The Complete Guide to Matched Betting

Have you heard rumours of a way of betting that guarantees a win every single time? If you have, then the chances are that you thought it was too good to be true. Of course, most people lose money when gambling. Yet, matched betting is different. In fact, it is different precisely because it isn’t gambling.

Your money isn’t at risk with this kind of betting. So, what is it all about and how can you get started?

Why Trust This Guide?

Have you been promised the world for free before? We all tend to doubt the offers that seem to be too good to be true. Yet, this time it is totally true.

You can trust this matched betting guide because it is written from personal experience. I have spent endless hours researching the subject and perfecting my approach.

You can also see how I have helped other people to earn money in this way. Since I got to grips with this subject I wanted to help others to do the same.

I did this by creating powerful software that is easy to use. This means that anyone can now very quickly discover how to place bets that can’t fail.

By doing this I have helped many people to earn money with risk-free betting. You can trust this guide because it is based on their experiences as well as mine.

What is Matched Betting?

Right, so let’s rewind a bit and start at the very beginning. What is matched betting anyway?

This isn’t something magical, mythical or even mysterious. It’s isn’t a scam, a swindle or even shenanigans. There is no risk involved in doing this either.

This sort of risk-free betting has been described as taking advantage of online welcome bonuses. It is also said to be a mathematical exploitation of offers. Both of these descriptions are correct.

The starting point here is with the bookmaker welcome offers you have probably seen or heard of. They often pop up on the telly. “Deposit £50 and get another £50 for free” is the sort of phrase used.

Almost all betting firms offer these enticing deals. They are meant to get players to spend their own money. And lose it, of course.

Matched betting involves taking these free offers and making a profit on them. Best of all, it only takes a few minutes of work to do this.

You can use this simple technique with any sort of bonus. This means everything from free betting on sports to free spins on slots and bonus money at a casino.

Any kind of free betting bonus is ripe to have the maximum benefit squeezed out of it. However, is it going to be complicated to do? The answer is no, provided that you do it in the right way.

A complex mathematical equation is needed to work out how to make the most of any bonus. This is why it makes sense to tools such as those on Profit Maximiser to work everything out.

What is No-Risk Matched Betting?

You will see the words “no-risk” used a lot in connection with this kind of betting. What does this actually mean, though?

The simplest explanation is that you just can’t lose money when you bet in this way. Unlike normal betting, there is no chance of you ending up with less than you started with.

Naturally, this means that it attracts people who would never risk their hard-earned cash on betting. You need to bet on the right deals and some sweet winnings will be yours.

Is Matched Betting Risk Free?

It is worth pointing out that matched betting being risk free depends upon you doing it well. If you make a mistake then you can lose money.

On the other hand, follow the instructions to the letter and then you can’t lose out. There is no room in this money-making technique for hunches, wild guesses or gut instincts. It’s all based on simple maths.

Is Matched Betting Gambling?

Given what we have just looked at, it seems safe to say that matched betting isn’t really gambling at all. Gambling is usually defined as playing games of chance for money.

By taking the element of gambling out of it we stop it from being gambling. This means that we need to look at it in a completely different way.

Is this is an investment? A clever way of making money? Is it a mathematical approach to getting an unfair advantage over the bookies?

The truth is that it is all of these things. Gambling in the traditional sense it certainly isn’t, though.

How Does Matched Betting Work?

Now that you know the basics it is time to get down to the nitty gritty. How does matched betting actually work? What bets do you need to make?

When it comes to sports betting there are basically 2 elements to it;

• Back bet. You place this bet with a bookmaker. You are betting on a specific thing happening. It could be Real Madrid beating PSG or it could be a certain horse winning.
• Lay bet. The next step is to place a lay bet. This is done at a betting exchange such as Betfair. Here, you bet on the outcome mentioned earlier not to win. In those examples given, the lay bet is for Real Madrid not winning or that horse not winning.

