A betting exchange is a platform which enables customers to punt on the outcome of discrete events. As opposed to betting on a sportsbook, where the customers bet against fixed odds set by a bookmaker, an exchange allows players to bet against each other.
In this article, we will list the best betting exchange sites, detail a few tips and strategies and give a detailed comparison of betting exchanges and sportsbooks.
Table of Contents
 Betfair Exchange
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 Smarkets
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 Betdaq
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 Ladbrokes
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 BetConnect
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This promotional offer is only available to NEW PUNTER accounts. This offer is NOT available to Pro Accounts. Free Matched Bets or Free Matching Credits are given to customers to match Bet Requests. Any winnings from your use of a Free Matched Bet or Free Matching Credits will be paid into your cash balance minus the Free Matched Bet or Free Matching amount. Any losses you incur will be covered by the Free Matched Bet or Free Matching Credits, to a maximum of £20 in total. The Free Matched Bet is only available for the first 3 Bet Requests you are sent. If you reject any or all of the 3 received Bet Requests, your Free Matched Bet balance will be removed after those 3 Bet Requests. After your 3 Matched Bets, all remaining bonus funds will be removed from your account. The £20 Welcome Offer is credited as a Bonus Funds Deposit. There are no wagering requirements on your Free Matched Bets. |
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Best Betting Exchange Sites – Top 5
A Horse Race taking place at the York Racecourse, York, UK (Image: © chriskendall)
#01 Betfair – Best betting exchange for backing with high stake liquidity
#02 Smarkets – Best betting exchange for laying with high stake liquidity
#03 BetDaq – 2% commission rate – Commission-free on all markets sans Football, Horse Racing, Greyhound Racing, Cricket, and Virtual Sports
#04 Ladbrokes – bets are channelled into BetDaq’s platform
#05 BetConnect – Commission-free laying
Best Betting Exchange Sites
#1 Betfair
Betfair is undeniably one of the most popular betting exchanges in the United Kingdom, with a customer base that encompasses nearly 90% of the total number of punters which bet on betting exchanges. Betfair offers an API system and integrated trading tools, which enable you to gauge in-depth data for a betting market in question and help you determine how the odds are drifting, or may drift.
Betfair currently charges a commission fee of 5%. For every bet that you place on Betfair’s betting exchange, you receive Betfair Points, which can be used towards a commission discount rate. Apart from being the best betting exchange for backing with big stake liquidity, Betfair is also popular for its Football and Horse Racing markets.
You can access the Tips & Previews and Historical Data sections on the site’s secondary navigation bar – first, make sure you have clicked the Exchange tab under the main Betfair logo on the top-left of the screen.
It should also be noted that Betfair charges the higher rung of its most successful traders, a charge of 20% on their acquired winnings.
#2 Smarkets
Smarkets is among the most trustworthy betting exchanges for customers residing in the United Kingdom. The site presently charges a commission rate of 2% on all winning bets.
As a Pro Tier customer, you can reap the benefit of a 1% commission rate if you place more than 1,500 bets on a monthly basis or wager more than 1,000,000 GBP in the same time frame.
Smarkets is the best betting exchange for laying with big stake liquidity; however, they offer fewer markets when compared to Betfair. Nevertheless, players are afforded with interesting graphical insights and charts as well as a dedicated blog.
#3 BetDaq
BetDaq is an excellent option for betting exchange enthusiasts, and offers new customers a 10 GBP Free Exchange Bet. At the moment, the site is charging a commission fee of 2% on all winning bets.
BetDaq is commission-free on all markets sans Football, Horse Racing, Greyhound Racing, Cricket, and Virtual Sports. Furthermore, apart from Betfair, BetDaq is the only other betting exchange which offers a public API.
BetDaq also has a separate website called BETDAQ Tips, where interested players can find detailed trading articles and the latest information about market movers.
#4 Ladbrokes
Having acquired BetDaq in 2013, all the bets that are placed on Ladbrokes’ betting exchange are fed into the BetDaq betting exchange platform.
At the moment, Ladbrokes is charging a commission fee of 5%. However, if you acquire 12,000 Exchange Commission Points, you can an enjoy a lower fee of 2%. For every 25 GBP that you win or lose on the exchange platform, you will receive 1 Exchange Commission Point.
You can gauge past match Results via an option which is present at the left-hand side of your screen.
#5 BetConnect
Having been launched in 2018, BetConnect is an up-and-coming betting exchange platform. BetConnect is currently offering commission-free laying, along with a 0% commission rate for 30 days for Pro customers followed by monthly offers.
