One of the best things I’ve ever discovered is matched betting. It allowed Hannah and I to set aside thousands of pounds every year for our global travels. Today, it still kicks in a nice chunk of change whenever I am back in the UK.
In this article, I will detail exactly how you ‘do’ matched betting and why it is such a cash cow. But before we start, let me be clear that everything I am about to discuss is legal and above board. I should also note that this article is only relevant to people with an active UK phone number and address.
There is also zero risk involved and no capital is ever at risk, plus it’s tax-free! So, if you want to learn how to build an epic travel savings pot using just your laptop, read on and embrace the wonderful world of matched betting.
Matched Betting – My Experience
I know what you are thinking, if it sounds too good to be true then it probably is right? I thought the same thing until I started matched betting in 2017. Hannah read about it in a blog and asked me if I had ever heard of it – I hadn’t. But eight years in, we have banked tens of thousands of pounds doing it.
I had used some online betting sites in the past and had a general idea about odds and how the sites work but would by no means have considered myself a gambler. But now I belong to or have been gubbed off (a term we’ll discuss later) every bookmaker in the country and available to me on the world wide web.
Living abroad since 2022 has posed issues with matched betting since many sites are hot on not allowing access from outside the designated legal zone. A good VPN is helpful but not always a perfect solution.
What is Matched Betting?
Essentially, matched betting is when you bet both on a result to happen and not to happen with two separate bookmakers. For example with William Hill, you bet on England to beat Germany in an upcoming game, whilst simultaneously using a betting exchange like Smarkets to bet that England won’t win.
Why the hell would you do that I hear you scream! Because, by doing so you unlock a free bet and a flowing stream of opportunities that you then turn into cold, hard withdrawable cash.
The Difference Between a Bookie and an Exchange
You may be unaware that there are two types of online bookies. There are traditional bookmakers like William Hill, Paddy Power, Bet 365, and Coral, etc, there’s hundreds of them in the UK market alone. However, there are also exchanges like Smarkets that work a little differently.
With traditional bookies, you bet against the house. For example, I bet £10 that England will beat Germany in the match tonight at odds of 3-1. The bookmaker takes your money and if it wins you get back £30 plus your initial £10 stake.
A betting exchange lets people bet against each other, rather than against a traditional bookmaker. You can either back a result (bet it will happen) or lay a result (bet it won’t happen). Users select their own odds, and others can choose to match them.
If no one matches your offer, the bet doesn’t happen. With big events, there is always a significant amount of money in the exchange and 99.9% of your bets will get matched. Smarkets simply connects the two sides and charges a small commission on net winnings, usually around 2%.
Backing and Laying
So with each initial bet you make, known as a qualifying bet, you must back and lay the result. You back it with the bookie and then lay it off in the exchange. The disparity in the odds often means that there will be a small insignificant loss for every qualifying bet, usually 20p – 80p for a £10 bet.
But no matter the result, if England win, lose, or draw, you’ll have all the bases covered and your money (minus the initial loss) will be deposited into either the bookies or the exchange. And now you’ll have qualified for a £20 free bet!
(One of my favorite things is when the odds actually go in your favor and you make money on the qualifying bet. This is rare but does happen from time to time and is a real bonus!)
Unlocking Free Bets
You can’t have missed the non-stop tirade of betting adverts declaring things like ‘Bet £10 get £20 in free bets’. If you watch any live sport at all, it’s an endemic part of sport that is unavoidable. But these free bets are where the gold lies.
Now, when a bookie offers you a £20 free bet, it comes with a few conditions. Firstly you must gamble your initial deposit (in this scenario the £10 we just bet on England) at certain odds. You must also then gamble the free bet. But by again utilizing the exchanges we can ensure victory and pull cash out of thin air.
A key thing to remember about matched betting is that it should never be a gamble. Sure, you could risk the initial £10 deposit on something at the lowest odds possible and hope it wins, but don’t! This is a surefire way to blow your savings and lose money. Remember with gambling, the house always wins.
Utilizing the Free Bets
Once you have been credited with a free bet, you then have funds that you didn’t have before. You now just need to make them withdrawable. So, repeat the same back-and-lay process as you did for the initial qualifying bet.
