Best online sportsbook New Hampshire isn't really a ranking question — it's a one-name answer. DraftKings is the only mobile or retail sportsbook licensed in the state, running under an exclusive contract with the New Hampshire Lottery Commission that was just extended in February 2026 to run through June 30, 2028. There's no FanDuel or BetMGM alternative sitting just out of reach here; the market was built from the start as a single vendor deal, not a competitive field.

How One Company Got the Whole State

House Bill 480 became law on July 12, 2019, when Governor Chris Sununu signed it, and instead of setting up the kind of multi-operator licensing system Massachusetts and Connecticut later adopted, it gave the New Hampshire Lottery Commission the authority to select one sportsbook vendor for the entire state. The Commission ran a competitive bid that fall and chose DraftKings that November. DraftKings launched statewide on December 30, 2019 — mobile and retail together, under the same license — making New Hampshire one of the earliest states anywhere to go live with a mobile-first sports betting market.

New Hampshire sports betting, by the numbers

  • Law signed: July 12, 2019 (HB 480)
  • Launch: December 30, 2019
  • Regulator: New Hampshire Lottery Commission
  • Licensed operator: DraftKings, exclusively, through June 30, 2028
  • Tax rate: 51% online, 50% retail
  • FY2025 handle: ~$815 million, ~27 million wagers, $40 million in tax revenue
  • Minimum betting age: 18

The One State Where 18 Is Old Enough

New Hampshire sets its legal sports betting age at 18, not 21 — a distinction almost every neighboring state doesn't share. Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, and Vermont all require bettors to be 21. That gap drew legislative attention in 2025: House Bill 83 would have raised New Hampshire's floor to 21 to match its neighbors, backed by a bipartisan group of sponsors. The House Ways and Means Committee killed it on an 11-7 “inexpedient to legislate” vote that January, after fiscal data showed 18-to-20 year olds accounted for only about $639,000 of fiscal 2024 revenue — roughly 1.9% of the total — against an estimated $640,000 annual loss to the state if the age rose. The math, not a change of policy heart, is why 18 still works here.

Is It Actually Legal? Yes — Just Narrow by Design

There's no gray area on legality: DraftKings operates in New Hampshire under full state regulation, overseen directly by the Lottery Commission rather than a separate gaming board like most states use. What's narrow is supply, not legitimacy. The Commission could theoretically open a second contract, but it has done the opposite twice — renewing DraftKings' exclusivity rather than inviting competition, most recently in February 2026.

What New Hampshire actually collects: a 51% cut of DraftKings' online sports betting revenue and 50% of retail revenue, among the highest rates any state charges a sportsbook. Fiscal 2025 alone produced a record $40 million in tax revenue on $815 million in handle; through the first five months of calendar 2026, the state had already collected roughly $19.9 million more.

Worth Betting Legally in New Hampshire Now?

For anyone 18 or older physically in the state, yes — DraftKings has run without interruption since 2019 and just had its exclusive deal extended two more years, which is the opposite of a market showing cracks. That doesn't change what sports betting actually is: 18-and-over entertainment with a built-in house edge, not an income source, taxed here more heavily than almost anywhere else in the country. The New Hampshire Council on Problem Gambling, 603-724-1605, offers free and confidential help any time it stops feeling like entertainment.

The short list

  1. 1. DraftKings — The only legal mobile and retail sportsbook in the state

    DraftKings has run as the New Hampshire Lottery Commission’s sole licensed operator since its December 30, 2019 launch, and a February 2026 contract extension locks that exclusivity in through June 30, 2028. FanDuel, BetMGM, and every other national brand have no application path — the Lottery awarded one contract, not one license among several.

The honest verdict

DraftKings is the pick because the state never created a competing one. House Bill 480, signed by Governor Chris Sununu on July 12, 2019, authorized sports wagering and handed the New Hampshire Lottery Commission authority to pick a single operator rather than license a field the way neighboring Massachusetts or Connecticut did; the Lottery chose DraftKings that November, and its app went live December 30, 2019, making New Hampshire one of the first states with a mobile-first launch anywhere in the country. That exclusivity has only gotten more entrenched: the Lottery exercised a two-year extension in February 2026 that keeps DraftKings as the sole operator through June 30, 2028, and in fiscal year 2025 the arrangement produced roughly 27 million wagers, $815 million in handle, and a record $40 million in tax revenue for the state. New Hampshire also stands apart on eligibility — it is one of only about eight states nationwide that lets 18-year-olds legally bet online, not 21, and a 2025 bill to raise that floor to 21 (HB 83) died in the House Ways and Means Committee on an 11-7 vote after data showed 18-to-20-year-old bettors contributed roughly $639,000 of fiscal 2024 revenue, about 1.9% of the total. None of this is a way to make money — it is 18-and-over entertainment with the house holding the edge at a 51% online tax rate, among the steepest in the country, and the New Hampshire Council on Problem Gambling (603-724-1605) is a free, confidential resource if betting ever stops feeling like entertainment.

Questions this list actually answers

What is the best online sportsbook in New Hampshire?

DraftKings — not by a ranking, but because it is the only legal online or retail sportsbook in the state. The New Hampshire Lottery Commission picked DraftKings through a 2019 bidding process and has run a single exclusive vendor contract ever since, most recently extended in February 2026 through June 30, 2028.

Is online sports betting legal in New Hampshire?

Yes, statewide, since Governor Chris Sununu signed House Bill 480 on July 12, 2019. The New Hampshire Lottery Commission regulates it, and DraftKings has operated as the sole mobile and retail licensee since its app launched December 30, 2019.

Can an 18-year-old legally bet on sports in New Hampshire?

Yes — New Hampshire sets its minimum sports betting age at 18, one of only around eight states that allow it, instead of the 21-and-over standard used by every neighboring state. A 2025 bill, HB 83, tried to raise the age to 21 and was voted "inexpedient to legislate" 11-7 by the House Ways and Means Committee that January.

Why is DraftKings the only sportsbook in New Hampshire?

Because HB 480 structured the market as a single exclusive vendor contract awarded by the Lottery Commission, not a multi-operator licensing regime. DraftKings won that 2019 bid, and the Commission has renewed its exclusivity twice since — most recently a two-year extension in February 2026 — rather than open the field to a second operator.

How much tax does New Hampshire collect from sports betting?

DraftKings remits 51% of online sports betting revenue and 50% of retail revenue to the state, among the highest sportsbook tax rates in the country. That produced a record $40 million for New Hampshire in fiscal year 2025 on $815 million in handle, with 2026 running at a similar pace — about $45.1 million in gross revenue and $19.9 million in tax through the first five months of the calendar year.