freebetmaths.co.uk · UK only

Hi, I'm Lewis.

Between 2017 and 2020 I made about £50,000 from UK bookmaker offers. Tax-free. It started with matched betting: plain maths on free bets, no hunches, no tips.

This site shows you the maths, the calculators I wish I'd had, and exactly how the money was made, including the riskier bits.

Use the free bet calculator How the £50k happened
Cartoon of Lewis, bald with a moustache and a blue T-shirt, waving hello
~£50kmade, 2017–2020, before software costs
2½ yrsstart to finish
£1kin my first four weeks, on sign-up offers
£0income tax on UK gambling winnings

The calculators

Free bet calculator What a free bet really returns, and the lay stake that locks most of it in as cash. £10 SNR @ 5.0 → £40 if it wins, or £7.57 whatever happens Matched betting calculator Lay stakes for qualifying bets, SNR and SR free bets and refund offers. Commission, liability, underlay and overlay. £10 @ 3.0 / 3.1, 2% → 45p qualifying loss
Coming next Lucky 15, each way and extra place, dutching and Bet365 2-up calculators.

How the £50k actually happened

Not all of it was the low-risk stuff, and I'm not going to pretend it was. It started with plain matched betting. Later, a good chunk came from riskier plays that were still mathematically in my favour. Here's the honest version.

  1. 2017

    The one that actually worked

    About 90% of the online money ideas I'd tried had flopped. Then an article sent me to MoneySavingExpert, which sent me to OddsMonkey. I made about £1,000 in my first four weeks on sign-up offers: Betfred, Coral, Ladbrokes, Bet365.

  2. Reloads

    Bet365 2-up and the reload grind

    Once the sign-ups ran out it was reload offers like acca insurance, aiming to keep about 80% of every free bet. Bet365's 2-up promo was a big chunk of the total. I averaged four figures a month.

  3. +EV

    Casino offers and each-way no-lay

    With a float behind me I moved into plays that win on average but swing: +EV casino offers worked on RTP, and each-way no-lay on horse racing, including Lucky 15s. Almost £5k on one Lucky 15, and over £1,000 on several others. One £4k day got that account closed.

  4. 2020

    Shop runs, then Covid

    Towards the end: high-street shop runs with Betfred slips, each-way no-lay and Bookie Bashing. By then nearly every bookie had gubbed me. Covid shut the shops and the sport, and that was that. Since then I've taught matched betting to beginners.

From float to +EV

This is the order it works in. Skip a step and the swings in step 3 will eat you.

1

Matched betting

Sign-up offers and reloads, locked in with a lay at the exchange. You know the outcome before the race starts.

Variance: low

2

Build the float

Keep the profits in play as a bankroll. The float is what lets you take a hit without stopping.

Variance: you're the buffer

3

+EV plays

Each-way no-lay, Lucky 15s, 2-up, casino and no-wagering spins. Positive expected value, but results swing. A Lucky 15 each-way no-lay is a +EV lottery ticket. That's where the big money eventually is.

Variance: high, only with float you can see dip

Why the UK is the best place on the planet for this

No income tax on winnings. Profit from UK bookmaker offers is yours to keep.

The most competitive bookmaker market going. Dozens of firms fighting for the same punters means a constant stream of sign-up offers, reloads and boosts. Every one of them is maths you can do.

That's why this site is UK-only. Every offer, odds format and example here is British.

It's maths, not gambling

No tips, no "nap of the day", no system to sell you. I don't like gurus charging £1,000 for a course either. Everything here is free and shows its working. Where something carries real risk, it says so in plain English, with the numbers.

More about me · Updated