The best UK betting sites provide unbeatable depth on the English football pyramid and daily horse racing schedule. You can also find odds on rugby, cricket, and sports across the pond, like American football and basketball.
Our team of experts has put more than 20 online bookmakers to the test, opening new accounts, depositing funds, and claiming bonuses to identify the best ones you can use from the terraces or the race course.
Top UK Betting Sites
In This Guide
- Top UK Betting Sites
- How We Rate UK Betting Sites
- Bonuses & Promotions at UK Betting Sites
- Popular Sports at UK Bookmakers
- Markets at UK Betting Sites
- Payment Methods at the Best Betting Sites
- Streaming on Live Betting Sites in the UK
- Cashing Out on the Best Betting Sites
- Getting Started on UK Betting Sites
- FAQs
- References
How We Rate UK Betting Sites
We look at multiple factors at all UK betting sites, including odds quality, accepted payment methods and payout speed, and how regular and valuable promotions are.
Here is how some of those criteria break down in terms of importance.
Sports Coverage & Markets
Football is the most popular sport in the UK for betting, with 70% of active bettors betting on the sport at least once per year. That’s why every site will have deep Premier League coverage and plenty of World Cup coverage, but the best sites cover more than just football.
We look at all the markets available per game and how many different sports are covered. We love sites that offer extensive coverage of horse racing, tennis, golf, and the US sports like the NFL and the NBA.
Sites that offer the most markets per game, with things like player props, extensive alternate handicaps, and detailed game prop markets, rank the highest with us.
Valuable Odds
Odds are crucial, as they dictate the profit you get for each successful wager. We take a sample set of odds across the major and lesser markets at UK betting sites and compare them directly with one another. Sites that offer the most value, on average, per bet with their odds will rate the highest.
After all, we want to win as much as possible from each wager.
Bonuses and Promotions
Bonuses and promotions can be very valuable, but they aren’t always as profitable as the headlines say. We carefully examine each bonus offer at online bookmakers, evaluating the terms & conditions to find the ones that truly provide the most return for each punt.
That means we assess wagering requirements, time limits, and speciality bonuses like FA Cup odds boosts and horse racing cashback deals.
Payment Methods
A decent range of fast withdrawal payment methods is crucial to all decent online bookmakers in the UK. Most UK punters will prefer to use their Visa or Mastercard debit cards, but the best betting sites should offer plenty of effective alternatives.
These should include eWallets such as PayPal, Skrill, Neteller, MuchBetter, Payz and AstroPlay, and payment systems associated with phones like Apple Pay and Google Pay.
Features, Tools, & Customer Support
Sites aren’t all about the hard facts; they should also provide a great experience for you. We spend lots of time using each site across both desktop and mobile devices, testing navigation, site speed, and any tools like quick betslips and live betting, too.
Then there is customer support, where the speed of reply and the helpfulness of responses are a great sign of a brand that cares about your experience. We like mobile betting apps, but we don’t downvote sites that don’t provide them.
Bonuses & Promotions at UK Betting Sites
Nearly all sports sites in the UK offer bonuses and promotions, like welcome bonuses, free bets, and odds boosts that provide some extra value for to your play. 0includes betting sites where you can bet on sports. We’re now going to take a look at the most common bonuses that are offered by betting sites in the UK.
Welcome Bonus
A welcome bonus is strictly for new customers to a betting site, and can only be claimed once. But it is usually very valuable and can come in multiple ways.
One of the most common ways is as a deposit match bonus, which gives you a percentage of your first deposit in extra betting credit for your account. It can also be as a number of free bets or a no-risk bet where you get the stake back if it loses.
Bet X Get Y
The ‘Bet X Get Y’ promotion is probably the most common betting offer found at online betting sites in the UK. As an example, you might be required to make a £10 deposit and then place a £10 bet using your own money at the site.
Once that bet has settled, you will receive the bonus, which is usually a few free bet credits that relate directly to your original deposit.
