From paying in person to e-wallets and online bank transfers, U.S. sports bettors now have plenty of options for both depositing and withdrawing at the best sportsbook apps.
In this article, we break down the most commonly offered payment methods, highlighting their advantages and disadvantages to help you choose the best one for you.
List of sportsbook deposit options
For starters, we’ll list the most commonly found deposit options at regulated U.S. sportsbooks:
Easiest deposit options
Already, patrons have access to about a dozen different banking methods (depending on the book). This is a very encouraging sign, as users can now manage their funds quicker, safer, and easier than ever. Here are our top picks in terms of ease-of-use, convenience, and speed:
PayPal
PayPal has built its reputation on speed and convenience. Players can send money to and from their PayPal account and expect the transaction to be completed within 30 minutes – it’s that fast. Either send your funds back into your bank account via PayPal transfer or roll them over with a deposit into another sportsbook – the options are endless with PayPal!
Lastly and most importantly, the service offers no-fee transactions, something which can’t be said about other e-wallets. If you only had one choice, PayPal is the way to go.
Are there any disadvantages?
This isn’t too much of a disadvantage, however, most sportsbooks will require customers to use the same email for both PayPal and their sportsbook account in order to successfully process any transactions between the two.
(ACH) VIP preferred e-Check
For any player with a checking account, ACH (also known as an Instant e-Check) is a natural option for a good reason. You will often find this payment method listed as VIP Preferred. This is an ACH service that boasts incredibly fast deposit and withdrawal times. However, depending on your bank’s policies, the funds might not be deducted from your account right away. On average, any deposited funds will show up on your statement within 2-3 days of the transaction.
Additionally, ACH is one of the most widely available payment methods on legal sports betting sites. It also generally features a high transaction acceptance rate with solid limits.
Are there any disadvantages?
The main disadvantage to ACH banking is the fact that you need to have an online bank account with an institution accepted by the sportsbook of your choice.
The biggest and most widely known banks (e.g. Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Chase, etc.) are usually included on the list, however, making it easy for the majority of customers to make a deposit.
Other sportsbook deposit options
Apart from PayPal and ACH, there are a plethora of other trustworthy deposit options at your disposal. Let’s break each one down and highlight their strongest characteristics:
Credit and debit cards
Who should use credit cards to deposit?
To put it simply, you should use a credit or debit card if there are no better options available. Credit and debit cards are generally very easy to use, as they don’t require using any third-party service. However, they do come with a list of potential drawbacks.
Disadvantages of using credit and/or debit cards?
Unfortunately, for all the convenience they provide, credit and debit cards have some issues of their own.
- First off, it’s not uncommon for credit or debit card companies to reject gambling deposits. Some, if not most banks have a tendency to automatically decline any sportsbook or casino-related deposits due to underlying policies within their systems. In any case, users should contact customer support and try to rectify the issue should this happen.
- Secondly, banks often recognize credit card deposits to gambling accounts as cash advances. This means that there is a possibility that the bank will charge you a fee. To see if this is the case, your best course of action will be to check your bank’s policies.
- Lastly, they do not support withdrawals. Credit and debit cards only work one way when it comes to sending funds, so users who make their initial deposit using this method will need a second method activated in order to extract any winnings.
Other e-wallets
As highlighted above with PayPal, e-wallets allow users to store data from one or more banking methods and move money around more freely. They essentially act as an intermediary between the recipient and the payer.
This means that you don’t have to enter any banking information when making your deposit, instead, you’ll simply log into your e-wallet account.
E-wallets usually have shorter processing times and are very safe because all of your sensitive bank account data is stored away from the merchant you are buying from. In the case of legal online gambling sites, though, you don’t need to worry about your information falling into the wrong hands. All regulated sites are overseen by state gaming authorities and use the same type of encryption leveraged by online banks and large retailers.
There are a number of companies that operate as e-wallet service providers. Some have even come to be synonymous with the service. Outside of PayPal, players are most likely to find Venmo, followed by Neteller or Skrill, offered at most online sportsbooks.
Venmo
- Download the Venmo app: You can download Venmo for free from the App Store or Google Play Store.
