Online sports betting has been on the steep rise in the last few years and, arguably, online betting operators have overrun their terrestrial counterparts when it comes to the number of options and offers. And one of the biggest attractors is the sports betting bonuses.

But, there is a question of what these terms mean. Generally, there are three types of bonuses that you can see in almost every large online betting website:

1. Signup bonuses

2. Matchup bonuses

3. Free games

But, similar to the majority of other terms that have been popularized in the industry, these bonuses are not always understood by players. Such misunderstanding can make you choose a lesser option, or need to call customer support because you didn’t receive what you think you would.

There are a lot of operators that offer a 200 deposit bonus in percentages. But that can sometimes be thousands of dollars, and other times it can be dozens.

Signup Bonuses

The signup bonus is probably the most common way betting operators will draw you in to play with them. Usually, it won’t be anything majestic, but you might expect up to $100 for some platforms that are up and coming.

The idea is, once you register your payment you will get more money to your account as a bonus. And, the signup bonus is usually not connected to the amount you buy in with. Regardless if you pay $10 to bet with or ten thousand, you will still get the same result.

What a lot of people don’t understand is that there isn’t a way to cheese this system. You can’t make different profiles with free email addresses and sign up multiple times. The platform will only allow you a bonus when it gets your financial and personal information.

What you can do is change operators, and once you return you might get this bonus again. But for that, you might need to press on the customer support.

Matchup Bonuses

Matchup bonuses used to be the privilege of the biggest operators, but are now fairly common. In most cases, you will receive the identical bonus to what you have paid in, hence the name, but for some platforms that amount can go to 200% or even 300%.

But, what you need to remember is that almost all of these bonuses have a top limit. That limit is what you will need to chase, and not the percentage if you want to get a bigger nominal bonus.

For instance, some operators will have a 100% match-up bonus of up to $5000. Here, if you pay in five grand you will get ten in your account, making it a very hefty bonus. Other options will have 300% but only up to $100. That means that you can get $100 by paying $33.4 to your account, but for larger amounts, you won’t get as much.

In any case, you should gauge that amount and the bonus you are searching for to your betting preferences and what you feel comfortable with. If you generally play with lower amounts then a bigger percentage is better for you. But if your entertainment budget is much larger, then a bigger maximum might be your best bet.

Free Games

This is the most widely misunderstood bonus that some platforms and operators offer and is often used more as a gimmick than an actual advantage.

Namely, a free game is just where you don’t have any risk for a certain bet. Some platforms will promote betting on the game by allowing a certain bet to be free. If you win, you get what you should win. But, if you lose, you get your money back.

Take note that usually the free game won’t be open to selection. You won’t be able to find some great odds and play that game. Rather, these options will be available when betting on the most popular teams that usually won’t give as big of a return if you win.

Using free games is a good way to make things interesting when betting on your favorite team. But, if you are into the math and chances on sports betting they won’t be as useful, mostly just fun.