As you can see, this covers all outcomes. One of the bets has to pay out. If the odds are right and you bet the perfect amount then you are guaranteed to come out ahead. I’ve written a more detailed guide of how it works here.

How Much Profit Can I Make?

The next key question is around how much money you can expect to make in this way. Are we talking fortunes or modest amounts?

The truth is that the amount you win with matched betting will vary from one bet to another. Some will pay out more handsomely than others.

It all comes down to the odds that you can find. In some cases you could get a very tasty profit. Other bets may lead to lower wins.

Again, the best way to maximise your profits is by using the right software. This will ensure that you place bets that give you the chance of the biggest wins around. You will also see in advance how much you will win.

It has to be remembered that you won’t lose on any bets if you do it right. Therefore, you can gain steadily even if you have one modest win after another.

I’ve written a full article about it here. It breaks down exactly what you to hit your earnings targets. Our 5 top casino wins on Profit Maximiser have netted over £1,000,000!

Rise in Demand

Until recently, knowledge of this safe betting method was limited to a select band of people. These were the people who had worked out the maths and were quietly benefiting from it.

It was like a secret loophole. The bookies didn’t want more people to know about. Even those people who were making money were probably reluctant to let others know about their strategy.

Not any more, though. A huge rise in demand has led to matched betting being a hot subject. Everyone wants a piece of this action now.

It is no surprise really. After years of losing money through gambling, people can now win every single time. This boom in interest has been helped by the internet, of course.

Many people now go online looking for trustworthy betting strategies like this. If you are keen to get started right now then you aren’t the only one. A look at the search figures from Google confirms that lots of people are looking for information on this subject. Below is a graph showing the rapid increase is Google searches for Matched Betting.

Increased Bookmaker Competition

There are a couple of key factors that are needed for this type of risk-free betting to work well. The first is access to a lot of different bookies. The second is for these bookies to offer lots of tempting deals.

The good news is that both of these conditions exist right now. There is a huge level of competition in the UK’s bookmaking industry.

What this means is that there are tons of great deals out there. All of these bookies want you to bet with them. To encourage you to do this they will offer you whatever they can.

This can mean free bets. It can means extra places. It can mean better odds. You can take advantage of all of these offers.

What’s the Risk?

If you have gambled before then you will be used to weighing up the risk. In life, and in betting, the potentially bigger rewards usually mean more risk.

Yet, this is where matched betting really stands out. Simply put, there is no risk of losing your money.

All of the odds are calculated in advance. You just need to look at the software you use to see what you are getting.

You will see two possibilities. Either your back bet will win or else your lay bet will win.

This means that there are 2 possible amounts of winnings you could get. You will see the figure for winning the back bet and the amount for winning the lay bet.

These will tend to be very different. However, they may also be similar if the odds are right. Either way, there is no risk.

If you place the right bets at the right amounts you simply can’t lose money.

What Do You Need to Get Started?

Getting started on matched betting is a lot easier than you might think. The following are the things that you need.

• Bookmaker accounts. You will need to set up accounts with each of the bookies you are going to use. You can do this as you go rather than setting them all up in advance. The majority of bookies make it very easy to do this.
• Betting exchange accounts. To make this work you also need to be able to play lay bets on a betting exchange. Again, this is something that it is very easy to do.
• The right software. You can work out the right bets manually but it would be a huge amount of effort. Getting reliable and easy to use software will get you start easily.
• £100 starting bank would be ideal.

Has Matched Betting Been Featured in the News?

Has your interest in this subject been piqued by something that you saw or read? This sort of betting technique has been in the news a fair bit lately.

1) Huffington Post reviews Matched Betting.

2) Guardian reviews Matched Betting.

3) Telegraph reviews Matched Betting.

Of course, the angle of the story depends upon who is interviewed. Bookies hate losing money so they want matched betting to disappear. Sadly for them, they can’t do anything about it.

New stories about punters trying to earn money are more positive. They view this sort of betting as being a clever way of turning the table on the bookies.

