Top Sportsbooks To Bet On NFL

The NFL is the number-one bet-on sport. Therefore, there’s no shortage of online betting sites that carry NFL betting. However, only a select few sportsbooks are actually worth your time AND money. That’s why we’ve compiled the top sportsbooks for NFL betting and listed them below with our researched-backed reasonings. Each of our five sportsbook selections were carefully chosen due to their overall site experience, variety of NFL lines, prices of those lines, signup bonuses, and a few other features. Let’s count all five sites down:

Bovada Is The Best Overall Sportsbook For NFL

If you were to compare Bovada to an NFL franchise, it would be the New England Patriots. That’s because Bovada has been “on top” for the better part of the last decade — longer than any other sportsbook. Thousands of bettors around the United States flock to Bovada because of its overall package and consistency with deposits, withdrawals and everything else, and that’s how they end atop our list.

bovada nfl betting odds

It’s not necessarily that Bovada has one feature that puts it ahead of the rest. After all, most online sportsbooks are more similar than they are different, and that’s been the case for decades (unlike other industries, the product can’t be all that different from platform to platform). But it’s more so that Bovada does everything — and we mean everything — fundamentally well.

Most important of all, the great NFL lines are both abundant and fair-priced at Bovada. NFL bettors could conceivably do ALL their NFL betting on Bovada and not have to jump to another platform once during the season. That’s because the full breadth of NFL bets (spreads, over/unders, futures, props, teasers, etc.) are available on the platform. Moreover, the odds these bets are offered at are very in-line with the marketplace (and that includes Las Vegas casinos too).

 

And last but not least, Bovada just has an aura of efficiency to it. The site is easy to use, errors are rare when betting, deposits and payouts are swift. In other words, the site just works EXACTLY like it’s supposed to — which is what you’ll need over the course of a long NFL season. Bovada deserves its credit as the sportbook dynasty, believe us.

Bonus:
50% up to $1,000
Bet now

BetOnline Offers The Top NFL Betting Lines

Alright, Bovada has good NFL betting lines — but BetOnline has GREAT lines. Both sportsbooks are almost equal in its NFL betting menu. With either one, you’ll be incredibly hard-pressed to find an NFL line NOT available on the platform. However, where BetOnline separates itself is in two facets.

betonline nfl betting odds

 

The first is the speed they get NFL odds up. It almost seems like upon the conclusion of a Sunday mid-day NFL game, BetOnline already has lines for next week’s matchup on its site. For bettors that want to emulate “sharp” ones (that actually make money from this), it behooves them to bet early — before a betting line can shift based on the action being taken in. Therefore, getting lines quickly becomes critical.

Second, BetOnline has the best prices on their NFL bets around. Whether you’re looking for Supert Bowl betting or weekly lines, they hold strong. This is no small thing either. Even a betting line -3 or -5 cheaper makes a huge difference over the course of an NFL season. We typically vouch for bettors to “shop” lines from platform to platform to maximize the betting value they are getting. We still suggest doing this, however, we’ll just be upfront and tell you that BetOnline will be a reoccurring winner when doing this practice.

Bonus:
100% up to $1,000
Bet now

XBet Includes The Finest NFL In-Play Experience

In-play NFL betting is surging in popularity. This feature allows bettors to make wagers at almost any point of a game as it’s ongoing — not just before kickoff or halftime like traditional ways of betting. Many NFL betting sites are staking their future on this and upping the quality of their live betting experience. But as it stands, many bookmakers have a lot of catching up to do with XBet.

xbet nfl betting odds

Above all, XBet’s live betting system is just seamless — they make it easy to place bets, at least compared to most competitors. This interface is also excellent for mobile betting. Look, live betting can get messy, especially in the NFL when there is a play every 40 seconds or so. But that’s less of an issue at XBet. The site is lightning fast at both updating lines in real-time and taking in bets with almost zero lag. This is critical because every second literally does count when in-play wagering. In our experience, XBet hardly fails amidst all this chaos, which is deserving of recognition.

 

Bonus:
100% up to $500
Bet now

MyBookie Has The Best Bonuses For NFL

There are A LOT of NFL bets in a given week, let alone a single season. It might take deep pockets to actually bet on all the football games you want to, but here’s the thing: those deep pockets don’t have to come entirely from your own bankroll. That’s because there are lucrative bonuses available across betting websites that can inject you with free play to “tackle” all the NFL bets you want. However, few rival the deals routinely available at MyBookie.

mybookie nfl betting odds

At the very least, MyBookie is offering up to $1000 in free play on your first deposit at the site. That deal is up year-round for you to take advantage of, but it’s worth waiting until there’s a good NFL bet available since if you were to use earned free play on it, the wager effectively is “on the house.” Moreover, MyBookie is prone to upping its deposit bonus as peak NFL betting moments — think the start of the season or during the Super Bowl. Those are the most opportune time to rack up free play at MyBookie so don’t miss out!

