Betting Offers: Best Free Bets & Sign up offers in the UK

As the top names in the UK market battle it out to provide the best betting sign up offers, we’ve taken a deep dive into what the top ones have in store and what separates the top ones from the chasing pack.

Betting Offers: Sign up and Free bets offers in the UK January 2025

The Best Betting Offers – Our Top Picks

We’ve compiled the big household betting names in the UK and examined their current offers above. We’ve also rummaged through their terms and conditions and tried out each code to see how good it is in practice, some key features, and which ones we’d place in the top bracket.

Let's take a closer look at the cream of the crop among betting offers and understand why they are better than the rest.

1. Bet365 Get £50 in Free Bets – UK’s favourite sports betting platform

As arguably the face of UK sports betting, Bet365 has a brand name and marketing strategy that has caused great admiration within the industry. It’s led to the CEO becoming one of the wealthiest women in the UK – and the company expanding into Australia, Mexico, India, and Canada.

The current bet365 welcome offer looks impressive at first glance – a 500% bonus up to £50 in free bets. If you're interested in claiming this offer, make sure to use the Bet365 bonus code 365MOLE during registration. The key appeal is that you only need to deposit £10 to get the maximum £50 in bet credits. This is quite generous compared to many betting sites that require you to deposit the full bonus amount.

Bet365 offers some valuable features that make using your bet credits more interesting. The cash-out option gives you flexibility to secure profits or cut losses, and the Bet Builder lets you create custom bets. These features, combined with regular Bet Boosts and Best Odds Guaranteed on horse racing, can help you make the most of your bonus.

Best for: The Bet365 betting offer is best for regular bettors who understand how bet credits work, this is a solid offer – especially given the low deposit requirement for the maximum bonus. However, if you're hoping for withdrawable free cash, this isn't that kind of promotion. The key is to view the bet credits as an opportunity to place larger bets than your initial deposit would allow, rather than as free money.

2. William Hill £60 in Free Bets – A familiar name in the UK betting landscape

William Hill’s sign up offer provides impressively low min bet odds of 1/5; the company also benefit from having a hugely recognisable name that now has international viability online. In terms of structure, this betting offer is quite different from typical betting bonuses, offering £60 in total value split between Vegas and sports betting. Here's what you really need to know as a player:

You'll get a £20 Vegas bonus and £40 in sports free bets after placing a £10 qualifying bet. However, there's a catch – the sports portion comes as 4 separate £10 free bets, and you can't access them until you've dealt with the Vegas bonus first. This is important because the Vegas portion comes with a 30x wagering requirement, which means you'll need to play through quite a bit before accessing your sports free bets.

Best for: While the £60 total bonus value sounds attractive, this is really a bonus for players who are willing to engage with both casino and sports betting, and who don't mind working through more complex requirements to access their full bonus. If you're just looking for straightforward sports betting free bets, you might want to consider simpler alternatives.

3. Betfred – The market leader of the best free bet offers?

On the face of it – Betfred’s welcome bonus ticks many of the boxes as the best betting sign up offers currently on the UK market. It offers a 500% return in free betting credits, and the expiry date of 7 days is industry standard. One thing to be careful of is that it only applies to card payment methods; if you use Apple Pay, PayPal, bank transfer, etc., you will not qualify.

Their T&Cs are well structured on their site, and given their presence in the UK market since the mid-1960s, they’re a visible brand that people recognise. The betting credits are paid out as 3x£10 bets and 2x£10 accumulators.

Best for: The Betfred offer is highly advantageous if you want a simple, yet generous welcome bonus. It's especially well-suited if you are interested in horse racing.

4. Netbet – Double Your Betting Power

NetBet's Welcome Offer rewards you with £20 in Free Bets when you join and place your first £10 Bet Builder featuring three or more selections at odds of 3/1 (4.00) or higher. Your bonus arrives as two £10 Free Bets within 24 hours, and you'll have seven days to use them across any sport, including Bet Builder opportunities. Whether you prefer Premier League football, horse racing, or other sports, you can split your Free Bets between different markets to explore various betting strategies.

Best for: The NetBet welcome offer is specifically structured around Bet Builders. Therefore, this bonus would be particularly appealing if you enjoy creating and placing this type of bet.

Please note that your qualifying bet must be placed within seven days of registration, and cashed-out bets won't qualify.

Free bets, how do they work?

A free bet is essentially a stake provided by a bookmaker that allows you to place a wager without using your own money.However, it's crucial to understand that these aren't exactly “free” in the traditional sense – they usually require some form of qualifying action on your part.

Let's say you receive a £10 free bet from a bookmaker. If you place this on a selection at odds of 3/1 (4.0), here's what happens:

• If it wins: You'll receive £30 in winnings (not £40, as the £10 stake isn't returned)
• If it loses: You haven't lost any of your own money

Also, keep in mind that free bets can't be withdrawns as cash, they usually can't be split into smaller staker. As shown above the stake isn't returned in your winnings, finally they are often restriceted to certain conditions.