Such offers usually do not come with wagering requirements, but they do come with other terms and conditions, such as minimum odds, expiry dates and restricted markets.
Risk-Free Bets
A risk-free bet almost works in exactly the same way as ‘Bet X Get Y’ offers at the best bookmakers in the UK. The only difference is that you only get the ‘Y’ amount (which, in this case, is usually the same as your qualifying bet stake) if your qualifying bet is a losing one. This offer will also come with other terms and conditions, so make sure you always check them out.
Cashback Deals
Sadly, for most of us, losing money at UK betting websites is as common as winning money. You can temper the ache of losing money with cashback deals.
Such deals will pay back a percentage of your weekly losses for any week that you end up in the red. Most such offers will pay your cashback as bonus money, but some will give you cashback as money you can withdraw if you choose to.
Best Odds Guaranteed
You always receive the best returns if you seek out the best odds. UK bookmakers with ‘best odds guaranteed’ will help you achieve that.
This usually applies to horse racing, but sometimes to greyhounds and other sports. When you bet on an event, there are two prices – the price at which you placed your bet and the starting price.
The top betting sites in the UK with ‘best odds guaranteed’ will always pay you out at the more beneficial price.
Enhanced Odds
This bonus is an incentive to bet on specific events. Say Liverpool are playing Real Madrid in the UCL and are priced at 5/2. With an enhanced odds deal, you may be offered better odds of 9/2 if you accept and place a bet of the specific minimum value.
The caveat is that what you win in excess of the normal odds is paid out as bonus cash and not cash you can immediately withdraw.
Acca Boosts
The best bookmakers in the UK love punters who place accas, as accas are difficult to win with, but when/if they do win, they pay out big time. As an encouragement to get punters to place an acca, many sites will offer acca boosts on winnings.
This could be a 5% boost on a four-fold acca, right up to a 100% boost on a 15-fold acca. Acca boosts are usually paid as normal cash, but some sites may pay them as bonus cash, so as always make sure you check the T&Cs.
Insurance Offers
This deal is also in line with accumulators/accas and is offered by many top UK betting sites. The deal is simple to understand – if you place an acca with a specified minimum number of legs (and sometimes minimum value and odds) and that acca fails by one leg, you will have your stake returned, usually as a free bet or bonus money.
Popular Sports at UK Bookmakers
Football is easily the most popular sport in the UK, and that’s reflected in just how many markets and lines there are for it, but the best UK betting sites offer much more than just football.
We love sites that offer a huge range of options for you to bet on even if you aren’t a football fan. These are the most popular options around.
Football
League football is where it all starts at online betting websites in the UK, with the English Premier League the top dog, followed by the Championship and Leagues One and Two. The UEFA Champions League and Europa League are both popular among bettors as well, plus the top European leagues such as La Liga, Serie A, the Bundesliga and Ligue 1.
Nearly all of the best football betting sites in the UK provide access to every match going, from top leagues in Afghanistan to U19s matches in Zimbabwe. We’ve even covered the best World Cup betting sites if you want to go super-deep into the international side of the game.
Horse Racing
For decades in the UK, horse racing was synonymous with betting and physical UK bookmakers, and online betting sites now make it even easier to bet on the nags.
Punters can enjoy their annual flutter on the Grand National or Epsom Derby, or they can peruse the daily UK racecard to pick their favourite mounts. One bonus of UK bookmakers is that punters now have access to global racecards in the US, Australia, South Africa, Japan and others.
Tennis
Even though the Djokovic/Federer/Nadal/Murray era of tennis is over, tennis remains an immensely popular sport for punters in the UK.
In England, the tennis calendar is completely dominated by the two weeks of Wimbledon, but coverage at the best betting sites extends far beyond that, including the three other majors (Australian, French, US) and the ATP, WTA and Challenger tours for the world’s premier players.
Rugby
There are two codes of rugby played in the UK – Rugby League and Rugby Union. The best betting sites naturally cover both codes, both nationally and internationally.