 

Bonus:
100% up to $1,000
Bet now

 

*Why wasn’t DraftKings on the list? Or why is FanDuel omitted from the Top 5? That’s simple: while you might have seen them and BetMGM, PointsBet, Unibet, FoxBet or BetRivers advertise aggressively in NFL broadcasting, they are not yet available in all US states. Not even close – that’s why we trust Bovada, BetOnline, XBet and others who are not spending money on TV advertising and lobbying efforts, but instead are giving you better odds and higher bonuses to maximize the fun you can have with NFL betting.

How to bet on Football

There are multiple ways to bet on Football, and even the most experienced sharps can improve their skills to make better football bets.

How to bet on Football introduces the most common types of football bets and explains what’s important to keep in mind with each different type.

Betting against the spread is the most popular method for NFL wagering, and as we’ve covered how against the spread bets work, it’s straightforward to do. Not only does a spread balance the best odds between unequal opponents, but it can create drama late in games that would otherwise lack any. In the NFL, since scoring can come in 2, 3, 6 and 7-point increments, the spreads for football typically settle around those margins. Typically, if two NFL teams are evenly matched, the home team is a three-point favorite; conventional wisdom is that home-field advantage counts for roughly three points in the NFL. So, when you see Buffalo listed as six-point home favorites, bookmakers are saying that, on a neutral field, they’d be three-point favorites. NFL spreads are made available for the following week every Sunday night after the majority of the previous week’s games have been played. Regarding ranges, NFL spreads typically fall between a pick’em and 15 points. It’s rare to see an NFL team favored by 16 or more: it’s only happened 80 times in the league’s lengthy history.
Those big spreads can be a dangerous bet in football, even when one side appears to be much better than the opposition. When one team is up by a wide margin late in a game, NFL defenses often go into “prevent mode,” trying to take away big plays and allowing opponents to drive the ball slowly down the field. This can lead to the dreaded “backdoor cover:” an underdog getting a meaningless late score that helps them beat the spread. Depending on which side you take, it can be the most frustrating or rewarding moment in gambling. To avoid getting burned on a backdoor cover, you can always simplify your betting by playing the moneyline.
Betting the moneyline means performing the simple act of picking who will win the game. It’s a less popular option for single bets in the NFL because of the subpar payouts for betting the favorite. As you can see, the disparity in payout between the spread and the moneyline can be great at times. Rather than wager $270 on Buffalo to win straight-up for a potential payout of just $100, it’s easy to talk yourself into taking the Bills -6. That same bet of $270 would pay out nearly $235 if Buffalo just wins by seven, which is a touchdown and a convert; not hard to imagine. However, the moneyline does provide a chance at big winnings if an underdog comes through, so if you had a good feeling about the Jets, the moneyline would be the better play. It’s worth noting that some books will limit your opportunity to bet the moneyline, generally releasing it a few days later in the week than they do the spread. Some books won’t even release a moneyline when a game’s spread is less than three points or greater than ten.
Every NFL game will also have a total you can bet on (which we explain in more detail in this section). NFL game totals have historically ranged anywhere from 30 to 60 points. You might think, in today’s high-scoring league, almost every game would see more than 42 points, so the over is the obvious choice, but think hard about that decision. NFL totals are set based on a number of factors like the level of offensive and defensive talent in the game, whether the opponents are division rivals, and what the forecasted weather in the area will be. The over is always more fun to bet, because cheering for points is more enjoyable. But to successfully play totals, you have to be willing to play the under once in a while.
All these single bets can be made for specific halves and quarters too. The first half will have both a spread and total and the second half line will usually be made available during the game. The same goes for individual quarters, which will often see higher totals for the second and fourth quarter, due to the high number of timeouts during those frames. It’s important to remember that bets placed on the second half and fourth quarter don’t include overtime.
We introduced you to prop bets here. With more individual statistics available than any other sport, NFL games have the richest tapestry of props available. A primetime game could have close to 100 props associated with it. (Primetime games are the only event in a specific window, like Monday nights, so bookmakers often give bettors more opportunities to play props then they would on busy Sunday afternoon window.) For basically every position on the field, there’s a Super Bowl prop bet you can make. Here are a few examples from a Minnesota/Green Bay game. Props offer a chance to wager on the game without betting on the final score, but they have some downsides, like carrying a lower maximum bet (compared to the spread and moneyline). You may also notice less favorable odds than you get on moneyline or spread bets: bookmakers tend to over-round the implied probability more on props, because less money is coming in on them.

