The UK's Best Online Betting Bonuses - 2023

With the online sportsbook marketplace becoming even more competitive as new betting sites enter the fray each month, bettors are being bombarded with free bet offers, new bonuses and promo codes like never before. Every bookie wants you to sign up with them, but there’s just not enough time in the day to give them all a go. Fortunately, you won’t have to.

There are a bunch of welcome bonus offers out there, but there are also a few promotions for existing players too. Whether you’re looking to grab a bonus at a top football betting site, or want a bonus for betting on tennis, our quick guide to sports betting bonuses will give you everything you need to know to pick out the best bonus for you. Once you’re done, you can choose from our list of best betting sites – we’ve only picked out the best on the market.

How We Review the Best Online Bookies

Everyone has their own needs and expectations of what the best betting sites will offer, so when we consider which site to recommend we always make sure we take into account a variety of factors.

They are: 

• A valid gambling operator licence — you won’t find any unlicensed bookmakers on Compare.bet
• An easy-to-use interface on both the desktop and mobile site as well any available native app
• A wide range of betting options, including sports, virtual sports and even non-sporting events
• A variety of pre-match and in-play betting markets
• Competitive odds
• Generous bonuses and promotions for both new and existing customers
• Mobile compatibility
• Customer-friendly terms and conditions
• Helpful customer service

Our list of the best online bookies presents you with all the information you need, but it’s up to you to compare the best betting sites to find the right one for you. Read our in-depth reviews of online bookmakers and consider each of the following factors so that you find a betting site that suits all your needs.

Types of Sports Betting Bonuses

Let’s explore the various bonuses you’ll encounter at UK betting sites.

Matched Deposits

The matched deposit bonus, which is also often used by online casinos, is also a popular sportsbook offer. It’s very straightforward in that a bettor makes a deposit and it will be matched (up to a certain amount) by the bookmaker. You might find a bookie that welcomes you with an offer of 100% matched first deposit up to £100, for example, which basically doubles your initial qualifying bet. Sounds great, right? 

There is almost always a wagering requirement attached to a matched deposit bonus, which will need to be cleared before you can bank this money and any winnings made from it. Wagering requirements involve betting the value of the bonus, the qualifying bet, or a combination of the two a set number of times before you claim your winnings. It’s best to remember that full terms and conditions apply when investing in a matched deposit.

Matched deposits are regularly seen at online casinos, but less so at bookmakers. These bonuses see the bookie match your deposit at a certain percentage within an agreed limit to boost your bonus balance. 

Matched Bets

Matched bets are largely the same as matched deposits. The only difference here is that the bookmaker will credit new customers with their bonus funds once they’ve placed your first bet, rather than making your first deposit.

One example of a current matched bet comes from Luckster, where players making their first bet of £10 will receive another £10 to wager on the site – no wagering requirements attached. 

Free Bets

This is probably the most popular betting bonus on the market – you’ll find a free bet offer at almost every top bookie. It’s nice and simple – all you need to do is place a qualifying bet at (or above) the minimum stake amount and at odds greater than a specified amount. For example, you may be offered the chance to bet £10 and get a £10 free bet.

One clear benefit of a free bet to new customers is that it gives you a lot more flexibility with your initial bet. If the first bet doesn’t land a winner, you’ll can still make a free bet stake later down the line. 

We like BetTarget’s current free bet welcome offer of bet £15, get a £10 free bet. This comes with no wagering requirements but must be used on minimum odds of 2/1. 

We’re also fans of the welcome offer from STS Bet: £30 in free bets when punters deposit and play £10. This promotion will be delivered as three separate £10 free bets, and again there are no wagering requirements on any winnings.

Risk-Free Bets

As the name suggests, this is the safest bet you can get. If you don’t land a winner, you get your stake back! There is a small catch with this type of free bet offer – the maximum amount refunded is usually capped. Plus, the returned stake is usually in token form, so it’s non-withdrawable. That aside, this is still a decent offer that allows new customers to bet with a little more confidence knowing that at the very least, they’ll have their stake returned as a free bet.