From a bookmaker's standpoint, free bets represent a calculated investment in customer acquisition. Bookmakers are willing to accept an initial loss to gain long-term customers, especially in today's highly competitive market. For established bookmakers with substantial marketing budgets, free bets are a standard cost of doing business. However, newer platforms must carefully balance the size and frequency of these offers against their potential returns. This explains why you'll often see more generous offers from major brands compared to newer entrants in the market.

Vital elements of Free Bets

Minimum deposit

Most free bet offers start with a deposit requirement. For example, a ‘Bet £10, Get £30' offer will usually require a minimum first deposit of £10 or more within a certain timeframe of your registration. Certain payment methods may be excluded, especially e-wallets such as Skrill or Neteller, so we recommend making your first deposit with a traditional card payment to ensure you qualify.

Minimum odds

Each betting offer comes with minimum odds. Usually, this is around 2/1, but some offers lower the threshold to appeal to more customers. The current Bet365 offer we discussed involves a £10 bet on any sports market with odds of 1/5 (1.2) or higher.

If your bet falls under this, you will not qualify for the free betting credits, so it’s crucial to take this on board when you sign up.

Minimum bet amount

Your first bet needs to meet the minimum stake requirement exactly or exceed it. For instance, if the offer requires a £10 qualifying bet, placing a £5 bet won't count towards the requirement, and in many cases, splitting it into two £5 bets won't qualify either.

Expiry date

Another important component is the expiry date. You don’t want to sign up for a betting offer and come back to it the following day only to find it has expired. While this is rare, some bonuses include a 24-hour expiry.

From our experience, this can be the case with smaller providers. All of the big names we’ve touched on today range from between 3-7 days, but in the case of Bet365, once you have placed your qualifying bet, you have up to 90 days to claim the £30 in betting credits – again, always check the expiry to avoid this potential disappointment.

Wagering requirements

In sports betting, wagering requirements are usually covered by the minimum betting amount and minimum odds. If you tick these boxes, you have met the criteria to claim your free bets.

If the sportsbook offer includes an additional promotion for free spins, this is where you’ll most commonly encounter wagering requirements. It’s detailed as a multiplier – such as 30x or 40x.

Available markets

Sports betting companies often allow you to use your betting credits across various sporting markets.

Although some might have specific promotions for a tournament like the Euros or the World Cup, it’s counterproductive to get you on board and then tell you that you can only use your promotion for one game.

Difference between free bets and deposit bonuses

Deposit bonuses aim to supplement your initial deposit with free betting credits. This is the industry-wide approach, and it is by far the most common of the promotions you will encounter as a new customer.

The main difference is that deposit bonuses require you to put some of your own money in, and free bets are for simply registering with the site.

Other types of the best betting offers

While we’ve covered 10 of the prominent names in UK sports betting, this is the tip of the iceberg regarding the types of betting offers available in the market.

Platforms will hone in on the ones that yield the biggest influx of new customers. Here are the other types of the best sign up betting offers to look out for and a few elements they comprise.

Cashback offer

Cashback offers aim to provide some initial stake back even if your bet is unsuccessful. The only current example out of the selection we’ve been through today is the Star Sports Bet offer of getting up to 50% of your stake as a cashback when you place a £50 bet.

Other types of this offer vary, which you’ll usually find in casino bonuses moreso than sports betting promotions.

No deposit

These bonuses are rare but are considered the best betting sign up offers because you don't have to put down any of any cash. Usually, you will have to sign up, verify, and register for the best free bet offers no deposit promotions.

No deposit bonuses tend to have less scope than deposit bonuses, as the platform gives you something for free without expecting anything in return.

Still, they’re one of the most sought-after promotions, and as long as you look at the T&Cs, these are usually some of the best sign-up offers that betting companies offer.

Best new customer betting offers – Latest promotions

Although sports betting platforms will use their main offer to bring in new customers, there will be limited-time offers that aim to take advantage of specific tournaments that are capturing national interest. The most obvious recent example is the Euros, where Ladbrokes, William Hill, and Coral offered specific Euros-based best betting offers.

Betano went one better and aligned themselves as the betting sponsor of the whole tournament, and they had extensive offers available to welcome new customers. This is mirrored through other tournaments, too, including the World Cup, the Super Bowl, the Grand National, and the Rugby World Cup—to name a few. Ultimately, the idea is to capitalise on the trending markets and bring in sports betting fans who are partial to following these big tournaments.

Best free bet offers and bang for your buck

Out of the 10 sign-up offers we explored, Betfred offers the highest amount of free bet: £50 for your initial £10 deposit. It’s not paid out as a straight betting credit of that value, but they rarely are.