You will receive 20 GBP Free Bet credit upon signing up, and as time goes by, it's worth keeping an eye out for the site's several other offers as well. There's also a useful Blog page with the latest news, tips and strategies, which can be accessed on BetConnect’s main navigation bar.
What is a Betting Exchange?
A betting exchange allows you to punt on the outcome of discrete events by backing and laying. You can minimize your risk of loss by matched betting. While Betfair is the most popular betting exchange in the United Kingdom, several other promising betting exchanges have gained increasing liquidity over time.
The quantity of customers backing and laying on a betting exchange determines the odds on offer for a particular bet. The better the liquidity is for a certain betting market, the more competitive the odds become. Betting exchanges charge a commission rate on winning bets, and allow customers to create and build on betting markets.
That being said, how does backing and laying work? What is matched betting? Here is all you need to know:
Backing
A Back Bet means that you back a particular outcome to result in a win. For example, if you are betting on Liverpool to win against Arsenal, in an English Premier League matchup, your placed bet will be countered by another customer who is punting on Liverpool to not win the match.
If a Back Bet market is quite popular, a betting exchange platform may match your Backed Bet against several opposing parties. Unlike traditional sports betting, the odds on offer for a Back Bet depend on the betting volume for the market in question. You are not betting against a bookmaker, but against other players.
Laying
Lay betting entails punters acting as a bookmaker themselves, offering odds to sell on a bet that they would like customers to punt on, rather than backing a bet. Lay betting, in a nutshell, involves punters offering a bet, its outcome of which they will hope does not come true during a match.
Matched Betting
Matched betting involves placing multiple bets to cover all the outcomes of a match and ensure a risk-free approach, using Free Bet promotions and bookmaker incentives. For example, if you place a Back Bet on Liverpool to win a match using a Free Bet, and a Lay Bet on Liverpool to not win a match while punting enough money to ensure that you will not incur a loss, you have placed a matched bet. You must have an account on two or more betting exchanges.
Betting Exchange Trading Tips and Strategies
When it comes to punting on a betting exchange, you should always do your research, and fully understand the concepts of backing, laying, and matched betting. Keep in mind also that different betting exchanges come with varying commission rates.
The best betting exchange for backing with high stake liquidity is Betfair, while Smarkets is the best betting exchange for laying with high stake liquidity.
While BetConnect is a rather new betting exchange platform – having been launched in 2018 – it is offering commission-free laying, which makes it an interesting prospect. Betfair offers an API system and integrated trading tools to give you in-depth data for a betting market in question, and to help you determine how the odds are drifting or may drift.
To ensure a risk-free approach, you should pick a market which you expect to fall in terms of the odds on offer. Back an outcome at a price which you expect to fall. The odds on offer at a betting exchange for a particular market are updated on a second-by-second basis, and you should follow the change in the odds on offer carefully.
As soon as you witness a drop in the odds on offer, you can either back the other outcomes, or lay the outcome that you have punted on, guaranteeing a profit. When the odds on offer for an event add up to less than 100%, you can make a profit by backing all the outcomes for that particular event.
Betting Exchanges vs. Sportsbooks
A sportsbook involves betting markets of interest with odds that are determined by a bookmaker. Betting sites charge a margin of profit called bookmaker’s margin on betting variants, the popularity of a betting market of which determines the competitiveness of the quality of the odds offered by a betting site.
A sportsbook does not involve the concept of backing and laying. Players bet on the outcome of an event as is provided by a betting site.
Betting exchanges, on the other hand, come with odds which are determined as per the popularity governing a betting market in question. The higher the liquidity attached to betting markets is, the more competitive the odds on offer become.
Betting exchanges charge a commission fee on winning bets, unlike Sportsbooks, which charge a margin of profit on all placed bets. Sportsbooks have direct control over placed bets, while betting exchanges act as a mere platform for both backing and laying. Laying involves punters acting as bookmakers themselves, as has been mentioned earlier on in this guide.
FAQs
What are the best betting exchanges for customers residing in the United Kingdom?
Betfair, Smarkets, and BetDaq.
Which is the best betting exchange for backing with high stake liquidity?
Betfair.
Which is the best betting exchange for laying with high stake liquidity?
Smarkets.
Is any betting exchange offering a 0% commission rate?
BetConnect offers commission-free laying.
ThePuntersPage Final Say
When it comes to punting on a betting exchange, you must be thoroughly familiar with the concept of backing, laying, and matched betting. Punting on a betting exchange allows you to better make use of live betting mechanisms, and potentially minimize your risk of losing placed bets. When it comes to placing an in-play bet, we recommend live-streaming matches as much as possible to keep up with the latest occurrences during a game or event.
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