Matched betting is a low risk method of making a guaranteed profit from the free bets and bonuses offered by many online bookmakers.
The strategy has been around for many years now but it is still going strong with new bookies opening all the time. It is a very competitive market so they often come up with various incentives to make their site more appealing and attract new customers.
It may sound too good to be true, but it is completely legit and an easy way to make some extra cash.
How does Matched Betting Work?
The process involves placing back bets at the bookies and lay bets at a betting exchange such as Betfair or Smarkets. In a nutshell, a back bet is where you are betting on something to happen and a lay bet is where you are betting against it.
So let’s say for example, a bookie has a sign up bonus offer – “Bet £25, get a £25 free bet!”
After signing up with the bookie and depositing £25, you would then need to place a qualifying bet and lay bet on the same selection, to make sure you lose very little or nothing regardless of the result.
For example, you’ve placed your back bet on West Brom and also a lay bet on West Brom at the exchange, so whether they win or lose the match doesn’t matter. You will usually be left with a small qualifying loss after taking the exchange commission into account.
Once your £25 free bet is credited, you repeat the process of backing and laying except this time you will be extracting your guaranteed profit. You can usually lock in approximately 80% of the value of the free bet each time, depending whether the free bet is stake returned or not and after subtracting your qualifying loss.
For a £25 free bet offer, that works out as around £20 risk free profit each time. Some bookies offer larger bonuses of £100+, so these profits can quickly mount up.
How Much Money can you Make from Matched Betting?
There are literally hundreds of these free bet offers around so the more time you put in, the more money you can make.
Once you have exhausted all the sign up bonuses, there are often reload bonuses where the bookie will offer you yet another free bet. This is quite common if your back bet lost the first time around – the bookies want you to get back on the horse (so to speak) and deposit more money.
It is not uncommon for people to make £1000+ a month taking advantage of bonus offers.
You may be wondering, if it is that easy, why isn’t everyone doing it? Well there are a lot of people that shy away from betting, unless it is a 50p each way on the Grand National.
Also, some people may take one look and think “Sounds too complicated to me!”. But those who have taken that initial big step and took the time to learn how it all works have not looked back.
We know of a really easy way to kickstart your matched betting...
Matched Betting Services
Matched betting services do all the hard work for you.
They are designed to get through most of the main bookie sign up bonuses on offer with much less effort, so every back and lay bet that you need to place is explained in simple terms that anyone can follow.
If you follow the advice, you WILL make a guaranteed profit.
For example, we trialled Bonus Bagging and made £341.41 from just 16 bookie bonuses, so imagine how quickly the profits add up over a longer period of time.
Once the sign up bonuses are done, there are plenty of reloads to take advantage of too. It really is the easiest money you will ever make from a bookie.
Here's a selection of matched betting services that we have reviewed:
Summary
Whether you are a student looking to make some extra cash, or you work full time and want to supplement your income, or perhaps you are a stay at home parent – matched betting is suitable for people from all walks of life.
As long as you're willing to put a little time into learning the ins and outs, it’s a surefire way to pocket some easy money.
Pros
- Low risk
- Small starting bank required to get started
- Tax free earnings
- Free money!
Cons
- If you are completely new to betting it may take a little longer to get started, but it is worth it for the free money!
- Bookies may limit or close your account down
- If you live outside UK/IRE you may be unable to bet at some bookies, or be ineligible for free bets