Money Back Bet

As a welcome bonus for new customers, a money back bet works pretty much exactly like a risk-free bet. If your first bet is a bust, you’ll get your stake back — occasionally as cash but more likely as free bet tokens or sportsbook bonus funds. Unibet’s current sign-up offer is a good example of a money back bonus you can get as a new punter. Here, the money back offer is a bit more flexible than on other sites, allowing you to get between £1 and £40 back if you back a dud with your first bet. You’ll get your money back as bonus funds, which you’ll need to wager 3x before you can convert any winnings into cash. 

Money back offers are often available to existing customers too, with one of the best-known examples served up by the Bore Draw Money Back promotion at Bet365. To participate in the offer, which is available on all football matches, you must place a pre-match Scorecast, Correct Score, or Half Time/Full Time bet. If the match ends up 0–0 and your bet loses, Bet365 will refund your stake. What’s more, if you place your bet with cash rather than with a free bet or bonus funds, you’ll get your bet refund back as cash too. 

Casino Bonuses 

Casino bonuses are regularly available at the best betting sites alongside sports betting bonuses. Sites such as Unibet, William Hill, and BetUK offer all the classic casino bonuses, from matched deposits to free spins on classic slots. A popular option is available at STS, which currently offers 100% up to £100 matched deposits for new casino players in tandem with its bet £10 get £30 in free bets bonus offer at its sportsbook. 

No Deposit Bonuses

No deposit bonuses do exactly what it says on the tin – new customers can claim a betting bonus without making a deposit. While you’ll usually find this kind of offer at online casino sites, there are a few bookmakers that are now giving punters the chance to get in on the fun too. All in all, this is a great option for punters who essentially want to try before they buy.

Other Sports Betting Promotions

The best online bookmakers offer a great selection of frequent promotions for new and existing UK customers. Whereas bonus offers are designed to attract new customers, promotions reward returning customers. Let’s take a look at some of the more common promotions available at UK betting sites.

Frequent Price Boosts

Price boosts see bookies offer improved odds on particular markets. These promotions are  often applied to high-profile sporting events, such as a marquee Champions League fixture. Some bookies also offer price boosts on certain outcomes as part of an accumulator bet. These are often referred to as ‘enhanced accas’.  

Example: For last season’s Champions League final, 888sport offered customers boosted odds of Liverpool to win at 10/1 (was 21/20), and Real Madrid at 20/1 (was 47/20). Keep an eye out for their price boosts for the upcoming World Cup in Qatar.

Acca Insurance

Acca insurance is when you receive your stake back when your accumulator loses by one leg. These promotions are a great option if you’re uncertain about one of your selections, or just want a safety net. This bonus will often only be applied to selections above a certain threshold, such as 5 legs or more, and your stake will most likely be returned as a free bet. 

Example: If you were to bet on five Premier League results this weekend, and four out of five came through, with Unibet’s acca insurance you would get your stake back as a free bet. 

Accumulator Bonus 

This fairly simple betting site offer can drastically improve the value of your accumulator. With an accumulator bonus, bookmakers reward you for adding more bets to your football accumulator.

Example: Bet365 gives bettors a 5% bonus on a treble acca that can be boosted to a whopping 90% bonus for a 13-fold.

Request a Bet

Request a bet promotions allow you to request odds for a market that isn’t on offer at your chosen betting site.  Many bookies allow you to get in touch on Twitter, or even create your bet request on the betting site or app.  

Example: At Betfair, you simply need to tweet your requested bet with the hashtag #oddsonthat and a member of the team will quickly get back to you.

Bet Builder

Like Request a Bet, Bet Builders allow you to create bespoke bets with unique betting odds. However, they aren’t made up of markets otherwise unavailable from a bookie. Instead, Bet Builder bets are multiples — the key difference from regular accas being that they’re put together with bets on the same match or game, rather than with bets on different events. 

