Bookmakers

Online-Bookmakers in 2022

There are many bookmakers on the market but some of them are good and some of them are bad. Our team has developed a test that can help to make a detailed assessment of every bookmaker. Of course, our list doesn’t include all sport bookmakers but those who went online and are considered serious and attractive regardless are they newcomers or veterans in the business, are here. We should mention that competition in the industry is fierce and forgives no mistakes. That is the reason why more and more bookmakers offer lucrative welcome bonuses to all potential customers.

You can find here the most important information about every bookmaker that we have tested, and on top of it we have outlined all weaknesses and strong side of each of them. During our review we took a close look at the welcome bonus, choice of bets, odds quality, live betting, payment options, seriousness, user support and mobile access. Each of these eight categories is equally important and in the end we have transparent and compatible test results. We tried to show the most important advantages and drawbacks of each tested bookmakers.

The Best Sports Bookmakers – Comparison

BookmakerProsBonusLink
20betVery good Sign up Offer
Crypto as Payment
Good Choice of Bets
100% up to 100€Bet now
betwinnerLarge Choice of Payment Methods
Generous Sign Up Offer
High Odds
100% up to 100€Bet now
N1BetEasy to use
Huge Sign Up Offer
Good offer
300% up to 5.000€
+ 15€ Freebets
Bet now
betwayOne of First European Bookmakers
App Works on All Platforms
Wide Variety of Football Bets
100% up to 30€Bet now
netbetWide Choice of Bets
Many Over/Under Bets
Strong Offer of Asian Handicap
50% up to 50€Bet now
intertopsLong Lasting Tradition
Very Simple Webpage
Excellent Welcome Bonus
100% up to 100€Bet now
comeonLarge Choice of Banking Methods
Huge Offer of Bets
Excellent Odds
100% up to 25€Bet now
pinnacleExcellent Odds
Very Good Service
Huge Betting Limits
High OddsBet now
10betHuge Offer of Bets
Very Simple Webpage
Good promotions
100% up to 50€Bet now

Bookmakers – Most Important Facts

There is large number of different bookmakers present on the market which necessitates that we have to know how to distinguish good from bad bookies. Therefore, we test all bookmakers using the same standard that has eight test criteria.

Word bookmaker got its wagering sense in the 19th century and relates to person who accepts bets e.g. horseraces and football matches and pays out to winning bettors. Book is central to the term as all bets are recorded in a book, and without them it is impossible to establish odds. You can read more about this in FAQ section.

When you choose bookmaker you should examine all advantages and drawbacks in detail, and this is exactly what we do for our readers.

Most Important Criteria in Search for Best Bookmaker

If we want to distinguish good from bad bookmaker we need to test them. We shouldn’t forget that test criteria are often matter of individual taste contrary to fact based criteria.

For us it is irrelevant are tests based on facts or individual taste as we always write about advantages and flaws of bookmakers using objective point of view. It is not always simple as some facts are obscured.  Under this we primarily have in mind newly established bookmakers, which haven’t been on the market for long. When we conduct our test we don’t merely state all characteristics of a bookmaker and instead we focus on the most important and decisive criteria. In that way newcomers in the world of online sports betting, as well as more permanent bettors, will receive all relevant information.

As we have said, some results of our tests are perhaps subjective. The reason lays in different taste of each individual and even our professionals with veteran experience about bookmaker subject often disagree which bookmaker is the best. One of main role for determining the best bookmaker goes to preferred betting strategy.  

Are Bonuses Attractive?

This is our criterion no. 1. When choosing bookmakers most bettors prioritise according to offered welcome bonus. Of course, the criterion is very important but not decisive one. New bettor will seldom refuse a welcome bonus and “free” money for playing. We have divided welcome bonuses into three categories:

– Welcome Bonus for New Players

These days it is unimaginable that a bookmaker doesn’t offer a welcome bonus. New bettors receive certain sum from the bookmaker after they make the first deposit that can be used for playing. In some cases it is necessary to enter bonus code to activate the welcome bonus. All these promotions are tied to certain wagering requirements that differ from bookie to bookie. When we examine the welcome bonus we are more focused on wagering requirements than given sum. Majority of popular bookmakers have reasonable wagering requirements, but in some cases it is nearly impossible to fulfil them.

–  Free Bets to New Players

This is the second most popular bonus. Bookmakers offer free bets up to value of the first deposit. Sometimes this type of bonus is limited to certain events or type of bets, and sometimes to value of minimal odds.

– Reload Bonus

Bookmakers often offer reload bonus. It is sort of loyalty reward. Amount of reload is most often equal to deposit in question. The bonus is meant for permanent players and usually is not bound by wagering requirements. In most cases it can be activated at any moment and use for all offered bets.

You should pay attention to following facts when choosing promotions:

1. Maximum amount of the bonus

2. Wagering requirements

3. Timeframe in which the bonus should be turned over and withdrawn

4. Are players from certain countries are excluded from the promotion?

5. What are upper and lower limits for taking part in the promotion?

Is the Choice of Bets Wide Enough?

Every bookmaker should offer as much as possible betting options and indeed it is mostly the case these days. There is large choice of different sports, and it starts from common ones and goes to really unusual.

Besides choice of sports additional betting options are important too e.g. under/over, halftime/end result, number of goals or Asian handicap. Number of offered bets on number of cards or corner kicks grows with each day, which is why statistics of these events are more and more popular among bettors. 

