Underdog Review: A Pick'em Rival to PrizePicks, With Best Ball and No Live Sportsbook

The first thing to say about Underdog is a correction to the premise. It is often described as pick'em, best ball and a sportsbook under one roof. In December 2025 reports said Underdog was shutting down the North Carolina sportsbook it opened in March 2024, and it had already pulled out of a planned Missouri launch. We found no live Underdog sportsbook in 2026, so this review judges the two products that remain: pick'em and drafts.

Pick'em: close to PrizePicks, with one real difference

Pick'em is simple. You choose a player's projection, pick higher or lower, and combine two or more picks into an entry. Underdog uses fixed multipliers. A standard entry of 2 picks pays 3x, 3 picks pays 6x, 4 picks pays 10x and 5 picks pays 20x, according to a comparison page updated in September 2026. Entries run up to 8 picks.

That puts the headline numbers within touching distance of PrizePicks. One independent comparison gives Underdog a slight edge at 3 picks (6x against 5x), while another shows PrizePicks ahead at 6 picks. Third-party tables do not agree with each other, and one set lists insured 3-pick entries at 2.5x while another says 1.25x. Take that as a warning: read the number inside the app before you confirm any entry.

There are two entry types. Standard needs every pick right. Flex entries take 3 to 8 picks, survive one miss at 3 to 5 picks, and double-flex at 6 or more, so up to two misses can still pay. Underdog also marks some picks as Scorchers, which carry a boosted payout. A Scorcher must hit even in a Flex entry, and a void or tie counts as a loss. That detail catches people.

The maths is the important part. A 2-pick standard entry needs both legs to win. If each leg is a fair coin, you win one time in four, and 3x pays less than 4x. The multiplier is set below the fair price, and that gap is the house edge. Nothing about a fixed table changes it.

Best ball is the reason to pick it over the rival

PrizePicks is a pick'em app. Underdog is also a drafting app, and its best-ball contests are where it stands apart. You draft a roster, set nothing afterwards, and the best weekly scores count. Saturday Down South reports the Best Ball Mania IV prize pool at $15 million with $3 million to first place, and entries growing from 451,000 in 2022 to 677,000 in 2023.

Large-field contests like those are dominated by experienced, high-volume players, which is a fair warning for anyone wondering whether they will compete. A low-stakes entry is still a cheap way to learn the format.

The app and what people say

On the App Store, "Underdog: Sports, Games & Rips" is published by Underdog Sports, Inc. and holds 4.84 from about 332,000 ratings on version 26.69.0 (lookup on 7 November 2026). The same lookup puts PrizePicks at 4.71 from about 514,000 ratings, so Underdog leads on score while trailing on volume.

Satisfaction on the store is high, but the written reviews carry the usual pick'em complaints. Two titles on the ratings page read "Permanently blocking accounts" and "They'll make sure you never win". Both are one person's account, and we cannot verify them. They do reflect a pattern across this sector: operators limit or close winning players, and you should assume that applies.

Where you can play, and how you get paid

Pick'em is offered in roughly 40 states. The comparison page lists it as banned in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana, Nevada and Washington, with California restricted after a July 2025 opinion from the state Attorney General. Best ball sits outside those pick'em rules and so reaches further. Check your own state before you deposit.

For cash-outs, Saturday Down South's review names PayPal as the withdrawal method and advises allowing 24 to 48 hours, while saying its reviewer was paid faster. That page is affiliate content and older than the rest, so treat the timing as indicative only.

Verdict

Choose Underdog if you want pick'em and season-long or best-ball drafting in one account, and you live in a state where it operates. It earns a higher mark than most pick'em apps on app quality and product range.

Skip it if you expect a sportsbook, if your state is restricted, or if you read the multipliers as an edge. They are not. Entries start from $1 and joining is free, but the expected return on any entry is below what you stake.

Responsible gambling: you must be 18 or over, 19 in some states. Set entry limits in the app and stop when it stops being fun. If you need support, call 1-800-GAMBLER.