Best Matched Betting Sites USA

Bonus bets and other sports betting promotions are a good way to enhance your bankroll and create extra winning opportunities. Now, what if I told you you could use sportsbook bonuses not just to increase your shot at a profit but to make it a certainty? This is where matched betting sites comes into play.

By combining bonus bets with betting exchanges, you can legally build scenarios that guarantee profit. After scouring the web in search of the best sportsbooks for matched betting, I found several platforms worth considering and included them in the list below.

This page can also serve as a boot camp for those unfamiliar or new to this phenomenon. I’ll try to explain how matched betting works and give some advice on picking the best matched betting strategy for you.

What Is Matched Betting?

Matched betting is a strategy that leverages sports betting promotions so that you end up with a guaranteed profit. The goal is to outplay the bookies by triggering a welcome bonus and covering all possible scenarios of a given sporting event so that you win no matter the outcome.

Step one is to place a back bet on a sportsbook platform and then lay another bet on a betting exchange platform. So, regardless of what happens, you will lose one wager and win the other. But how do you make a profit then?

The trick is to find an online sportsbook where backing a bet triggers a free/bonus bet promotion. Once you get the bonus bet, you repeat the process — only this time, you use the free bet credits to back a bet on the sportsbook while still using your own money to stake a lay bet on the betting exchange.

If your back bet falls through, you technically don’t lose any cash since you used a free bet, and you win money on your lay bet. Alternatively, if you lose the lay bet, it will be covered with the return coming from the free back bet. Either way, you can only profit from the situation.

Terms to Know in Matched Betting

In matched betting, back and lay bets are two key concepts used to lock in a profit by taking advantage of free bets and promotions offered by bookmakers. Using matched betting strategies, you can earn money regardless of the outcome of an event. Here’s what each term means:

Back Bet

Back bets are those you place at traditional bookmakers. For example, you’re betting on the outcome of a football match, where New York Giants are predicted to win. You are basically “backing” the outcome when you make a back bet. If the outcome you’ve bet on happens, you win the bet, and if it doesn’t, you lose it, along with the stake. A back bet is typically made in order to qualify for a free bet or promotion.

Lay Bet

On the other hand, a lay bet is the opposite of a back bet. In contrast to betting on a particular outcome, you’re betting against it. Lay bets are used to “cover” your back bets, guaranteeing that you win money regardless of the outcome. With this strategy, the initial back bet is effectively eliminated.

Examples of Matched Betting USA

If you still can’t wrap your head around how matched betting works, I’ll try to illustrate it with a simple example:

• Find a sportsbook that offers a bonus bet promotion to new customers (“bet $5, get $20” type of deal). Register, deposit, and place a $5 bet on the Boston Celtics to beat the Philadelphia 76ers at the odds of +200.
• Go to one of the betting exchanges and put a $5 lay stake on the Boston Celtics to lose.
  • Scenario A: The Celtics are defeated, and you keep the $5 from the betting exchange while losing the $5 at the sportsbook.
  • Scenario B: The Celtics win, and you get a $15 payout ($10 profit) from the sportsbook while having to pay $10 liability at the exchange.
• You haven’t won or lost any money, but you now have your $20 free bet. The next step is to repeat the process.
• Place a $20 bonus bet on the New York Knicks to beat the Milwaukee Bucks with the odds of +200.
• Take a $20 lay stake at the betting exchanges on the opposite outcome.
  • Scenario A: The Knicks win, and you get to keep the profit part of your bonus bet ($40) while paying a $40 exchange liability. While this simplified example still leaves you at square one, you may still find more favorable odds and win a small profit.
  • Scenario B: The Knicks suffer a defeat, and you lose your bonus bet, although you technically lose nothing since it was free to begin with. Meanwhile, you get to keep your $20 from the exchange, meaning you’ve earned a $20 profit.

Can You Make Money With Sportsbook Promos?

Bonus bets are not the only sportsbook promos that can create matched betting opportunities. The system can also work with different promotions, like deposit match bonuses, second-chance bets, odds and profit boosts, cashbacks, referral bonuses, and more.

Also, I must emphasize that matched betting is not gambling, even though you’ll be placing real money bets. The whole point of this strategy is to remove the element of chance while creating a no-risk situation.

Top Matched Betting Sites in the US

To start matched betting, you first must find an online sportsbook that offers a decent welcome bonus to new customers. Below are a few betting sites that have sweet deals for first-timers, which will give you the flexibility you need to create an ideal matched betting opportunity.

1.🥇bet365

bet365 is a world-renowned bookmaker with over two decades of experience. It first launched in New Jersey before going online in Colorado, Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, and Iowa.

If you’re in one of these states, you can take advantage of bet365’s welcome deal. Namely, you’ll get $200 worth of bonus bets after you’ve placed a $1 wager. This will give you more than enough funds to make the most of your matched betting strategy.

As for the platform itself, you can expect competitive pricing on the most popular markets, along with a lineup of daily odds and profit boosts. The operator provides one of the best live betting experiences through detailed matched trackers and plenty of events that are available for live streaming. A well-designed mobile app and useful features like early cashout contribute to the appeal of bet365 as your go-to matched betting site.

2.🥈FanDuel

Placing a first wager of up to $1,000 on FanDuel will come at absolutely no risk, as losing that bet will result in a complete refund. Say you lose your $50 back bet and win a $50 lay bet. You will be all evened out, but will still gain a $50 bonus bet at FanDuel.

