Idaho has no gambling regulator with authority over the sportsbooks on this site. That single fact shapes the entire method below. Where a rating for a licensed operator can lean on regulatory oversight, ours cannot, so we weight the things that substitute for it.
The five criteria
| Criterion | Weight | What it measures |
|---|---|---|
| Operating record | 30% | Years in continuous operation, ownership stability, history of paying players, whether the brand has ever gone dark or rebranded after a dispute |
| Payout behaviour | 25% | Which rails are supported, the pending window before approval, fees, whether identity checks run at signup or at first withdrawal, maximum payout caps |
| Odds and market depth | 20% | Pricing on the major US leagues, prop depth, in-play coverage, posted limits, how early lines go up |
| Bonus value after rollover | 15% | Turnover required per dollar of bonus released. A large percentage with a heavy multiple scores below a small one with none |
| Interface | 10% | Mobile behaviour, bet slip, cashier clarity, and whether the terms are findable before you deposit rather than after |
Why operating record is weighted highest
With a book licensed in Oregon or Nevada, a regulator audits the accounts, holds player funds to a standard and gives you somewhere to complain. None of that exists for the operators covered here. The best available proxy is how long a book has been taking American action and paying it out. It is an imperfect signal and we treat it as one, but a site that has settled bets through twenty years of shifting payment rules has demonstrated something a site launched last year has not.
What we actually test
- Accounts are opened and funded with our own money, not comped by operators
- Bonus terms are read in full and the turnover requirement is calculated on a realistic deposit rather than the advertised maximum
- Withdrawals are requested on more than one rail where the book supports it
- Identity verification is submitted at signup so we can see where each operator puts the delay
- Maximum payout and void clauses are checked, because those are where large wins get reduced
What gets an operator removed
- A pattern of unpaid or heavily delayed withdrawals that the operator does not resolve
- Bonus terms altered retroactively after a player has opted in
- Voiding settled winning bets on grounds not stated in the terms at signup
- Marketing that targets people under 21 or misrepresents the legal position in Idaho
- Excluding Idaho residents, which removes the brand from this ranking regardless of quality
Independence
We earn commission when a reader opens an account through a link on this site, and that is disclosed at the foot of every page. Commission rates are not an input to the score. The highest-paying offer in our lineup is not ranked first, which is the simplest evidence we can offer that the two are separate. Operators cannot buy a position, cannot review copy before publication and are not given advance notice of a downgrade.
Corrections
Bonus figures are dated on the page because they change without notice. If a figure here no longer matches the operator's own terms, tell us through our contact page and we will check it against the source and correct it.