This way of earning money has gone mainstream to a degree. However, that doesn’t mean that the chance to take part has gone away. This is as good a time as ever to get going.

How Much Money Do You Need to Start Matched Betting?

You can start placing risk-free bets with a modest amount of money, roughly £100. This comes as a surprise to many newcomers but there is a good reason for it.

For most betting strategies you need a fairly large pool of cash. This is because you win some and lose some. You need to start out with enough money to not go bust before you start winning.

However, with this approach you won’t ever lose. This means that you can gradually build up your funds with each win. Because of this, pretty much anyone can start profiting with no fuss.

Some bookie offers ask you to bet a small amount. This might mean using £5 or £10 of your own money in order to receive your free cash or free bet.

Make Your First Profit

So far so good. But seeing is believing, isn’t it? If you still have doubts about how this work then going through this worked example will put your mind at ease.

To make things ultra-clear, let’s create a short timeline on how your bets work, continuing with our example above:

1. Register with the bookmaker
2. Deposit £20
3. Make a £20 bet
4. Free bet is released to your account.
5. Make your next £20 bet
6. Enjoy profits

If you’re thinking, “Hold on, that doesn’t add up,” then you’re right, it doesn’t. That’s because we’re only looking at one half of the story. We’ve talked so far about making bets, and now it’s time to learn about matching them.

Find & Place Your Qualifying Bet

The first step is to find the bet that will make you money. As mentioned earlier, this is made infinitely easier if you use software to do it for you.

If you don’t have an account with the bookie then it is time to open one. Now you may need to place a qualifying bet in order to get the bonus offer.

You will see a list of the day’s suitable offers on the matched betting tool you use. Just look through them and choose one that you like the look of.

The reason that matched betting is risk-free is because we always cover our bets: we place a bet at the bookmaker on Arsenal to beat Chelsea, and then a lay bet at the exchange on them not to beat Chelsea.

So: you’ve made your £20 deposit at the bookies, and you place that £20 on Arsenal to beat Chelsea – this unlocks your £20 free bet. You then visit the betting exchange (such as Betfair) and you place a bet on Arsenal to not beat Chelsea – this guarantees you will break even. The match is played, and let’s say Chelsea won in the end.

The result? You lose the £20 at the bookies, but win £20 at the exchange – your net profit is zero (ignoring commission)

Here is a video example to make things a bit clearer.

Claim Your Free Bet

The real winning comes from using your free bet wisely. The qualifying bet was only really to give us access to this free bet. If you also win money on the initial bet then so much the better.

Now you have a free bet you only need to use your money on the lay bet. This means that you have a far greater chance of turning a healthy profit.

The process is the same as in the qualifying bet example.

Back to the bookies, and you place £20 on England to beat Brazil using your free bet. At the exchange, you lay £14 on England to not beat Brazil – exactly the same as before.

England wins the match: you make £55 profit at the bookies, and lose £41 at the exchange. That’s a £14 profit!

Let’s say England didn’t win the match: you win £14 at the exchange, but you don’t lose anything at the bookies, since you were using a free bet.

Either way, you make a profit of £14. Guaranteed.

Withdraw the Profit

After your qualifying bet and free bet you will be in profit. There is simply no chance of losing money if you do things in the right way.

Therefore, you can now safely withdraw your profits. This is the most satisfying moment of all as you see the cash you have won in your bank account.

Is Matched Betting Legal?

We just looked at the importance of not getting your accounts suspended. However, this certainly doesn’t mean that matched betting is illegal. In fact, matched betting is completely legal.

There are no lows to stop you doing this. After all, what you are doing is simply taking advantage of bookmaker offers. There is no law against being smart in how you bet. As much as the bookies would love there to be one.

The only possible issue is that your account can be suspended if the bookie suspects you are abusing their offers. This is called gubbing and you want to avoid it as much as possible.

Are the Profits Tax Free?

