{"id":2113,"date":"2021-02-26T17:17:27","date_gmt":"2021-02-26T17:17:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newbettingsites.co\/?page_id=2113"},"modified":"2022-08-03T17:05:24","modified_gmt":"2022-08-03T17:05:24","slug":"what-are-wagering-requirements","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.newbettingsites.co\/articles\/what-are-wagering-requirements\/","title":{"rendered":"What Are Wagering Requirements When Betting?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"bonusBookmakers regularly have offers for punters to take advantage of<\/a>, such as matching the deposit that you\u2019ve made into your account with free bets or giving you bonus credit when you make a deposit. A lot of the time, though, it\u2019s not as simple as just getting money added to your account the second that you\u2019ve made a deposit, meaning that you can withdraw it without having to even place a bet<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Instead, bookmakers and online casinos ask customers to wager the money in question a given number of times before being allowed to withdraw any winnings<\/a>. This stops people from simply earning themselves free money by depositing into an account, instead having to risk losing that money first. Not only do you have to bet it a number of times, you\u2019ll also have to do so at specific odds that further increases the likelihood of losing it.<\/p>\n

This is part of the point, however.\u00a0 Betting companies do not want to give you free money rather their offers are designed to give you promotional funds to try out the site to see if you like it.\u00a0 Some people do win with these offers but the idea of wagering requirements is to reduce the amount the betting site will lose while still allowing customers to try them out with promo cash.<\/p>\n

Wagering Requirements Explained<\/h2>\n

\"complexWhether you use online slots, play casino-style games or use a bookmaker\u2019s sportsbook for bets on sporting events, there\u2019s a good chance that at some point or another you\u2019ll be on the receiving end of an offer from your company of choice. These offers usually involve something like \u00a330 in free bets when you deposit \u00a310, or matched deposits of up to \u00a3100 in bonus money. You don\u2019t get free money, though, but tokens that you need to bet with.<\/p>\n

Betting companies aren\u2019t really in the habit of giving things away for free, so your free funds will often come with wagering requirements attached. These are a way of stopping punters from simply depositing \u00a3100, say, getting \u00a3100 in bonus money and then withdrawing \u00a3200 without having to place a bet. Instead, they\u2019ll ask you to bet with the money a certain number of times before you can withdraw it; these are the wagering requirements.<\/p>\n

The companies involved will almost always specify that you need to bet on something with certain odds or greater. Let\u2019s imagine that you\u2019re betting on a football match between Manchester City and Tranmere Rover. That\u2019s pretty much a banker, so the odds will massively favour City. Betting companies don\u2019t want you to be able to bet on bankers, so they\u2019ll ask you to bet on, for example, Evens or greater.<\/p>\n

The point of the wagering requirements is essentially to \u2018convert\u2019 bonus money into real money. If you don\u2019t hit the targeted wage requirements then you won\u2019t be able to withdraw the money into your own bank account. Instead, it will remain as bonus money for a given period of time, which is usually about a year. Hit the wagering requirements, though, and it\u2019s yours to do with as you see fit.<\/p>\n

Free Bets vs Bonuses<\/h3>\n

\"freeGenerally free bets do not come with wagering requirements on any winnings you make from the free bet.\u00a0 The free bet stake itself will have to be wagered though (i.e. you can’t withdraw the free bet) so technically there is a 1x wagering requirement on free bets.\u00a0 The free bet will not be returned with any winnings but the winnings themselves should be cash.\u00a0 Some free bets may have minimum and\/or maximum odds, max winnings and possibly restricted markets.<\/p>\n

The exception to this are money back free bets, this is effectively cash back on your first bet if it loses.\u00a0 This is the only instance where wagering requirements do not apply, although if you win your first bet you of course do not get any additional free bets or bonuses.<\/p>\n