The 3x£10 bets and 2x£10 accumulators all focus on the sports betting markets, so it’s not like some operators that will say you’re getting X amount and end up paying it in free casino spins or on select markets only.

On the whole, it’s one of the best sign up betting offers available to UK customers.

The best betting sign up offers – Sportsmole's pick

Out of all the promotions we’ve explored today, it’s difficult to decide on one. The truth is, at least half of the ten we looked at could have a strong case – we’d say, though, out of all the options, it’s Bet365.

Their offer includes £30 of betting credits on any of their sports betting markets. While all of the others we touched on include a cluster of popular sports, Bet365 proves why they’re consistently named as the best betting sign up offers online.

All their sports markets are included in their betting credits; you can use the free bets in any denomination you want – including sixty-50 pence bets if the mood strikes you.

The minimum odds of 1/5 and having 90 days to use your betting credits help Bet365 stand out. While the other bonuses have high points and positives, the best free bet offers UK customers can currently take advantage of are Bet365 and Betfred.

Summary of the best betting offers – Other notable free bets

Betano

It’s not easy to challenge some of the names we’ve discussed today, but Betano is doing the right things. The Betano sign-up offer mirrors Bet365 and William Hill’s, and given their significant inroads into sports partnerships with the Euros 2024 & several elite clubs in Europe, they’re following a blueprint set out by early industry pioneers in a bid to attract some of the UK markets to their site.

You can only use Apple Pay or debit cards to qualify; placing your bet within three days is one of the shortest time windows out of the entire list – so while it might not rank amongst the best betting offers, there’s a lot worse out there.

Ladbrokes

With the smallest minimum deposit, Ladbrokes allows new customers to get £20 free bets for a £5 deposit, immediately placing it among the best new customer betting offers.

Again, be careful with this one, as several payment methods do not qualify: Prepaid Cards, Moneybookers, Paypal, Paysafe, Neteller, or Skrill are all excluded. It’s also paid out in 4 separate amounts of £5 rather than a £20 betting credit, which is also something to be mindful of.

Coral

As the UK's oldest active sports betting company, Coral has more than 300+ locations nationwide. Since 2016, the company has been owned by Ladbrokes, which went through a corporate takeover and restructured the business, which is why the welcome promotion is virtually the same.

With the Coral sign up offer, prepaid cards, Moneybookers, InstantBank, Paypal, Paysafe, Neteller, and Skrill are not accepted and must be used within seven days. Coral is known to offer some of the best free bet offers and often mixes them up to attract new customers.

Planet Sport Bet

Names like Betano and Planet Sport Bet are less familiar with UK betting customers than William Hill or Bet365. While Planet Sport Bet deserve credit for having several varying promotions for existing customers, their welcome offer is at the bottom of the pile in terms of value.

It's not a bad offer compared to bookmakers of the same size. We just wouldn't classify it as one of the best free bet offers. However, the £10 free bet for a £20 deposit doesn’t measure up well against the premium operators. The bet must be placed within 24 hours of sign up, too, which is, again, a small timeframe.

StarSports

We’d mirror the same opinions with StarSports as with Planet Sport Bet. While their platforms are both easy to use and involve predominantly the same markets as all of the other big platforms on our list, the cashback bonus of up to 50% of your stake is a cashback when you place a £50 bet isn’t really comparable in terms of value to any of the other promotions we’ve looked at.

The best free bet offers should provide value at the foundation of their promotion, but to place a £50 only to get up to £25 maximum back – we’d put it toward the lower end of our list.

SBK

SBK’s promotion is slightly different from the rest of the sign up offers we’ve explored. New customers must register for their app, and the initial deposit must be via card or bank transfer. We can’t criticise the speed or efficiency of the site once you tick these boxes, though.

However, it goes through a staggered payout of £10 in free bets upon settlement, another £10 after 24 hours with a further £5 Horse Racing Multiple tokens, and a £5 Football Bet Builder token credited after 48 hours.

It’s not the worst, but it's also not the best free bet sign-up offers we have looked at today. It feels overthought, unlike the Betfred offer, which is just £30 on any sportsbook and £20 on two accumulators – much simpler.

BetVictor

Deposits from any method other than Debit Cards or Apple Pay payments do not qualify for the BetVictor bet and exclude virtual markets. While the value of the bet is decent enough, it’s paid out in 4 separate amounts.

It consists of 2 x £5 accumulator betting credits and 2 x £5 free bets on any sports betting market. The seven-day expiry is the industry average.

Common questions about betting offers

Can I withdraw my free bets?

No, you cannot directly withdraw a free bet as cash. You can usually withdraw the winnings from a free bet after you have met all the requirements of the offer.

Are there free bets for existing customers?

Yes, many bookmakers offer free bets to their existing customers, often through: Loyalty Club, Free Games or as Consolation Prizes.

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