Colorado sportsbooks offer its players an array of bonuses and promotional offers to get them to sign up. Since there are different options for sportsbooks in Colorado, there are different bonuses and promotional offers available, depending on the sportsbook.
This page provides a complete overview of the Colorado sports betting bonuses available. You can also learn more about the bonus offers you can expect to find.
Get $200
Best bet bonus offers from Colorado sportsbooks
BetMGM Colorado is Super Bowl signup bonus. New users are eligible for BetMGM’s $1,500 First Bet Offer. Sign up with the promo code PLAYCO and bet $5 to get $1,500 instantly in bonus bets.*
In total, signing up with the five sportsbooks above makes a Colorado sports bettor eligible for up to $4,500 in bonuses. That number varies given the bonuses offered by each Colorado sports betting app, though, so check back often for new developments.
* Bonus Bets Expire in 7 Days. One New Customer Offer Only. Add’l terms.
Types of sportsbook bonuses
Sportsbook bonuses come in a variety of flavors. They vary in terms of generosity, scope, and redemption difficulty.
It’s important to understand the different types of bonuses from CO sports betting apps, the terms and conditions that apply and how to clear them.
No-deposit bonuses
The first type of bonus that bettors encounter is likely the sweetest. The no-deposit bonus is nothing short of free money that the sportsbook places into your account.
A no-deposit bonus will typically pop up as an incentive for new account holders. To smooth their registration, a player might be allowed to try the site on the house, so to speak.
No-deposit bonuses come as bonus dollars, bonus bets, or straight cash. In most cases, players must wager the bonus to make anything eligible for withdrawal. Players usually trigger these bonuses by entering a promotional code into the correct box during registration.
Make sure to check with PlayColorado’s exclusive codes before you register with a sportsbook. Some of our codes can’t be found elsewhere.
Otherwise, the sportsbook may hand out these bonuses to everyone who registers. In that case, there’s nothing to do but complete the registration process. Then, start betting!
Deposit/Match/Reload bonuses
It makes sense that if there are no deposit bonuses, then there must also be deposit bonuses. Indeed, there are. However, deposit bonuses function very differently than their counterparts.
Deposit bonuses call for the sportsbook to match a percentage or portion of your next deposit into your account. The match percentage can be as high as 100%, although many match roughly 25% of the deposit.
Deposit bonuses will always come with a cap on the bonus money they can secure. Beyond that cap, there is no benefit to you. These bonuses can come as either bonus dollars or bonus bets and are not eligible for withdrawal.
Furthermore, deposit bonuses almost always bear a restriction called a playthrough or wagering requirement. Before the bonus dollars are available for withdrawals, you must make bets equivalent to a certain multiple of the bonus dollar amount.
Ideally, this multiple is a one-time turnover. However, it’s not uncommon to see requirements up to 50 times the bonus amount.
Insurance/Refund/Cashback bonuses
Gambling is synonymous with risk. Anyone who chooses to place a bet has to accept the possibility that the money might be lost.
However, in some cases, it is possible that you might not have to shoulder that risk. Sportsbooks often offer insurance or refund bonuses on specified bets to encourage players to take a shot.
In this type of bonus, the sportsbook will designate a certain bet or bets as eligible for a refund. These bets could be a type of wager or on certain games.
If a bettor wins this type of bet, nothing out of the ordinary happens, and the bettor gets paid. However, if the bet loses, the sportsbook refunds the amount the player initially wagered.
There are a couple of catches, of course. The first caveat is that the offer is only good for bets up to a certain amount.
So, any amount wagered over the maximum will not be refunded to the player. A $500 losing bet receiving only $25 as reimbursement could leave a bad taste.
The other catch is that the refunds usually come as bonus dollars or bonus bets. So, it will be necessary to bet through them at least once to convert them back to regular dollars.
Obviously, it’s still possible to lose the whole stake, too. However, if you were planning on making a wager similar to the specified type, there’s no reason not to take advantage.
Cashback bonuses
Cashback bonuses are quite similar to insurance bonuses. Both offer refunds on net losses.
However, cashback bonuses tend to be more expansive and cover bets within a certain timeframe or bets made using a certain deposit. With cashback, the sportsbook agrees to cover any net losses that the players suffer during the specified period.
Some sportsbooks will even offer a bonus period for new players that is, essentially, a cashback deal. Whatever net losses you suffered in that time, the sportsbook will recoup for you.
Of course, like most bonuses, there are limits. The book will only guarantee losses up to a certain amount. Furthermore, cashback does not usually apply to any losses incurred within the period. Rather, it is a refund on net losses, meaning you must have all your wagers add up to a loss to receive cashback.
Occurrence bonus
This type of bonus can be a fun way to watch money roll into your account. Simply put, anyone who claims this bonus will receive a payout each time an event occurs in a game or match.
So, for every goal scored, touchdown made, or basket shot, perhaps, the sportsbook might send you a $1 in site credit. Depending on the deal’s particulars, a high-scoring affair might work out in your favor.
Colorado Odds Boosts
Odds boosts are so common in sportsbooks that they often are not listed as promotions. Instead, they are identified as another feature of the site.
In an odds boost, the sportsbook elects to increase the potential payout of various wagers. For instance, a team listed at +200 might now have odds of +225. In effect, bettors who accept these offers are taking a shot at extra dollars without additional risk. So, they are good opportunities for those planning to make similar wagers.
