Betting Apps: Exploring the top options on mobile for Canadians

The top betting apps available in Canada
The top betting apps available in Canada

Betting apps are a great way to enjoy sports betting from wherever you are. Whether you are on the bus or at the bar, betting apps allow you to take your sports bets with you wherever you go.

Finding the right ones can be tough, with numerous options on the market. If you're Canadian, there are several options that can be downloaded and enjoyed. We're here to help you find the ideal app for you with a quick breakdown of the best betting apps available to Canadians. Ready? Let’s dive into it.

Best betting apps available

There is a significant amount of betting apps that can be found on the Canadian market. Some are downloadable from app stores, while others can be downloaded straight from the website. Let’s look at some of these betting apps that shine above the rest.

1. Sports Interaction: A Famed Canadian Sportsbook with a top-notch Mobile Experience.

Sports Interaction's smooth interface stands out
Sports Interaction's smooth interface stands out

About: Sports Interaction is a sportsbook that is made by Canadians for Canadians. It has been around for decades, offering residents across the country a massive sportsbook. What stands out most about Sports Interaction is its smooth interface, and that carries over to their mobile experience. It is perfectly condensed, easily accessible, and a ton of fun. With a clear color theme and a well-designed layout, users will love the mobile offering this Canadian bookmaker has created.

Devices: Mobile Website that Functions on Apple or Android

App Features: Easy layout and great design, Simplified betting, Fun markets

Deposit Options: Visa/MasterCard, Interac, ecoPayz, iDebit


2. Powerplay: A Massive Sportsbook with an Array of Betting Options and an effective Mobile Offering.

PowerPlay is in the market since 2018
PowerPlay is in the market since 2018

About: Powerplay is a newer option than some of the other operators on this list, having launched in 2018, but that doesn’t make it any less of a great option for sports bettors. Powerplay is best-known for having one of the biggest sportsbooks around. It covers a huge number of teams and leagues and organizes it all neatly on an easy-to-navigate website. Their mobile experience is comprehensive, with a top-notch mobile website that users can enjoy from their phones. Powerplay is a fun sportsbook with a lot to offer.

Devices: Website can be used on iOS or Android.

App Features: Live Betting, Instant Deposits, and Withdrawals, Crypto Betting

Deposit Options: Visa/MasterCard, Interac, Skrill, Cryptocurrency


3. BetVictor: A Comprehensive and Fun Website with a Mobile Experience that Captures its Appeal

BetVictor's enhanced odds makes it important
BetVictor's enhanced odds makes it important

About: BetVictor might be the oldest operator available to Canadians, having launched in a different format in 1946. Now, this famed sportsbook has taken to the internet and is one of the premier operators on the market.

They have a chic modern website and fun features, but their mobile app might make them stand out the most. This app has a lot to offer. It brings the enjoyable BetVictor experience to a new platform in the form of a highly intuitive mobile app. This is one of the best betting apps you’ll find on the market, with a great user experience.

Devices: iOS and Android

App Features: Enhanced Odds, Bet Boosts, Live Betting

Deposit Options: Visa/MasterCard, Interac, Neteller, Paysafecard


4. Betway: One of the Biggest Sportsbooks in the World, Known for a Great App and Exciting Features.

Betway offers Cash Out features
Betway offers Cash Out features

About: Betway has quickly become one of the most popular betting platforms on the planet. Launched over 15 years ago, this sportsbook has carved out a significant market share in Europe, Canada, and more, in large part due to its fun features and great web design. All those aspects of the sportsbook carry over nicely to their betting app, which is one of the premier options on the market. It is fast, effective, easy to use, and above all else, fun. The Betway app has succeeded in providing a great platform for Canadians to place bets from wherever they may be quickly.

Devices: iOS and Android APK

App Features: Live Betting, Bet Builder, Boosted Odds, Cash Out

Deposit Options: Visa/MasterCard, Interac, ecoPayz, Paysafecard

Mobile Sites vs Mobile Apps

While mobile apps are a great offering from sportsbooks, they aren’t altogether common. Not every operator will provide betting apps to their users. For the ones that don’s offer this exciting feature, there are still ways to bet from your phone.

Most sportsbooks will provide mobile websites for their users. Even if they have apps, the average operator will still typically create a website that functions on a mobile browser. These provide much of the same experience that an app would, although there are some differences.

The primary difference between a mobile app and a website is that apps are downloadable. They are saved and stored on your phone and can be accessed with a single tap. Websites need to be searched on browsers, although they will often save login information.

Mobile apps will also sometimes have additional features, such as bonuses, specific to them. Mobile websites are typically the exact same as websites, with no additional offerings.

They will often look very similar, although it is dependent on the operator. Both provide users a way to bet on the go with ease.

Top betting apps features

We’ve told you about some of the best betting apps that are available to Canadians, but what makes these apps good? What sets one betting app apart from another is great features. Features are the different ways to use betting apps and the different capabilities that they’ll provide. Every betting app has different features; let’s look at some of the ones that we believe are important for mobile apps to include.

