I have been matched betting for years. It’s a fantastic way to make risk-free, tax-free, legal income to help build your travel pot or otherwise bolster your income. Getting started can be tricky, so in this article, I identify my 10 important tips that matched betting beginners should follow.
From basic bookkeeping to some golden rules of the trade, I want to give you the benefit of my 8 years and counting of matched betting that has seen me net over £20k in pure profit since I discovered how to do it.
I had a few setbacks and stressful moments for sure, and want you to learn from my errors. That way we can ensure that your experiences with matched betting are 100% positive from the off.
What is Matched Betting
In a nutshell, matched betting is the process of betting for and against a sporting event like a football match or horse race with two separate bookies, minimizing losses, while qualifying for a free bet from one of the bookies you bet with.
You then repeat this process with the free bet and can pull cash out of thin air. It’s a little more complex than this, so I encourage you to read my previous articles to get a full understanding of how the whole process works. But it’s all doable, even if you have no knowledge of sports, betting, or odds.
For a full breakdown read Matched Betting and How to Save Thousands for Your Travel Pot and My Matched Betting Jourey: From Complete Skeptic to Full-Time.
10 Important Tips for Matched Betting Beginners
All caught up? Right, let’s dive into my top tips for those of you just getting started in the world of matched betting. I didn’t follow all of these rules myself, but looking back, I wish I had.
Join a Matched Betting Platform
Getting started as a matched bettor will be very difficult without joining a well-established platform like Outplayed. Not only do they have the best software on the market, allowing you to find the most competitive bets to make, but their tutorials, guidance, and support are worth every penny.
When I joined Outplayed, they were known as Profit Accumulator. There are others on the market but for the detailed help beginners receive, Outplayed is the only resource you need.
Sign up for the free trial and make money before you spend a penny. Depending on which sign-up offers are available when you join, the trial alone is worth £35-£40. The monthly fee is around £40/month but is a small, necessary expense, especially when you will be earning thousands!
Open a Separate Bank Account for Matched Betting
This is one of my top matched betting tips that I didn’t do at first and wish I did! Opening a separate bank account makes keeping tabs on everything so much easier. It means you don’t have your matched betting money mixed up with your everyday spending and bill money.
Opening bank accounts is easy these days, there are lots of online banks that allow you to sign up quickly. I use Monzo because it has no monthly fees and I can monitor my finances on the app. It’s also super secure and just an all-round great bank.
Another reason you may want a separate account is if you are applying for a mortgage or need to show statements to get credit. Having many transactions with gambling websites doesn’t look good on a bank statement, even if you aren’t technically gambling anything.
Start with a Reasonable Float
One of the small downsides to matched betting is that you do need a few quid to get going. Without a reasonable float, you will not be able to back and lay your first qualifying bets. But with a reasonable sum of around £100, anyone can easily kick start their matched betting career.
The bigger the float, the more sign-up offers you can do at a time. And that means the more free bets you can turn into withdrawable cash. But by starting small and doing one offer at a time then compounding the profits, you can grow your accounts. You will then soon have a big float to play with.
Keep a Ledger of Everything You Do
This is one of my top tips for matched betting beginners. Keep track of everything you do via a written ledger or online document. Whether it’s noting down the betting sites you have joined, the deposits you have made, or the bets you have placed, a record is very handy for keeping tabs on your actions.
I have gone through more A4 pads and notebooks than I can remember. Managing numerous accounts, this physical track will help you stay on course and ensure you don’t make mistakes.
It’s easy to forget that you’ve placed a bet with a bookie when you’ve placed numerous for the same event. Make obvious marks to show that a free bet needs using, claiming, or is due to be credited. Then you won’t make needless qualifying losses by forgetting something.
Have a Secure File for Login Details and Passwords
Every betting site you join will ask you to provide login details and passwords. As I’m sure you are aware, not all websites accept certain types of usernames and passwords. The addition of an exclamation mark or uppercase letter can be the difference between getting into your accounts or not.
