I’m going to start things off here as I always do by telling you about the welcome offer. When you first register and use the PrizePicks promo code ‘PLAYBOOK’, you can get a 100% deposit match up to $100.

The minimum deposit is $10 and the wagering requirement is 1x your bonus amount, both of which are standard conditions for a bonus of this type. However, there is one bit of the T&Cs that really caught my eye – it expires after 90 days, which is a very generous time limit in my humble experience.

There are a lot of scam bonuses out there that promise the world only to try and dupe us in the small print once we’ve let our guards down. However, I’m pleased to inform you that’s far from the case here – I can assure you that this is a decent offer with fair conditions.

How to sign up to PrizePicks Fantasy

One thing that ticks me off, even as an experienced player, is the number of DFS apps and websites out there with a hugely complex and convoluted process. Sometimes, I really think that it’s no wonder so many would-be newcomers to fantasy sports are put off from the get-go.

PrizePicks is a breath of fresh air in this respect, as getting started is easy and everything is explained to you step-by-step in the “How To Play” section on the site. Overall, I would say that this is among the best fantasy football websites for new players.

To show you how simple it is to sign up and get verified on this site, I’ve put together my own step-by-step guide for you here:

1. Download the app or follow our link to the PrizePicks website
2. Click on the “Sign Up” button (note if you are on the website you will be taken to an app download link at this point)
3. Enter your email address and the PrizePicks promo code (Optional)
4. Enter your first and last name
5. Select your date of birth from the dropdown menu (you must be 18+ or above the legal age in your state)
6. Verify your identity*
7. Make your first deposit
8. Make your picks and start playing

*If the personal information that you have entered is correct, verification should only take a few minutes. In the worst case, it will fail and you will just have to upload a photo of your government-issued ID.

First of all, I need to start with a caveat here – actual gameplay on PrizePicks is only available on the app. That being said, the website is definitely not obsolete by anyone’s standards. As I will explain in some detail below, it is a well-constructed and informative platform that is very easy to use.

When I first landed on the website, I was met with a good-looking design that I largely expected. PrizePicks is one of those modern DFS sites that has clearly been built by young sport-tech developers.

You have a black background, white fonts and some subtle purple branding. Overall, the site’s finish looks polished and professional.

Moving on to more important matters, the layout is very simple and is full of step-by-step guides that explain everything clearly. All of the informative text is complemented by graphics, app screenshots and videos.

If you are using PrizePicks for the first time, I strongly recommend that you go through the website first. It will only take you a few minutes, and by the end of it you will have complete knowledge of how the picks and payouts work.

Background – A solid foundation of DFS and sports

As my research confirmed, PrizePicks Fantasy was founded (and is owned) by the current CEO, Adam Wexler. He is an Atlanta-based sports-tech and media entrepreneur with a solid background in fantasy sports and sports media.

Before launching PrizePicks, Wexler did the digital strategy for the Atlanta Hawks and FSGA, with the latter being an organization that represents the interests of fantasy sports. Additionally, he founded Insightpool, a software company that was later acquired by Cision.

Reputation – Multi-award winning

In all honesty, I rarely give much credence to industry awards – half of them are just set up so cronies can pat themselves on the back. But, I must say that the number of awards and accolades that PrizePicks Fantasy has from reputable organizations has impressed me.

The platform has won multiple awards from top-tier organizations including  EGR, FSGA, TAG and SBC. What caught my eye more though, is that it has been named in the list of “Atlanta Top Work Places” in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, for two years running.

Industry awards and customer satisfaction are important to us as consumers. But for me, it’s always nice to know that the hard-working team is being taken care of and has a good environment.

Player experience – Seamless and easy to follow

As I said earlier in my PrizePicks review, the player experience is made extremely easy on this app. Once you have completed the signup process that I explained above, you are taken directly to the deposit page and the bonus is put into your account once your payment has been made.

