Sportsbooks accepting Money Order & Checks

Making sure you use the safest way to deposit to your favorite US sportsbook, implies checking out Money Order as well. By money order, the bookmakers mean all those payment methods where you top your account up by sending cash through a certain type of check that can be found at almost any place in the US, or even through a bank transfer. This is the oldest way of transferring funds, thus the more trusted and safe, and it helps you keep your anonymity while betting. If you want to discover all the types of money order you can find on a sportsbook, the pros, and cons and all the answers to every possible question you may have regarding betting with Money Order, just carry on reading.

Best Money Order Sportsbooks

Money Orders are a traditional payment option in the United States enjoying a lot of popularity especially before online transfers became so easy to do. However, they weren’t so much connected with online betting until the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 changed everything. After EIGEA, punters understood that they need extra protection to be able to take advantage of the high odds and perks offered by offshore sportsbooks. So, Money order became the go-to payment option since they help you avoid getting the banks involved. Another pro comes from being able to send cash directly and, of course, the widespreadness of the locations is also beneficial.

Before we jump into the details about various types of money order, we thought it’s a better idea to display all the information about each sportsbook's cash in options related to this method.

After offering you this overview of online betting with money order cash at US sportsbooks, it’s time to go into details and check out what exactly Money Orders are and what different types you can use. Even more than that, we’re giving you the specifics for each money order betting option so you can easily decide which is the best fit for online betting.

Money Order

Money orders in the US are issued by a variety of convenience and grocery stores (Wal-Mart, 7-Eleven, CVS, K-Mart, Giant, Kroger, Vons, etc), postal offices and banks. Interestingly enough, the banks and the postal service have the highest fees - can go as high as $5 for $1,000 at a bank and $1,65 for a money order over $500 at USPS. The lowest fees for money orders can be found at K-Mart at $0.69 for sending $500 which is the maximum here, while the highest value for money orders issued in the US sits at $1,000. Sportsbooks usually do not apply any fees when you deposit via money order. Once you purchase your money order you can send it towards the sportsbook either via the postal service or couriers like FedEx, UPS or DHL.

Check / E-Check

Usually you won’t be able to deposit at a sportsbook via check or e-check, however, this is the best option you have to request a payout when depositing via money order. Most sportsbooks accepting echeck will offer you a free check payout monthly and the fees can range between $5 and $100, depending on the amount you request. Cashing out a cheque you received from an offshore sportsbook can be done at your local bank, any credit union ( Western Union, MoneyGram, Ria) or at the convenience and grocery stores mentioned above. To request a payout via check or e-check, you need to make a request in the cashier and provide your chequing account details - chequing account number, routing number, etc. Usual limits for check payouts start at $100 and can go up to $5,000 and you can receive a check within 3 days, however, that varies from one check sportsbook to another.

Bank Wire / Bank Draft

The common minimum limit for a bank wire payout is $500 and for that amount you can expect a fee between $75 and $100, depending on the sportsbook. The high fees applied on bank wire or draft payouts make them less appealing for punters. Besides that, the lack of anonymity means you can encounter legal trouble along the way. Another downside for bank wire payouts is the high awaiting time that can go up a worst-case scenario of 15 business days. Also, most sportsbooks only allow you to request a bank wire payout every 3 days, at best. Due to all these drawbacks, most big sportsbooks do not even offer bank wire as an option. You won’t find a Bovada bank wire payout option, for example.

The differences between Money Order and Check

As you can tell from the tables above, one of the main differences between a money order and a check is that the first one can only be used for deposits, while the latter mainly works for payouts. Another notable difference between the two comes from the fact money orders do not require a bank account. When you opt for a sportsbook cashout check, you need to provide banking and personal details so that the check is sent by the sportsbook. Then, it gets delivered to you and it can be cashed out at a bank, ATM or any check cashing locations around the country.

Besides the difference that money order payouts in sports gambling is not an option, you also get different maximum amounts. Most money orders are capped at $1,000 while personal checks can go up to much higher amounts depending on the sportsbook. 

Bank wires or drafts are also offered by sportsbooks, however, with higher minimum amounts, fees and processing time, these are rarely used by punters. A depositing check from sportsbook can arrive in 3 to 5 business days while a bank wire can take up to 15.

To sum things up, money order deposits are efficient when compared to bank wire or P2P. However, if you put them against cryptocurrency, the advantages disappear since the instant transactions, low fees and the ability to deposit and request payouts via crypto can’t be matched.

The short answer would be YES. Money order sportsbook deposits are a great alternative to gift cards or Person to Person transfers. While the processing time isn’t always optimal, the increased security and complete anonymity you get is well worth it. Even though it means you’ll have to go out to purchase a money order, the widespreadness of locations offering this payment option makes the process easy as you can do it while you buy your groceries. Compared to a bank transfer bookmaker deposit, you won’t have to worry about your identity being exposed and possibly deal with extra questions regarding the destination of your payment. Also, the money order is faster than bank wire deposit sportsbooks and the fees are also lower.

If from a deposit perspective, money orders can’t really compete with gift cards, it’s the sportsbook check withdrawals that really make the difference. If you want to avoid requesting a bookmaker bank wire payout, the checks are your only viable option as gift cards can’t be used for withdrawals. Of course, there’s also the option of crypto, however many punters are still not familiarized with that either. The up to 15 days interval to process a withdrawal via cheque may sound like a long time, however, you are guaranteed absolute anonymity and you can cash it out at numerous locations.

In case you’re still left with some questions after going through the article, we’ve put together a list of frequently asked questions to make sure you get all the answers you’re looking for when it comes to money order deposits and payouts.