Free Bet Calculator

How to use it

1. 1 Enter the free bet amount and the odds you will place it at.
2. 2 Enter the odds for the opposite side at a different sportsbook. That is the hedge.
3. 3 Choose "Stake not returned" for a normal bonus bet, or "Stake returned" if the bonus gives the stake back on a win.
4. 4 Bet the hedge stake shown with your own money. The profit is the same whichever side wins, if both bets are accepted at these odds.

How a free bet pays

A standard bonus bet (also called a free bet or free play) pays only the winnings: a $100 free bet at +200 pays $200 and does not return the $100 stake. If it loses, you lose nothing of your own money.

Some promotions are site credit that does return the stake on a win. Switch to "Stake returned" for those. The same $100 at +200 then pays $300.

How the hedge stake is calculated

If the free bet wins, you collect its payout and lose the hedge stake. If the free bet loses, the hedge wins and you keep its profit. Setting those two results equal gives a hedge stake of the free bet payout divided by the hedge decimal odds.

The locked-in profit is the hedge stake times (hedge decimal odds minus 1). Conversion is that profit divided by the free bet amount.

Worked example

You have a $100 free bet and place it at +200 (3.00 decimal), so a win pays $200.00. The other side is -220 at another book (1.4545 decimal).

The hedge stake is $200.00 divided by 1.4545, which is $137.50. If the free bet wins, you get $200.00 and lose the $137.50 hedge, a profit of $62.50. If it loses, the hedge wins $62.50 on its $137.50 stake. Either way you make $62.50, a conversion of 62.5%.

With the "Stake returned" option, the same bets pay $300.00 on a win, so the hedge stake is $206.25 and the profit is $93.75.

Why long odds convert better

A free bet at long odds pays a lot if it wins, so the hedge can be large, and a big hedge at a fair price keeps more of that value. With a fairly priced hedge (no vig), the conversion for a stake-not-returned bonus is 1 minus 1 divided by the decimal odds: 50.0% at +100, 66.7% at +200 and 80.0% at +400.

Real hedge prices include the vig, which is why the example above gets 62.5% rather than 66.7%. The smaller the vig in the hedge price, the closer you get to that fair figure, so shop for the best hedge odds you can find.

The formula

Frequently asked questions