The sports calendar has rolled into spring, which means the 2025 Kentucky Derby will be here in just a matter of months. Devoted horse racing fans can't wait to watch the two most exciting minutes in sports. The legendary "run for the roses" will take place on Saturday, May 4 at Churchill Downs.
Finding the best horse racing app can be a tough proposition if you are new to "playing the ponies" or even a seasoned veteran. To help with that, here are our picks for the best horse racing apps to bet on the 2025 Kentucky Derby.
Rank | Racebook | Bonus Offer | Bonus Code |
---|---|---|---|
#1 | $200 Deposit Bonus + Past Performances |
Claim OfferPromo Code: STAKES | |
#2 | $200 Second Chance Wager Win or Get Your Bet Back |
Claim OfferPromo Code: 200TVG | |
#3 | $200 First Bet Insurance Win or Get Your Bet Back |
Claim OfferNo Code Needed |
Must be 18 or older (21 in AL, AZ, IA, IN, KS, NH, ND, WA) and reside in a state where such activity is legal. Void where prohibited. Always Wager Responsibly. If you or a loved one is experiencing problems with gambling, please contact the National Gambling Helpline 1-800-522-4700.
While we have listed the bonus offer available on race day for each of our picks, you can track every offer from the top-rated racebooks throughout race day with our best Kentucky Derby offers. All of our Kentucky Derby coverage will update live throughout race day, including our best bets, which include our favorite quinella and trifecta bets.
If you want the most lucrative bonus offer for the Kentucky Derby, you have to go with DRF Bets! This online betting platform was created in 2011 by the most informative horse handicapping service of the century, Daily Racing Form. The current DRF Bets promo code offer gives all new bettors a 100% deposit bonus of up to $200.
This matches TVG's bonus offer in overall dollars. However, keep in mind that TVG's offer is only a 50% bonus, which means you'll need to deposit $500 to receive the full $250. Since DRF Bets is a 100% deposit bonus, you'll only need to make a $200 deposit to take advantage of the full bonus amount.
The terms of the DRF Bets bonus offer are also right in line with the terms of the NYRA bonus offer. You only have to wager through your initial deposit and your bonus money before making a withdrawal from your account. The DRF Bets app is a must-have if you plan on betting on the biggest race of the year at Churchill Downs.
TVG brought the very first horse racing app to the industry several years ago and it has grown in popularity ever since. TVG actually started out as a cable TV channel way back in 1999, so it makes plenty of sense why they do live streaming so well on their app. Since TVG has partnership deals in place with so many tracks, they are able to offer more live-streaming options than any other horse racing app.
With the TVG app, horse racing bettors get instant live-streaming access to as many as 300 tracks around the globe. That means you can watch virtually every horse bet you make. No more placing a bet and then having to dig up the results later.
The TVG app is free and any horse race that is broadcast on a TVG network can be seen in High Definition. The TVG mobile app is available in 33 states. Now that TVG is owned by FanDuel, we expect that the company will be taken to even greater heights.
If you're a horse racing bettor who is constantly on the go and needs lots of streaming options for your phone or tablet, we highly recommend getting an account with TVG.
The current TVG bonus offer can be used on your first single-horse win wager for up to $200.
In a market that is dominated by a handful of companies, TwinSpires still holds a slight lead over top competitors TVG and XpressBet. Here are some of the features that make TwinSpires so popular amongst bettors:
TwinSpires also offers an incredible signup bonus. New customers can receive a 100% Deposit Bonus for up to $200 when they register for an account. While TwinSpires' bonus terms aren't quite as player-friendly as NYRA's, the total dollar amount is the same for each offer.
If you plan on betting on the Kentucky Derby this year, you can't go wrong with choosing TwinSpires as your go-to racebook. It's easy to see why TwinSpires has an impressive 4.8 out of 5-star rating on Apple out of over 54,000 total reviews. It is worth noting that TwinSpires is also our pick for the best overall horse racing app for 2025.
In our Best Horse Racing Bonus Offers article, we selected NYRA as having the best terms and conditions. The player-friendly terms make the overall offer even more appealing. Here are the ins and outs of the NYRA bonus offer:
If you're looking for the best bonus terms before betting on the Kentucky Derby, look no further than NYRA. Their $200 bonus offer is the same amount as TwinSpires. However, NYRA's wagering requirement is only half of what TwinSpires requires to receive their bonus.
TVG offers $50 more than NYRA in sheer bonus dollars, but keep in mind that their offer is only a 50% deposit bonus instead of a 100% deposit bonus. This means that TVG clients will have to deposit $500 to receive the $250 bonus while NYRA customers will only have to deposit $200 to receive their bonus.
The official post time for the 2025 Kentucky Derby will be 6:57 PM Eastern Time, which is the same as last year. Coverage will run from 2:30 PM to 7:30 PM with the live broadcast on NBC and the NBC Sports app.
At the time of this writing, Fierceness is the current favorite at 5-2 over at DRF. This horse has some serious speed and he's by far the fastest 3-year-old in the Kentucky Derby field.
Close behind is Sierra Leone at 3-1. This horse won the Bluegrass by 1.5 lengths and is arguably the top closer in the field.
Catching Freedom rounds out the Top 3 with odds of 8-1. He came in 1st place at the Louisiana Derby, where he went from last place to first place.
Follow the odds for the full field with our Kentucky Derby odds tracker. We also analyze the role of gate position and break down the alternate horses that may get the call if we see more scratches on race day.
Earnest is a 25-year veteran of the newspaper industry. He's spent the majority of his early years working as a sports reporter and editor. He made the move back to the digital world in 2022, joining EatWatchBet as a senior writer. Ernie covers college football betting, fantasy football, and NFL betting for EatWatchBet.