Below we’ve listed the main features we look at when judging the quality of a betting site. These factors go a long way to deciding which bookies make the cut as ones we endorse and recommend to you. Or ones we don’t.
It’s not an exhaustive list.
Whether the site has a useful and knowledgeable blog and whether it’s a part of GAMSTOP would be other factors worthy of consideration. But these are the crucial ones. The more of these features the bookie has and the higher the quality of them, the better.
Holding a respectable gambling license (see below) and being trustworthy are connected. But they’re not necessarily exactly the same thing. Holding the license means the betting site has ticked the necessary boxes in order to be granted one. But the proof is really in the pudding when it comes to what customers make of the betting site. Betting forums, comments sections and other publicly-available content are a good indication of what customers really think of a site when it comes to trustworthiness and reputation. After all, they should know.
Almost all betting sites operate with a gambling license. Not only do we completely ignore those who don’t, but we only work with betting sites who hold the most respectable and trusted one. That’s the UK Gambling Commission license.
These days you can’t expect huge generosity when it comes to welcome offers. Gone are the days of the huge deposit bonuses with relatively low wagering requirements. So even though some welcome offers are a bit better than others, they can be a bit samey. A better metric are the ongoing offers to existing, rather than new, customers. A good and regular supply of deposit bonuses, free bets, cashback offers, odds boosts and other bonuses do allow the best betting sites to trump the competition in this regard. And the lower the wagering requirements on the bonuses, the better.
Not everyone wants to play the most popular markets on the most popular sports such as football and horse racing. We reward UK betting sites who cover the more obscure sports as well. Such as surfing, chess, handball, badminton or field hockey. Plus, the so-called ‘specials markets’ on topics like politics, reality TV shows and the Oscars. And within those sports, we look for plenty of variety in the markets. Take football for example. These days punters want to bet on the number of offsides, shots on target or fouls committed by a player in addition to the mainstream ones.
Getting your money in and out of your betting site is crucial. And when it comes to payment methods, it’s primarily a case of ‘the more, the better’. The greater the number of options including debit cards, E-wallets, cryptocurrencies and bank transfers, the greater the choice for the customer.
Then there’s timings. Deposits should for the most part be instant. Withdrawals should be expected to take a bit longer but the faster methods like E-wallets shouldn’t take more than a day, while it’s unreasonable if bank transfers take more than four days.
In an age when we’re all so dependent on our phones, there’s no excuse for online betting sites not having a top mobile product, whether via a browser or an app. If anything, the mobile product should be even better, faster and easier to use than the laptop/desktop version because punters tend to prefer using their mobiles. The mobile version should also allow you to bet, deposit, withdraw and do everything else you can do on your computer.
Any pro punter will tell you that the single most important aspect of a betting site are the odds on offer. Getting short-changed on sports odds is the quick way to the poorhouse. The reason is that everyone will inevitably lose plenty of bets, so you need to maximise your payouts when you do win. Take a leaf out of the pros’ book and compare the odds your bookie is offering on a particular bet compared to the competition. If they’re too low, don’t bet. Or if it happens very often, it may be time for a change of bookmaker!
With the best will in the world, sooner or later you’re going to need to get in touch with Customer Support at a betting sites. Common issues include problems depositing and withdrawing, or clarification on market rules. And for this, you’ll want a Customer Support team that’s knowledgeable, friendly, available 24-7 and which can be reached via different methods. Like phone, Live Chat or email.
Any betting site worth its salt will offer live betting on just about every sports event they have pre-match betting on. But some are better than others. The best online betting sites in the UK have high in-play betting odds, endless markets and are quick to update their live betting odds. It’s also a big bonus if they offer plenty of Live Streaming across numerous sports, free of charge, and with good quality pictures.
A relatively new addition to online sports betting. BOG allows customers to have two bites of the cherry at getting the best odds on UK and Ireland horse racing. And in rare cases, greyhounds as well. If a customer places a bet on a horse at bigger odds than its Starting Price and the horse wins, they’ll be paid out at the early odds. If the Starting Price ends up being bigger than the early price and the horse wins, they’ll get paid out at the Starting Price. Even though most of the best betting sites offer it, not all offer it on ALL UK and Ireland races.