Rugby Union is more popular as an international game, with the World Cup and the annual Six Nations Championship dominating. Rugby League, on the other hand, tends to focus more on domestic matches in the Betfred Super League and Challenge Cup.
Both codes are truly international, though, and UK betting sites will offer betting opportunities in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and other countries where the oval ball is tossed around.
Cricket
When football fades from the sporting calendar during the summer, cricket tends to take over. While interest in the domestic game (the County Championship and The Hundred) is not what it once was, the UK sporting public remains thrilled by international cricket and The Ashes in particular.
Cricket betting sites are a great option as the sport is a global, all-year-round sport, so online bookies will offer coverage in all cricket-playing nations such as Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan and the countries within the West Indies.
Golf
In the UK, golf ranks second only to football in terms of participation in competitive sports. This helps keep the interest up in professional golf, which peaks in the UK each year during the annual Open Championship.
The Open is one of golf’s four majors, and UK betting sites will cover both it and the other three majors (US Open, US Masters, and US PGA Championship) across the board, as well as leading players’ tours such as the PGA, the DP World Tour, and the LPGA.
Boxing
Who doesn’t love a good punch-up? Pugilism has come a long way since its bare-knuckle days, with the world’s top fighters earning millions of dollars per bout.
There are now four pro boxing boards – the WBA, the WBC, the IBF and the WBO, with online betting sites offering odds on every bout all boards organise.
Both men’s and women’s boxing takes place over a large number of weights, so boxing betting fans are never short of fights to put their money on!
Markets at UK Betting Sites
Betting sites in the UK offer a huge range of bet types for every sport, letting you make season-long wagers, single-match bets, or combine multiple options into one giant bet.
These are the most popular kinds of bets you can make at any online UK bookmaker.
1×2
Also known as a match winner or moneyline bet, this wager is all about selecting the outcome of the game: will it be a win for one team, the other team, or a draw?
The inclusion of a draw for football makes 1×2 bets trickier to get right than moneyline wagers on US sports where ties are basically impossible, but they are still the most common wagers that get placed on any game.
Handicap
If you know your sports, then handicap bets are for you. This is where the bookmaker applies a handicap to the scoreline for a game, which gives each team roughly even odds and sometimes eliminates the chance for a draw.
So you might see Arsenal get a -1.5 handicap in a game against Burnley. So if you bet Arsenal -1.5, then the Gunners must win the game by at least two goals for your bet to cash, otherwise the Burnley +1.5 side of the wager wins.
Over/Under
In any sport with a final scoreline, the best betting sites will allow you to bet on the number of goals or points scored during a game.
This will usually be offered on an over/under basis. For example, in football, ‘over/under 2.5 goals’ is a popular bet. You’d put your money on the game containing 0, 1 or 2 goals (under) or 3 goals or more (over).
Other sports will have different over/under targets for you to judge, and at the best sites, you can decide upon your own over/under totals.
Outrights
Most sports in the UK have season-long competitions, such as EPL in football or the Super League in Rugby League. Others have long-term annual tournaments like snooker’s World Championships or Wimbledon in tennis. To bet on an outright is simply to bet on the eventual winner of any of these competitions.
Accumulators
An accumulator bet or ‘acca’ is a series of single bets that are strung together to form a chain. If Bet A in the chain is a winner, then the winnings become the stake for Bet B, and so on until the final bet.
Any number of bets can be placed in an acca, and of course, the more bets, the higher the overall odds.
It does not matter the order in which bets are calculated, as the overall returns will be the same no matter the order.
Of course, if one or more legs of an acca fail, then the acca loses. Many of the best UK betting sites will offer you ‘acca insurance’ in which your accumulator stake is returned to you, usually as a free bet, if your acca fails by one selection.
Bet Builders
Bet builders are like accas, except that all legs of your acca must be on the same sporting contest. Most UK bookmakers only offer bet builders on football, but a few allow bet builders on other sports, usually team sports.
