Best Betting Sites in South Korea For 2026
Our team has taken a closer look at the best betting sites in South Korea. This guide will tell you which sportsbooks we rate highly, the types of betting bonuses available, and what you need to know about betting on sports legally in South Korea.
Best Betting Sites for Koreans – January 2026
Betwhale
Payment Options
Average Payout Speed
0 – 24 HoursCurrencies
- Deposit and bet using BTC
- Choose from 25,000+ markets
- Bet in-play on a huge range of sports
- Get paid quickly with no fuss
- Friendly customer support agents
BetOnline Sports
Payment Options
Average Payout Speed
0 – 24 HoursCurrencies
- USD
- Born in 1991, making it very trustworthy
- Consistent, generous betting promos
- Instant withdrawals using crypto
- Legal for US players to bet online
- Triple-header of sports, casino and poker
Everygame Sports
Payment Options
Average Payout Speed
0 – 24 HoursCurrencies
- AUD
- CAD
- USD
- Competitive sign-up and promotional offers
- Excellent statistics section to aid customers
- Pain-free deposit options
- Accepts both high and low limit bettors
- Lengthy and expensive withdrawal procedure
BetNow Sports
Payment Options
Average Payout Speed
0 – 24 HoursCurrencies
- Very easy-to-use design
- Strong focus on US sports
- Access highly competitive odds
- Claim generous deposit bonuses
- Enjoy instant crypto withdrawals
MyBookie Sports
Payment Options
Average Payout Speed
0 – 24 HoursCurrencies
- LTC
- USD
- Generous bonuses and promotions
- Great range of betting markets
- Extensive racebook
- Very good customer service
- Only a few withdrawal options
- Fees for withdrawing funds
Top 3 Betting Sites in South Korea Reviewed
Any of the sites above on our top online sports betting sites in South Korea list are good options. However, we really recommend BK8, 22Bet, and 1xBet. Let’s take a closer look at these sportsbooks and what they have to offer South Korean sports bettors.
#1: BK8
With a focus on the Asian market, BK8 Sports is a solid sportsbook for South Korean bettors who want the best customer support and local banking options. You’re not sacrificing other benefits for these features, though.
BK8 sports betting markets and odds are competitive compared to the other best sports betting sites in South Korea on our list. The sportsbook also has a rewarding VIP program and streamlined mobile interface that allows for convenient betting from anywhere.
Besides the VIP program, the BK8 bonuses available are a little underwhelming. There aren’t many ongoing offers available to all players. On the other hand, the deposit match welcome bonus is similar to other top offers on the market.
Pros:
✅ Focus on Asian markets
✅ Many banking options
✅ VIP program
✅ Reliable customer support 24/7
Cons:
❌ Clunky user interface
#2: 22Bet Sports
If you want a solid, no-frills sports betting experience, 22Bet Sports is a great option. The sportsbook may not be the prettiest sports betting site in South Korea (especially on mobile), but it has wide betting markets, live betting, and useful features like stats and live streaming that bettors will enjoy.
We especially like 22Bet’s niche markets. You can bet on major sports like football, basketball, and baseball, as well as minor sports like eSports and low-level martial arts. Many of these niche sports are actually hosted in South Korea.
For bonuses, 22Bet has a standard deposit match welcome bonus, cashback offers, reload bonuses, and more.
Pros:
✅ 24/7 live chat
✅ ESports markets
✅ Useful stats and bet insights
✅ Many ongoing promos
Cons:
❌ Clunky user interface
#3: 1xBet Sports
The final name in the top three of our list of online bookmakers in South Korea is yet another massive international brand. 1xBet Sports is available in dozens of countries around the world and literally thousands of different betting markets.
For South Korea specifically, we like the wide variety of football and baseball markets available. You can bet on every Premier League and Major League Baseball game, as well as K League 1 and KBO matches and hundreds of other international leagues.
If you sign up for 1xBet now, you can claim a generous deposit match welcome bonus and take advantage of other special promos.
