Best Betting Sign Up Offers in the United Kingdom in December 2024
Welcome bonuses are a huge component of the online betting industry and extend both to sports betting and casinos. They are often an influencing factor in deciding which bookmaker a user ultimately gives their business to. Welcome bonuses come in different forms, vary in their monetary value and have unique wagering requirements. There is a good deal of detail that goes into each welcome bonus so it’s key for the user to have a solid understanding of what to expect.
What is a Betting Site Welcome Bonus in the United Kingdom?
A betting site welcome bonus is an offer designed to attract a potential user to register and deposit with the bookmaker. You will find that they vary from site to site in both the amount offered and the wagering requirements that come attached. These welcome bonuses most commonly take the form of bonus funds or free bets and are a great way to boost your bankroll. In some cases you can even double your player balance before even placing a bet! This presents the customer with a unique opportunity to take advantage of multiple welcome bonuses by registering for various bookmakers.
Below we will look at the different kinds of bonuses commonly offered and how they function. You might find that one type of bonus suits your needs better than another. This is not out of the ordinary and is a reason why you should carefully review each betting site’s offer to know exactly what it is that you will receive.
What are the different sports betting bonuses in the UK?
Not all sports betting bonuses are created equal. They usually come in four different forms, which we will discuss in more detail below:
- Free bets
- No deposit bonus
- First-time deposit bonus
- Reload bonus
To find out more about each type of sports betting bonus, read on:
Free bets
The free bet sports betting bonus tends to be the most popular and common in the UK betting market. There are a few different ways that betting sites may opt to structure their free bets. For the most part, it will be a fixed bet amount that you can place on a selection of your choosing as long as it meets the bet conditions.
It’s common that a qualifying bet must first be placed in order to receive your free bet. This bonus also sometimes takes the shape of a ‘refund bet’, which operates under the same principles. Your first bet at a bookmaker will be refunded, making it behave essentially like a free bet.
- Ex. Ladbrokes offers a welcome bonus of £20 in free bets after betting £5
- Ex. Lottoland offers a ‘refund bet’ up to £5 which is returned if your first bet losses
No deposit bonus
Exceedingly rare in 2024, the no deposit bonus is almost completely extinct in the world of online betting. Bookmakers used to offer potential customers a small amount of free funds to play with simply for registering an account.
However, the books soon learned that they would receive higher engagement and activity by offering a larger bonus with the requirement that the user deposit on the site.
While some may be disappointed that they no longer can receive a ‘no strings attached’ type of bonus, we ultimately believe it to benefit the customer in the long run.
Deposit bonus
The other most common bonus currently offered in the online betting industry worldwide along with the free bet. This rings true for both sports betting and casino wagering.
Betting sites offer a percentage of the first deposit (usually ranging from 50% to 100%) of which a user will receive in bonus funds. Those funds are sometimes made available to the user immediately which they can then use to place bets.
Wagering requirements are attached in almost all cases, meaning the player has to bet a certain amount (usually a multiplication of the bonus amount) before they can withdraw the bonus funds.
Reload bonus
Almost identical to first-time deposit bonuses in the way that they operate. However, reload bonuses often will not be as high as welcome bonuses. They may also vary somewhat in the wagering requirements needed to clear the bonus, such as a shorter time period of validity.
Most bookmakers will offer some kind of reload bonus, though each site will differ in their frequency. For example, some sites may offer a reload bonus on a fixed day of the week (Thursday reload bonus promotion).
Comparison of the UK bookmaker’s sign-up offers (December 2024)
Bookmaker | Bonus up to | Type of bonus | Bonus note | Visit! |
---|---|---|---|---|
£50 | Free Bet |
9.5/
10
|
||
£50 | Bonus on first bet |
9.0/
10
|
||
£30 | Bonus on first bet |
9.0/
10
|
||
£20 | Free Bet |
9.0/
10
|
||
£10 | Bonus on first bet |
8.5/
10
|
||
8.5/
10
|
||||
Double the odds | Bonus on first bet |
8.5/
10
|
||
£20 | Free Bet |
8.0/
10
|
||
50% back | Refunded bet |
8.0/
10
|
||
£25 | Free Bet |
8.0/
10
|
||
£40 | Free Bet |
7.5/
10
|
||
£30 | Deposit bonus |
7.5/
10
|
New customers only | Commercial content | 18+ age limit | T&Cs apply
When comparing the different bonuses we focus on three criteria. The first and most obvious one that we look at is the amount of the bonus. Of course, this will be a big part of where a bonus ends up on our ranking. A £100 deposit bonus is obviously going to be scored higher than a £50 deposit bonus with all else being equal.
However, the amount of the bonus is not the be-all and end-all. The wagering conditions also play an almost, if not more, important role in deciding the quality of a sign-up offer. A £100 welcome bonus doesn’t have much use if the wagering requirements are so high that you won’t realistically have a chance to fulfill it. In a case like this, the £50 bonus may end up being the much better option if the rollover requirements are less-demanding.
Finally, we also consider what type of bonus the sign-up offer is. Is it a fully matched deposit bonus or does it cap out at 30%? Does the free bet come in one lump sum or is it divided into four smaller individual bets? These all factor into the score as well, albeit to a lesser degree than the previous two that we mentioned which are generally the most important.
How to choose the best betting bonus in the UK?
A large part of deciding which type of bonus to go with is going to depend on your personal preferences. You may value a bonus with a lower time commitment over one that is a higher amount but requires more extensive wagering requirements. For example, a matched deposit bonus will often yield a higher monetary amount but will require more time and bets in order to fully clear. A free bet bonus, on the other hand, will be much less time consuming but likely won’t reach the value that a 100% deposit bonus would.
So, consider what is more important to you. Be sure to closely review the bonus wagering requirements. Check the promotions page of a betting site to see if they offer any kind of reload bonuses or other free bet offers for special events (such as a major competition). These should all be factors in deciding which bonus you ultimately wind up going with. Of course, an easy way to circumvent the arduous task of choosing between different bonuses is to simply receive multiple! Sports bettors are in a unique position in 2024 to benefit from a number of different welcome bonuses by registering with as many of the best UK betting sites as possible.
Bonus terms and conditions in United Kingdom
Be sure to fully read the bonus details and wagering requirements so you understand what exactly the offer entails. It can not be overstated how important this step is when deciding on a welcome bonus. Note that bonuses sometimes come attached with promotional codes. Visit our best UK betting promo codes page to learn more.
For example, a deposit bonus offer may require the user to wager five times (5x) the bonus amount in a two week time period. These types of bonuses also come with a specified bet type that the player must follow. In this case it might be only accumulator bets with at least three legs (three individual betting selections), each with odds of no less than 1.50. Others may allow for straight bets but with the stipulation that the odds be 2.00 or higher.
Free bets will often require the user to place a qualifying wager first, then they will receive the bonus amount. Sometimes the free bet amount might be divided into smaller bets, or it might be valid only for certain betting markets or certain leagues / sports. This is why it is important to know exactly what you’re getting into before committing.