Example: Using the 888sport Bet Builder, you can create custom wagers and hopefully winning match multiples on football, NFL, NHL, MLB and NBA games.

Free Bet Clubs 

Free bet clubs reward frequent bettors with a free bet on a weekly basis, providing they have placed a certain number of qualifying wagers in the week. Just like any free bet, these will come with other terms and conditions, so make sure you read the fine print before you sign up.

Example: PaddyPower’s Rewards club offers players a free bet of £10 if they place a minimum bet of £5 or more.

How We Rank Betting Bonuses

There’s more to choosing bonuses than meets the eye. The size of the bonus sum is likely what attracts most punters, but a closer look at the terms and conditions is the best way to determine which betting offer is best for you. Let’s take a look at some of the factors that come into play when we rank the UK’s best betting offers.  

Bonus Terms and Conditions

A betting bonus will often come with a variety of terms and conditions that will affect how you play. It’s, therefore, very important that new customers check the small print to see what T&Cs apply bonus and how they can be met. Let’s have a look at the bonus T&Cs you are most likely to come across.

Wagering Requirements 

Wagering requirements are one of the most common conditions attached to betting bonuses and they can have a big effect on how you play. They stipulate that before you can claim your winnings from a bonus, you have to first wager the value of your qualifying bet, your bonus amount, or a combination of the two, a set number of times. 

A great example of wagering requirements in action is RubyBet’s deposit £10 get a free £10 bet. RubyBet state that before you can claim either your bonus winnings or funds, you have to first wager the value of the free bet 10x. This means that you have to wager a minimum of £100 before you can convert your winnings into real money. 

Minimum Odds 

A condition you will often see attached to your bonus are minimum odds. These mean that there are only certain bets you can make in order to fulfil the requirements. These minimum odds will often be low, usually between 1/1 and 1/3, so it shouldn’t be too hard for new customers to fulfil the betting requirements. 

Minimum Deposit 

With bonuses like matched deposits and matched bets there is often a minimum amount you have to first deposit in order to claim the bonus. Mansion Bet’s 100% matched deposit up to £100, for example, requires you to place a minimum deposit of £10 in order to claim this exciting welcome bonus. 

Maximum Winnings 

There will usually be a max limit on how much you can win from a bonus or free bet. The maximum win amount is put in place to protect the bonuses from being abused. Online bookmakers use their promotions to attract new players and reward existing players, but if their customers regularly win big using their bonuses then sportsbook would lose a lot of money.

Time Limits 

Once new customers have claimed their bonus and worked out how to use it, they will often then have to meet the requirements in a set time. If they haven’t wagered the required amount of times or bet against the specified odds, then the bonus will expire and any winnings will be lost. The standard timeframe for bookmakers tends to be 14 days, but this can differ from site to site. Some bookies are pretty generous, with 888 offering new customers 90 days to clear their wagering before claiming. Others are less generous, however, with RubyBet only allowing their players 7 days.

Payment Exclusions

Something to look out for before accepting a bonus at the best betting sites: there may be payment method exclusions to consider. e-Wallets are generally the affected method here, such as PayPal, Skrill, and Neteller. While you can still make a deposit with these payment methods if a payment exclusion is in place, you won’t be eligible for the bonus. The reasons for this are twofold: first that vendors are charged fees by these services, costing the betting site when they honour bonuses, and e-wallets are also less robust when it comes to KYC checks. This latter point opens the betting site up to potential bonus abuse.

Market Restrictions

Be aware that many of the best bonus offers at the bookies will be restricted to certain betting markets. Unibet, for example, allows you to choose from a number of welcome offers based on your preferred betting market. If you’re a football fan, you can choose their ‘Bet £10 on Football, get £30 Football Free Bets’, or if you prefer to bet on the races, you can choose their equivalent offer for horse racing, greyhound racing and trotting events.