- Create an account: To create an account, you’ll need to provide your email address, phone number, and a valid payment method, such as a credit or debit card or bank account.
- Send money: To send money, simply enter the amount you want to send, select the recipient, and add a note to explain the transaction. You can also choose to make the transaction private or public.
- Make sportsbook deposits: Many merchants, including the best sports betting sites, accept Venmo as a payment method. Simply select the option to pay with Venmo at checkout, enter the amount you owe, and authorize the transaction.
Neteller and Skrill
In terms of depositing funds, Skrill offers more or less the same quality of service as the other two e-wallets. It has made a name for itself precisely through online gaming sites. Both Neteller and Skrill may charge their users with a fee when they complete a transaction, making both options less than ideal in comparison to PayPal.
Who should use e-wallets?
If you are used to using e-wallets in your every-day online shopping, you might want to continue to use them for your betting accounts as well. Extremely fast processing times are also a huge plus. Nevertheless, we will go through some of the main disadvantages, which might potentially sway you towards another payment method.
Disadvantages of Neteller and Skrill
Although they are quick and convenient to use, Neteller and Skrill do come with their own set of disadvantages:
- Neteller: One of the main disadvantages of Neteller is the fact that it imposes stricter limits on the amount of money that can be loaded onto your account. Additionally, Neteller comes with the highest transfer fees of the two. Neteller is also often excluded from deposit bonuses on some sportsbooks.
- Skrill: The main disadvantage of Skrill is its limited availability. Namely, compared to its competitors, fewer operators offer Skrill. Finally, like with Neteller, some operators will exclude Skrill from first-deposit welcome bonuses.
Play+ prepaid cards
Play+ prepaid cards are offered by nearly every online sportsbook. High acceptance rates are their major advantage.
Players who activate a Play+ prepaid card with their sportsbook will receive both access to their digital Play+ card as well as a physical copy of the card in the mail. The digital Play+ card is typically used as a middleman between a user’s credit or debit card and the sportsbook.
This is often necessary because most banks will reject gambling-related deposits via debit or credit card due to specific bank policies. Instead of uploading funds to the sportsbook, players can instead send money to their Play+ prepaid card and then pass it forward to their sportsbook account.
Users do not need to wait to receive their physical card, as they can fully use the service even before they receive it. Operator-branded physical prepaid cards offer the added convenience of giving users the ability to withdraw their winnings from ATMs.
What kind of people should use this method?
In order to fund a prepaid card, you need to have a checking account or a credit/debit card. This means that you will first need to transfer money to the card, and then onto your sportsbook account. If you don’t mind the extra step for the benefit of a high transaction acceptance rate and a higher daily limit, then you might want to consider a prepaid card. Prepaid cards are also a great option for when other methods, like credit cards, get declined by a website.
What are the disadvantages of this type of method?
If you use a prepaid card issued by the operator, you should be aware that the card will be operator-specific. Additionally, although prepaid cards generally offer higher daily limits, monthly limits are often lower than with other payment methods. You can expect the daily limit to be around $2,000, while the monthly limit goes up to $10,000.
In-person depositing
One of the advantages of online betting is the fact that you can do it whenever and wherever you are. Still, there are people who for one reason or another prefer face-to-face interaction.
What kind of people should use these methods?
This method is recommended for people who don’t have an online bank account or simply prefer in-person banking.
What are the disadvantages of this type of method?
There is an obvious disadvantage to this method. This is the fact that you will have to physically travel to a casino or sportsbook. If you happen to already be inside a casino then it can be very convenient.
PayNearMe
PayNearMe is one way of circumventing some of the issues tied to in-person depositing. PayNearMe allows users to make a deposit at participating 7-Eleven, CVS or Family Dollar stores, among others. A full list of available locations in your area can be found on PayNearMe’s website at any time.
Customers only need to bring the provided PayNearMe barcode to the retail clerk and pay the amount they wish to deposit. In turn, they will receive a code which they will enter into their account to get the funds. This method does however only works for deposits, so a second method will be required in order to extract any winnings.
