Sports Betting
Exchanges Compared
Online Sports Betting Exchanges
Last Page Update: 5 May 2009
Betting Exchanges - Not For Novices Punters!!
Betting Exchanges let you offer your own odds to other punters. You can also accept odds offered by punters. There are many online Sports Betting Exchanges available and they usually comprise of a range specific betting markets (eg football, NFL, ice hockey, etc.).
No bookies are involved - the odds are offered by punters (like you) and the Exchange charges commission for facilitating the traded bet. A straight win single bet is called a “back” bet. You can also place “lay” bets (betting that an outcome will not occur)... and you can often trade bets while a game is in play.
Betting Exchanges use decimal odds - and you can get great odds if you know what you're doing, but not always!
In general however, Sports Betting Exchanges are quite complex - and not recommended for sports betting newcomers as you really need to do your homework.
When you bet with a standard Bookmaker you'll get 'fair' odds (as determined by the market) and you'll also have a customer service team you can call on with any questions or problems. At a Betting Exchange you're on your own - if you misinterpret the odds or make a mistake you wear it - there is no comeback and in any given wager you still may not be getting odds as good as those available through a bookmaker.
The BookieLabRat.com team often hears of punters who screw up at a betting exchange as they did not understand what they were committing to with their 'great bet', mistook game timing for in-play bets or had forgotten to allow for commission charges, etc. Not nice lessons to learn!
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED Read this book. It may save you money in the long run & will certainly help you maximise your betting exchange profits.
EXCHANGE: Est 2000 & UK licenced, Betsson™ is part of the successful & rapidly growing Swedish Stock Market listed Betsson Group.
Betsson offers betting exchange services in addition to a conventional sports bookmaker bets. (Plus Casino & Poker)
COMMISSION: Betsson deducts commission at a rate of four (4) per cent or lower calculated on your net winnings on any single Market when backing, laying or selling. In the event that you lose a bet no commission is deducted.
SPORTS COVERAGE: Betsson's European football betting coverage is the best we've seen (if you want to bet on a Division 2 Polish side - Betsson is the betting exchange for you!)
TRAFFIC: A very good range of betting opportunities across most markets daily. Good traffic especially for European football coverage. Betsson has on average considerably less traffic and liquidity in it's markets***
MIN/MAX BETS: At Betsson Betting Exchange the minimum stake in a bet is generally 3 & bets can't exceed 5000.
SPECIAL FEATURES: Amazingly deep football betting coverage. Sportsbook & exchange through one account so you can also use standard 'bookie' services.
ODDS / PRICES: As with all betting exchanges Betsson can save you money on standard bookie odds. You need to do your homework however to maximise your profits.
PAYMENT OPTIONS: Credit cards: Visa, Eurocard & Mastercard. Debit cards: Solo & Switch plus Moneybookers, Neteller & Bank Wire
CURRENCIES: 7 accepted, more available soon. GBP, USD, EUR, DKK, SEK, NOK, TRY
PAYOUTS: Very efficient and quick - like a growing number of bookies Betsson won't pay back to credit cards due to issuer restrictions.
BONUS: No special promotional exchange offers at present. Betsson Sportsbook however offers a range of joining bonuses depending on where you're based. The top offer is a 100% first deposit match to EUR100 plus 2 free bets! Country specific info
SPECIFIC RESTRICTIONS: No USA Residents can bet with Betsson.
BETSSON - European Challenger to BetFair
BETFAIR - World's First & Biggest Exchange
EXCHANGE: BetFair™ is the World's largest Betting Exchange. Established in 1999 the UK licenced and based BetFair is owned by The Sporting Exchange Ltd.
BetFair is only a Betting Exchange (although has extended recently into online poker)
COMMISSION: Betfair charges a Commission on your net winnings on a market. 5% is usual with discounts applying for frequent punters (up to 60% discount - ie a minimum commission rate of 3%)
SPORTS COVERAGE: BetFair's betting coverage is very good. It is global (ie includes NFL, NBA, etc even though they do not accept USA members) Coverage is not as deep as Betsson for lower division football bets. (Note: BetFair will extend to a new market if there is sufficient demand - contact them!)
TRAFFIC: The world's most extensive Betting Exchange with a huge range of daily betting opportunities. Betfair has on average 8-10 times the volume and liquidity of Betsson Exchange on any betting market***.
MIN/MAX BETS: The minimum stake at BetFair is £2. The minimum deposit is £25.
SPECIAL FEATURES: 'Where is the Money" feature to show betting options available & what's been matched. "Maximum Exposure" you can assign your Account a risk limit and manage your bets to this limit.
ODDS / PRICES: Claims to offer 'up to 20% better odds'. (Our analysis suggests 2-3% better for football bets before commission). Do your homework!
PAYMENT OPTIONS: Credit cards: Visa, Mastercard. Debit cards: Visa Electron, Solo, Visa Delta, Maestro, Laser (Ireland), Switch. PayPal (UK only), Neteller, Moneybookers, BT Click&Buy, MoneyTT, MoneyWorld, 8-Pay, Western Union, Bank Transfers, Personal Cheques.
CURRENCIES: 10 accepted
GBP, USD, EUR, HKD, AUD, CAD, DKK, SEK, NOK, SGD
PAYOUTS: OK - security checks can take a while for 1st withdrawals and cash out even back to same card as deposited takes 2-5 days. .
BONUS: A £25 Free bet if you join via the links in BookieLabRat.com
SPECIFIC RESTRICTIONS: No USA Residents can be BetFair members.
THE 2 TOP BETTING EXCHANGES - QUICK COMPARISON INFORMATION
This page covers a quick comparison of the TOP 2 BETTING EXCHANGES recommended by the BookieLabRat.com team to help you make a decision on where to bet. Remember, to make the best betting profits you need to have accounts with more than one bookmaker or exchange to ensure that you've got options available for the best odds, game coverage & betting combinations.
Visit the betting exchange using the "VISIT" links or any images on this page. Remember if you sign-up with either of these exchanges we get a small finders fee (enough to keep the site online and some fresh cheese!) Thanks!
*** if you're betting with big stakes or trading frequently during a game, the availability of "volume and liquidity" in a given market is critical to you being able to place and lay the required number of bets at the required prices for profitable football betting. We recommend BetFair for major betting exchange users. Betsson Exchange is growing all the time and is a great alternative for placing bets at great prices before kick off.
Betting Exchange shootout - which sports betting exchange offers the best value to football punters?