Free Bets - Expert Guide

Landing a life-changing accumulator bet might be the holy grail for gamblers, but you could say that free bets come in an easy second. In fact, the beauty of free bet offers from bookies and sportsbooks is the fact that they're usually legitimate, just for making a deposit or opening a new account. Here's our guide explaining what you need to know about finding the best free sports bets offers, how free bets work, how to claim free bets and betting offers in the UK, cashing out and comparing top freebets bookies.

Finding Lucrative Free Bets UK Offers

The best free bet offers can be found in various ways, notably by reading betting review sites and by checking Twitter for the Robin Hoods of the gambling world, who love to dish out news on the latest free bets. Surfing to bookmaker websites and checking the homepage and betting offers tab is another good option. The No. 1 strategy is to bookmark good free betting sites, which is like having your own betting butler on hand every time new free bet offers are released.

How Do Free Bets Work?

Most free bets require a deposit or the entering of a bonus code to activate the free credit. Once you've activated a bonus, you're free to place a bet that aligns with the rules of the betting offer. Generally, the main restriction is that the odds of the bet have to be over a certain price (often over even money), and must be placed within a certain period. Every time you bank your free bet offers, it's important to spend five minutes reading the terms and conditions. Sure, we'd all rather do 50 push-ups than read the fine print, but this chore is definitely worth it. While most free sports bets offers are legit and not designed to trick you, some might have particular rules that could cause you to miss out on the full bonus if you don't adhere to them. For example, if you bank a $50 free bet, it might need to be wagered all in a single bet rather than split up; failure to bet the full amount at once often means you'll end up forfeiting the difference.

How to Claim Free Bets & Bookmaker Sign Up Offers In UK

Most new customer free bet offers are awarded to bettors who open a new account and make a deposit, which might or might not require entering a bonus code. Good bookmakers will give you the lowdown on what you need to do, and provide a link or code to activate the bonus. Your free bet offers will then be credited to your account, which will display a normal balance and a separate free bet balance. To use the offer, you typically need to add a selection to your betting slip, ensuring you check the "use free bet" box. Remember to use the full free bet amount, unless you're sure it can be used on multiple selections.

Can You Cash out Free Bets?

Once free bets are credited to your account, you cannot withdraw the cash without placing a bet. If your bet wins, then most free bet offers will instantly transfer the winnings to your main wallet, enabling you to withdraw the winnings as normal. Some of these free bet offers might require you to play through your winnings a certain number of times before they're transferred, but this tends to be much more common with deposit bonuses in casinos than in free bookie bets. Some free bet offers also allow you to place a bet and cash out in play. For example, if you back West Ham to beat Manchester United 6-1 and it's 0-0 at half time, you might be able to cash out your freebet before full time.

Comparing Free Betting Sites

The competitiveness of the online betting world is good news for bettors, with bookies and sportsbooks constantly offering betting offers, particularly for opening new accounts and making deposits. However, it's worth quickly analyzing the different new customer betting offers to take advantage of the most bettor-friendly offers. Here's a checklist:

• Claiming free bets: Do you need to open a new account or make a deposit to claim yours?
• Free bet value: What's the total free bet amount available, and is it dependent on your deposit amount?
• Singles or multiple free bets: Can the free bets be used on multiple selections, or must it all be bet on one bet?
• Multiple free bets: Is the site offering multiple free bets, such as 5 x $5.00 bonuses?
• Cashing out: Can you cash out free bets in play?
• Free bet odds: What odds must the bonus money be used on (e.g., odds of evens of higher)?
• Sport specific free bets: Can the free bet be used only on specific sports, and can it be used on accumulators?
• Withdrawing free bet winnings: Can you instantly withdraw the winnings?
• Maximum free bet wins: Is there a maximum payout limit?

Some free bet offers have special features, such as freebies on certain events; for instance, there might be betting offers for Champions League games. So be sure to check the details and find the niche that interest you.