Bonus Bet

A bonus bet is a form of site credit that lets a bettor place a wager without using their own cash, but unlike a cash stake, only the net profit is paid out if the bet wins. If a bettor places a $20 bonus bet at even odds and it wins, they receive $20 in winnings rather than $40, because the $20 stake is not returned. This single mechanic is what separates a bonus bet from a free bet, and it is increasingly the default structure operators use across regulated US markets.

The shift toward "bonus bet" language is regulator-driven. As several US states and advertising standards bodies restricted the words "free" and "risk free" in gambling promotions, operators relabeled stake-not-returned credits as bonus bets. The term is now the standard descriptor in US sportsbook terms and conditions, while UK and European books may still use "free bet" with similar mechanics. Operators typically attach conditions such as minimum odds, eligible markets, and an expiry window, and bonus bets usually cannot be cashed out for their face value.

For operators, bonus bets are an acquisition and reactivation lever: they are issued at sign-up, after a deposit, or to win back dormant accounts, and the stake-not-returned design caps the operator's real cost versus a true cash credit. For affiliates, the key question is attribution. Because activity funded by bonus bets is promotional rather than first-deposit cash, programs define whether a bonus-bet-funded conversion counts toward a CPA qualification or feeds RevShare, and how the associated wagering requirement is met before a player is treated as qualified.