How to Start Arbitrage Betting: A Step-by-Step Guide
Starting arbitrage betting takes less than most guides suggest and pays less than most promise. You need accounts at several licensed bookmakers, money spread across them, a way to find surebets, a calculator and the discipline to record every bet. This guide walks through each, places a first surebet step by step and shows with real numbers what a month of arbing can return. If you have never calculated a surebet, start with what is arbitrage betting.
Key takeaways
- You need accounts at several licensed bookmakers, money spread across them, a way to find surebets, a calculator and a record of every bet.
- At the median profit of 0.61% from our data, 100 surebets of 500 each return about 305 a month before costs.
- A software subscription of 100 a month takes a third of that, so small budgets struggle to cover their costs.
- Place first the leg most likely to fail, usually at the soft bookmaker, then hedge at once.
- Record the closing odds next to every bet: beating them is the best early sign that your process works.
What you need
Accounts at several bookmakers
A surebet needs prices from at least two bookmakers, so the more accounts, the more chances. Arbers usually combine:
- soft bookmakers, whose prices lag behind and create most surebets, but which limit winning accounts quickly (see bookmaker limits),
- sharp bookmakers or betting exchanges, which accept winners and serve as the reliable second leg, at the cost of lower prices or a commission.
Open every account in your own name, at operators licensed where you live, and verify it before you deposit large amounts: a withdrawal blocked by pending verification ties up money you need for the next surebet.
Money spread across the accounts
Each surebet ties money up at two or three bookmakers until the event is settled. With money in one place, you can bet only where it sits. Spread your bankroll so every active account can take a full leg, and keep a reserve in an e-wallet such as Skrill or Neteller for top-ups. Use one currency wherever you can: conversion fees eat surebets whole.
A way to find surebets
You can compare prices by hand, but surebets close within minutes, so most arbers use a scanner that compares bookmakers continuously. What a good one must do, and how to test it, is in arbitrage betting software.
A calculator
Stakes must be split so every outcome returns the same amount. The surebet calculator does it for two or three bets, with stake tax, tax-free bets, rounding and the half results of Asian lines, and shows the result of every scenario.
A record of every bet
A spreadsheet is enough. It tells you whether the method works, where the money is and which bookmaker is about to limit you.
| Column | Why |
|---|---|
| Date and time | to match the bet with price moves and the closing line |
| Event, market, line | to check settlement and spot repeated mistakes |
| Bookmaker, odds, stake per leg | the surebet itself |
| Closing odds | to measure whether your prices beat the market |
| Result and profit | the balance, per bookmaker and in total |
| Notes | voids, partial acceptance, rule differences |
The closing odds column matters more than it looks: beating the closing line is the earliest sign of an edge, long before the balance says anything, as we explain in value betting vs arbitrage betting.
Your first surebet, step by step
Example: over 2.5 goals at 2.10 at bookmaker A, under 2.5 at 2.05 at bookmaker B, 1,000 to stake.
- Check the sum. 1 / 2.10 + 1 / 2.05 = 0.964, below 1: a surebet worth 3.7%.
- Check it is the same event and market. Same teams, competition, date and kick-off; same line (2.5, not 1.5 or 3.5); same settlement rules for the market.
- Check the price is not an error. A price far above every other bookmaker is more often a palp than a chance, and may be voided: see palpable errors.
- Split the stakes. 493.98 on over at 2.10 and 506.02 on under at 2.05; either result returns 1,037.35.
- Place the riskier leg first. Usually the soft bookmaker's price, the one most likely to move or be limited. Wait until it is accepted.
- Hedge at once. If the second price has moved, re-split before you bet: arbitrage betting risks shows the numbers.
- Record both bets with the time and, later, the closing odds and the result.
At first this takes several minutes; with practice, seconds. Start small: the first weeks are for learning the routine, not for profit.
How much money do you need, and what can it return?
There is no minimum, but costs set a practical one. Surebets are small: in the 1X2 odds of six big bookmakers for 24,052 matches of 2019–2023, the median surebet returned 0.61%. A rough monthly picture at that median:
| Surebets a month | Total staked per surebet | Turnover | Profit at 0.61% |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | 200 | 10,000 | 61 |
| 100 | 500 | 50,000 | 305 |
| 200 | 1,000 | 200,000 | 1,220 |
These are gross figures. Take off a software subscription (often tens to over a hundred a month), payment and conversion fees, the occasional mistake, and the fact that soft accounts get limited within weeks. A small budget can easily end the month below its costs; a larger one meets limits sooner. Treat any promise of a fixed monthly return as marketing.
How bookmakers set the prices that create these gaps is explained in how bookmakers make money.
Mistakes beginners make
- Betting a surebet without checking it is the same event and market on both legs.
- Placing the sharp or exchange leg first and finding the soft price gone.
- Leaving commission, fees or currency conversion out of the split.
- Treating a double-digit "surebet" on a popular match as a chance rather than an error.
- Keeping all the money at one bookmaker, so half the surebets cannot be placed.
- Not recording bets, and so not knowing whether the method works.
Beyond the basic two-way surebet there are middles, cross-market combinations, exchanges and promotions: see advanced arbitrage strategies.
Is it legal?
Backing every outcome at different bookmakers breaks no law wherever betting is legal. Bet only with operators licensed where you live, never use accounts in other people's names, and keep within a budget you can afford to lose. Betting is for adults only.
Summary
To start arbitrage betting you need accounts at several licensed bookmakers, money spread across them, a scanner, a calculator and a record of every bet. Place the riskiest leg first, hedge at once and recalculate after every price change. Expect small margins: at our data's median of 0.61%, it takes a lot of turnover to cover the costs, and soft accounts do not last long.
FAQ
How do I start arbitrage betting?
Open and verify accounts at several licensed bookmakers, spread your money across them, use a scanner to find surebets and a calculator to split the stakes, place the riskiest leg first and record every bet.
How much money do I need for arbitrage betting?
There is no minimum, but every surebet ties money up at two or three bookmakers, and costs such as software take a fixed amount each month. At a median profit of 0.61%, 50,000 of monthly turnover returns about 305 before costs.
How much can you make from arbitrage betting?
Usually less than advertised. The median surebet in our data of 24,052 matches returned 0.61%, surebets are getting rarer, and soft bookmakers limit arbers within weeks.
Do I need arbitrage software?
Not to start, but surebets close within minutes, and comparing dozens of bookmakers by hand is too slow to catch most of them. A free trial is the best way to see whether the surebets a scanner finds can actually be placed.
Which bet should I place first?
The one most likely to fail: usually the soft bookmaker's price, the one with the lower limit or the faster-moving market. Once it is accepted, hedge at the sharp bookmaker or exchange at once.