You will be pleased to see that all profits made on bets are tax free for UK citizens. This is great news, as it means that everything you win is yours to keep.

The reason for this is that the gambling companies need to pay taxes instead. So, your tax liability is, technically, taking into account right at the start.

You don’t need to declare. It doesn’t matter how much you win or how frequently you do it.

How Do I Find More Free Bets?

We looked at the example of using a free bet earlier. This is great but what comes next? Finding a constant supply of good offers is the key to winning regularly.

This is where your matched betting software is vital. This will ensure that you always stay up to date with the latest deals from all the bookies.

There are bucket-loads of free bets out there. By letting an automated system find them for you, life will be a lot easier.

You then just need to look through the daily list and choose which ones you want to use first.

Do Existing Users Get Free Bet Offers?

Your next question may very well be around what happens when you eventually run out of offers. Aren’t they aimed at new members? There are lots of different bookies but if you bet regularly will you run out of deals at some point?

Fortunately, this isn’t as big a problem as you might fear. Indeed, it’s not really a problem at all.

Bookmakers also offer interesting deals to existing users too. This is an intensely competitive market and they need to work hard to retain their customers.

The image below is all of the daily offers posted on Profit Maximiser from just a few weeks back.

How to Find the Offers Myself

It is possible to find bookie offers on your own. However, this is something that is likely to take up a lot of your time.

To do this, you would need to check out all of the bookie’s sites manually. Of course, this is only half of the process as well.

After this, you need to also calculate the wisest way to use the free bet. This is even more time-consuming than looking for offers.

With the right matched betting software all of this is done for you.

There are some free websites that list them including Money Saving Expert & Matched Betting Blog. I’ve reviewed the best matched betting services (including the free ones) in this article.

Matched Betting Services

What exactly do you get from a matched betting service? The heart of this service will be a tool that lets you find the right offers and odds.

This is something that needs to be easy to use. You don’t need to be a technical whizz to use this sort of tool. You also don’t need to be an expert gambler either.

The tool will be updated regularly so that there are always fresh offers on it. Expect to find video tutorials on how to use it too. The process is simple but watching a short tutorial will help you to avoid making any mistakes. Click here to read a list of all the best free and paid matched betting websites.

Matched Betting Forum

Another smart idea is to speak to other people who have already carried this out. In this way you will be able to find out about new offers that haven’t yet been updated in the tool. Some offers are extremely time-limited and disappear quickly.

You can also gain confidence by asking questions on here. It is highly motivating to speak to others who have earned huge profits with this type of risk-free betting.

You will find a forum linked to your matched betting software tool. You might not spend all day on it but it is definitely worth dropping in now and then.

Will Matched Betting Affect My Credit Rating?

Keeping a close eye on your credit score is a smart idea. This is something that is vital to your financial well-being. You need a good credit score to get loans or a mortgage, for example.

Matched betting won’t have any effect all on your credit score. Even if you open dozens of betting accounts at different bookmakers it won’t matter at all.

Some bookies are said to carry out a credit check on people opening a new account with them. However, this has no effect on your credit score. Neither do your bets or your winnings.

Other Opportunities?

So far, we have looked at sports betting opportunities. This method can be used on any type of sport. There is no need to feel restricted to the most popular sports or to those that you know a lot about.

There are also plenty of other opportunities for using the principles of matched betting. Basically, any type of gambling can be made into something that guarantees you a profit.

Online casinos and bingo sites are among the places where you can find bonus offers worth taking advantage of.

Casino Bonuses

If we move onto casino bonuses we can see that these deals are perfect for using in matched betting. Just like sports betting, a hugely competitive market means that all of the casinos desperately try to attract new clients.

Their welcome offers tend to include either free cash or free spins. Some offer both of these as gifts for new players. In both cases, they expect players to just fritter away these gifts.

Yet, it is possible to take a smarter approach. A good software tool will show you how to find these offers and make the best of them. I’ve written a detailed post about Matched Betting casino bonuses and how to profit from them.

