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There are seven sportsbooks in Iowa that we can currently recommend. We have done deep dives into every aspect of those sportsbooks, from their sign-up bonuses and to their player promos to analyzing the quality of their apps and user experience.
Atop the list of the best Iowa betting sites is FanDuel Sportsbook. This is the best online sportsbook Iowa has for players of all skill levels. The icons and logos for each team and sport make navigating the site easy. There’s a section, Sports Betting 101, which helps you earn about the various bet types you can make and how to bet on each sport.
The live betting user interface is also excellent, as you can receive live updates on the game and review in-game stats, which can help you make live wagers.
FanDuel Sportsbook is one of two Iowa online sportsbooks that also offers daily fantasy sports, which shares a wallet with the sportsbook account. If you’re interested in horse racing, there’s a link on the site directly to TVG, the horse racing betting platform FanDuel is linked with.
Next up, we have DraftKings Sportsbook. DraftKings lands at No. 2 in a close matchup due to a welcome bonus that isn’t quite as strong as FanDuel’s.
Other than that, DraftKings Sportsbook offers a large selection of existing player promotions. The betting markets here are deeper than anywhere else, though FanDuel—and the next site on the list—Caesars isn’t too far off.
DraftKings is the other Iowa online sportsbook that offers daily fantasy sports. You can earn DK Crowns, the rewards program at DraftKings, and redeem them for funds to be added to your wallet and used on either platform.
Few Iowa sportsbooks offer a higher welcome bonus value than Caesars Sportsbook. The Tier/Reward Credits are two “currencies” used for Caesars Rewards, which provide players with online and in-person perks and benefits.
The existing player promotions are somewhat lacking, but you’ll also have access to numerous odds boosts which can offer more bang for your buck.
The mobile app and desktop site are also identical, making it easy for new players to bounce between platforms.
On the homepage, you’ll find pre-build parlay betting options, which can help you with some options if you’re struggling to decide what to wager on.
PointsBet Iowa offers new players a bonus bet of up $1,000 if their first wager loses. To redeem this offer, you must use promo code “WELCOME10.” The most unique feature of PointsBet is “PointsBetting”, a betting market that awards you for how correct you are.
The way it works is that your wager is multiplied by how much it wins (or loses by). If the total of a basketball game is set at 215 and you bet the over, and then the game total ends up being 225, you’d win 10X your wager.
BetMGM is a fantastic option to consider as well as you’ll also get a bonus bet of up to $1,000 if your first wager loses. If you enjoy making parlays, you’ll have several same game parlay betting options pre-built for each game, and Easy Parlay, a page that streamlines all of the team moneylines, totals and points spreads into one convenient page.
On top of receiving a bonus bet of up to $100 if your first wager loses, BetRivers Iowa has one of the largest libraries of existing player promotions on the market today.
Betway is a lesser-known online sportsbook in Iowa, but you’ll receive up to $250 back as a bonus bet if your first wager loses. A few other existing player promotions, and an excellent live betting interface that goes into detail on what’s happening in the game, statistics, box score, standings and text play-by-play.
Parlay Club: Get a $10 bonus bet when you wager $25 or more on 3+ leg parlays.
Whenever we dive into mobile app reviews, we think of it as if we were brand-new players. The FanDuel mobile app makes it easy for players to navigate the site with the promotions prominently displayed on the homepage with graphics, the icons/graphics to find the various teams and sports and the account page found on the menu across the bottom to navigate to customer support and deposits/withdrawals.
This straightforward mobile app with no lag is the perfect experience for new players to dive into.
DraftKings Sportsbook is a close second. The mobile app is laid out similarly to FanDuel, with promotions on the homepage. However, there aren’t any icons or logos to find the sports. Instead, there’s a menu with the names of the leagues/sports. This is fine, but players might more easily spot the icons/logos. The menu at the bottom of the app provides an excellent hub for navigation as you can find your bet history, homepage, list of sports and promotion/rewards program information.