Most sportsbooks will identify multiple bets and markets for odds boosts each day. Because the list is always changing, it makes sense that the books separate them from the other longer-lived promotions.
Sweepstakes
Sweepstakes promotions are less common for sportsbooks. You see them more often in online casinos.
However, they function the same way, no matter what type of gambling app you’re on. Players are awarded entries to a prize drawing based on their amount of play. At the end of a certain period, the sportsbook will randomly draw a winner from the pool of entries.
Unsurprisingly, the key factor in determining the number of entries is the money wagered in the specified period. Some sweepstakes might also award entries based on betting volume – that is, the number of bets made.
The prizes are usually cash, trips, or gift cards. Many sweepstakes pertain to current events, such as the Super Bowl, March Madness, or the World Series.
Play these bonuses if you were already going to play. However, it is not advisable to make them your focus, as it’s never certain that you will win the prize(s).
Leaderboards
Like sweepstakes, leaderboard promotions are more common in online casinos than sportsbooks. However, they occur, so it’s important to describe how they work.
Much like sweepstakes, players are rewarded based on the amount and frequency of their wagers. The only difference is that, instead of a random drawing, a leaderboard pits players against one another based on an established point system.
The more you play, and the higher your wagers, the more points you will earn. Those points create a hierarchical leaderboard that acts as a competition.
These leaderboards usually run for a week or a month. After the specified time, the sportsbook awards the top point earners with cash or prizes.
Like sweepstakes, playing for the sake of the leaderboard is not a great idea. However, if you’re already planning on putting in the time, there’s no reason that you cannot be rewarded for it, too.
Bonus bets
Some promotions on sportsbooks don’t even require putting down any money at all. They are available throughout the entire country, regardless of what the laws on sports betting in each state are.
Sportsbooks sometimes offer contests that are completely free to enter. They usually involve players making a large set of predictions.
Of course, making so many predictions means that many players will be weeded out of the running for prizes naturally. The mathematical odds against choosing completely correctly negates the chance that the sportsbook will have to pay too many people.
Still, it is a chance at free money, even if it is a small one. If you have the time to play the game through, there’s no harm in doing so.
How to determine if a bonus is worth taking
Bonus offers are usually a nice side benefit for playing on a particular sportsbook. After all, receiving something extra for no added cost sounds like a no-brainer.
Unfortunately, not all bonus offers are worth claiming. If you do a few calculations, some of them might be losing propositions.
A sportsbook’s house advantage
Sportsbooks make their money by charging a premium on the winning side of each bet. This premium is known as vigorish, or “vig,” for short.
Typically, the vig on a winning bet is 10%. You can see how much they charge by looking at the three-digit number next to point spread and totals bets. 10% = -110, 13% = -113, and so on.
So, for instance, if two bettors bet against each other, they might each pay $11 for the chance to win $10. After the bet ends, the sportsbook would end up paying out $21 (the winner’s $11 stake plus the $10 payout) and keeping $1 for itself.
Since it paid out $21 of the $22 bet, that translates to an overall house advantage for the sportsbook of 4.55% (22/21 – 1). For every $100 you bet on a sportsbook at this vig, you can expect to receive $95.45 and lose $4.55.
How the advantage affects bonuses
This edge comes into play for bonuses because of the playthrough requirement. In effect, whenever you have to wager through the bonus amount, you can expect to surrender 4.55% of the wagered amount back to the sportsbook.
So, let’s say that $100 in bonus dollars comes with a 20x playthrough requirement. That means you will have to bet $2,000 (20 x $100) in order to free the money up as cash.
Well, on average, you can expect to lose 4.55% of that $2,000, which comes out to $91. So, your bonus dollars’ actual value is only $9, not $100, since you had to surrender $91 to receive $100.
Should you take the bonus?
Expected value
Although $9 in value does not sound fantastic, it’s still a positive expectation. So, from a purely mathematical point of view, you should accept this bonus.
You should probably accept any bonus you calculate to have a positive value. In the long run, you will be enriched by it.
On the other hand, if that same $100 bonus came with a 25x requirement, you’d have to put up $2,500 to satisfy it. At that rate, you’re surrendering $113.75 en route to clearing the bonus.
So, in that case, you’d lose money on the bonus. You’d get the $100 back, but you’re still out $13.75 for the trouble.
Understandably, you might not feel like doing these calculations whenever you consider a bonus. That’s fine, but bear in mind that the value of the bonus reduces as the playthrough multiple goes up. If it gets above 20, it’s probably not worth the effort.
Time consideration
Also, keep in mind the fact that there are time limits associated with most bonuses. If a bonus requires you to wager through thousands of dollars, and you are used to betting $5 and $10 at a time, then you might want to consider whether it’s even feasible that you will achieve the goal.
For instance, let’s say that you bet in $5 increments, and you usually place 5 bets an hour. That means that you wager through $25 each hour.
If the playthrough requirement is $2,500, then you will have to play 100 hours at your standard rate to accomplish it. 100 hours away from your family and daily life may not be feasible, especially in a week, two weeks, or a month.
The other approach might be to bet in higher increments. However, this decision might put undue strain on your bankroll or finances. You might have settled on $25 an hour because that’s the responsible choice for your situation.
Hopefully, you can see how some bonuses could not be worth the trouble. So, please consider the terms and conditions of an offer carefully before you accept.