Matched betting has rapidly gained popularity as a legitimate and profitable way to generate extra income. For those who understand the process, it’s a risk-free method to turn bookmaker offers into guaranteed profit. However, like any strategy, there are key mistakes that can turn an exciting opportunity into a frustrating experience, especially for beginners. Whether it’s misunderstanding the rules of an offer, making basic calculation errors, or neglecting proper bankroll management, these errors can cost you both time and money.

We want you to avoid all that, so let’s go over the top 10 mistakes when starting with matched betting. These aren’t just minor oversights; they are mistakes that can derail your progress, reduce your profits, and lead to unnecessary risk. 

And if you already have some experience with matched betting, the list will help you revise your strategy and make sure you are on the right track. So stick around until the end. Let’s get started!

1. Ignoring the Terms and Conditions of Offers

One of the mistakes made most frequently is overlooking the terms and conditions of bookmaker offers. It might sound too simple but experience shows that many Ninjas fall for this trap.

Each promo comes with a set of requirements that you must fulfill in order to qualify correctly and get a bonus. Bookmakers are not just throwing money at you. There are certain rules you need to fulfill, in order to get that bonus offer. Make sure you read everything in detail including:

• the minimum and maximum amount that you need to deposit
• the available payment methods
• the expiration date of the promotion
• the minimum and maximum odds
• the eligibility (sometimes promotions can be only for specific events or even for specific markets of an event)
• keep an eye on additional rules like placing a qualifying bet as a parlay or a rollover requirement for the bonus. These can affect the overall profitability.

Of course, the list goes on and these are just some of the most common things to keep an eye on. 

Sure, you can also take the shortcut and read the NinjaBet tutorial with all relevant info. That’s definitely the easiest way to stay on top of offers.

2. Using the Matched Betting Calculator Incorrectly

Next on this list is using the Calculator incorrectly. As a matter of fact you could as well go the old fashioned way. Take a pen and paper and do all the math manually. The only issue is that when you take this approach, you might end up spending 4 hours on a $10 offer. And, therefore, you won’t be able to make this a successful way to earn from home. 

Matched betting is a side-hustle that shouldn’t take you more than a few hours a week. And when you are finished with it for the day, you will be able to dedicate the rest of the time to your job, business, family, friends, hobbies or whatever you like doing.

That’s why a crucial part of the success is to understand how the NinjaBet Calculator works.

Are you making a qualifying bet?

The qualifying bet is the first bet that you do in order to unlock a promo. Typically in that bet you accept a small loss that is going to be compensated on the next step when you take advantage of the promo. During that step you should use the Real Money module. Don’t worry if the calculator gives you a small loss of like $1 or $2. Once the offer is complete, you will cover that loss and earn a profit.

After the qualifying bet is settled and the bonus is unlocked, you are ready for the next phase: placing your bonus in a bet. Depending on the offer type, you need to choose between Freebet, Bonus or Rollover modules. The calculations change between the modules, so make sure you have chosen the right one.

Refund offers require a different strategy. In these offers you get a bonus only when your initial bet has lost. Therefore, you need to choose that module from the very beginning.

Another essential best practice is to always double check your inputs. Make sure all odds in the calculator are exactly the same as on the sports betting websites.

Does that sound like too much information already? Don’t worry, give it some time. You are going to comprehend everything with practice. Once you do a few offers, the whole process will start making a lot more sense and it will be much more clear.

3. Poor Bankroll Management

One of the most trivial mistakes in matched betting is failing to manage your bankroll effectively. Matched betting requires sufficient funds to cover both back and lay bets, often across multiple bookmakers and exchanges. If you are not planning carefully, you can quickly find yourself in a situation where your money is tied up, preventing you from completing other offers or placing additional bets.

Poor bankroll management can lead to missed opportunities and even losses if you’re unable to cover the liabilities on your lay bets. To avoid this mistake, make sure you start with an appropriate bankroll that allows you to participate in multiple offers simultaneously without running into liquidity issues. A good rule of thumb is to only commit a portion of your bankroll to each bet, ensuring you always have enough funds to keep your strategy running smoothly.