An example of a Bet Builder could be an International match, for example, England vs Germany. A three-leg bet builder could be Harry Kane to score anytime, Germany to be leading at halftime, and Declan Rice to receive a yellow card. Like an acca, all parts of your bet builder must be successful for your overall bet builder to generate a return.
In-Play Betting
In-play or live betting has only been possible since the creation of new betting sites that operate on the internet. Live betting allows you to place bets on certain markets once an event has started. Live betting is typically available on ‘best score wins’ sports (i.e. football, tennis, US sports) but not on ‘first past the post’ sports (i.e. horse racing, greyhounds).
You can bet on most aspects of a contest in play, and also on specific markets designed for in-play betting. Example markets include the next scorer of a goal in football, the winner of the next set in tennis, or the next player to achieve a 100+ finish in a game of darts.
Payment Methods at the Best Betting Sites
Getting money into and out of your account on UK sports betting websites is crucial to the betting experience. While betting should always be done purely for enjoyment’s sake, the chance of winning money adds that extra layer of excitement.
What, though, are the best ways of getting money into (and, crucially, out of) your sports betting account? Let’s talk about it…
Debit Cards
If you have a UK bank account, you’ll almost certainly have a debit card issued either via Visa or Mastercard. Both established and new UK bookmakers should accept debit cards. They are secure, and deposits are instant. Withdrawals can also be instant, but depending on the website you are using, they may be delayed by 3 to 5 days.
eWallets
eWallets are financial service providers that allow you to maintain a balance in an account that is not a bank account and make easy payments online. Popular eWallets available in the UK include PayPal, Skrill, Neteller, and MuchBetter, and others such as Payz (formerly ecoPayz) and AstroPay. Deposits from eWallets are usually instant and withdrawals at some bet sites to eWallets can be instant too, but other sites may delay them for three to five days.
Credit Cards
The UKGC banned the use of credit cards for deposits and withdrawals at betting sites in the UK in 2020. This ban extends to ‘stealth credit’ payment systems such as PayPal credit and some ‘pay by phone’ facilities.
Paysafe Card
PaySafeCard was established as a way to allow people to make payments online who don’t have any kind of online payment facility. PaySafeCards are temporary cash cards that can be loaded with money at some real-world retailers and then used to make online payments. You can now also manage your PaysafeCards online. Payments at online betting sites in the UK via PaysafeCard are usually instant. Withdrawals to PaysafeCards are not available.
Apple Pay and Google Pay
These two payment systems link a financial account, such as a bank account, to a merchant via an Apple or Google account, usually via a mobile phone. You can also make payments via Apple Pay and Google Pay via a PC or laptop. Many UK betting sites now accept deposits via Apple Pay and Google Pay (see Apple Pay betting sites), and they are usually paid instantly. Withdrawals are less common as both payment systems are customer-to-merchant and not the other way around.
Bank Transfers
A lot of sports betting websites in the UK will allow you to transfer money directly from and to your bank account. Payments made this way are not usually instant, though. A bank account withdrawal, in particular, may take up to seven days.
Payment Method Speeds Compared
| Payment Methods | Usual Deposit Times | Usual Withdrawal Times |
| Debit cards | Instant | 3-5 days |
| eWallets | Instant | 1-3 days |
| PaysafeCard | Instant | Unavailable for withdrawals |
| Apple Pay/Google Pay | Instant | Unavailable for withdrawals |
| Bank transfer | 3 days | 7 days |
Note: These deposit and withdrawal times are taken as averages. Some UK betting sites may take longer to honour a withdrawal than the maximum indicated. Fees are not usually charged for deposits, but some sites may charge for withdrawals – check a site’s T&Cs for information about any fees that may be charged.
Streaming on Live Betting Sites in the UK
The availability of online betting sites in the UK has enabled in-play or live betting and live streaming. Here, we examine both of these important aspects of UK online betting.
In-Play Betting
In-play betting or live betting online gives punters the unique opportunity to place bets on events that are already underway. You can place any bet on an event that has begun, and you might get better odds than at the start of the event.