Bonuses are the main offers that attract wagering requirements.\u00a0 For sports this is commonly 3x-10x the bonus amount, for casino it can be anywhere from 20x-100x the bonus amount.\u00a0 There will be minimum odds and restricted games \/ markets and it is possible to have maximum bonus bet limits.\u00a0 The bonuses will also expire after a given time, i.e. this is the period of time in which you must complete the wagering requirement.<\/p>\n

Why Take A Bonus Then?<\/h3>\n

\"freeGiven what has been said above why would you take a bonus over a free bet or money back free bet?<\/p>\n

The main reason is bonuses generally tend to match a higher deposit amount and they give you the option of splitting the promo funds between multiple different bets.<\/p>\n

Although the wagering requirements mean you have to stake a lot more to win compared to a free bet it also means you have more chance of at least some of those bets winning.\u00a0 You can also use a bonus to place bets other than singles, which you cannot do with a free bet (e.g. full cover bets<\/a>)<\/p>\n

If your main aim with an offer is to try out a site or try out several bets then bonuses can give you more options.<\/p>\n

Why Bookies Have Wagering Requirements<\/h2>\n

\"reportsBetting companies accept that the offers that they make to entice new customers to join or to maintain the customers that they already have will often result in them losing money. Not everyone who is offered a free bet, matched deposit or some other form of enticement will definitely win their bet, but enough will to mean that the companies have to accept losing out in the short-term in order to gain over the long-term.<\/p>\n

Just because they\u2019re going to lose money, however, doesn\u2019t mean that they can\u2019t do everything in their power to stack the odds more firmly in their favour. One such way of doing this is by asking bettors to wager their money a given number of times before being able to withdraw any winnings. Sometimes you will need to wager both the deposit and the bonus, whilst others it will just be the free tokens that you\u2019ll need to wager.<\/p>\n

Regardless, what\u2019s being asked of you increases the likelihood of you losing your bets, thereby decreasing the chance of the company losing money. It makes perfect sense from a business point of view, even if it\u2019s a bit annoying as the bettor to have to meet excessive requirements before being able to take home your winnings. Betting companies have to find a way of making their losses more palatable.<\/p>\n

Working Out How Much To Bet<\/h2>\n

\"moneyNow that we understand what wagering requirements are and why betting companies put them in place, it\u2019s time to figure out how much we actually need to bet to meet them. It\u2019s obviously impossible to cover every variation of wage requirement, so instead will use a couple of examples that you can then extrapolate to figure out your own requirements depending on how much you\u2019ve got in bonus money and so on.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s imagine that you\u2019ve deposited \u00a3100 and been given \u00a3100 in bonus money in return. The wagering requirement that has been put in place on this bonus money is x5, or 500%. This means that you need to bet the \u00a3100 a total of five times over, which equates to \u00a3500 worth of bets being placed before the money is converted into real cash that you can withdraw as real money, or just keep betting with.<\/p>\n

Alternatively, let\u2019s say that your betting company has given you \u00a330 in bonus money in return for depositing \u00a310. The wagering requirement is for you to bet both the deposit and the bonus money 4x, or 400%, before you can withdraw it. This means that you\u2019ll have to stake \u00a310 + \u00a330 four times, or \u00a3160 worth of bets. At that point, you can withdraw the bonus money and any winnings to your bank as you see fit.<\/p>\n

Always Check The Small Print<\/h2>\n

\"wageringThe most important thing to remember when it comes to the world of wagering requirements is to check the small print. Bookmakers and betting companies are legally required to display the terms and conditions of the bet in a clear manner. If you\u2019re taking advantage of a welcome bonus or a loyalty offer then be sure to read those terms and conditions carefully<\/a> so that you know what is expected of you.<\/p>\n

Whilst all companies are required to display the terms and conditions of offers, not all of them make it easy to find them. Sometimes you\u2019ve got to follow a link or head to a Q&A section before you can see them. If you struggle to find them then be sure to use the company\u2019s Customer Support team to find out what they are. If they still make it difficult for you to understand what you need to do then be very wary of them.<\/p>\n

Here are some of the main things to look for:<\/p>\n