBA, MLB, UHC, and NHL.
In fact, through this DraftKings review, we discovered that the bookie signed a multi-year partnership deal with the Chicago Cubs, which saw them build a retail location on the outskirts of Wrigley Field.
Likewise, they recently partnered with NASCAR in its application for a North Carolina sports betting license. The operator is yet to receive the license as sports betting in NC is only legal at the three tribal casinos.
Responsible Gambling on DraftKings
Demonstrating a steadfast commitment to promoting safer play, DraftKings provides a responsible gambling section that's available via a link at the bottom of the homepage. It covers guidance on topics such as ensuring personal safety while gambling, implementing account limits, as well as fighting gambling addiction.
In addition, there are several external links and additional resources if you require more help. This includes contact information for renowned responsible gambling organizations like Betblocker and Gamblers Anonymous.
To alleviate the risk of problem gambling, the platform allows you to enforce self-exclusion and cool-off periods, as well as low maximum bet limits, time outs, and wagering limits.
DraftKings Casino Review
While primarily a sportsbook, DraftKings is also famous for its online casino and poker offering, boasting a wealth of playing options to punters in select states. Our DraftKings online casino review found while most of these are slots, other options include video poker, jackpots, roulette, blackjack, craps, and baccarat.
In terms of promotions, those at the casino are run-of-the-mill. New punters can claim up to $100 in casino credits or a 100% match deposit offer of up to $2,000. Both offers have a $5 minimum deposit requirement.
There's also an array of live dealer and poker options available to customers. 45 live casino games are offered, including game shows like ‘Crazy Time' and popular classics such as ‘Ultimate Texas Hold'Em' and ‘Three Card Poker'. ‘Lightning Dice' and live craps are available too.
Where Is DraftKings Casino Legal?
As an industry leader, DraftKings Casino is legal in a handful of US jurisdictions. These include:
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New Jersey
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Connecticut
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West Virginia
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Pennsylvania
ThePuntersPage Final Say
Following our DraftKings review, it's understandable why this bookmaker has been a top choice among US punters over the years.
Across the board, the operator has consistently excelled in most aspects of our analysis, including its top-of-the-line sportsbook with enticing promotions. We also loved that the operator doesn't compromise on matters of security and performance, even on its mobile app offering.
However, we did face a few snags, including a few sports to bet on and the absence of a 24/7 human live chat support agent. Nonetheless, DraftKings has definitely earned our seal of approval for our US punters.
Resources
FAQs
DraftKings is a legitimate platform with robust security credentials ranging from SSL encryption to 2FA, and plenty more.
The DraftKings sportsbook is legal in 24 US states, including Ontario, Canada. US punters must be physically present in these states and be of legal age to bet on the DraftKings sportsbook.
You can win real money from all the DraftKings betting products, including the casino, sportsbook, daily fantasy contests, pool betting, reignmakers, and pick6.
New players can claim several sign-up bonuses from DraftKings, including $100 in casino credits or the 100% deposit bonus of up to $2,000. New sports bettors can claim up to $200 in bonus bets or a 20% deposit bonus up to $1,000 from the sportsbook.
Normally, the DraftKings account review process is instant, but it can take up to 48 hours.
The DraftKings sportsbook is available in 24 US states, while the casino is available in six. The Daily Fantasy Sports product is legal in 44 US states.