Best Exchange Betting Sites

Not every bookmaker can cater to betting exchanges. The list of the best betting sites for exchange bets will have odds that are significantly higher than the traditional bookmaker.

This allows you to receive a higher payout on your predictions. Here are some of the best online Betting Exchange sites for you to receive high payout prices.

Matchbook: This sportsbook has but its main focus into US sports when it comes to its betting exchange, which is a great market for Matchbook to target, as Betfair and Ladbrokes have already got a high market share for other top sports across Europe as well as in the Football and Horse racing markets. 

Matchbook focuses on the likes of Basketball, which has a lot of popularity around it. Although it is trying to increase its betting market to cater to a bigger customer base. Matchbook is considered to have medium liquidity, has one of the lowest ranges of markets but also has one of the lowest commission rates.

More Info

Betfair – £20 Risk Free Exchange Bet

betfair logo
[+] More Info [-] Less Info
MIN ODDS None
MIN DEPOSIT £10

When people discuss betting exchange, Betfair is often the first bookmaker that comes to mind for most customers. It was the first to introduce the betting strategy back in 2001. It has the largest customer base for this betting type, which means that the payouts for selections tend to be higher than other bookmakers. Some of the best betting exchange markets offered by Betfair include Football, Horse Racing, Tennis and more. Betfair has one of the biggest ranges of markets in comparison to competitors and also has the highest liquidity, which essentially means higher profit margins.

Max £20 cash refund. Bet must be placed in first 7 days of account opening. Payment restrictions apply. T&Cs apply.T&Cs Apply

Ladbrokes – Bet £5 Get £20

ladbrokes logo
[+] More Info [-] Less Info
MIN ODDS 1.5
MIN DEPOSIT £5

After seeing the success that betting exchange was bringing to Betfair, Ladbrokes decided to jump on the bandwagon and offer a brilliant market to their customers. Ladbrokes, in fact, bought the BetDaq betting exchange back in 2013, this is a great way of increasing the customer base as you need customers to use this betting strategy to make it successful. Merging Ladbrokes and BetDaq customers will create better odds on selections

18+ | UK+IRE only | PayPal and certain deposit types and bet types excluded | Min £5 bet within 14 days of account reg at min odds 1/2 | 4 x £5 free bets | Free bets valid for 7 days on sports | Stake not returned | T&Cs ApplyT&Cs Apply

betdaq – BET £10 GET £10

Betdaq free bet
[+] More Info [-] Less Info
MIN ODDS
MIN DEPOSIT £10

This betting site was actually involved in Betting Exchange before Ladbrokes. It was tough competition for Betfair until it teamed up with Ladbrokes, who had the financial capability and customer base to increase the popularity of this market and really boost its competition against Betfair, something that BetDaq couldn’t do on its own. BetDaq has high liquidity, which is good for players in a betting exchange, it one of the lowest ranges of markets but also a low commission fee.

Sporting Index – £100 FREE BET

Sporting index free bet
[+] More Info [-] Less Info
MIN ODDS
MIN DEPOSIT £5

Home of the Spread Betting, another form of Exchange Betting where punters can buy or sell (known as Lay and Back on the classic Exchange sites) an outcome of a specific match. They also offer a Fixed Odds service which is the classic betting service offered by all Betting Sites, plus they allow users to test out their Spread Betting service by crediting bonus funds when a new account is opened.

New clients get £100 (non-withdrawable) to bet with. Keep what you win. Any losses over £100 are your liability. Market restrictions & 7 day time limit apply. Account opening subject to suitability checks. Spread betting involves risk.Losses can exceed deposits.T&Cs Apply

What is a Betting Exchange?

One of the first questions on a lot of customer’s minds would have been, “what is a betting exchange?”. The simple answer to this is that in a betting exchange, it is not you betting against the bookmaker, like the traditional form of betting, but instead, you are betting against other customers, who come to an agreement with you as to what odds you will get.

Exchange Betting Sites

In order for a betting exchange market to be successful, you need a sufficient number of customers using this betting type. Of course, when it was first introduced, by Betfair, it was not popular. So, in the beginning, Betfair had to invest their own money into it, until enough customers started using the betting exchange. The more customers that are betting on a particular betting exchange market, the higher the odds, this is great for customers and is why you preferably want to be using a betting exchange with a sufficient customer base, to ensure yourself higher profits.