FanDuel provides much more to its customers aside from a good matched betting setup. You can enjoy arguably the best mobile betting app in the industry, bet on a variety of live props and micro bets, and take advantage of exciting daily odds boosts, among other things. FD specializes in parlay betting, enabling you to find a ton of SGP and SGP+ options through its brand-new Parlay Hub area.

3.🥉BetMGM

If you lose your first bet at BetMGM, you will receive the money back in the form of bonus bets. While they are not the only sportsbook with a welcome bonus of this type, it is the biggest first-bet insurance promo on the market. Namely, your first wager on BetMGM is protected up to $1,500, much more than what you’ll find on any other top-level betting site at the moment.

BetMGM is also known for its robust loyalty program through which you can earn additional bonuses. It features a highly praised mobile app, plenty of daily odds and profit boosts, a great selection of events available for live streaming, and competitive pool challenges. It’s also great for making parlays thanks to its Easy Parlay function, while the Edit My Bet feature allows you to edit previously submitted wagers with ease.

Is Matched Betting a Lucrative Strategy?

The world of online betting is quite turbulent, to say the least. Unfortunately, most bettors end up losing substantial sums, thus contributing to the bookmakers’ considerable profits, while a rare few hit it big. Such cases allow these bookmakers to offer enticing incentives to bettors.

Fortunately, the brains behind the strategy decided to share it with fellow bettors. But, unfortunately for him, he got the after having suffered significant losses to bookmakers and wanted to recover his hard-earned money.

Although matched betting is a more popular strategy among UK bettors, it has now ventured into the USA, where it’s rapidly gaining popularity. Thanks to PASPA, matched betting now presents an opportune moment for every bettor to leverage this strategy for profiting from these bookmakers.

Arbitrage Betting vs. Matched Betting

Arbitrage betting and matched betting are two distinct strategies employed by bettors to secure a profit in the world of sports betting. Yet, some may confuse the two, as arbitrage betting shows a strategy for locking in profits by betting on one game. Here’s a comparison of these two strategies for clearer purposes:

Arbitrage Betting

• Exploiting pricing discrepancies in the betting market by placing bets on all possible outcomes of an event;
• Low-risk strategy as it locks in profits from price differences;
• Lower profit margins;
• Sustained profitability means constantly watching the market;
• Finding betting opportunities is more straightforward; 
• Frowned upon by sportsbooks but legal.

Matched Betting

• Utilizing free bets, promotions, and incentives offered by bookmakers to guarantee a profit;
• Low-risk strategy as it aims to secure a profit regardless of the outcome;
• Higher profit margins;
• More sustainable in the long-term due to the focus on bonuses and promos;
• Managing multiple bookmakers and calculating stakes requires more work;
• Legal and not discouraged by sportsbooks.

How to Find the Best Matched Betting Site?

The most important thing to consider when picking a sportsbook for matched betting is how often it gives out free bets and other promotions that you can turn into matched betting opportunities. It’s always a good sign if a sportsbook features reload offers that you can keep exploiting.

Of course, you can also examine the site outside of the matched betting perspective. If you plan on engaging in regular sports betting on the platform, you should look into odds, market depth, user experience, and banking.

Also, keep in mind that picking a sportsbook is just the first step. You’ll need to find a viable betting exchange, too.

Tips & Tricks for Matched Betting

• Always use the calculator — Input values like back stake, back odds, lay odds, and lay commission, and the calculator will tell you the exact amount you need to bet at both the sportsbook and the exchange and how much profit you stand to make. Never calculate from memory or do your own estimations, as this is where mistakes happen.
• Make sure to have enough starting money — You’ve probably heard the saying, “You need to spend money to make money.” Well, the same holds true for matched betting as well. Although matched betting sites guarantee a profit regardless of your stake size, unless you’re betting sizable amounts, your profit will be insignificant.
• Diversify your bets — Since match betting is risk-free, there’s no reason to limit yourself to particular betting markets. You can find match betting chances at table tennis betting even if you’ve never seen a ping-pong table in your life.

Do You Need to Pay for Matched Betting Services?

There are matched betting services that you can use to find the right opportunities more quickly. These platforms promise to do a lot of the legwork for you, and they’re actually pretty good at it.

The problem is that you need to pay for a subscription to unlock all of those useful tools for finding quality matched betting scenarios. Some platforms offer free trials, of course, but these don’t last very long and have limited access.

Whether you pay for a matched betting service or not is ultimately up to you. Doing things all by yourself is harder and more time-consuming, but it might prove cheaper in the long run.

Pros & Cons of Matched Betting

✅Pros	❌Cons
No-risk way to make money betting	Higher profit requires higher bets and the use of paid matched betting platforms
Relatively simple to learn	Fewer opportunities once you run out of new customer bonus bets
Not very time consuming	A mistake can leave you exposed to risk

Final Thoughts

If matched betting guarantees profit to anyone who utilizes it correctly, you might wonder why more people don’t take advantage of this strategy. Most likely, it’s because many think of matched betting as too complex for them or are convinced that it’s all too good to be true.

However, matched betting actually works, and it’s pretty simple once you figure it out. If you still don’t believe us, try it. Join one of our recommended US sportsbooks that feature hefty welcome deals, find a suitable betting exchange that will let you make a lay bet, and follow our instructions to create a foolproof matched betting scenario.

FAQs