Pros:
✅ Clean mobile user interface
✅ Wide football/baseball betting markets
✅ Generous welcome bonus
Cons:
❌ Limited ongoing promotions
How We Review and Rank Online Bookmakers in South Korea
Every site we recommend has been closely reviewed by our team of experts. Here are just some of the factors we consider when making our recommendations.
Licensing & Safety
We only recommend sites that we trust. Our team verifies licenses, reviews terms and conditions, and rates overall safety before even thinking about recommending a site.
Fast & East to Use Mobile Apps
A good South Korean betting site is one that is easy to use on any device. We test every site we review on mobile and desktop for our ratings.
Bonuses & Free Bets
You should be rewarded for signing up for a sportsbook, and the process for claiming that reward should be easy to follow.
Brand Reputation
A site with negative ratings usually has those bad reviews for a reason. We investigate any issues we see from other users and avoid sites with poor reputations.
Competitive Odds
Our team shops around and compares odds between sites to make sure that you’re getting value at a sportsbook for your bets.
Available Betting Markets
A top sportsbook should have deep betting markets for football, baseball, and all the other sports that South Koreans care about.
Payment Methods & Speed
We test withdrawal processes to look for red flags and to rate how fast sportsbooks pay out to ensure we only recommend sites that don’t delay you from getting your winnings.
Customer Support
The best betting sites in South Korea have helpful 24/7 live support available in English and Korean.
Most Popular Sports for Betting in South Korea
South Korea has an incredibly unique sporting landscape with a mix of traditionally supported classic sports and emerging digital markets, like eSports. Here are the three most popular sports to bet on in South Korea and what you need to know about them.
#1: Baseball
They don’t have a generational star like Shohei Ohtani, but similar to Japan, American influence after the Korean War helped baseball become one of the most popular sports in South Korea.
- KBO League: Founded in 1982, the KBO League is Korea’s top national baseball league and the most popular for betting on baseball, with 10 teams spread throughout the country, including the Kia Tigers and Doosan Bears.
- MLB: North America’s Major League Baseball is the best league in the world, so it remains popular with baseball fans in South Korea. However, the MLB’s popularity tends to rise and fall depending on whether there is a Korean player in the league.
- World Baseball Classic: Baseball’s version of the World Cup for football. It’s one of the rare opportunities baseball players get to represent their nations, making it a favorite for bettors in baseball crazy countries like South Korea.
#2: eSports
eSports have exploded in popularity throughout the last 20 years. South Korea is a major reason why. The East Asian market is arguably one of the biggest eSports markets in the world.
- League of Legends World Championships: League of Legends was one of the world’s first mainstream eSports, and its global championship continues to be the most-viewed event globally and in South Korea.
- The International (Dota 2): Bolstered by massive prize pools, this competition has become a fixture of the eSports calendar with millions of viewers worldwide.
- League of Legends Champions Korea: The top eSports competition in South Korea. It’s been held every year since 2012 and mostly dominated by team T1, but Gen.G ESports are quickly closing the gap in the all-time title count.
#3: Football
With the success of the South Korean national team and global stars like Park Ji-sung and Son Heung-min, South Korea has become one of the major football nations in Asia.
- K League 1: South Korea’s national football league and one of the top leagues in Asia. Teams like Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors and Ulsan Hyundai regularly compete for international honors.
- English Premier League: The EPL is the best football league in the world and the one with the most international fans. Korean bettors are some of the biggest fans of the EPL abroad because of the success of South Koreans in the league, like Son and Park at Tottenham and Man Utd.
- FIFA World Cup: The World Cup is the most bet on footballing event in the world. It’s no different in South Korea. Fans back the Taegeuk Warriors with their presence at stadiums and by betting.
Other Sports
Outside of the big three sports covered above, other sports struggle to get national attention. That said, there are many smaller sports popular on the local level.
- Ssireum: This type of traditional Korean wrestling remains popular in small circles with die-hard fans, especially outside of the major cities.
- Basketball: The international popularity of the NBA during the 1990s led to the creation of the Korean Basketball League (KBL) in 1997. Since then, both the NBA and the KBL have grown steadily more popular in South Korea. The Lakers are the most popular NBA team, while Ulsan Hyundai Mobis Phoebus have won the most KBL titles.