 

NFL Betting Markets

NFL Betting Sportsbook

By now you know the three main types of bets; moneyline, ATS (against the spread), and Over/Under (a.k.a. game total). The NFL has three betting markets for those bet types: parlays, teasers, and futures. During matches you can bet on live betting markets, and keep an eye on Super Bowl odds all year long.

 

All of these can provide value for bettors, as long as they understand how each works. Let’s get a full understanding of each and how you can take advantage of them.

Parlays are a great way to get value where a single bet doesn’t provide it. Combining two short moneyline favorites can result in odds much closer to even money. Others like to parlay either a moneyline or ATS pick with the O/U. Just remember all events on a parlay must win for the bet to be successful. If you want to know strictly about Parlays and Teasers we have that covered too.
Teasers are a way for bettors to effectively “buy” a different point spread. In a teaser, the better gets to adjust the point spread of (at least) two games by 6 to 10 points. The standard NFL teaser is six points, so the bettor gets to either add six points to an underdog or subtract six points from a favorite. The table below shows normal ATS vs teased ATS. By teasing the spread, the Bills can now lose by as many as 12 points to generate a win for bettors, while the Steelers only need to win by two for a win! But remember, all teasers must include at least two games. Like parlays, all legs of a teaser must win in order for the wager, as a whole, to be a winner. A common NFL teaser is to find multiple favorites laying between 4.5 and 6.5 points and “tease them down,” meaning those teams just need to win. You’ll commonly see this bet with home teams as the public loves taking home teams to win outright. Another common teaser is to find tease multiple underdogs over seven points. Seven is considered a “key number” in NFL betting because most NFL games are decided by one score or less.
You can make season long bets by putting your money on Futures bets. Pick your favorite team and put some money on them and make it the most memorable season ever when they make it to the big game in February.
When it comes to live betting on the NFL, NFL prop betting might be the best of any sport. Given the number of stoppages of play in the NFL, some books will give you the chance to wager on the outcome of every play in a game. Props are generally divided between player props and team props. You can bet on whether the next pass completion; whether the next drive will end in a field goal, touchdown, turnover or punt; even bet on what type of play the offense will call next: run or pass. The spread, moneyline, and totals update regularly for live betting; bettors can have a lot of success live betting football if they can sense when a game’s momentum is changing.

Line Movement Analysis:  Halftime & Public Money

Live betting is something that most sportsbooks offer. At halftime, the sportsbook will post moneyline odds for the remainder of the game. For a close game, betting the underdog is another opportunity to grab value. You’ve already seen the first half play out competitively so betting the halftime loser to come from behind and win is a realistic ask. Additionally, halftime only last 15 minutes so value can be found since the sportsbooks are making rush decisions that cater towards the public money (favorites).
As with most sports, bettors generally back the favorites in pro football. NFL lines will be posted on Tuesdays. As you get closer to Sundays, the favorites tend to become bigger favorites and the underdogs are bigger underdogs. When analyzing the matchup on Tuesday, it could be best to act immediately (if you like the favorite) or wait until closer to kickoff (if you like the underdog).
We already know that home teams win more often in the regular season, but what about in the playoffs? What about each round of the playoffs? Unsurprisingly, according to Pro Football Reference, the home team is even more likely to win in the playoffs. From 2002 to 2014, the home team won 57.3 percent of the time in the regular season. Come playoff time, that number jumped to 62.3 percent. In the Wild Card round, home teams won 57.7 percent of the time. That increases to 65 percent in both the divisional and championship rounds. If you consider home-field an advantage in the regular season, come playoffs it is more significant and should be bet accordingly.
It was mentioned briefly, but it’s so important it is worth its own section. Knowing where public money is going can help you in the long term. If you feel strongly that a home favorite will win when the lines first come out, it is best to bet it early before public money drives up the odds. A -320 moneyline on Tuesday can become -355by Saturday. By placing the same bet earlier at a lower cost you have saved money and reduced the juice (read our guide on that). With an underdog, the odds tend to improve. A +170 moneyline on Tuesday can become +195 or higher by Saturday. By knowing these trends, your gains are greater and losses are cheaper. Another trend pertains to the O/U in bad weather: those games tend to be lower scoring than initially predicted, and bettors know it. When inclement weather is in the forecast, game totals tend to go down over the course of the week. Imagine on Tuesday the O/U is set at 51.5. If you see weather predictions of for rain, snow, or fast winds, it’s best to bet the under. By the time the weekend comes and most bettors place their wagers, 51.5 can become 49.5 or lower. Knowing these two NFL betting trends is essential and, over the years, you’ll discover more.
Several team-related factors should be considered when deciding how to bet. Some of the most common ones are: Team records on extra rest or short rest. Teams playing on Thursdays and Mondays will have extra or short rest as compared to their opponents 1. Team injuries 2. Teams’ current win/loss streaks 3. Teams’ past performance in certain weather conditions, playing indoors in a dome, or in primetime games Comparison of teams statistically, for example, rushing offense vs run defense, passing offense vs passing defense, and red zone offense vs redone defense.
NFL lines move throughout the week. As teams release injury reports, point spreads will move accordingly. The sooner you act, the better chance you can take advantage of a line before it moves. Being proactive and monitoring the weather can be a great asset to you. Additionally, NFL coaches give press conferences throughout the week and, while they won’t provide the game plan, a close listen could provide some clues.