This time, for example, you could place the free bet on Spain to beat Italy in the later kick-off. You then head straight over to the exchange and bet against Spain winning that game – not that they will lose, but against the win!
Then no matter what happens in the game, you will either win at the bookies and release the funds from the free bet or win at the exchange and have the winnings from the free bet dumped into your account. A £20 free bet usually returns around £14 – £16 in pure profit.
Playing out this scenario –
Open an account with William Hill.
Deposit £10 and place a qualifying back bet of £10 on England to beat Germany.
Place a corresponding lay bet on the same fixture with Smarkets, this time against England to win (England to lose or draw) incurring a 50p qualifying loss.
Receive a £20 free bet from William Hill and place this on Spain to beat Italy.
Place a corresponding lay bet on the same fixture (Spain not to win) with Smarkets, returning £15.
This William Hill sign-up bonus is worth £14.50 profit.
Resources for Matched Betting
Figuring out the maths for each bet is beyond my capabilities but thankfully there are a multitude of online resources available to use for matched bettors. I initially signed up with Profit Accumulator which is now known as Outplayed. I highly recommend signing up for their free trial, it’s worth about £40 in profit.
Outplayed has an entire catalog of videos that will teach you the basics of matched betting. From understanding the lingo to walking you through your first qualifying and free bet placements.
There are even forums offering additional help and advice. Within the Outplayed platform, you will also find all the calculators you need to work out exactly how much you need to lay with your exchange bets.
Joining for Free vs Becoming a Paid Member
Everyone should start with the free trial. This guides you through the sign-up process with two bookies and a betting exchange. Free members get limited access to an odds checker to find the best bets and the calculators to work out what’s needed to make money and limit qualifying losses.
But if you are serious about making money through matched betting, you will need to become a paid member of Outplayed. Full members will get the guidance and support needed to make thousands of pounds through matched betting. Plus you’ll receive daily info regarding new free bets available at all the bookies.
I no longer need the assistance so I don’t belong to Outplayed or any matched betting site. However, I use their free calculator to work out my bets and simply browse the web for free bets with the bookies I still belong to.
Full Membership to Outplayed is just £40/month, my monthly returns we’re usually around the £500 – £800 per month.
Top Tips for Getting Started with Matched Betting
Here are a few of my top tips from when I started as a matched bettor;
- Join a matched betting website like Outplayed and take your time going through all of the tutorials and lessons.
- Have a separate bank account for your matched betting money. This way you can easily keep track of money coming in and going out.
- Start with a reasonable float of around £100 – £200. You will never lose this money but you need it for backing and laying bets.
- Keep a ledger of EVERYTHING you do, from joining bookies and exchange websites to placing bets and withdrawals.
- Have a secure file or paper copy of login details and passwords.
- Verify every betting account you open by supplying an active UK phone number and a valid UK address. Have proof of address to hand if needed.
- Don’t be greedy! Once the cash starts flowing, don’t go crazy and get yourself muddled up with too many bookies and bets happening all at once.
- Don’t cash out every time. Your money is secure in the bookies, they can’t lose it or steal it, so keep it in there, build it up, and make withdrawals sporadically or when you need to.
- Identify bookies that have great reload bets (the free bets after sign-up) and weekly clubs offering free bets. Keep them sweet by backing and laying bets that don’t offer free bets. Find close odds that incur only a small loss but ensure they see you as a good customer.
- Only bet on big sporting events like football and horse racing. There’s always more money in the exchanges for big events and it looks suspicious to bookies if you suddenly start betting on the Iran Under 19s in a Tuesday morning friendly.
Matched Betting Terminology
Before were go any further let me just do a quick summary of some of the main terminology you will come up against when matched betting. I’ve mentioned a few of these already;
- Backing/A Back Bet – Betting on an event to happen (England to beat Germany).
- Laying/A Lay Bet – Betting against an event to happen (England to lose or draw to Germany)
- Qualifying Bet – A bet placed purely to release a free bet.
- Free Bet – A bonus awarded by a bookie to be used on a sporting event.