Cash at the casino cage
To use this method, you will need to travel to the partner casino of the online gaming site you would like to interact with.
That means, for example, if you wanted to make an in-person deposit at FOX Bet Sportsbook, you could head over to the cashier’s cage at Resorts Casino in Atlantic City and hand the teller some cash. Immediately afterwards, your deposit will appear in your online account.
Despite being instant and practically without limits, this can be the most inconvenient option for bettors. But if you happen to live close to a brick-and-mortar sportsbook, feel free to waltz up to the cashier’s cage. You will be able to instantly transfer money, whether you are using cash, check or plastic.
Using your online bank account to deposit
For a lot of customers, bank transfers are still the preferred option when it comes to depositing and withdrawing. This is because sportsbooks will directly interact with your bank, not a third-party service, and closely follow and report any suspicious activity.
Who should use these methods to deposit?
We recommend this method for anyone who prefers not to let third-party services handle their information. This payment method is also good for less tech-savvy bettors.
Disadvantages to using these methods
Processing times are this method’s main disadvantage. Due to extensive checks, deposit and withdrawal requests can span up to 5 workdays. Although the actual times may differ and will depend mostly on individual banks and the sportsbook.
Online banking transfer
Although convenient and safe, online banking transfers share the drawbacks we’ve already covered. Namely, what we mean by this is longer processing times.
Bank wire transfer
Bank wire transfers are generally useful for depositing larger sums of money. However, long processing times in addition to high fees make many users shy away from this payment method.
Paper checks
Mailing personal checks is another viable option, though it’s not the most convenient. Depositing via paper checks usually takes somewhere between 7 to 10 days for the check to arrive and be processed. Most online sportsbooks only offer paper checks for payouts.
Online sportsbook cashouts
When it comes to cashing out at online sportsbooks, the options are normally a bit more limited compared to depositing. Processing times will also usually take a bit longer. Finally, note that online operators sometimes require users to verify their identity before allowing them to withdraw funds in order to avoid fraudulent activity. The procedure will usually require users to send a scanned copy of a relevant personal document such as your ID, passport or driver’s license. Luckily, you will only have to do this once before making your first withdrawal.
Our favorite cashout methods
It isn’t easy picking the best withdrawal method, especially when taking into account the variety of customer needs. Still, there are some clear criteria that we consider to be important to all customers. In particular, those are availability, speed, and reliability. This is what we used as a guide when selecting our favorites.
VIP Preferred (ACH e-check) and PayPal
Both for their speed and reliability, PayPal and VIP Preferred (ACH e-check) win out as our top picks when it comes to making sportsbook withdrawals.
If you already use PayPal to make deposits, you can use the same account for withdrawals. PayPal’s processing times are usually very fast, and the service doesn’t charge processing fees on transactions, unlike competitors like Neteller. PayPal is generally widely available and is currently offered by most of the major online sportsbooks.
Much of the same advantages of PayPal also apply to VIP Preferred. Much like when you deposit using the service, you can expect super fast processing times when making withdrawals. Naturally, this is compared to other withdrawal methods which can often take several workdays to complete. Finally, like PayPal, ACH doesn’t charge processing fees.
What other withdrawal methods are usually available?
As you might expect, apart from PayPal and ACH, there are a whole host of other ways to withdraw funds. Some of the deposit methods highlighted above will also allow for withdrawal, while others will leave users in search of a second banking method. Below you can find a list of the most common withdrawal methods available in U.S. sportsbooks:
List of sportsbook cashout methods
- ACH e-check
- PayPal
- Neteller
- Skrill
- Venmo
- Prepaid card
- Check by mail
- Cash at the casino cage
A lot of the same characteristics we’ve discussed in our section on deposits also apply to the methods when it comes to withdrawals. For example, withdrawing via check by mail can take 1-2 weeks, making it by far the slowest option of the bunch. Neteller, Skrill, and Venmo each work similarly to PayPal when it comes to digitally extracting funds, while Play+ prepaid cards and casino cage withdrawals will provide users with their winnings in cold hard cash.
With all of that being said, make sure you take all variables into account and choose the option that works best for you.
