Bonus Bet (Free Bet)
A promo wager where the book fronts the stake; win it and you pocket the profit, but usually not the stake itself.
A bonus bet — also called a free bet — is a sportsbook promo where the operator fronts the stake at zero cost to you. Win the bonus bet and you collect the profit, the payout minus the stake, but the original stake stays with the book. That “stake not included” structure is the whole defining feature, the thing that sets bonus bets apart from regular wagers and shapes what they’re truly worth.
Bonus bets are among the most common tools books use to reel in new customers and keep current ones. You’ll see them in sign-up packages, deposit matches, and ongoing loyalty rewards. Because the stake doesn’t come back on a winner, a bonus bet’s real value sits below its face number. A $100 bonus bet isn’t worth $100 — its expected value hinges on the odds you take it at, and the way to squeeze the most out of it is to fire at longer odds.
Example
A book hands a bettor a $50 bonus bet as part of a welcome offer. The bettor places it on a selection at American odds of +200. If it wins, the profit is figured on the $50 stake, paying $100. But unlike a regular $50 bet at +200, the bettor doesn’t get the $50 stake back — only the $100 profit lands in the account. If it loses, the bettor is out nothing of their own, since the book supplied the stake. To wring the most from this one, the bettor went with longer odds, lifting the potential profit relative to the non-refundable stake.
Key Points
- Stake not returned: The hallmark of a bonus bet — the original stake isn’t part of the payout on a winner. Only the profit hits your account.
- Best used at longer odds: Since the stake is gone either way, taking bonus bets at higher odds maximizes the return relative to the bet’s real value.
- Common promotional tool: Bonus bets headline sign-up bonuses, referral rewards, and ongoing promos — among the most frequent incentives legal books offer.
- Subject to restrictions: Most come with strings: expiration dates, minimum odds, limits on eligible markets. Read the terms before you place the wager.
- Calculable value: A bonus bet’s expected value can be pinned down mathematically from the odds you pick, helping you decide how to deploy these promos.