Promotions

The sportsbooks understand that sometimes, it may take a little bit of convincing for players to trust this way of betting and actually see themselves winning money from it. That is why they offer promotions, specifically for the betting exchange. Some of these promotions include:

Betfair is offering new customers who use their betting exchange, a £20 free exchange bet. This is a great way of starting off and getting some experience of what a betting exchange is like. Ladbrokes are willing to offer customers a £10 Lay Bet refund on their betting exchange, which means that if your £10 lay bet loses, you will get the stake back, meaning you are essentially placing a risk-free bet.

Back Betting on Exchange

For those that are unaware of what back betting is, in its simplest form, it is betting on an outcome to occur. For example, you might back England to win the next World Cup. This is traditional betting, as you will back a certain team or athlete to win. However, you can receive better odds in a betting exchange, depending on what other customers predict. If their opinion differs from yours, you can bet against each other and decide amongst yourselves what odds you are willing to give.

Lay Betting on Exchange

When you are laying a bet, in a betting exchange market, you are going against what the person backing a bet is predicting, therefore you are only able to win their stake. Using the example above, you may have an opinion that England will not win the World Cup, and therefore you decide to offer odds to the back bettor. You may offer other customers 6/1 odds for England to win the world cup, whereas traditional online betting sites are only offering 4/1 betting odds. So, if England does win the world cup, and the back bettor has placed a £10 stake, then the lay bettor will owe the back better £60. However, if England doesn’t win the world cup, the lay bettor receives the £10 betting stake.

Advantages and Disadvantages

To summarise the above, we can list the advantages and disadvantages of a betting exchange. It will help give you an idea as to whether or not this betting strategy is something for you to consider and get involved with to maximise your winnings.

PROs

  • Lay betting as well as back betting.
  • Increased profits if bets are successful.
  • Huge range of markets and selections covered.
  • Better odds.
  • Applicable for live betting.

CONs

  • Promotions such as odd boosters do not apply to a betting exchange.
  • Can lose high sums of funds if you lose as a lay bettor.

Fees

As you may or may not be aware, bookmakers need to profit from bets being placed through a betting exchange one way or another. As in a betting exchange, you are playing against fellow customers, the bookmaker is not receiving cash from this. Therefore, they charge a commission fee on bets processed through their betting exchange platform. The bookmaker themselves can charge anything from 0% commission, up to 6%. This is nice and low and therefore doesn’t take too much effect on a customer’s winnings.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do all betting platform sites offer exchange services?

No, there are far fewer betting exchanges than there are general traditional bookies.

What traditional sportsbooks offer popular betting exchange platforms?

The best betting exchange platforms around are provided by the following online bookmakers; Betfair Exchange, Ladbrokes Exchange, Betdaq and Sporting Index.

Do sports betting exchange sites offer a wide range of sports markets?

Not all betting exchanges offer a huge range of betting options, but if you stick to our recommended sites, you will find plenty of betting options. 

Are all betting exchange systems the same?

While not all systems used are the same, all of the betting exchange websites in the betting exchange industry follow the same procedure. 

Can you find betting options for all the major sports on a betting exchange platform?

Usually, yes. More often than not, exchange platforms offer a great selection of sports to choose from and this should include both major sports and niche sports. With that being said, classic bookies tend to offer a more expansive online sportsbook. 

Do betting exchange sites offer promotions?

Yes, just like their traditional online betting sites counterparts, exchanges also offer promotions. In most cases, these will also require a qualifying deposit/minimum deposit to claim the available offer. Be sure to check the terms and conditions to find out the necessary information, including; promotional period, bet stakes, minimum odds and other key features. 

Exchange Betting Sites Summary

To conclude our overall thoughts, we think that a betting exchange is a fun way of placing your sports bets on various event types. There is a range of bets, markets and trading tools to get you increased profits. From all the different types of bets that you can place, betting exchange is one of the most innovative types. If you stick to our suggested exchange platforms, then you are bound to have an enjoyable user experience no matter how much past experience you have as an exchange punter. 

This can be a great way of guaranteeing profits in some respect and if you have not tried it, you may be better of claiming one of the welcome bonuses for betting exchange and experience the markets and odds.

joe profile pic

About Joe Kizlauskas

Joe is a seasoned iGaming copywriter and speaker who has been in the business since 2015. He's written more words on all elements of iGaming than he likes to remember, and he's contributed material to a number of well-known brands. Joe may be seen playing 5 a side, at the gym or playing games on his Playstation when he is not writing.