- Stake Not Returned (SNR) – The majority of free bets only return the winnings of the bet not the £20 bet itself as is the case with all qualifying bets.
- Mug Bet – A bet that doesn’t produce a free bet but is done to make the punter appear as a legitimate gambler, possibly leading to more free reload bets.
- Reload Bets – Free bets that are issued after the signup bonus has been completed. These can be for big sporting events or in the form of weekly clubs.
- Gubbed – When a bookie tells you that you are no longer eligible for free bets. For some reason, bookies don’t always like matched bettors and will cut you off.
Getting Gubbed!
As you will have read in the terminology some bookies will cut off the supply of free bets when they suspect you are taking part in a pattern of betting. This is called getting gubbed.
It’s annoying when it happens but you simply move on. There are hundreds of online bookies and most big ones don’t care if you’re matched betting. It’s best to place mug bets as often as you can though, this will help with keeping your account active with profitable bookies.
Outplayed has loads of great resources for keeping your accounts healthy and producing cash. They also have information about where to go when bookies start limiting your free bets.
Casino Offers
Pretty much every bookie on the market has a casino section as well as a sportsbook. The casino section will offer untold hundreds of different themed slot machines and table games like blackjack and roulette.
This is a world I ventured into a little during the dark and very quiet days of the pandemic lockdowns. It works very differently from the free bet system I have been discussing in this article. Again sites like Outplayed offer tutorials and guidance to help turn these casino offers into hard cash.
I highly recommend you pursue these but as every site and offer will be different I can’t offer much advice other than to seek guidance from Outplayed and go print some free money. Casino offers are a bit trickier and can be more time-consuming, but there is serious free cash to be made.
FAQs About Matched Betting
Here are a few commonly asked questions about matched betting.
- Is Matched Betting Legal? Yes, matched betting is 100% legal. Some bookies don’t like people doing it and will cut off the flow of free bets if they suspect you are a matched bettor. There is nothing illegal about matched betting.
- Is Matched Betting Risk-Free? When done correctly matched betting is risk-free. I highly recommend you join a matched betting platform like Outplayed and follow their tutorials and guidance before you start making qualifying bets or trying to utilize free bets.
- Is Matched Betting Tax-Free? Yes, matched betting is tax-free. UK citizens do not pay tax on gambling profits and although you are not technically risking your money, the proceeds of your matched bets are considered gambling wins.
- Have You Ever Lost Money Doing Matched Betting? Yes, I once lost money matched betting but it was because I got greedy. I tried to open two accounts with the same bookie because the sign-up offer was so good. They caught me and kicked me off, taking around £140 of my free bet wins away.
- How Much Can I Expect to Earn Through Matched Betting? You can expect to earn between £500 and £1000 per month, especially in your first year as a matched bettor who is new to all of the betting sites available to the UK market.
- What Happens When Bookies Stop Giving Free Bets? This is known as getting gubbed and it can and will happen to match bettors. Thankfully there are so many bookies to move on to and offers to take part in. New bookies are opening every day in the UK with fresh free bets to cash in on.
- How Much Do I Need to Get Started Matched Betting? You can start matched betting with a float as little as around £100. You need a little bit of cash to place back bets with bookies and then lay them off with an exchange. This money is not at risk and you will never lose it.
Final Thoughts About Matched Betting
Matched betting can take some getting your head around but once you get started it becomes second nature. I now think of it as my own little cash machine, I sit down at my laptop for a few minutes, back and lay a few bets, and pull cash out of thin air. Maybe it’s more like a magician’s hat!
I’m not a gambler and knew nothing of this method of betting before finding Outplayed. I personally dislike the UK betting industry, I believe it’s out to empty the pockets of hard-working people and prays on the many who sadly get addicted to gambling and lose it all. Matched betting is like taking a little back.
I urge you to research more about matched betting and not be put off because it seems too confusing or because you know nothing about betting or sports. You don’t have to pick winners, know form, or odds. Click here to do the free trial with Outplayed and start making free cash today.
Like This Post? Pin It!
Owner’s permission has been given to use all images in this post.