More than 26 million Americans will bet close to $7 billion on Super Bowl 55 this year. And with a dozen states now offering licensed sports betting online, the share of those betting legally on the NFL’s biggest game online (PlayUSA officially projects at least $500 million) is only getting bigger.
If you’re in the market to bet on the Super Bowl online for the first time, we’re here to walk you through it. That includes which states you can legally bet in, how to open a new sportsbook account and, in particular, how a first-time Super Bowl bettor can smartly allocate their bets.
States where you can legally bet Super Bowl 55 online
$100 is a typical amount for many, as long as you can afford to lose it. But this formula works just as well with $50, $25 or even less. No Super Bowl betting strategy will guarantee a return on your investment so make sure you won’t miss the money you bet if it doesn’t pay off. If $100 is too much, bet less. Free Bet – A Free Bet is a token with a number value, which a customer can attach to a selection to a selection (for the Mobile app it would be under Betslip or Quickbet) to place a bet. The difference between a bet placed with a Free Bet Token and a regular bet, is with a free bet the “stake” is not included in the winnings. William Hill is a registered I.B.A.S bookmaker. For customers outside of Great Britain, this website is operated by William Hill Global PLC, a company registered in Malta with registration number C96298 and registered office at William Hill Global PLC, Tagliaferro Business Centre, Level 7, High Street, Sliema SLM 1549, Malta.
Super Bowl 55 will feature the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs taking on the hometown Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida on Feb. 7, 2021.
Here are the states where you can currently legally bet on Super Bowl 55 online:
- Colorado
- Delaware
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Michigan
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- Pennsylvania
- Tennessee
- Virginia
- West Virginia
If you live in one of those states and have yet to create a betting account at an online sportsbook, you can jump to our step-by-step instructions here.
Best Way to Bet $100 on Super Bowl 55
If all 26 million Americans had bet that $7 billion on the Kansas City Chiefs at the offered -1.5 spread for Super Bowl 54 last year, it would have broken the bank. The fact that it didn’t happen shows that while most fans and so-called NFL experts like to think they know what they’re doing when it comes to Super Bowl betting, not many do.
The NFL, and especially the Super Bowl, is unpredictable. That’s why, when it comes to betting on the Super Bowl for the first time, it’s a good idea to bet within an affordable budget and spread your action around to bets that offer a modest return with as little risk as possible.
Here’s a look at one way to drop a small budget on a few solid Super Bowl bets.
Set a Super Bowl Betting Budget
The first thing to do is set a budget for your Super Bowl bets. $100 is a typical amount for many, as long as you can afford to lose it. But this formula works just as well with $50, $25 or even less.
No Super Bowl betting strategy will guarantee a return on your investment so make sure you won’t miss the money you bet if it doesn’t pay off. If $100 is too much, bet less. Just use the individual betting amounts listed below as percentages rather than dollar value.
Once your budget is set, you’ll want to spread it out a little. Diversification helps even the risk out and enhances your chances of winning at least some cash. Here’s one way you can split your resources up:
- $50 on a basic bet like the moneyline, spread, or total
- $20 on a Super Bowl MVP bet
- $30 on simple props
If you prefer your percentages illustrated in pie chart form, here you have it:
Super Bowl 55 Betting Breakdown
If you’re following a plan to drop a small budget on a few optimal Super Bowl 55 bets this year, we can loosely recommend the following. Here’s how the current game line looks across various US online sportsbooks:
———-
Take the Chiefs at -3
For your 50% basic bet, take the Kansas City Chiefs at -3 as long as the odds are reasonable. If they’re not, take the over on 56.5 points because these odds are reasonable and both teams are capable of putting up a ton of points.
- Bet: $50 on Chiefs -3 at -116
- Return: $43.10
- Total Payout: $93.10
(A point spread of “-3” means the Chiefs, as the favorite, need to win by more than 3 points for your bet to win. If you need more info on each bet type, check our pages on point spreads, moneylines and totals (over/under).)