From there, the process of making your picks and playing DFS on PrizePicks is simple – here’s a little look at how it worked for me:

1. Choose your league (massive selection of sports available)
2. Choose a stat (e.g. points, assists or minutes played)
3. Select 2-6 players (2 or 3 is safe, 4- 6 is where the payouts start to really creep up)
4. For each player stat, you are presented with a predicted number
5. Choose “More” or “Less” for each of your selections
6. Pick the “Power Flex” (insurance) or “Power Play” (all-in) option
7. Choose your entry fee (minimum $5)
8. Submit your DFS entry
9. Watch the game and see if you win
10. Whenever I won, the payout was usually settled within 30 minutes

Mobile gaming at PrizePicks

Play on-the-go at PrizePicks

While the website is great, the only way to make your picks and enter contests is via the mobile app. You can download the app to iOS and Android devices via either the App Store or Google Play.

I tried out both versions of the app and was pleased with the consistency. Often, I find that one of the two apps (iOS or Android) is slightly inferior, but that was not the case here.

Downloading the app is pretty easy, and at little over 42 MB, it’s actually not that big for a DFS app. For comparison, many other apps are 140 MB+.

When you open the app, you’ll find it’s one of those that allows you to do things almost without thinking. Once you’re finished on one page, the next page appears almost instantly.

As with the website, the app takes you through everything in a step-by-step manner. As a result, I found it to be almost impossible to make a mistake when first making my DFS college football picks.

Most DFS apps that I would compare PrizePicks Fantasy to (such as OwnersBox or Sleeper Fantasy) are quite limited when it comes to the payment solutions on offer. However, on this app, you’ll find a decent selection of payment methods, including credit/debit cards, Apple Pay, PayPal and Instant Bank Transfer.

For all payment methods, the minimum deposit is $10 and there are no hidden fees or mini-scams that I need to alert you to here. The process of making your deposit is slightly different for each payment method, but what I can tell you is that card and Apple Pay payments are the quickest.

When using PayPal, you will be taken away from the site, meanwhile, extra verification steps are in place with bank transfers.

Withdrawals

You can make a withdrawal of $10 or greater to your card, bank or PayPal account. Like pretty much everything else that I’ve described in my PrizePicks review, this process is pretty straightforward.

Here’s how it works:

1. Click on the banking icon at the top of the app or web screen
2. Select the “Request Withdrawal” option
3. Enter the OTP (One-Time Passcode) that you receive via email
4. You will receive a second email if your request has been successful
5. You should receive your funds within 24 hours

Live support at PrizePicks Fantasy is available 24/7 via the live chat, which is powered by Intercom. This is the same company that provides the customer service systems for many other DFS sites and online sportsbooks.

I’m not going to lie, the live chat system annoyed me at first. I can handle being put in touch with a bot, but what irks me is being made to select a topic from a list of options that I have just scrolled through in the help center.

However, I soon calmed down and was pleased to find that getting through to an actual human being is pretty easy in the end. Whenever I did get in touch with a human customer service agent, I always received a response within a matter of minutes.

PrizePicks is legal right across Canada and in 31 US states, with more states thought to be in the pipeline. Like many DFS sites, there is a map on the homepage that clearly shows you where PrizePicks Fantasy is and isn’t available.

There’s more good news here for those of you who like things straightforward, like me. All states are equal here – PrizePicks is either straight up available or not. You don’t have certain types of contests available in some locations but not others.

When it comes to matters of security, I’m sure you don’t want to hear me drone on by dropping software names and technical terms. So instead, I’ll just sum things up by saying that your data, funds and ID are all pretty damn safe on this platform.

Prohibited countries – Where is PrizePicks legal?

Like I said in the previous section of my PrizePicks review, this app is only legally available in the US (31 states) and Canada. As is the case with most DFS apps, it cannot be used from any other country in the world.

I’m going to get straight to the point here – there isn’t a VIP program here, but that’s something I find is becoming increasingly normal on daily fantasy golf sites. What you do have instead are a classic referral program and two recurring promotions for all existing players, which I’ve briefly explained for you below:

• Taco Tuesdays – Every Tuesday, you and other plasters can vote on a select number of stat projections. The ones with the most votes will get marked with a taco icon that signifies they are at a discounted price.
• Flex Fridays – On Fridays promotions are rolled out to boost the prices for certain “Flex Play” entries.