- Winter Sports: South Koreans have traditionally done well at winter sports like ice skating, which makes the Winter Olympics a marquee event for sports bettors every four years.
Types of Betting Bonuses Offered by South Korea’s Online Bookmakers
Sign-up offers are the most common type of sports betting bonuses in South Korea. Almost every site has a welcome bonus. Most are deposit match bonuses, which match 100% or more of your first deposit with bonus bets. Reload bonuses, free bets, cashback offers, and boosted bets are also available in South Korea, but not at every site. If you plan on betting regularly, it’s worth taking the time to find a site with rewarding bonuses so that you can get the most value for your deposits.
Here are some solid betting sites in South Korea with regular bonus offers that you can check out now.
Sports Betting Apps with Competitive Odds in South Korea
You will not be able to download sports betting apps directly to your phone in South Korea, apart from APK apps on Android devices. Instead, you can use mobile sports betting sites through your phone’s web browser (Safari, Google Chrome, etc.). These sites work almost identically to sportsbook apps in South Korea, allowing for convenient betting from anywhere on almost any device.
Wherever you play, make sure you shop around for the best odds. Playing at a sportsbook with low-value odds can eat into your profits over the long run. Here are some top sports betting sites in South Korea for mobile bettors:
Payment Methods Used for Online Betting in South Korea
Online bookmakers in South Korea accept a wide variety of payment methods, ranging from large international e-wallets and cryptocurrencies to local bank transfers. Here are some of the most common banking options in South Korea:
Credit/Debit Cards
South Korea is one of the most card-friendly countries in the world. Even small businesses in rural parts of the country are cashless, so it makes sense that debit/credit cards would be the most popular and common payment method.
Bank Transfer
Similar to credit/debit cards, bank transfers are popular because they are convenient for most bettors.
Jetonbank
A leading e-wallet available at most betting sites in South Korea, especially large international brands. It allows for fast transactions with multiple currencies with low fees.
Crypto
Offshore sites accept many cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Tether. However, crypto is more regulated in South Korea than in other countries, so it might not be available at every site.
About South Korea’s Online Betting Market
The South Korean online sports betting market is relatively ahead of other Asian countries, which have bans on betting. On the other hand, South Korean sports betting is far behind other, more established markets. This is because the state has a monopoly on sports betting, which restricts the legal market to just one option: Sports Toto.
History of Sports Betting in South Korea
The history of sports betting in South Korea can be broken into three distinct periods: the unregulated era, the criminalized era, and the monopolized era. The unregulated era is pretty much all of Korean history before the turn of the 20th century, when lawmakers began criminalizing “immoral” industries like gambling.
The monopolized era started in South Korea in 1997, when lawmakers passed the National Sports Promotion Act and created the government-operated Sports Toto sportsbook. Since then, Sports Toto has been the only legal sportsbook in South Korea and remains so to this very day.
Legal Aspects of Online Betting in South Korea
The National Sports Promotion Act described above is the backbone of the online betting laws in South Korea. The Korean Sports Promotion Foundation oversees Sports Toto and enforces the National Sports Promotion Act along with the South Korean police and other agencies.
Gambling with sports betting sites other than Sports Toto is illegal. Both bettors and operators can face fines or jail time. You can also receive punishments if you fail to pay your taxes on your winnings. South Korea has a progressive tax rate on gambling winnings starting at 22% and rising to 40%.
Sports Toto and other non-sports betting gambling platforms adhere to strict Know Your Customer requirements, so you will have to verify your identity before you bet. One of the reasons for this is to stop underage gambling. The minimum sports betting age in South Korea is 19.
Looking for More Country Betting Guides? We’ve Got You Covered!
Our team has analyzed a wide swath of sports betting markets from all around the globe. You can find more information about some of the countries we’ve covered below.
- Show All
- Africa
- Asia
- Australia & Oceania
- Europe
- North America
- South America
FAQs
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About the author
Eric Roberts
Sports Journalist
Eric has been a sports journalist for over 20 years and has travelled the world covering top sporting events for a number of publications. He also has a passion for betting and uses his in-depth knowledge of the sports world to pinpoint outstanding odds and value betting opportunities.
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