An increasingly popular type of bet is the Bet Builder. It’s a type of Acca made up of selections taken from the same match, normally football. While most betting sites offer it, some have better Bet Builder products than others. The best ones offer it across less-popular leagues and allow you to combine a greater variety of bets within the same Bet Builder.
Here’s a special list of all the top UK betting sites that ranked very highly for the criteria just mentioned and are also holders of the all-important UK Gambling Commission License. All of these betting sites are of extremely high quality and can be fully trusted.
One of the most important, popular and influential betting sites in the world that epitomise what online betting is today. And how the sky’s the limit in terms of what can be done.
The reason for their immense popularity is very simple: they do everything extremely well, using their experience to not make any mistakes and embracing new technology and innovation where necessary.
Also a veteran of the online betting industry, who like Bet365, have kept the business in the family ever since starting out. Like many of the best betting sites, it’s not so much about what they do right as it is about not doing much wrong.
One of the newer additions to the UK betting market, having only opened their virtual doors in 2020.
But since 1998 they’ve probably been the most-used sports live scores site/app in the world. So those who had used them as scores/results service for years have been quick to show faith in them as a Sportsbook, as well. Their flagship LiveScore scores/results system has been beautifully integrated within the site.
Like LiveScoreBet, they made a name for themselves as something else before they were a Sportsbook.
In their case, they were already one of the best-known spread betting companies in the UK before adding a fixed-odds betting site to their product. Customers should be aware that they need to open separate spread betting and sports betting accounts to use each product.
Any company that can lay claim to having been around for over 100 years must be doing something right. And they certainly are, offering one of the most comprehensive sports betting products on the market. They’re proof that being in this business a long time goes a long way. But that they’re still learning and adapting to changing demands. Such as betting apps, live streaming, Bet Builders and Cash Out.
Owner and founder Fred Donne famously opened the company after a big payout when England won the World Cup back in 1966. Changed their name to BetFred and became known as the betting site offering the most frequent and colourful bonuses. Another one who does all the basics right.
Here’s a site who was best known for doing other things outside betting before having their own Sportsbook. In their case, as an airline and telecommunications provider. They tick most of the boxes you’d want from a bookie but so far have struggled to really stand out in a specific department.
An Irish-based sports betting company who understandably have focused on the sports that are most popular with Irish punters. Such as horse racing, greyhound racing, rugby and GAA sports. Also have a very strong presence in Ireland and the UK as land-based betting shops.
They had a tough period in the mid-noughties when it came to making the transition from retail to online but have gradually caught up some ground. Over the last few years they have made a big effort to come up with more bonuses, improve their app and offer betting on sports that weren’t available before.
In the case of 888, they were well-known within betting before launching their Sportsbook. And in their case, it was for Poker that they were famous. For years it was one of the best-known poker sites with thousands of active users a day. Their Sportsbook is decent enough, doing what most other betting sites do, meaning Poker lovers can enjoy it and sports betting at the same site.
The betting sites just mentioned in some cases have three or four years’ experience under their belts as online betting sites. In some cases, 25 years. Here are some far newer sites to consider, but let’s start by looking at the pros and cons of playing at newer sites.
The company was only launched in 2022 and is the betting arm of Dazn, which is a live sports entertainment platform and whose aim is to be a one-stop shop for the sports fan looking for endless rich and varied sports content.
In this regard, it’s trying to shake up the betting market in 2023 by combining live sports betting with the full-on experience of watching events live from your laptop or phone. It will be fascinating to see if their approach works.
In a previous incarnation, they were a bookie who only accepted bets over the phone and were the first in the UK to accept bets placed over text message. These days you can still place bets via SMS chats in addition to via the website and app.
Since day one, Fitzdares has focussed on the personal aspect between customer and bookmaker where the bookie knows and understands their customers rather than them just being a number, or an account name. It’s a priority that will appeal to customers who cherish this personal interaction while betting with a bookie who is getting better and better each month.
It’s only been around since 2022 and is looking to market itself as a bookmaker specialising in horse racing. So if it’s your sport of choice, this could be the betting site for you.
So it’s no surprise that they stand out when it comes to horseracing with good quality live streaming of US racing, Best Odds Guaranteed on all UK and Irish races and lots of money back offers if your horse fails to win due to a particular incident eg. beaten by a nose, falls at the last hurdle etc.
