Bovada vs Ignition: which site is best for - sports, casino, poker, bonuses, rewards?

"Bovada vs. Ignition, which site should I choose?" is a question that has occurred to quite a lot of American gamblers. After all, there are only so many reputable and safe options to choose from, and therefore, it makes sense that two of the most popular online gambling websites appeal to many of the same individuals.

There's more to it than just serving the same market however. Ignition vs. Bovada comparisons are inevitable because they both use the same software, are part of the same online poker network, and utilize very similar cashier interfaces.

So what's going on here? Why do these two sites resemble each other so much? Are there any differences between them? And most importantly: Which is better, Bovada or Ignition, and why? This article answers these questions, keep reading!

Website of Bovada.lv

Bovada and Ignition Are Partners

Ignition Poker was actually created from Bovada because the latter company decided to end its cardroom services in August 2016. Ignition purchased assets from Bovada and launched its own poker site.

Then a year later, Bovada reopened its poker division for business. In the interim, Ignition Poker had taken over much of this business and ran with it, so both companies wound up with large footprints in the American online poker scene: a situation that persists to the present day.

Given the similar roots of these two organizations, it makes sense then that there are certain congruities in their gaming offerings. As mentioned before, they are part of the same poker network, PaiWangLuo, and they therefore host a nearly identical roster of ring games, sit-n-gos, and tournaments. Their casino sections also contain almost the same menu of titles.

Furthermore, Bovada.lv and IgnitionCasino.eu both accept Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, credit cards, Litecoin, and a few other deposit methods. Their cashiers are tightly integrated, leading to similar payout speeds (which are pretty fast). Customer service channels at both sites consist of email, live chat, and player community forums.

Website of IgnitionCasino.eu

Ignition and Bovada Differences

With the high level of similarity between the product lineups at Ignition and Bovada, you could be forgiven for thinking that Bovada and Ignition are the same. Don't let this blind you to the points of difference between the two sites, though, because these may swing your decision toward one site or the other.

You'll see the main differences between Bovada and Ignition across each of the gambling products. Ignition is marginally better overall for poker players thanks to its more generous welcome bonus combined with several valuable ongoing promos. And Ignition has a superior casino, while Bovada's wider range of sports betting markets wins out.

Those key differences aside, there are several other aspects of the two operations to consider:

Poker Welcome Bonus

The initial deposit bonus at Ignition is 150% up to $1,500 if you use crypto-currency and 100% up to $1,000 otherwise. This is much better than the Bovada Poker bonus of just 100% up to $500. Bonuses at both sites clear at the same rapid rate, so Ignition's welcome deal is clearly superior being the larger of the two.

Casino Welcome Bonus

Ignition Casino has a welcome bonus equal to the poker bonus: 150% up to $1,500 if you fund your account with digital currency and 100% up to $1,000 if you use a legacy payment method. In this, Ignition at first appears better than Bovada. Bovada's casino welcome deal is just 100% up to $1,000 or 125% up to $1,250 for bitcoiners (or users of other crypto-currencies). Both Bovada and Ignition require a 25x rollover on the deposited funds and the bonus.

However, Bovada actually extends its casino offer over the course of your first three deposits. Thus, you can obtain a total of $3,000 in bonuses with traditional deposit methods or $3,750 with cryptos. Bovada pulls ahead of Ignition in the free casino money department.

This isn't the full story though because Ignition provides unlimited 25% up to $1,000 cryptocurrency reloads in its casino with a 10x playthrough requirement. Bovada lacks this never-ending stream of redeposit bonuses.

The picture as to which casino is better, Ignition's or Bovada's, is still murky, and it will depend upon your personal depositing and playing habits.

Ignition Poker vs Bovada Poker

Besides the welcome bonus, Ignition Poker has a handful of ongoing promotions to reward its loyal players.

Ignition holds a $2,500 freeroll each Sunday for those who have deposited at least $20 with non-credit card methods during the previous week. In addition, there's another $2,500 freeroll on Thursdays for everyone who has managed to earn Chrome status in the Ignition Rewards program. Chrome is just the second tier in Ignition Rewards, and it's pretty easy to achieve.

Ignition Poker Software (Bovada's Is Virtually Identical)

Ignition also provides a Royal Flush Bonus of 50 big blinds up to $200 as well as a Bad Beat Bonus of 100 big blinds up to $1,000. These payouts probably won't have an appreciable impact on your overall winrate, but they are a couple of nice, little freebies to pad your bankroll every once in a while.

Bovada does not extend any similar small advantages to its poker players. Therefore, Ignition wins over Bovada for pure poker players with a few minor recurring promos that its sister site doesn't have.

Sportsbook

Bovada's sportsbook is its main product vertical into which it puts a lot of energy and effort. All the major U.S. sporting leagues are here along with a decent selection of international athletics too, like soccer, cricket, and cycling. eSports, like CS:GO, Valorant, and Dota2, are well-represented also, which is likely to appeal to a younger demographic than traditional sports betting.

Bovada Sportsbook

An attached racebook carries horse races from hundreds of tracks. Straight wagers and exotics can be placed, and Bovada pays full track odds.

Bovada gives all new clients a 50% bonus up to $250 to bet in the sportsbook and racebook. This increases to 75% up to $750 if you transact in Bitcoin or another crypto.

Ignitioncasino.eu sadly does not have any sportsbook or racebook. This means that Bovada is the better choice for you if you like wagering on sports or the ponies.

Ignition vs. Bovada Bottom Line

After taking all the variables into consideration, several conclusions become pretty clear when trying to decide Bovada vs. Ignition.

Ignition is the slightly better place for poker players. It has both a larger welcome bonus for card games as well as several ongoing promos that reward regular users.

For casino enthusiasts, both Ignition and Bovada are respectable options. Over the longer term, Ignition's superior casino reloads tilt the scales in its favor.

For betting on sports or horse races, Bovada wins hands-down. In this category, it's basically a shutout because these forms of wagering aren't even present at all on Ignition.

There's another possibility though besides picking Ignition over Bovada or Bovada over Ignition. You're allowed to maintain accounts at both sites and benefit from the bonuses and other promotions at each of them. So why not create a Bovada account and an Ignition account? That way, you can take advantage of the best of what both rooms have to offer.

This strategy of playing both sites off against each other only works if you're an American. If you're an Australian, then you cannot register a Bovada account and therefore must settle for just Ignition Casino. If you don't reside in either of these two countries, then unfortunately, neither site is available to you.

Read our Ignition Poker review and our Bovada Poker review for additional information, including signup instructions for both sites.