Anyone over the age of 18 in the UK can do matched betting. It’s a fantastic way to make money online, from the comfort of your own home or out and about. And it’s something that almost anyone can do. Here are our top 10 tips for starting matched betting.
What is matched betting?
Matched betting is a way to turn the free bet offers given out by online bookmakers into real money. Want to know exactly how it works? Check out our ‘What is matched betting?’ guide for more info.
Or start your OddsMonkey Free Trial today.
Is starting matched betting easy?
Yes and no. If you take the time to fully understand how matched betting works, then it is a relatively easy thing to start doing. The concept itself is simple but it can sound too good to be true which tends to confuse people. But learning the process, avoiding mistakes, and double-checking every step will help matched betting become second nature.
We want to make starting matched betting easy for everyone. That’s why we’ve put together some top tips for beginners. Let us know what you think by leaving a comment at the end!
Top 10 tips for starting matched betting
1. Join OddsMonkey
Start a Free Trial or become an OddsMonkey Premium member. We’re not just saying that because we’re biased. Starting matched betting completely on your own is a tough path to choose. Why? Well, the concept alone can be difficult to get your head around. Especially if you’re completely new to the world of betting, odds, and bookmakers.
We have a fantastic Facebook group which anyone can join. It’s a rapidly growing community where matched bettors of all experience levels come together. Ask questions, join chats, and enter competitions!
OddsMonkey Premium members can also use our Community Forum for advice, offers, and tips. Our Customer Support team are on hand to help you, along with our other members.
2. Read, read, read
We have loads of information available to anyone thinking about starting matched betting. We have both written guides and video tutorials, so you should be covered for whichever way you learn best. The guides included in the free trial walk you through how to make your first matched betting profits. By the time you’ve finished them, you’ll have money in your pocket.
3. Open a new bank account
This isn’t a necessity when starting matched betting. Instead, it’s a way to be organised and keep your matched betting activity separate from your everyday finances. That way, you’re unlikely to have essential funds tied up, or be confused by the numerous incomings and outgoings on your statement.
4. Understand back and lay odds
The chances are that you’ll already be familiar with back odds. Even if you’ve never placed a bet before. These are the numbers that bookmakers use to show the likelihood of an outcome happening. And they’re pretty much everywhere in pop culture and everyday life. Back odds are usually shown in decimal form (eg 3/1). However, in matched betting, we use the decimal version (eg 4.0), so you’ll need to become more familiar with this form.
With matched betting, there’s another side to the coin. Lay odds are used by betting exchanges to show the likelihood of something not happening. In matched betting, you place two bets each time: one back bet and one lay bet. Those are the matching bets!
5. Open a bookmaker account
In order to take advantage of the many sign-up offers out there, you’ll need to open an account with an online bookmaker. But which one should you choose? On OddsMonkey, you’ll find guides for 50+ sign-up offers, all of which have been tried and tested by our team. Bookmaker sign-up offers are rated on their difficulty level and every single one can be used to turn a free bet into real money.
6. Open a betting exchange account
These are the four main betting exchanges available for UK matched bettors: Betfair, Smarkets, BetDaq, and Matchbook. A betting exchange is the only kind of site where you can place lay bets. Betting exchanges earn money by charging customers commission on winning bets. However, there are ways to pay a lower commission amount, depending on factors like:
- The betting exchange you use.
- How often you place lay bets.
- If you take advantage of commission offers like this one for OddsMonkey members.
Another difference between the bookmaker and betting exchange is something called ‘liability’. In traditional betting, this is the amount of money you’re liable to ‘lose’ if you lay bet loses. However, with matched betting, the liability amount is matched, and cancelled out, by your back bet. Watch this video to find out more.
7. Place your first bet
You may see this referred to as a qualifying bet. Remember: each matched bet is a game of two halves. Place a back bet at the bookmaker and a matching lay bet at the betting exchange. Always place the two bets in this order. Double-check the odds before you confirm your bets.
This will unlock your free bet offer.
8. Place your first free bet
Again, you need to place both a back and lay bet. However, instead of using your own money at the bookmaker, you use the free bet you unlocked. Take your time, read the terms and conditions of the offer, and double-check the odds. Then place your bets.
9. Keep an eye on the outcome
But remember that it really doesn’t matter who wins or loses in the event that you bet on. By placing both a back bet and lay bet, you’ve covered all possible outcomes. It doesn’t matter if your selection wins, loses, or finishes in a draw (eg football). Really, you just need to keep an eye on those matched betting profits that you’ve just earned.
OddsMonkey Premium members can track their profits with our Profit Tracker tool.
10. Do the next bookmaker offer as soon as you can
Now that you’ve taken the first step, it’s time to keep up the momentum and build that bankroll…
Starting matched betting doesn’t need to be daunting. Or something that you do on your own.
The OddsMonkey Free Trial will walk you through exactly how matched betting works and your first bookmaker offers.