DK Social allows players to interact with one another and share the best ideas. You can follow bettors you think to offer great insights.
The Caesars mobile app and desktop site are exactly alike. The top portion of the homepage is dedicated to the menu at the top for sports, live betting, odds boosts, promotions and the pre-built parlay options.
We still enjoy Caesars Sportsbook, but the featured games and sports are lower on the page. The customer support isn’t so apparent as it’s a “?” icon in the upper right corner.
Still, there’s no lag or buffering here. It boils down to preference.
While Iowa isn’t home to any professional sports teams, the Iowa Hawkeyes and Iowa State Cyclones college programs have helped make Iowa a great place for sports betting. It became the 11th state in the United States to have legal sports betting and the first of the upper Midwest states to launch it on August 15, 2019.
There are 19 land-based casinos in Iowa, so there were plenty of spots for the best betting sites for Iowa to link up with. As online sports betting was coming to fruition, eight of the 19 sites applied for sports betting licenses. Today, all of them are operational.
While we’ve discussed numerous Iowa betting sites on this page, we can confidently say that their registration processes are similar, except for some minor differences in how they’re presented.
We’ll go over the registration process below for the best Iowa betting site options, reviewing it step-by-step.
Whenever we do more in-depth sportsbook reviews or rank the best Iowa online sportsbooks, there are several factors to consider. Below, we’ll review five of the most significant contributing factors in how we develop our rankings.
Whether you prefer a desktop or a mobile app, we look for sites with a user experience that allows you to easily navigate the site to find the sports/teams you want to bet on, customer support, banking information and information related to bonuses and promotions.
We consider aesthetics, too, which are subjective, but an attractive site helps with the flow of navigating it.
Winner: FanDuel Sportsbook
The welcome bonus helps players choose where to and where not to play. It creates that first impression. However, we go deeper than the advertisement and investigate the terms and conditions for things such as minimum odds requirements, expiration times, wagering requirements and more.
From here, we explore promotions that all players can access, known as existing player promotions. These provide value after the welcome bonus comes and goes.
Here, on top of value and suitable terms and conditions, we look for variety, whether it’s across multiple sports or different types of promotions such as profit boosts, parlay insurance and bet & gets.
Winner: BetRivers Sportsbook
An online sportsbook possessing unique features is becoming more scarce by the day. Cash out, live betting and same game parlays were notable but are now almost universally offered.
We pay attention to features unique to a site like PointsBeting or DK Social that create a betting experience you can’t find anywhere else.
Winner: PointsBet Sportsbook
Our philosophy with banking options is quite simple—which sites offer the most methods and complete withdrawals the fastest? The more banking options there are, the more potential players there are, which can lead to more promotions.
Winner: DraftKings Sportsbook
Live chat, FAQ, phone and email support are becoming the standard, so to evaluate customer support beyond the number of available methods, we explore the FAQ page to see how many questions are answered. We also engage with the live chat to see how quickly our request is answered, how helpful the representative is, and if they’re knowledgeable about the site they’re servicing.
Winner: BetMGM Sportsbook
While none of these teams have enjoyed a championship in recent memory, the biggest storyline surrounding these schools is the Cyclones, where incumbent San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy played college football. He was “Mr. Irrelevant,” also known as the last draft pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Yes. Sports betting has been legal in Iowa since August 15, 2019.
Sports betting is already legal in Iowa; it launched on August 15, 2019.
No. Creating an account at Iowa online betting sites is free of charge.
Yes. Online horse racing betting is legal in Iowa, but to make bets on this sport, you’ll need to wager at horse racing betting platforms like DK Horse, FanDuel Racing, BetMGM Racing and more.
Sidelines Group provides sports betting and casino content to MLive, including game predictions, odds, analysis, and sportsbook and casino reviews to educate bettors. Please bet responsibly.
If you have a gambling problem and are located in Michigan, call 1-800-GAMBLER or 1-800-270-7117 or you can visit the Michigan Gaming Control Board's website.
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