Best online sportsbook is a one-word-different question depending on where you’re sitting. In the roughly 30 states plus DC that license mobile sports betting, it’s a two-horse race between DraftKings and FanDuel, with BetMGM a clear but distant third. In California, Texas, and the rest of the states with no licensed online market, the search doesn’t go away — it just lands on offshore books and, more recently, prediction-market platforms built on a different legal theory entirely.

Where It’s Licensed: DraftKings and FanDuel Write 70% of the Market

DraftKings holds a sportsbook license in roughly 27 states plus DC as of 2026; FanDuel’s footprint is similar. Together the two write an estimated seven of every ten dollars wagered through a regulated US sportsbook. FanDuel remains the larger operator by overall market share, but state-reported handle data shows DraftKings growing sportsbook revenue faster through most of 2025 and into 2026 — a real shift, not a rounding error, though it hasn’t flipped the overall lead. Online casino is a separate, much smaller map for both: Connecticut, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia only. A DraftKings or FanDuel sportsbook account in Texas is not a typo-fix away from a casino account — that product simply isn’t licensed there.

The licensed market, in short

  • States with online sportsbook licensing: roughly 30, plus DC
  • DraftKings + FanDuel combined share: roughly 70% of regulated handle
  • Clear third: BetMGM, licensed in most of the same states, well behind on share
  • Casino (not sportsbook) states for both leaders: CT, MI, NJ, PA, WV
  • Biggest markets still unlicensed: California, Texas

BetMGM: the Honest Third Pick, Not a Dark-Horse Upset

BetMGM carries a license in nearly as many states as the top two and doesn’t carry anywhere near their market share. That makes it a fair pick for a bettor who specifically wants to avoid defaulting to the duopoly, or who’s chasing a specific promo — not a pick anyone should expect to out-perform DraftKings or FanDuel on raw market depth.

No License in Your State? Here’s What Actually Shows Up

Offshore books don’t have a US license, full stop — the question people actually mean when they ask if one is “safe” is whether it has a track record of paying out. Bovada and BetOnline.ag both clear that bar on tenure: roughly two decades of operation each, with no public record of either pursuing — or being pursued over — an individual bettor’s personal account. Bovada blocks 16 jurisdictions outright (Delaware, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Michigan, Colorado, West Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Kansas, Louisiana, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Tennessee, and DC). BetOnline.ag’s block list is narrower. Neither is a substitute for a state license — there’s no gaming commission to call if a withdrawal gets stuck.

Kalshi isn’t betting on sports, legally speaking — it’s a CFTC-designated contracts exchange, and federal commodities law is the reason it can list sports event contracts in states that have never legalized sports betting at all. That workaround is actively contested: Michigan forced Kalshi to pause sports contracts there in 2026, and other state regulators are pursuing the same “this is gambling, not a financial product” argument. “Live in your state today” and “settled law” are not the same thing here.

So What’s the Actual Answer?

If your state licenses mobile sports betting: DraftKings or FanDuel, picked on promo terms and (in taxed states like Illinois) how each handles per-wager fees, with BetMGM a legitimate licensed alternative. If it doesn’t: there is no best sportsbook, only a choice between an offshore book with an unregulated but long payout history and a prediction-market platform whose legal footing is still being argued in more than one state capital. Either way, this is 21+ entertainment with a house edge built in — not a way to make money, regulated or not.

The short list

  1. 1. DraftKings — Co-leader, now growing faster than FanDuel

    Licensed sportsbook live in roughly 27 states plus DC as of 2026. Reported sportsbook revenue growth has outpaced FanDuel through most of 2025 into 2026, even though FanDuel still holds the larger overall handle. Casino (not just sportsbook) adds CT, MI, NJ, PA, and WV.

  2. 2. FanDuel — Still the market-share leader overall

    The longer-tenured US market leader by overall share, even as DraftKings closes the gap on revenue growth. Same five-state casino footprint as DraftKings (CT, MI, NJ, PA, WV, plus Ontario in Canada).

  3. 3. BetMGM — Broadest licensed footprint of the chasing pack

    A clear third nationally by share, but licensed in close to as many states as the top two — the pick for a bettor who wants a fully regulated book without defaulting to the duopoly.

  4. 4. Bovada — The offshore default in dark states

    No US license anywhere, but roughly two decades of paying players and no public record of enforcement against an individual bettor’s personal account. Blocks 16 jurisdictions outright (DE MD NV NJ NY MI CO WV OH PA KS LA CT MA TN DC) — check the block list before assuming it’s reachable from your state.

  5. 5. BetOnline.ag — Longest offshore track record, narrower block list

    A similar two-decade-plus payout history to Bovada under a Panama-based operation, generally reachable from more US states than Bovada’s 16-jurisdiction block list allows.

  6. 6. Kalshi — Live in dark states, but under active legal fire

    A CFTC-designated exchange, not a sportsbook, so it operates in California, Texas, and other states with no licensed sports betting — for now. Michigan forced a sports-contract pause in 2026, and other state regulators are pursuing the same argument.

The honest verdict

Where a license exists, DraftKings and FanDuel are the two legitimate answers and together write roughly seven of every ten regulated dollars — FanDuel still holds the larger overall share, DraftKings has out-grown it in revenue through most of 2025 and 2026, and the practical difference between them in any given state usually comes down to promo structure and, in taxed markets like Illinois, how each one handles a per-wager surcharge. BetMGM is the honest third pick: licensed nearly everywhere the two leaders are, without matching their market share. Outside the licensed map, there is no good answer, only a less-bad one: Bovada and BetOnline.ag have paid offshore bettors for roughly two decades combined with no public enforcement record against individual accounts, which is a reputation, not a license. Kalshi is a federally designated exchange offering sports event contracts in states like California and Texas precisely because it isn’t a sportsbook under federal law — but that argument is now being tested in court by multiple state regulators, and Michigan has already forced it to pause sports contracts once. None of this is a way to make money. It's 21+ entertainment with a built-in house edge, wherever you're reading this from.

Questions this list actually answers

What is the best online sportsbook?

DraftKings and FanDuel, if your state licenses mobile sports betting — they write roughly 70% of the regulated US market between them. BetMGM is the honest third option. If your state has no licensed market, there is no best sportsbook, only offshore books (Bovada, BetOnline.ag) and prediction-market platforms (Kalshi) carrying different, unresolved legal risk.

Is DraftKings or FanDuel better?

They are close enough that the real differentiator is usually your state, not the app. FanDuel still holds the larger overall US market share; DraftKings has grown sportsbook revenue faster through most of 2025 and 2026. In taxed states like Illinois, check how each handles per-wager surcharges before picking — it moves the math more than odds do.

What’s the best sportsbook in states without legal betting?

There isn’t a licensed one — that’s the entire problem in California, Texas, and the other states with no mobile sports betting law. Bovada and BetOnline.ag are the offshore names people search next; Kalshi is the prediction-market alternative operating under federal commodities law instead of a state gambling license. None of them carry the recourse a state license provides.

Is Kalshi a sportsbook?

No — Kalshi is a CFTC-designated contracts exchange, and that federal designation is exactly why it can list sports event contracts in states that have never legalized sports betting. Several state regulators argue those contracts are gambling by another name, and Michigan already forced a pause on Kalshi’s sports contracts in 2026 while the fight plays out elsewhere.

Are offshore sportsbooks like Bovada safe?

Safer than an unknown new offshore brand, not safe the way a state-licensed book is safe. Bovada and BetOnline.ag have multi-year payout track records and no public enforcement history against individual bettors, but neither is licensed or regulated in the US, so there is no state gaming commission to appeal to if a payout dispute goes wrong.