Live Betting: Live betting is the ability to bet on games that are already underway. This is particularly important on a mobile format because the whole fun of mobile is the speed and on-the-go aspect of it. With mobile live betting, you can place bets on games you’re watching in real-time, all from your phone.

Bet Builder: Bet Builder is a feature that allows users to create their own customized same-game parlays. This is a fun feature that plays well on mobile devices. It allows bettors to use their own creativity and sports knowledge to build their own bets that can have massive payouts.

User-Friendly Interface: There may not be a more important feature for betting apps than a user-friendly interface. This means the mobile app is appealing to look at, easy to navigate, and intuitive. This is critical because there if an app doesn’t look good, it can seriously impact the user experience in a negative way. Having a good interface is a must.

Easy Deposits and Withdrawals: A feature that mobile apps should accommodate is rapid payments. Betting on the go is all about moving fast and freely, and having an app that will allow you to deposit and withdraw at a speedy pace will be important. This will allow users to get more out of their app and spend less time worrying about money.

What You Need to Know Before Starting

Betting apps can take some time to get the hang of, and there are several things you may want to know before you push that download button. Remember, with sports betting; there is nothing more important than knowledge, so knowing as much as possible about the app is key. Let’s look at some things that might be important to know before you start on one of our best betting apps.

One of the first considerations should be storage. Unlike a mobile website, betting apps require storage space, and each one will take up a different amount of space on your phone. The average person has anywhere from 32 GB to 256 GB of space on their phone.

The average app size is 11.5 MB for Android and 34.4 MB for an iPhone. With that in mind, you wouldn’t want a betting app to drastically exceed that size and take up too much space on your phone.

The other thing you should consider is the reputation of the sportsbook. Is it known for good customer service, quick payouts, and easy transactions? These are all vital to the user experience, so ensuring the betting app you are using has a good reputation is a must.

How to Download a Betting App

Downloading a betting app is mostly contingent on the sportsbook you are getting the app from and the methods they have in place. The simplest option is downloading an iOS app from the Apple App Store or an Android App from the Google Play Store.

To do this, you simply search the name of the app you want to download on either the App Store or Google Play store. If it shows up, all you’re going to have to do is click the Download button, wait a brief period, and the app should be ready to roll. You would then tap on it to log in and get going.

The other option, which is only available for Androids, is the APK. An APK is an Android Application Package, although it isn’t on the App Store and thus isn’t as regulated. So be careful before downloading one of these. Many sportsbooks offer these from their sites, and users can just visit the website from their Android phone and click download.

There are some sportsbooks that allow you to download a condensed mobile site that can be stored on your phone. To do this, you simply visit the website on your phone and click download on the link. You can also save a website to your home screen by tapping the middle icon on your phone and pressing save to home screen. You can then name the website on your phone and have easy access to it.

Is it Legal to Use Betting Apps in Canada?

Before you download any betting apps, it is important to be certain that they are legal. As a Canadian, you might have some questions, as the situation hasn’t exactly been clear over the past several years. To put your mind to rest, yes, it is entirely legal to use betting apps and to bet online in Canada.

Sports betting online has been accepted but not fully regulated and government-sanctioned until recently. In 2021, a law was passed empowering the provinces to control the gambling laws and fully legalizing single-game betting. The first province to open the doors to this was Ontario, which in April 2022, launched its legal gaming industry.

Now, there are sportsbooks flooding into the province, and the government can oversee it all. Sportsbooks have to be licensed by iGaming, the regulatory body that now handles this, to be fully legally operational in Ontario.

What this does is allow the government to tax these sportsbooks, with more money going into the province. They also can enforce security, safety, and fairness regulations. This leads to a safer environment for bettors and will allow sportsbooks to market themselves and expand their audience.

It shouldn’t drastically impact the user experience, but it will lead to a more positive sports betting industry. While Ontario was the first domino to fall, there will be many more. Sports betting is set to be fully regulated and legal across Canada in no time.

FAQs

Are Betting Apps legal?

Yes! It is entirely legal to download and play with a betting app in Canada. There are different rules for each province, including things like age restrictions, but overall it is legal.

What is better, a betting app or a mobile website?

This is dependent on what you are looking for. A sports betting app is widely considered to be more convenient and have additional offerings in some cases. However, a mobile website doesn’t need to be downloaded and take up space.

Does every sportsbook have a betting app?

No. Not every sportsbook will have a betting app. However, the vast majority of sportsbooks will have a mobile website if they don’t have an app.

Can I do everything on a betting app that I could on a website?

Yes! Typically, if a sportsbook has a betting app, the goal is to provide almost the exact same experience as the desktop version. That means you can access all the same features, markets, offers, and deposit methods that make sportsbooks unique.

What are the best betting apps?

This is entirely up to your own discretion. There are a lot of different betting apps available to Canadians. We’ve mentioned Betway, 888Sport, Sports Interaction, Powerplay, and BetVictor as our top options out there. However, those are far from the only ones, so the only way to know is to find out for yourself.