The good thing about Unibet is that they provide online betting bonuses that will suit all punters, but no matter which bonus you choose, you’ll be restricted from using your bonuses on a wide range of markets. If you like to keep your options open, other betting bonus sites like 888sport have bonus offers that can be used across multiple markets. 

Something you must be aware of, however, is that although these bookmakers vary in terms of which markets are restricted for each bonus, all of them will place restrictions on your qualifying bets. For example, to qualify for Unibet’s football sign up bonus, your minimum qualifying bet of £10 must have odds that are no lower than 1/1 (2.0); must have no enhanced odds, profit boosts or special boosted odds of any kind; and can’t be a cashed out bet. But, unlike most other betting bonuses on the market, there are no wagering requirements on any free bet winnings made from this promotion, making it one of the best online betting offers available. 

So make sure you’ve double checked all market and betting restrictions when choosing from the best betting offers, as they will each suit different betting preferences. Note also that different bonuses will expire sooner than others, so keep an eye out for that.

Mobile Bonuses 

One of the great things about betting bonuses is that new customers can claim them on their mobile as easily as they can on their desktop. Mobile betting has improved enormously in recent years with fully-optimised mobile sites and industry-leading apps offering customers a top-quality betting experience from wherever they are in the world. Punters can keep up-to-date with the site’s best new bonuses and odds through push notifications and can even claim mobile exclusive promotions in some cases.

But why choose a bonus via mobile betting as opposed to desktop? Well, for us, it adds more versatility, a more personalised experience, plus you can check scores, the latest odds, and promotions while out and about in your daily life.

Pros and Cons of Mobile Bonuses

As you can see there are many benefits to mobile betting bonuses, so let’s highlight the pros and cons for a more balanced understanding. 

Pros and Cons of Using a Mobile App

Taking it a step further, many sites offering the best best betting bonuses also have a native app that’s available to download to your mobile device. But what are the pros and cons of a mobile app? Let’s take a look. 

Betting Bonus Payments

There are a lot of different banking methods you can use to claim a betting promotion these days. Each option provides something different to players, so let’s have a quick look at the key options available to you. 

Event-Based Bonuses and Promotions

Betting sites will offer a range of different bonuses depending on each sport. From faller insurance for horse racing, to price boosts during football matches, to specific tennis tournament bonuses, there is a lot on offer. Let’s have a look at the way bonuses work in different sports. 

Football

Football is the most popular sport in the world, meaning that football betting markets have some of the most exciting bonuses around. Price boosts, for example, are a common bonus found at bookmakers, offering you better odds on a match for a limited time. When once they might have been reserved for the most high profile matches, they are now a regular occurrence with Sky Bet’s Soccer Saturday Price Boost taking place each week of the football season.

Horse Racing 

The unpredictability of horse racing is what makes the sport such a popular betting market, but it also means there’s a chance your horse may not even finish the race. That’s why you’ll often see bookmakers offering bonuses and promotions that safeguard against the eventuality of your bet falling through. Mansion Bet’s ‘Beaten by a Head or Less’ is a perfect example of this, offering £25 as a free bet if your horse loses by a marginal amount. This is a great bonus to use on highly-contested races such as the Grand National and the Cheltenham Festival. 

Tennis 

Unlike football or rugby, tennis is mostly played as part of knock-out tournaments rather than in league. As such, you will often get free bets and bonuses attached to specific tournaments like Wimbledon, the French Open and the Australian Open. You should expect to see bookmakers offer new customers all sorts of promotions over the course of these tournaments, especially when the heavyweights of the game face off against each other in the latter rounds.

