A "bonus" can feel like a safety net when it's really the hook.
How a deposit match works
A deposit match starts with your own money. You deposit cash, and the sportsbook matches some percentage of it, often 100% or more up to a limit. The match usually isn't cash, though. It shows up as bonus bets, sometimes called bonus credit, and you can't withdraw it.
Those bonus bets come with a clock. Many expire in 7 days unless the terms say otherwise, and guides that track these offers put the usual range anywhere from 7 to 28 days. That deadline is pressure to bet again, and soon.
A winning bonus bet pays less than you think
When a bonus bet wins, you get the winnings but not the stake. FanDuel's own example is a $25 bonus bet that wins $22.73. You get $22.73, and the $25 is gone. Caesars says the same thing: the stake isn't included in any winnings from a bonus bet.
Mix cash and a bonus bet on one slip and it gets murkier. FanDuel says that if you combine them, only the cash part of your stake comes back when you win. When you're betting fast, late at night, chasing a number, that's exactly the kind of detail you miss.
What research says betting promos do to bettors
In 2025, researchers at Ireland's Economic and Social Research Institute ran an experiment with 622 men under 40 who were betting on Euro 2024. Some saw bets with offers attached, like free bets and money-back deals. Others saw the same bets with no offers.
- The offers raised overall spending by more than 10% and nearly halved the share of people who chose not to bet at all.
- With offers, people were three times more likely to pick a bad bet, one with much worse odds, and spent three times more on those bets.
- Most people didn't realize free bets came with restrictions, and many didn't know they wouldn't get their stake back if a free bet won.
- People at higher risk of problem gambling got pulled in more than anyone else.
Put simply, promos made people bet more and bet worse, and they hit the people who could least afford it the hardest.
Why sportsbooks can't call bonus bets "free" anymore
For years, ads promised "risk-free" bets. Regulators pushed back because the money usually came back as bonus bets you had to wager again, not as cash. In 2023, Pennsylvania's Gaming Control Board told sportsbooks they can't call an offer free if players have to risk their own money, and can't call it risk-free if players have to lose or risk their own money to use it or cash out. Maryland, Ohio and Massachusetts also restricted "free bet" and "risk-free" language, and the American Gaming Association's own marketing code dropped "risk-free" that same year.
The words changed. The offers stuck around.
Signs promos and bonus bets have a hold on you
- You bet because a bonus was about to expire.
- You deposited more to get a bigger match.
- You opened an account at a new book mainly for the sign-up offer.
- Promo emails, texts or push notifications have pulled you back after you'd decided to stop.
- You've lost track of what was bonus money and what was yours.
- You've used money that wasn't yours to fund a deposit.
If any of those sound like you, the offers are doing their job. Their job is keeping you betting.
How to get out from under the promos
- Cut off the offers. Unsubscribe from sportsbook emails and texts, and turn off the apps' notifications in your phone's settings.
- Self-exclude. It blocks you from betting at all, so the offers have nothing left to pull you back to. Start with how self-exclusion works, then close your sportsbook accounts and check the guide for your state.
- Block the apps. Follow the steps in how to block sports betting apps so a new sign-up offer can't land on your phone in seconds.
- Don't chase what you lost. If a promo bet went bad, the urge to win it back is the most dangerous thing in the room. Read why chasing feels so logical and why it never works.
- If you used someone else's money, tell the truth. Waiting usually makes the lies do more damage than the money. How to tell your partner about gambling debt can help you plan the conversation.
- Get help with the money. For debt, a nonprofit credit counselor through NFCC.org is a good first call. If you're thinking about pulling from a retirement account, read what cashing out a 401(k) really costs and talk to a tax professional first.
FAQ
Are bonus bets real money?
Not the way cash is. Bonus bets can't be withdrawn, they usually expire, and when one wins you only get the winnings, not the stake. The deposit you made to get them was real money, though. So is anything you add to chase them.
Is a deposit match free money?
Far from it. You have to deposit and risk your own cash first, and the match usually comes as bonus bets with time limits and terms. That's why regulators in several states have restricted calling these offers free or risk-free.
Why do sportsbooks give out so many promos?
Promos bring people in and keep them betting. Research on betting offers found they increased how much people bet and made them more likely to take bets with worse odds, especially people already at risk of problem gambling.
I lost money I thought was a bonus. What now?
Stop before you try to win it back, and talk to someone today. You can call or text 1-800-MY-RESET (1-800-697-3738), any time, for free, confidential help. If the money belonged to someone else, telling them the truth sooner is almost always less painful than what happens when the lies come out.
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Take the self-checkSources: ESRI: Effects of inducements on sports gambling and decision-errors (Ó Ceallaigh, Timmons, Robertson and Lunn, Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 2025); FanDuel: how bonus bets work; Caesars Sportsbook: bonus bets; next.io: sportsbook bonus types explained; SBC Americas: PGCB limits "free bets" in marketing (March 2023); next.io: Ohio regulator moves to fine sportsbooks (January 2023); Covers: AGA marketing code update (March 2023).
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