How to choose a bookmaker: instructions for beginners

How to choose a bookmaker: instructions for beginners

So how should you go about choosing a bookmaker and by what criteria should you focus on? We look at several factors that are crucial in selecting a bookmaker.

We will not sort the people’s choice by importance because each individual looks for something different. Some are interested in the experience of other players with a certain bookmaker, some are interested in the availability of bonuses and some will be ready to accept certain disadvantages for the sake of higher odds. Each criterion mentioned here will be the most important to someone, so their order can be considered random. It is only necessary to pay attention to the characteristics themselves in each aspect of choice.

How do you know which bookmaker is more popular? You can always read the reviews about bookmakers. The downside of this method is that negative people write more often and willingly, which can disrupt (sometimes significantly) the objectivity of the overall experience. However, if the same things are repeated in multiple reviews, you can start to form an idea of the main advantages and disadvantages of the company.

You can also read complaints about bookmakers, which fans of betting leave on the company’s profile sites. It is important to not pay so much attention to the very presence of complaints (claims of various kinds of players arise to all companies), but to whether or not the bookmaker is ready to listen to them and to satisfy the players’ claims.

At Legalbet it is easy to do, just choose a bookmaker from the general list, go to the page of his review (button “more”) and scroll down to the “complaints” section. Here the number of complaints and the number of those that the bookmaker (with the help of our website) has satisfied will be clearly displayed.

Reliability is traditionally considered one of the main criteria for choosing a bookmaker, but this criterion is subjective: someone can play on the same site for years without any problems, and someone can play with the same bookmaker and almost immediately have disagreements. First of all, bookmakers who pay all honest winnings without any problems, and follow their own rules for calculating bets, are considered reliable.

Note! Rules for calculating bets and paying winnings are available on the website of each Australian online bookmaker, and you should familiarize yourself with them before placing a bet. This will avoid a variety of claims to the bookmaker in many cases.

Different Odds

The size of the odds is important to all players, both beginners and experienced: everyone wants to bet on higher odds so that the size of the possible win is higher. The size of the winnings is the size of the bet. The value of odds depends on the size of the bookmaker’s margin (percentage of the company’s guaranteed profit). The lower this margin is, the higher and more attractive the odds are for the player. And vice versa.

How to understand which bookmakers have the highest odds? Everyone can find out by experience, by comparing the quotes of different bookmakers for the same event. Of course, this process will require both effort and time. In addition, it is worth considering that, for example, when betting on football and tennis through the same bookmaker the size of the margin (and therefore the size of the odds) can be different. And when betting on tournaments of varying levels, it will also certainly be different.

You can use the Bookmakers’ Ranking by odds: we took real quotes from the lines of each company and calculated the average margin of each bookmaker so that the players didn’t have to, and the differences were clear. At the same time, you can see which bookmakers give the best odds on soccer, tennis, hockey and basketball.

Important point: the wider the bookmaker’s line, the higher the probability of error in odds on non-standard events. Some players try to use it and make bets on knowingly incorrect quotes, but it is necessary that most of these bets still be calculated either by the average factor or even at the odds of 1.0 (i.e. the bookmaker will simply return the bet).

Betting selection

This criterion is more often important for experienced players but may also interest beginners who already want to diversify their game and not be limited to only betting on the outcome of an event (team/athlete win or draw) and its performance (totals). Or those who want to test themselves in betting on less popular tournaments rather than top championships or European football competitions. If you do not know which bets exist (besides the most popular), you can find more materials about them in the “Views of Bets” section. For those who are just entering the betting game and are just starting to develop their skills, we recommend starting with the most popular bets- they are offered by any bookmaker. In the special ‘Ranking by the choice of Rates’, the highest places are occupied by companies with the most deep-painted and widest choice of rates. The main criteria in its compilation considered the variability of bets on odds and totals in soccer, as well as touching on tennis, hockey and basketball.

Mode of Betting: Live

Live Bets are bets that are made during the match/event. For those who want to better understand the specifics of these bets, we recommend reading the article “Betting on the course of the match (live)”, especially since it contains valuable tips for beginners.

The bookmaker that you consider to be the most suitable for “pre-match betting” will not always be the same that you consider for “live betting”. Live platforms on the sites of different companies can vary significantly. Service may also be different.

If you want to save personal time, we offer to pay attention to the rating of bookmakers on live services. In compiling the rating, criteria such as the selection of bets during the game, the speed of receiving and calculating bets, as well as the presence of live broadcasts were considered.

It should be understood that different players can consider different criteria when selecting a bookmaker. Some consider the interface of the site and navigation on it, some need an infographic or the presence of broadcast and speed of accepting the bet as the most important.

Bookmen with Bonuses

We do not know whether the presence of a bonus can become the main criterion for new players when choosing a bookmaker, but we do know that most people like bonuses, so this option is also included in the material. A variety of bonuses for their customers are offered by many Australian online bookmakers without exception. Legalbet regularly publishes information about new offers on the blog, and notifications about new promotions will be displayed in the Personal Menu Event Feed.

A reminder to each newcomer: before agreeing to receive a welcome bonus, carefully read the detailed terms of the offer. The accrual of bonuses often entails certain obligations for the player, and to avoid possible claims to the bookmaker, these obligations need to be known in advance: make sure to look at the terms of the bonus, assess the conditions surrounding the offer and then join in on the proposed action.