If you want a quickfire comparison of how the different bookies stack up against each other, check out the table below.
Bookmaker | Live Streaming | PayPal | Horse Racing BOG | Cash Out | Bet Builders |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bet365 | |||||
BetVictor | |||||
LiveScoreBet | |||||
Spreadex | |||||
Ladbrokes | |||||
BetFred | |||||
VirginBet | |||||
Boylesports | |||||
Coral | |||||
888.com | |||||
DaznBet | |||||
Fitzdares | |||||
Betgoodwin |
One of the nice things about opening a betting account these days is that it’s all pretty quick.
Just follow these steps. In this case, they apply specifically to Bet365, but it’s a similar story at almost all online betting sites.
🏅 Best Betting Site 2023: | Bet365 |
🆕 Newest Betting Site | DAZNBet |
📱 Best Mobile Betting Site | BetVictor |
🎁 Best Betting Bonus: | 888Sport |
🎙️ Best Live Betting Site | Virgin Bet |
💳 Best PayPal Betting Site | Kwiff |
🎰 Best Market Selection | Betfair |
💷 Best Payment Options | 10Bet |
⚽ Top Football Betting Site | Unibet |
🏇 Top Horse Racing Betting Site | Spreadex |
Football betting has come a long way since the days when your only choice was to place accumulators (for fear of fixed individual matches) at a dirty, dusty, unpleasant brick-and-mortar betting shop.Thanks to live betting, Bet Builders, endless novelty markets and markets that focus on particular aspects of a game like offsides, fouls committed or shots on target, never has there been so much choice when it comes to football betting.Available competitions to bet on range from the top ones like the Premier League and Bundesliga to obscure ones like the Saudi Arabian League or the Polish Second Division. Punters can also bet on women’s football, youth football and all manner of international matches.Football has overtaken horse racing as the most popular betting sport of all at the top UK betting sites.
Best bookmakers for football
Horse racing hasn’t changed as much as football has over the last two decades. But where it has, it’s been for the better.Live betting allows shrewd punters to bet based on how well the horse is travelling or other clues like how a particular horse is enjoying (or not) the conditions on the day once the race is underway. Such as how soft the ground is.There’s been a slight increase in the number of available markets such as the ‘betting without the favourite’ market while the Best Odds Guarantee promise has given customers far greater value on their bets.There are at least four meetings in the UK on any given day and a few more in Ireland meaning that racing punters never have to wait too long in between races.
Best bookmakers for Horse Racing Betting
The exciting and potential rewards of greyhound racing still appeal to punters in the UK, where they are held regularly. There is a large variety of betting types available today regardless of where the meeting takes place, whether it is in Romford, Doncaster or Brighton.
Best bookies for greyhound betting
A lot of what has just been said about darts also applies to snooker. Hardly surprising given they’re somewhat similar types of sports.
Again, the introduction of live streaming has helped its cause in terms of betting and there are now roughly three times more ranking tournaments on the circuit than a decade ago.So, plenty more to bet on.And it’s moved from a sport mostly played by British players to a truly global one with players from the likes of China now occupying some of the top positions in the world rankings.Frame-by-frame, highest break and correct score have joined the match winner market as the most popular ones.And while Ronnie O’Sullivan is still around, the unexpected is never too far away.
There was a bit of a decline a decade or so in boxing betting as the box-office stars like Manny Pacquiao, the Klitschko brothers and Floyd Mayweather called it a day.Then came the likes of Tyson Fry, Anthony Joshua and a few YouTube stars-turned boxers like Logan Paul to regenerate interest.
Who will win the match remains the most popular betting market at the top UK betting sites, with other markets seeing a lot of action including method of victory and total rounds.
Best bookies for boxing betting
Very much the New Kid on the Block when it comes to sports that people are betting on.It was already gaining traction before COVID but the pandemic just accelerated its popularity. While the likes of football and horse racing took an enforced break, the indoors nature of Esports meant it was business as usual.
But what are esports? Individual players or teams made up of 5-6 players take on opponents at popular video games like Fortnite, League of Legends, FIFA, DOTA 2 or Counter-Strike Global Offensive.
You as the punter bet on who will win, or who will conquer a particular territory first, just like you would bet on a traditional sport at fixed odds, whether pre-match or in live betting. The best betting sites live stream matches, especially as the biggest tournaments come about.