For example, say you are considering betting on Tottenham to beat West Ham in the EPL but decide to wait until after kick-off. After ten minutes, West Ham score, but you still think Tottenham will win, so you back them. As Tottenham are 1-0 down, you will get better odds on a Spurs win now compared to the pre-match odds.
With in-play betting, you can also bet on aspects of a contest that are not available before the start of the contest. In football, it could be the next side to have a player booked. In cricket, it could be the method of dismissal for the next wicket.
Live Streaming
Live streaming goes hand-in-hand with live or in-play betting at many sports betting sites in the UK, though it has become harder and harder to find big events that are live-streamed on betting sites these days.
You will not be able to stream top sporting action such as EPL or UCL football matches, tennis and golf majors or top-class rugby union, rugby league or cricket matches. This is because all such events are tied to media deals with broadcasting companies.
You will be able to live stream plenty of sporting action at UK betting sites, though – NBA & MLB games can be found, along with ATP and WTA tour tennis matches, and football action from top European leagues such as the Bundesliga and Eredivisie.
There is also a lot of streaming of sports that are not usually televised in the UK, such as volleyball, handball, badminton, and water polo.
Cashing Out on the Best Betting Sites
Cash-out is a facility offered by online UK bookmakers for both in-play and pre-match betting. This facility allows you to cash out a bet after you have placed it. You can cash out a bet at any time up until the event you have placed on has concluded.
Let’s look at two scenarios in which you may wish to cash out:
- You have bet £5 at 3/1 that Nottingham Forest will beat Chelsea in the EPL. Forest are 1-0 up with ten minutes to go, but Chelsea are looking likely to equalise. Your bet would win £15 if Forest ended up winning, but the betting site you placed your bet at is offering you £10 in winnings to cash out. You decide to take the £10, and three minutes later, Cole Palmer equalises for Chelsea, and the game finishes 1-1. You managed to salvage £10 winnings from your bet, and if you’d left your bet on, you would have won nothing.
- You have bet £5 at Evens that the Broncos will beat the Cowboys in the NFL. With six minutes to go, the Cowboys are winning 17-9, and it looks likely that the Broncos will lose. The betting site you placed your bet at is offering you £3 returns to cash out your bet. If the Broncos do end up winning you’d return £10, but that is not looking likely. You cash out your cash your bet to get £3 back, and the game ends Cowboys 27 Broncos 16. If you’d left your bet on, you would have won nothing.
So, cashing out will allow you to lock in profits from winning bets or minimise losses on losing ones. Cashing out, though, comes with the caveat that returns are not as profitable as with winning bets that are not cashed out, but you can save some of your stake from a losing bet that is cashed out.
Getting Started on UK Betting Sites
It’s easy to get started with an account at a UK betting site. The process is slightly different at different UK bookmakers, but you can take the steps below as an accurate guide:
Head to a Site and Register
The amount of information you have to relay to the site depends on the site’s strictness when it comes to ‘know your customer’ or ‘KYC’. You will have to at least give your name and email address.
Unless it’s a no verification betting site, you will also have to give your address and date of birth along with a copy of your passport or driver’s license. Some sites may also ask for documents to back up these details, including evidence of a secure source of funding.
Confirm Your Registration
Most sites will need you to acknowledge your registration. This is to prevent people from registering at UK online bookies with someone else’s credentials. They may send you an email or an SMS message. Reply to the email or SMS or follow the site’s instructions to complete your registration.
Register a Payment Method
To get money into your account, you will need to register a payment method. We always recommend registering a debit card for your initial deposit. Many deposit bonuses are only available if qualifying deposits are made by debit card. You can add additional payment methods later on.
Make Your First Deposit
Head to the site’s cashier to make your deposit. If you are aiming to qualify for a welcome bonus, make sure you make a deposit that’s at least the minimum amount required to obtain the bonus.
Get Betting!
Now your account is funded, you are free to place those all-important sporting bets.
FAQs
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References
- The favourite sports to bet on in the UK (YouGov)
- Popular betting sites in the UK (statista.com)