American Football

The NFL is typically the main event if you like to place a bet or two on American Football, and along with the sport comes a great range of betting bonuses and promotions. Across the board, you will find matched deposits, free bets, and risk-free bets where the punter receives a small return on a bet even if it loses. However, if you’re feeling a little more creative with your bets, then you might like to try a bet builder. 888 is currently offering bet builders alongside a £5 free bet each week for those included in its Acca club, granted if you spend £20 a week on American sports betting.

You may also be interested in early payout bonuses that are regularly offered for the Super Bowl and mean you can cash out if your team takes the lead by a certain number of points. It’s important to see what’s available to you on your chosen sport, so look through the best betting sites such as William Hill, BetUK, and FansBet to see what they offer.

Golf

With top golfing tournaments held throughout the year, the best betting bonus sites are ready and prepared with a great range of offers available to new and existing customers. Free bets, matched deposits, as well as ongoing promotions, such as reloads and cashbacks are up for grabs at the best betting sites. At the moment there are a lot of free bets to be had — such as with Bet365 which is offering £50 of free bets when you place a £10 bet. 

Basketball

If basketball is your sport of choice, then be sure to look further afield than the NBA for some great betting bonuses. At the time of writing, Bet365 is offering up to 70% on men’s European basketball accumulators, applying to the Euroleague, Eurocup, Spain’s Liga ACB, Italy’s Lega 1, and the German Bundesliga. 

However, the NBA is of course where most bookies aim their attention, with the likes of bet builders and many a free bet bonus available on its markets. As ever, you will find great welcome bonuses such as matched deposits along with existing customer promotions such as cashback and reload bonuses at the best betting bonus sites. 

F1

F1 2021 was arguably the greatest season in Formula 1 history, going right down to the wire between Max Verstapen and Lewis Hamilton. Going into the now-notorious final Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi, William Hill offered boosted odds of 30/1 for Hamilton to be crowned champion, and a staggering 40/1 for the eventual winner, Verstapen. 

It was a season that attracted many fans – and sports bettors – to F1, and though Verstapen has already retained his crown, you can bet on the winners of the remaining Grand Prix races, or look ahead to F1 2023, where Hamilton will no doubt be looking for revenge. In either case, the bookies will offer you a number of bonuses and promotions as the current season draws to close, and plenty more once the next season gets underway in March 2023.

How to Claim a Bonus at the Best Betting Sites

Once you’ve checked through the best betting sites, and chosen your preferred site and bonus, it’s a very simple process to register and start playing. Follow these steps and away you go!

1. It’s really important to compare all of the best betting sites before making your decision, and this can be done by browsing the tables and reading through our reviews on CompareBet. Checking for your preferred games or betting markets is an important decider, as is the betting format, bonuses available and ease of use; 
2. Click through from the table above or the site in question’s review page and follow the registration process – it’s a simple process, adding in details and confirming your identity via KYC checks;
3. Once registered with your new account, you can make a deposit and claim your first bonus. Be sure to check that the bets you’re looking to make, and the payment methods you’d like to use, are eligible for the bonus;
4. Now you’re all set to place that first bet. Remember to always stay within your budget, never chase your losses, and always do a bit of research before betting. 

Using Your Bonus at the Best Betting Bonus Sites

Along with the complexities of each sport comes a wide range of betting options available to punters at the best betting bonus sites. There will be many crossovers, and betting bonus types that are more frequently seen than others, so let’s take a look at the most common ones you’ll likely find. 

Straight Bets 

A straight bet involves making a single bet on one particular outcome – they are used in games where a points spread is used. Let’s look at an example to make it a little clearer::

• Los Angeles Rams 52
• Tampa Bay Buccaneers -10

What this tells you is that the predicted score will total 52, with the Buccaneers winning by 10 clear points. The 10 representing the “spread” of the game, or the total points and the margin of victory.

You will find straight bets available for many team sports, such as football, American football, and anything with variable scorelines. 