Best bookies for Esport betting
Thanks to Sky Sports, innovative marketing and hugely increased prize pools at darts events, the sport has gone through the roof in terms of popularity over the past few years.And it’s been a similar story on the betting side of things. Players can bet live on a leg-by-leg basis, set-by-set basis and on particular aspects of the contest. Like who will throw the Most 180s during the whole match.
The introduction of live streaming by many of the best betting sites on many of the top events has also increased interest.
Best bookmakers for darts>>
Betting offers are a way for betting sites to give something back, keep customers engaged and interested, and feeling valued. Here are some of the more frequent ones, divided into welcome offers to new customers, and bonuses given to existing customers.
The rhyming is coincidental, the offer itself isn’t!This has replaced the deposit bonus as the most common welcome offer at UK betting sites.
Customers need to make a deposit, place a real-money of 5-10 GBP and once the bet is settled, they’ll receive 20-30 GBP as free bets. The free bets can either be one single bet for that amount, or split into several smaller bets of the same value.
Because it’s a welcome offer you can only claim once, very often the free bet doesn’t have any wagering requirements at all.
This used to be the most common welcome offer but you don’t see it so much anymore. At least not as part of your welcome package, although it’s still used as a frequent promo for existing customers.
On making a deposit, the customer can expect to see the value of their deposit matched by the betting site. In some exceptional cases, the bookie might award a bonus even bigger than the value of the deposit. A matched deposit (also known as a 100% bonus) means that if you deposit 100 GBP, you’ll get an extra 100 GBP awarded to you as a bonus by the bookie.
A 50% bonus would see you get 50 GBP extra, while an 150% bonus would see you awarded with 150 GBP as a bonus. And 250 GBP in total including your own deposit.
A deposit bonus normally has wagering requirements, meaning that you’d have to play through the bonus and winnings from it 2 or 3 times, before you can withdraw it.
These are more frequently used in the US than at UK betting sites as making up a welcome offer.
In this case, you have two bites of the cherry when placing a bet. Say the risk-free bet is for 10 GBP. If you place a bet for that amount and it wins, you win on your bet. Whether you get back the value of the risk-free bet or just the profit from it will depend on the specific offer. If the bet loses, you’ll get back the value of your bet. Either as cash back into your account or as a free bet to the same value for you to place on something in the future.
As the name suggests, you don’t need to make a deposit to get the bonus. Normally this would be when you first sign up and are awarded the no deposit bonus as a reward just for registering.
The no deposit bonus is generally for quite a small amount, say 5 GBP or 10 GBP, and is generally followed by another bonus when you do eventually make that first deposit.
To be honest, it wouldn’t be easy to find a no deposit bonuses in sports betting, as most bookmakers don’t offer it anymore. However, you can find bookmakers with low deposit offers, such as: Ladbrokes and Coral (bet £5 get £20 in free bets), Dazn bet (Bet £5 Get £5 +10 Free Spins) or BetVictor (Bet £5 Get £10 in free bets).
This is a bonus where losing bets can be refunded if a particular event, pre-selected by the bookmaker, happens during the match. For example, Bet365 may say: Money back on all losing correct score bets in Manchester United v Liverpool, if the match ends 0-0. If the match ended 0-0 then all bets on 1-1, 2-0, 1-3 etc would be refunded up to a particular amount, per customer.
Any other result would mean the money-back special wouldn’t kick in and there would be no refunded bets. Of course, if someone specifically bet on 0-0 they’d have a winning bet regardless.
First things first: a Bet Builder is of course a form of accumulator in that it’s a bet made up of two or more selections, or legs, if you prefer. Where a Bet Builder is special is in that the selections are all from the same match, generally in football. Rather than a series of separate matches.
A refund on Accumulators/Bet Builders is generally given when just one of the legs lets you down. So, for example, Paddy Power might run an offer where if you have a Bet Builder made up of five legs and four of them win, you can get refunded on your bet, up to a certain amount.
This is quite a recent addition at the best betting sites. The bookmaker will take a popular bet and increase the odds on it in an attempt to attract more business. It is of course something of a risk for the bookmaker because if the bet that had its odds boosted goes on to win, not only will there be more money on it than usual but the payout will also have been at bigger odds than usual. So, for example it may look something like this: Kevin de Bruyne to score against Chelsea (normally 2.5)Boosted to 3.0.