Find a secure place to make a note of all of your passwords and usernames for every betting site. This will ensure you have easy access to all of your accounts.
Verify Your Accounts (Even if Not Asked!)
When I started matched betting in 2017, all betting sites required you to upload a driver’s license, proof of address, a UK phone number, and an active email address. I would always keep updated PDF versions of all of these documents on my laptop.
Things seem to have changed a little in recent times as most bookies now just require you to have the phone number and address. Nevertheless, it’s important that you can provide these documents should they ask for them. So take a minute before you start to have the PDFs ready.
Always ensure you verify your email address and phone number, even if they don’t directly ask you to when signing up. Sometimes they may just send you an email that ends up in your junk folder and gets forgotten about. Add bookies to your contacts so you also don’t miss out on free bets and promotions.
Don’t Be Greedy!
Guilty as charged with this one. Once I started making money through matched betting I picked up the pace and didn’t look back. I started with a decent float so was able to open multiple betting accounts from the off, operating dozens of qualifying bets and free bets at a time. It got a little hectic at times!
But I advise you to be patient when you get started and move steadily through the opening offers. It can be confusing and scary at first so be thorough and ensure you have everything right with every bet you place. This way you won’t make mistakes and will learn everything properly as you progress.
Don’t Cash Out Every Time – Build Your Balance
You’ll make cash just by doing the Outplayed free trial but what we are really here to do is make serious long-term cash right? So don’t just withdraw your profits straight away, grow your accounts and cash out monthly or bi-monthly, this way you get a bigger hit when it comes time to withdraw.
The sad fact is, that bookies don’t like winners. If you are seen as a punter constantly withdrawing cash from their accounts they may choose to limit the offers and promotions you are able to receive. Having said that, of course, there are times when you need to withdraw funds but try and limit these occasions.
Ideally, we want all the cash to be filtered into the exchanges. The exchanges operate on a fan-to-fan betting system and have no qualms about withdrawals, they receive their commission from the bets regardless. This is a better way to cash out your profits when you want them.
Identify Fruitful Bookies and Keep Them Sweet
Some betting sites have sign-up offers but few promotions after the initial free bets have been awarded. These are great for a one-time thing but the real cash lies in the reload bets. Identifying websites that have free bet clubs, boosted odds, and regular promotions is the key to long-term matched betting success.
The great sites are easy to spot, they will usually be the ones sending you emails about ways to receive free bets. But regularly check in with the sites you belong to and hit the promotions or offers tabs to see what’s cooking.
Did you find a good one? Then keep them sweet by placing regular ‘mug bets’. These are bets that don’t produce a free bet but make you look like a legitimate gambler in the eyes of the bookies. Use the Outplayed Odds Checker to find great mug bets that will minimize losses or even make you money.
Only Bet on Big Sporting Events
When your accounts are hot and the money is rolling in it can be annoying when sport dries up and there’s nothing to bet on. But do not start betting on far-flung football leagues and crazy sports you have never heard of! This is a surefire way to identify yourself as a matched bettor.
Many bookies don’t like matched bettors and will limit the free bets and promotions your account receives if they figure out what you are doing, (another reason why we place mug bets with good bookies). Predominantly stick to matched betting on the top football leagues and high-profile horse racing.
During the football pre-season, and international breaks the free bets are usually a little quiet anyway so use this time to cash out, re-align your accounts, and spend your cash. Don’t be tempted to start matched betting on the Australia U17s vs Fiji U17s, there’s little money in the exchanges and it doesn’t look good!
Conclusion
I hope this article has helped you on your path to becoming a matched bettor. There is a heap of cash to be made by doing it in the right way and I encourage you to take all of these points to heart and implement them in your day-to-day matched betting practices.
By sticking to my matched betting tips, you will find that it becomes an easier process with less stressful moments paving a straightforward path to making serious money. Click here to start your free trial with Outplayed today.
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