Mobile Sports Betting
I’m sure you’re well aware that the ‘next big thing’ on the internet is the move to mobile sports betting. A study in 2012 showed that smartphone and tablet browsing accounted for 20% of all internet traffic and that number is way up today. Naturally, gambling operators make it a priority to move with the times and the gaming industry is one of the most responsive when it comes to exploiting new technology.
It’s so competitive that operators have to be aggressive when it comes to competing for market share. When it comes to sports betting, anyone who’s anyone has a dedicated mobile site nowadays and in this article we’re going to go through some of the features of the best ones.
Are Betting Apps in the App Store or Play Store?
There’s an interesting difference between mobile poker and mobile betting in that many sites have gone for dedicated standalone apps when it comes to poker, but every single site’s mobile betting client is run from your browser window. I’m not entirely sure why this is, but I suspect it to be because poker is a little bit more resource intensive and dependent on animations, and so storing the information locally is preferable. So, when you’ve found a mobile betting site you like, just bookmark it so you can access it with a couple of touches by putting a shortcut on your home screen.
So Which Apps do we Recommend?
Well our rating is based on two things. We’re interested in apps that are user friendly, stable, and fast but when it comes to recommending sites for you to play at, we’re also looking at what’s going on in the background. That is to say we’re looking at whether site is reputable, licensed, and are there many issues with deposits and withdrawals. We’re also looking how many markets the site has available and what other features they offer like in-play betting, money back specials, and other bonuses and promotions. So, with all that in mind here’s our definitive list of the top sportsbetting apps.
First, we’re going to start with our choice for American customers. If you’re interested in non-US sites, just scroll down a bit.
As you probably know, sports betting online in America is a grey area and as such, there are only a few operators serving American customers. Furthermore, they can be quite slow to move with the times so only a couple of them have dedicated mobile sites. Some of our favourite desktop sites like TopBet and 5 Dimes haven’t made the move yet at time of writing.
#1 US Mobile Betting Site: bovada.lv
Bovada are pretty much the best US-facing gaming operator in all regards. They have great credit card deposit acceptance rates, a really good poker room and a Real Time Gaming powered casino, and their mobile sports betting app leaves everyone else in the shade.
As soon as you navigate to bovada.lv, the site detects that you’re on a mobile device and shows you an ‘Apple-inspired’ mobile site with tons of markets available for you to view without even having an account or having to log in. When you are signed in, it’s really easy to make a bet and check your active bets from the buttons at the bottom of the screen. Check the screenshot to see what we mean. Customer service is top notch at Bovada and we’re happy to recommend them as the number 1 mobile betting site for US players.
#2 US Mobile Betting Site: www.betonline.com
We’re giving an honourable mention to Bet Online. They’re the only other US operator worth talking about that have a nice mobile betting page, and are one of the oldest and best known names in sportsbetting in the US. The one drawback is that you can’t check odds unless you’re logged in. If for whatever reason you don’t want to go with Bovada, then BetOnline are a fine choice.
You can find a good selection of other mobile sports betting sites and apps for residents of the US and Canada here.
Mobile Sports Betting Apps for non-US Players
If you don’t live in the USA then you’ve got a great selection of sites to do your betting with. In fact, as we said above, nearly every betting site has a mobile option nowadays but not all sites are created equal. Some have better odds than others, some have faster payouts, and some have better customer service. Based on a whole lot of factors that I won’t go into in any more detail, the following 3 sites are your best bet if you’re a mobile betting nut.
#1 Mobile Betting Site: bet365
In our opinion, the bet365 app is every bit as good as the full desktop version and the in-app signup process works really well. From there, we think that it’s just a matter of placing your bets with the intuitive betting interface, and the ‘members’ section allows you to access every facet of your account. Our feeling is that if you don’t have a bet365 account and use it for mobile betting, you’re really missing out.
For a review of the bet365 app, click here.
#2 Mobile Betting Site: 888sport
If you’ve spent some time on the site, you’ll have figured out that we’re big fans of the 888 brand. They’ve done a lot of good things in online poker and sports betting over the last 5 years and they’re reaping the rewards now.
One of the handy things about the 88 app is that your 888 account funds can be used to play poker on you Android device through their dedicated app, if that’s your thing. The app is easily recognisable from its bright orange colour schme. On the downside, they don’t carry as many sports and markets as bet365 but there should be enough there to keep most sports bettors happy. They also don’t have live scores within the app. You can register and deposit and withdraw within the app. If you’re after a one stop shop for poker and sports betting on your mobile, then 888 is the place to be.
#3 Mobile Betting Site: unibet.com
Unibet is a popular brand in continental Europe and one you might know through their sponsorship of the Valencia football shirt in years gone by. Like bet365 their app has live scores, game clocks, and in-play mobile sports betting and a good selection of sports markets, although their desktop website isn’t quite as functional as bet365’s.
They were voted Europe’s best sport betting website in 2006, 2008 and 2009, but have let things slip a bit in recent years. They’re still a very good option though and as well as sports betting they host a very busy poker room that has its own Android app.
It’s also worth checking out the BookieBoost app for a mobile that includes all of these mobile sites from Android and iPhone.