Mahomes for MVP
It’s not the sexiest bet but for your 20% Super Bowl MVP bet, take Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes. He won it last year and, even though he’s the favorite to repeat, just as the Chiefs are favorites to win the game, you should still find a decent enough price. QBs have won the Super Bowl MVP 8 out of the last 11 years, so it’s a safe bet.
- Bet: $20 on Mahomes MVP at +100
- Return: $20
- Total Payout: $40
(If you want to take a flyer for a bigger payout, DraftKings has a Super Bowl prop bet for ‘Tight End to Win MVP” at +2000 right now. If you saw the numbers Travis Kelce put up last week, it could be worth it. Learn more on Super Bowl MVP betting here.)
Coin Flip, Mahomes Combo for Props
Speaking of prop bets … for your 30% allocation to props, a lot of fans like to start with the coin toss. It’s not a “great” bet per se, but it’s one of the highest volume props on Super Bowl Sunday.
If you can get -103 odds on a 50/50 prop like this one, just shrug your shoulders and take it for fun, as that’s an affordable vig.
For the rest of your props, stack it up by looking for combo props that combine Mahomes putting up decent stats with a Chiefs win or Mahomes MVP win. Combos will pay better odds than the events happening individually.
Stacking them up with your other Chiefs and Mahomes bets will make sure you bank a decent payday if the game goes like most experts think it will. We listed on above but a second is not a bad idea either.
If you want a simpler bet, try the very decent Travis Kelce to score the first TD at +600.
- Coin Toss: Heads. Odds -103. $10 bet to win $9.71
- First TD Scorer: Travis Kelce. Odds +600. $10 bet to win $60.
- Mahomes Score + Win: Odds +425. $10 bet to win $42.50.
- Total Payout:$19.71 + $70 + $52.50 = $142.21
Add ’em all up and you’re looking at $275.31 – not bad for an afternoon on the sofa.
Best Super Bowl 55 odds boosts
More on Super Bowl Betting
To see the full range of Super Bowl point spreads, moneylines and totals odds across online sportsbooks in every legal betting state, see our full Super Bowl odds board.
See our Super Bowl Prop Bets page for more guidance on the hundreds of off-field and off-field prop bets you can make including props like:
- National anthem length over/under
- Halftime show artist costume change over/under
- What color Gatorade will be poured over the winning coach?
- Will there be a defensive score? Yes/No
- Will there be a kick return for a TD? Yes/No
- Will there be a pick six? Yes/No
- Will there be a safety? Yes/No
How to open a Super Bowl betting account
If you’re on board with Super Bowl betting and want to try out our betting recommendations above (or not), you’ll need an account. If you live in (or will visit) one of the legal betting states above, there’s a simple three-step process to follow to get your betting account set up.
1. Register For An Account
Register for an account with any online sportsbook through the links provided on any of our legal US betting state pages. For mobile betting, simply download the sportsbook app from the sign-up page before or after creating your account.
Personal information required includes your name and the last four digits of your Social. If you want to claim a bonus or free bet offer, use our promo codes to get the best new player bonus available.
2. Make A Deposit
Use your free bets and/or deposit money in your online sportsbook account with any one of the available deposit methods. These will almost always include:
- Credit Cards
- Debit Cards
- Online banking services
- Third-party payment processors (PayPal, Neteller, Skrill etc.)
- Pay Near Me (Cash at 7-Eleven or CVS locations)
- Cash at retail sportsbook partners or affiliated casinos
3. Browse, Click, And Place Bets
Find the Super Bowl 55 betting tab at the online sportsbook you signed up with. Prior to the Super Bowl, they’ll be front and center on the sportsbook or app.
With literally hundreds of Super Bowl lines and props to pick from, just click on any line you want to bet. A bet slip will be instantly created allowing you to enter a betting amount, see the potential payout, and place the bet.
William Hill 100 Free Beta
You can then go back to browsing through the Super Bowl 55 betting markets, add more bets to your slip, and choose whether to turn multiple bets into a parlay bet. Enter a betting amount for each, see the potential payouts, and place each bet at the same time.