Here the bookie will encourage you to add extra legs to your accumulator.
So, for example, the offer might look something like this.
Accumulator with 5 legs- 10% extra if it wins.
Accumulator with 6 legs- 15% extra if it wins
Accumulator with 7 legs- 20% extra if it wins.
And the more legs you have, the greater the percentage will add to your payout if it wins.Customers should avoid the temptation of being too greedy here. The carrot is dangled with the promise of greater payouts but it’s very hard for accumulators with 6 or 7 selections to win.
Betting sites can actually operate without a betting license at all. The next step up is to hold a license such as the Malta Gambling Authority, Curacao or Gibraltar license.But the hardest and most respectable one to get is the UK Gambling Commission license. And we here at Punters Pub only work with the betting sites that hold that one as it provides the most guarantees that the betting site is one you can trust.It means the bookie has to be accountable to the UK Gambling Commission and risks fines or even the loss of their license, if they fail to meet certain standards.
Responsible gambling is taken very seriously in the UK.
It means that betting sites must ensure that minors or those with potential gambling addiction problems are prevented from gambling.
Checks need to be made to ensure that minors aren’t allowed to play under an adult’s identity and using their payment methods. Or that they aren’t gambling using an adult’s account.Betting sites also have a responsibility to identify problem gamblers and either advise them to set limits, or shut down their accounts. In the case of a customer requesting to be self-excluded temporarily or permanently, they have a duty to not let the customer gamble, or even send marketing communications to them while they’re self-excluded.
Read more about responsible gambling.
Be Gamble Aware– A charity that promotes awareness around problem gambling, helping people recognise symptoms of it in both themselves, or others Trained counselors are available on the phone to offer advice on all aspects of the problem.GamCare– In addition to offering advice and support to problem gamblers or those affected by them, it also provides training and materials to bookies within the gambling industry itself. This includes staff at bookies recognising problem gamblers and how to interact with such players.Gamblers Anonymous– They’re best known for organising meetings attended by people who consider themselves compulsive gamblers or gambling addicts. The objective is to allow such problem gamblers to lead a normal life without the temptation of gambling, which can adversely affect them financially, mentally and in terms of relationships.
Above we’ve listed some of the very best betting sites who tick all the boxes for what we look for in the best sports betting sites UK. So have a read of the features that stand out at each one and pick one or two, knowing you’re in safe hands with all of them.
A lot of UK bookmakers allow you to place bets for just 1p. Other betting sites have slightly higher minimum bet amounts, such as 5p or 10p.
This will vary based on what’s a priority for each individual punter. But here are some of the ones generally seen as important: the license they hold, the choice of payment options, the generosity of their odds, the quality of their bonuses, their range of sports, the ease with which you can withdraw and the quality of their Customer Service Department.
It means that a customer contacts an individual bookmaker or GAMSTOP and voluntarily requests for their account to be temporarily suspended for six or 12 months, or permanently. All bookies with a UK Gambling license are automatically members of GAMSTOP and have a duty to not let the player bet hile self-excluded, or even access their account.
Welcome offers are an incentive to get a customer to sign up with a particular betting site rather than another. The welcome offer is also there as a way of ensuring that the customer not only opens an account. but actually makes a deposit. That’s because the welcome offer being awarded is generally dependent on the new customer making a real money deposit.
Since 2020, betting sites can’t accept deposits made with credit cards. This was introduced to stop customers making deposits on credit rather than with money they actually have. It’s one of many measures introduced recently to promote responsible gambling.
18+. New Customers Only. Max one £10 Free Bet. Qualifying bets at Odds of 1/1(2.00) or greater. Paid as Bonus Token with Min 4/5(180) Odds Req. Skrill, Neteller & Paypal not eligible.BeGambleAware.org. T&Cs apply.
New customers only. Min £5 deposit and bet on odds 1/2 or greater required. Free bet and free spins issued within 24 hours of qualifying bet being settled. Free bet valid for 6 months, stake not returned. Free spins valid for 7 days, selected games only. UK only excl Northern Ireland. 18+ T&Cs apply.