Matched betting example

Here is an example of how matched betting works, step by step.

Let’s say a bookmaker is offering £30 of free bets when you stake £10. You can turn this into profit by placing two matched bets:

Matched bet #1

1. You visit the bookmaker’s site to deposit and stake £10 on England to win at odds of 2.0. Because this unlocks the £30 free bets deal, this is known as the qualifying bet. You’ll use this free bet later.

2. The betting exchange is offering lay odds of 2.1 on England to win and charges 5% commission. Using a matched betting calculator, you determine that you need to stake £9.76 in order to ‘match’ your back bet. This gives you a liability of £10.74.

3. Whatever the outcome of the England match, you make a small net loss:

a. If England win, your back bet is successful (you win odds x stake = £20) and your lay bet is unsuccessful (you lose the £10.74 liability). Overall, taking your £10 back stake into account, you are 74p down.

b. If England do not win, your back bet is unsuccessful (you lose your £10 stake) and your lay bet is successful (you win the £9.76 stake minus 5% commission = £9.27). Overall, you are 73p down.

Matched bet #2

4. You can now stake your £30 free bet on Horse X to win at odds of 6.0 via the bookmaker.

5. The betting exchange is offering lay odds of 6.1 on Horse X to win and charges 5% commission. Using a matched betting calculator, you determine that you need to stake £24.79 in order to ‘match’ your back bet. This gives you a liability of £126.43.

6. Whatever the outcome of the race, you make a sizeable profit:

a. If Horse X wins, your back bet is successful (you win odds x stake, minus the stake because free bets are ‘stake not returned’ = £150) and your lay bet is unsuccessful (you lose the £126.43 liability). Your profit is £23.57.

b. If Horse X does not win, your back bet is unsuccessful (you don’t lose anything because it was a free bet) and your lay bet is successful (you win the stake minus commission = £23.55). Your profit is therefore £23.55.

Overall profit

7. Simply by placing four bets (two matched bets), you have made a net profit of £22.81–£22.84.

You can imagine just how quickly the profits add up when you take advantage of multiple matched betting offers. Ready to get started? Sign up as a free member and we’ll walk you through your first three matched bets step by step.