Over/Under

An over/under bet is when you place a bet on whether an outcome will go over or under a particular number specified by the bookies.  What’s great about an over/under is that it’s really versatile and can be applied to so many different sporting events and situations, even down to the number of red or yellow cards a team, or a particular person, will receive. If the concluding result is exactly as the bookies has predicted, then all bets are refunded; this is called a push bet. 

Accumulators

Hugely popular with football betting, the accumulator, or acca, allows a punter to combine a number of single bets, from multiple games, under one wager. There’s huge potential with an acca, depending of course on the level of risk and the number of bets you add into the mix. To win, you have to correctly guess all parts of your acca. If even one leg fails, then it’s a loss. Some of the best betting sites will add in a stipulation that allows you to win even if one bet is lost, and many more offer acca insurance that refunds your bet in the event that you only lose out by one leg.

In-Play Bets

Also known as live betting, in-play bets are placed while the match, or race, is taking place. For example, you may be in the middle of watching Manchester City take on Leeds when you decide you’d like to place an outside wager on Leeds winning 2-0. This in-play betting can add real excitement to your viewing experience, and of course potentially lead to some returns if you’ve gauged the flow of play correctly. The best betting bonus sites will have a corresponding mobile betting app that makes it really easy for you to place that in-play wager without missing any of the game. Since the match data is updated in real time, you’ll find fair odds to bet against. However, because each betting site is different, it’s worth doing a bit of research on the best odds before placing a bet.

Cash Out Explained 

An extra perk available at top online bookies like Coral and William Hill, and the perfect companion for in-play betting, a cash out feature gives you the option to collect some winnings or cut your losses while a sporting event is still underway. So, if your bet is going well — perhaps five out of your six acca picks have already come in — and you want to secure a profit, cash out is the way to do it. On the flip side, if an event is not going how you envisaged, and your bet is looking like a bust, you can claw some of your stake back by cashing out your bet early. If you can’t decide whether to take your money or take your chances, some bookies offer a partial cash out feature that’s the perfect solution. Here, you can cash out part of your bet and leave the remainder to run to its natural conclusion. Locking in profits on your wagers, no matter the outcome of the event? If it sounds like a great deal, you’d be right. However, it pays to keep in mind that not all bets are eligible for cash out. For example, you can’t usually cash out bets if you’ve used a price boost or a free bet token.

Get Started with a Betting Bonus

There are many different betting offers available to punters, from welcome offers to existing player promotions. Now that you’ve got to grips with the basic features of each major type, how to claim them and the various terms and conditions that affect them, you should be ready to get started. So run through our list of the best betting offers in the UK, find your favourite and sign up.

Bet Responsibly with Your Betting Bonuses 

Bonuses like free bets and money back offers can be a good way to bet on your favourite sports teams without spending too much of your own cash. However, here at Compare.bet, our safer gambling advocates recommend treating even the best betting site bonuses exactly as you would your own money. This way, you’ll maintain those good gambling habits that help keep you safe and avoid getting sucked into betting more than you intended. Below, you’ll find some more top tips to help you avoid problematic gambling, along with details of some of the organisations that can offer help and support if things have already taken a turn for the worse. 

Top Tips for Responsible Betting 

Here are some of our top tips to help you gamble responsibly online:

• Set and stick to spending and time limits for gambling.
• Take regular breaks from gambling to enjoy other activities.
• Choose bookmakers with safe gambling tools, and put those tools to good use.
• Stick to betting on familiar sports and markets.
• Accept your losses the same way you do your wins, and never chase a bad bet.
• Think of gambling as an entertaining hobby, not as a guaranteed income.

Problem Gambling Organisations 

Here are the details of some of the organisations supporting problem gamblers in the UK:

• BeGambleAware
  National Gambling Helpline: 0808 8020 133 
• GamAnon
  Meeting Locator
• Gordon Moody
  Email: [email protected]
  Phone: 01384 241292 

See our references & visit related external links

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1. ncsc.gov.uk – ‘Setting up two-factor authentication (2FA)’