 

 

NFL Betting Strategies & Tips

NFL Betting Sportsbook Market

In order to be successful, your strategy should combine several different factors. The more factors that contribute to the foundation of your strategy, the great chance of winning in the long run, as long as the factors are sound, that is.

Let’s look at several potential factors to include.

Don’t Be Afraid to Get Creative

There are so many fun and interesting ways to predict the results of NFL games and bets. For example, a team of statisticians have even used Twitter data to predict the results of football games.  They found that Twitter data is just as good and sometimes even better than using traditional game statistics to predict results. This is all to say that the best football betting strategy will use all the arrows in your quiver.

Follow Closely NFL Betting Odds

With all online sports betting, you will have lots of betting options to keep an eye on. Whether betting on the AFC or the NFC, the structure is the same, making betting on football games online especially open to strategy.  Because the NFL follows such a strict weekly schedule, with games on Thursday, Sunday and Monday, gamblers can easily follow how the betting odds change weekly.

Home vs Away Pros & Cons

Over a large sample size, home National Football League teams are winning 55 to 60 percent of the time. The average winning margin is by less than three points.  So generally speaking a moneyline bet on the home team should yield winners over a long period of time.  What are some of the advantages and disadvantages for both the home and away teams?

Pros for the Home Team … Cons for the Away Team

  • Home team doesn’t have to travel so more rest and recovery leading up to the game.
  • Crowd noise greatly impacts momentum and aides the home team.
  • Crowd noise impacts visiting team’s communication, especially on offense.

Cons for the Home Team … Pros for the Away Team

  • Betting value is hard to find.  For example, moneyline odds of -240 or shorter are hard to generate long-term success.
  • Over the years, officiating has become more neutral, canceling out a former advantage of playing at home.
  • Player nervousness of performing in front of home fans.

 

 

NFL Underdog Betting Value

As previously stated, NFL games are usually decided by three points or fewer.  Since the betting market generally sides with the favorite, the sportsbooks will set better value on the underdog.  A spread of +7 can be accompanied by a moneyline bet of +300 or so.

That is great value for a game predicted to be decided by one score.  Anything can happen in one-score games.  Don’t be shy to bet those as you’ll likely win a fair number and, at those odds, you can afford to win less often and still be profitable in the end.

nfl betting trends

Best NFL Betting, September 2023

  • Kansas City Chiefs have +600 odds to win Super Bowl LVIII at MyBookie.
  • Patrick Mahomes is the favorite with +650 odds to win the 2023-2024 NFL Regular Season MVP at BetOnline.
  • Josh Allen and Joe Burrow both have +800 odds to win the MVP at MyBookie.
  • Jalen Hurts is the top 4 favorite and has +900 odds to win the MVP at Bovada.
  • Philadelphia Eagles have +700 odds to win the 2024 Super Bowl at BetUS.
  • Buffalo Bills are the top 3 favorites and have +900 odds to clinch the championship.
  • San Francisco 49ers and Cincinnati Bengals both have +1000 odds to win the next Super Bowl at BetNow.
  • Caleb Williams has -550 odds to be the first QB selected in the 2024 NFL Draft at BetOnline.
  • Drake Maye is the top 2 pick and has +450 odds to be the first QB selected in the next Draft.
  • Philadelphia Eagles have +325 odds to win the NFC Conference at Bovada.

Top Sports Betting

Betting on NFL Football Games FAQ

Everything you need to know to make fun NFL bets in the US

Discover More on MyTopSportsbooks

Explore a wealth of additional articles and insights tailored to your sports betting interests.

Sports Betting Sites NBA NHL NCAAF UFC Boxing
Trent Reinsmith

Trent is a professional sports journalist specializing in UFC, MMA, and esports coverage. His work has been featured in prestigious publications such as USA Today Sports, Vice, Bloody Elbow, Fight! Magazine, UFC 360, and Narratively. Trent's connection to MMA dates back to the early days when he and his friends pooled their resources to purchase the pay-per-view broadcast of UFC 1. He also has extensive experience in esports, particularly League of Legends and Counter Strike, dating back to the game's launch.