How does BetMGM’s ‘first bet’ sign-up bonus offer work?

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Welcome offers from sportsbooks can be confusing. Many of them mention bonus bets or bet credits of varying amounts, but require users to wager larger sums to get the full bonus bet allotment. The breakdown of exactly how many bonus bets new users will get when they sign up is another area of confusion.

We’ll explain the breakdown of bonus bets and how users can sign up for the BetMGM welcome offer in the paragraphs below.

BetMGM’s current new customer offer

We’ve outlined the standard sign up solutions for the most common welcome offer below.

Currently, this exclusive 20 percent $1,500 deposit match offer can be claimed by any new bettor in virtually any BetMGM state, using the bonus code TRIB1500. To claim this offer, new users will need to meet a 10x wagering requirement within the first 30 days of registering their account, meaning that they need to bet 10 times the amount of sports bonuses received within the first 30 days of registering their account.

This offer is not available for bettors in Kentucky, New York or Washington D.C.

Bettors in the Bluegrass State can claim a $1,500 first bet insurance promotion with the bonus code TRIBUNEMGM.

That said, there are currently two different new customer offers that users can unlock with the bonus code TRIBUNEMGM or TRIBUNEGET respectively. The first offer is a bet insurance offer up to $1,500 and the second is a $200 bet and get.

The $200 bet and get is only available for new customers in Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

BetMGM’s welcome offer, explained

BetMGM’s usual welcome offer -- a “first bet on the house” -- gives new users their stake back in bonus bets if their first wager is unsuccessful. The offer is currently up to $1,500, meaning you’ll only be refunded in bonus bets up to $1.5k. Sometimes, BetMGM will raise the max bet for this offer.

From there, new users need to deposit into their account and place a cash wager of at least $10 to trigger this promotion. You can wager more than $1,500 on your first bet, but you’ll only be covered up to $1.5k, so that’s all we’d recommend. Most users won’t take advantage of the full $1,500.

Let’s dive into a real example. Say you bet $100 on the Cubs at +110 against the Cardinals as your first wager. It must be your first wager on the platform after you sign up -- you don’t get to choose which bet gets the “first bet offer” treatment.

• If the Cubs win, you profit $110 ($100 x 1.1) and you keep your original $100. You’ll now have $210 cash in your account, and the promo is effectively over. You can withdraw that money if you’d like, or continue betting.
• If the Cubs lose, you’ll get $100 back in bonus bets.

OK, let’s say the Cubs lose, and you have $100 in bonus bets, and put them on the White Sox to beat the Astros at +200.

• If the Cubs win, you’ll profit $200 in cash ($100 x 2.0) but you won’t keep the $100 in bonus bets. So you’ll now have $200 cash, and the promo is over. You can withdraw or continue betting that.
• If the Cubs lose, your bonus bets will be gone, and you’ll be left with nothing.

That’s why sportsbooks have gotten away from the term “risk-free” for these types of promos. There is risk, because you can lose your entire deposit.

Currently, this exclusive 20 percent $1,500 deposit match offer can be claimed by any new bettor in virtually any BetMGM state, using the bonus code TRIB1500.

To claim this offer, new users will need to meet a 10x wagering requirement within the first 30 days of registering their account, meaning that they need to bet 10 times the amount of bonus bets received within the first 30 days of registering their account.

Bonus bets earned from this promotion are valid for one wager only and cannot be withdrawn or cashed out, though as we’ll explain below, you will get a few bonus bets back from BetMGM should your first bet lose. Any bets placed with existing credits will not qualify for this promotion.

What is a bonus bet?

A bonus bet is simply a credit for additional wagers. Plenty of sportsbooks deploy bonus bets as part of their promotions, with some using different names like bet credits or bonus cash, but the premise is the same.

While they can be used for additional wagers, either straight bets or one of the legs of a parlay, they cannot be cashed out or withdrawn for cash and can only be used once. In that same vein, if a user places a bonus bet wager and wins, they will not get the bonus bet stake returned because, as noted above, they’re only valid for one wager.

For example, if a new user places a $100 bonus bet wager on the Nuggets at +115 against the Suns and the Nuggets win, they’ll collect $115 in profit but will NOT get the initial $100 returned. If that wager loses however, no money will be withdrawn from the users account.

No bet is risk-free but bonus bet wagers minimize a portion of the financial risk to new users. That being said, you still have to place a real-money wager in the first place to get the bonus bets.

Bonus bet distribution

If you sign up for BetMGM, make your first deposit, place a wager and win, you’ll collect your profit and keep your stake as you would with any other wager. However, if your first bet loses, you’ll get your complete stake back — capped at $1,500 — in bonus bets.

This begs the question, what is the bonus bet breakdown? Is it a 1:1 ratio? How many bonus bets equal the initial stake?

Bonus bets are distributed proportionally based on the user’s stake, rather than at a 1:1 ratio. If a new user places a cash wager of $50 or more, they’ll get up to five bonus bets of equal value.

For example, if a new player places a first cash wager of $500, they’ll get five bonus bets each with a value of $100. Similarly, if a new player places a cash wager of $1,500, they’ll get five bonus bets with a value of $300. The total number of bonus bets a player will receive to compensate them for their stake is five.

Conversely, if a new user places a cash wager of less than $50, they’ll get one bonus bet equal to the value of their stake.

How to wager with bonus bets

Betting with bonus bets is as easy as placing a wager with cash. Users will see their current bonus bet balance on the right-hand side of the sports betting home page under the “My Bets.”

Whatever amount of the bonus bets a users chooses to wager will be withdrawn from their account as it would with a standard wager.

As noted in multiple sections above, bonus bets are valid for only one wager and cannot be withdrawn or cashed out.

For example, if a new user places a $100 cash wager on the 76ers at +115 against the Celtics and Philly wins, the player will keep their stake and collect $115 in profit. However, if the users places the same value bonus bet wager on the Sixers and they beat the Celtics, the user would collect the profit but would not get the stake returned.

Promotion restrictions

As mentioned above, bonus bets are only valid for one wager and cannot be cashed out or withdrawn. This promotion is restricted to new customers, ages 21 or older, who are currently in Massachusetts — the only state in which this promotion is currently valid.

As is the case with most welcome offers, this promotion is restricted to new users who are at least 21 years old and physically present in an eligible state. This standard offer is usually available in most BetMGM states other than New York, Nevada and Washington D.C.

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