Below is a large casino win posted on the Profit Maximiser forum.

Sports Arbitrage

An arbitrage bet is another clever way of making money this no risk. This is sometimes called arbing.

Arbing goes a step further than matched betting. It means betting on all possible outcomes. We can see this more clearly if we go back and look again at the example of the Manchester derby.

With the right matched betting tactics you bet on one team winning. You then place a lay bet on the same team not winning.

With sports arbitrage you bet on all outcomes. This means separate bets on United, City and the draw.

The key to doing is to find the right odds. You need to be sure that you will at least break even no matter what happens after the first whistle blows. I’ve written a detailed guide about profiting from arbitrage here.

What Do You Do When You Have Signed Up to All the Bookmakers?

We touched earlier on the fact that existing users can also get useful bonuses. This means that you don’t to rely wholly on new bookies.

In practise, with so many bookies around you are unlikely to run out of welcome offers. You may find that you jump between new deals and offers from bookies you are already registered with.

Reload Offers

This type of deal is for existing users. You will get given some sort of bonus when you load up your account again.

This is the way that betting companies use to entice back customers who have stopped gambling with them. It is typically offered by online casinos as well as by bookies.

As with welcome bonuses, it is vital that you use this free money wisely and carefully. I’ve written a detailed guide about profiting from Matched Betting after sign up offers.

Advanced Offers

You won’t want to rule out any sort of offer that could be of use to you. An extra place on a horse or boosted odds can greatly increase your winnings.

In the same way, a casino might offer free spins on a new game. A bookie might lay on a special, novelty offer. A big, televised racing tournament might see a number of deals on offer.

Weekly free bet clubs give you free cash to bet with regularly. Bookie refund offers give you back your money in certain circumstances.

All of these are fairly advanced offers. Yet, they are still easy to take advantage of too.

Can You Make £1,000 a Month Consistently From Matched Betting?

How much can you realistically expect to earn, though?

The amount you get will depend upon matters such as how long you dedicate to it. Some of the juiciest offers are also only available for a short time. So the time of day that you do this matters as well.

Picking the most profitable offers also helps. Of course, the exact amount you win each time depends upon the outcome of the race or match as well.

By looking at how people have done in the past we can see that £1,000 is definitely a realistic monthly target. In fact, there are plenty of examples of matched betting giving far bigger returns than this.

It all depends how keen you are and how you fit it into your life. Will you spend an hour or so on it each evening? Maybe you will get into a routine that lets you hoover up the finest offers every morning?

Used in the right way, matched betting can be the gateway to financial independence. With no risk attached, of course.

FAQ

Q1) Is matched betting legal?
A1) Yes. It is completely legal

Q2) Can anyone do this?
A2) Anyone who can legally open an account with a bookmaker can carry out matched betting.

Q3) How much do you need to start with?
A3) There is no need to start off with a huge pool of cash. Instead, you can start off slowly and build up your profits day after day.

Q4) Is it easy?
A4) Carrying out matched betting manually would be very difficult. On the other hand, using the right automated software it becomes very easy.

Q5) Does it affect my credit score?
A5) No. It will have no effect on your credit score at all.

Useful Links

1) All blog posts I’ve written about Matched Betting.

2) Matched Betting calculator.

3) Free Odds Matcher.

4) Odds Convertor.

5) £1 trial link of my Matched Betting service – Profit Maximiser.

6) Matched Betting for dummies.

7) Each Way Arbing.

8) Extra Place Strategy.

9) Price Boosts.

10) Casino Bonuses.

11) Full time Matched Betting.

12) Matched Betting without free bets.

Get Started with Matched Betting

All the information you need to get started is available on the Profit Maximiser website. You can scroll down to the bottom for the details on signing up and taking advantage of your first free bet. We even offer a 14-day trial to new customers for just £1: with this you’ll have full access to our software, the private Facebook group and the tools for locating dozens of bets.

Click here to visit Profit Maximiser