Football and tennis are among most popular sports for betting in Europe, but popularity of American NBA, NHL and MLS has increased recently.

How Good are Odds?

This is the second most important criterion – value of odds. Value of odds should be more important than promotions as each and every better wants to earn more and consequently needs better odds. There are amateurs and professionals in the world of sports betting. Professional bettors prepare in advance and mostly choose bookmakers that offer higher odds. They rarely bet for fun and all they want is to make profit. Odds are mostly displayed in two formats; decimal and fractional.

When we talk about odds it is very important to understand term betting margin. It is profit that bookmakers keep for themselves depending how certain event will end. Smaller betting margin means they can offer higher odds. Most well established bookmakers keep the betting margin at around 5%, but sometimes it can be as low as 1.2%.

Now we come to “sure bet.” It is possible to “play safe” or in other words have guaranteed profit. That can be achieved with different odds offered for the same event by different bookmakers. It means you should open accounts at several bookmakers in order to have overview of odds. In our picks we state bookmaker that has the best odds for the selected event.

Live Betting

Today’s bookmakers that want to be accepted as serious and attractive should definitely have live betting. Live betting is both attractive due to adrenaline rush and increases your chances to win. It is possible to see right from the beginning how certain sport events will unfold later on, which in turn increases your chances to win. Live betting section should be easy to navigate as players need to make quick decisions and don’t need anything that can distract them.

Live stream is very important but some bookmakers don’t offer it. Bookmaker that offers live streams should refresh odds as fast as possible. Besides, bookmakers should offer statistics and graphic display of happenings in the match.

Payment Methods

Bookmakers have large choice of different payment methods that they can offer to their players. Methods mostly differ in limits, duration of transactions and some other properties. Almost all bookmakers support the most important payment methods, but it is a great advantage if they support PayPal.

User Support

Serious and professional user support staff plays a great role in the world of sports online betting. Players can contact the user support department most often via online form, although live chat is far more attractive and today is the most popular contact method.

It would be the best if the user support is available 24 hours in several languages. Response time should be short as every user wants to resolve his problem as quickly as possible.

Safe Betting is Paramount!

When we thing about seriousness the first things that cross our mind are safe transfer of money and data. And that should be definitely the first priority for both bookmakers and bettors. All bookmakers should use SSL encryption and possess valid gambling license. Licenses issued in Malta and Gibraltar are one of best, just like the one from Schleswig-Holstein.

There should be no problems with deposits and withdrawal with serious bookmakers. When choosing bookmaker those with longer tradition should have advantage. They work for years on their image and players only occasionally have problems with money transfer.

Is the Site Easy to Use?

This is hardest criterion for objective review. If we take for example a webpage layout someone will like it and someone not. It is matter of taste. Colour scheme and contrast of colours are important as some players spend hours and contrast shouldn’t cause eye strain. Menu should be simple to use and the bet slip should stand out from the rest of page. Given that playing on mobile devices is more and more popular these days due attention should be paid to that version of the site. Under this we count native apps as well. Mobile version of the site shouldn’t differ too much from version optimised for PC. It should be fast, simple to use and easy to navigate.

FAQ Section

We have put together for our readers, especially beginners among them, answers on the most important questions into FAQ section. If you don’t find answer on your question you can always contact us and we will try to answer you in the shortest possible time.

Which Bookmaker is the Best?

It is impossible to give specific answer on this question. All experienced players can perhaps answer for themselves as each player have different priorities about sports betting. Some players prefer high odds, other attractive welcome bonuses or perhaps serious but kind user support staff. You can see for yourself that is hard to give objective answer which bookmaker has the best offer.

How to Recognise Serious Bookmaker?

These days most bookmakers try hard to be among the best in terms of seriousness and data safety. Still, from time to time world of sports betting is rocked by a scandal, which gave the industry a bad reputation. That is the reason why bookmakers must work very hard to prove their seriousness.
Every serious bookmaker should definitely have valid gambling license. It often happens that unknown online bookmakers attract players with generous and mostly unrealistic bonuses and then simply disappears after sufficient number of players transfers their money.
You should be careful before making any deposits and thoroughly check the bookmaker on the internet.

How Odds are Created?

Odds are calculated based on different facts. Strength of team or only individual player is taken into account, who plays at home and who plays away, how their previous head-to-head finished, etc. Those are only some of facts and many more are taken into account when odds are created. Odds are dynamic e.g. they change often in a given period of time.

Can I Calculate Betting Margin?

Of course, everyone can calculate betting margin using a very simply formula:

Margin = (1 / ( 1/Home-victory + 1//Draw + 1/Away-victory )) * 100

Example:

( 1 / ( 1/1.54 + 1/3.67 + 1/4.70 ) ) * 100 = 89,3

Do All Bookmakers Offer Welcome Bonus?

These days a bookmaker without welcome bonus for new player is almost an unimaginable thing. If you accidently stumble across such case it is probably newly opened bookmaker that still hasn’t completed its offer.

Which Sort of Betting is the Safest?

No type of betting can be labelled as the safest. Bets are mostly on individual 1X2; home victory (1), draw (X) or away victory (2). Besides these there are system bets, handicaps, combo bests and many others. If you are a novice in the world of sports betting you should definitely start with individual bets.

Does Each Bookmaker Charges Betting Tax?

Tax must be paid on each bet, the only difference is who pays it, bookmaker or player, and that depends solely from the bookmaker.