Another great advice is to complete welcome offers steadily. If you feel like the amount you would need to cover the opposing bets is overwhelming, just spread them in time. Once you accumulate some profits, you can use them for the next welcome offer.

4. Placing Non Rounded Amounts as Opposing Bets

One thing people new to matched betting often forget is to pretend they are regular bettors. Why? Simply because you want to be getting offers for as long as possible – a year, two, decade. Who knows. The longer, the better.

So what “regular” bettor places $38.17 on the New York Knicks to win their next game? Making such bets is one of the mistakes you want to avoid. It could lead to the sportsbook taking your behavior as suspicious. And if you do that over and over again, they will soon figure out that you are there just for the bonus and are going to limit your account.

Not that they are far from the truth, but why make it easy for them. If you need to place an opposing bet of some odd amount like $41.39, simply round that. You can do $40, $41.50, $42. You can take any of these and it is going to help you keep a healthy account.

5. Placing Bets on Unpopular Events

Another common mistake beginners make is betting on obscure or unpopular events. While these markets can sometimes offer attractive odds, sportsbooks don’t expect people to bet huge amounts on them. And once you place, for example, $500 on such an event, you simply increase the likelihood of your account being limited by the sportsbook.

I vividly remember one of my first reload offers. I was super excited about a $100 bonus that I was going to receive after depositing and betting $100. It was a rather simple offer and I needed to bet on just 2 events to complete it.

I decided to place the qualifying bet on some unpopular women’s tennis game (the 200th in the WTA ranking vs 150th were playing in some minor tournament). As you can guess, my account was limited within an hour, I never received the bonus. Moreover, the bookmaker blocked me from getting any other bonuses in future. 

On the positive side, my lay bet won so at least I had no money blocked with the bookmaker. Eventually, I ended the tasty reload offer with a $1 loss. 

That was my learn-by-doing experience and it taught me to only bet on major sports events.

6. Not Keeping Track of Monthly Profits

Tracking your profits and losses is key for any successful matched bettor, yet many beginners make the mistake of not keeping a detailed record of their activities. Honestly, I was ignoring this at the start as well.

However, as more and more offers started coming in, I saw the benefits of using the Profit Tracker to record all monthly profits and keep in sight how much I am earning.

Another thing you shouldn’t underestimate is that failing to track your bets and outcomes makes it harder to identify patterns or mistakes that could be affecting your profits.

Keep a detailed record of every offer you complete, the profits you’ve earned, and any fees or commissions you’ve paid. That’s how you can get a clear picture of your matched betting performance, optimize your strategy, focus on the most profitable offers, and avoid repeating past mistakes.

7. Not Tracking the Balance in Each Bookmaker

You might think it’s not possible to forget a $100 balance with a bookmaker. Oddly enough, we have seen this happen. And if you keep your balance there for several months without using it, the bookmaker might even start charging you. So make sure you keep a good track of what balance you have.

If you are still new to matched betting, you might be thinking you’d never make such a mistake. But imagine you place bets with 3, 4 or 8 bookmakers. And they all have good weekly or daily recurring offers. This can easily happen.

It’s easy to lose track of how much money you have in each bookmaker, which can lead to frustration when you’re trying to place a bet and realize you don’t have enough funds available. You might end up missing profitable offers which would hurt your wallet.

To avoid this you can simply keep a spreadsheet that tracks your balances across all bookmakers and betting exchanges. By staying organized and knowing exactly how much money you have available at any given time, you can act quickly when a good offer comes up and avoid missed opportunities.

8. Ignoring Small Offers

“If the offer is not for $1,000, I don’t want to do it”. It definitely sounds sugar-coated, but how many similar offers do you think you will get in a year?

No, need for that. It’s true that many beginners make the mistake of focusing only on large sign-up offers while ignoring smaller promotions. Yes, big offers can provide significant returns. But do you have an idea how much you can make from smaller offers like reload bonuses, free spins, or cashback promotions? As numbers add up over time, the profitability increases. Consistently passing on these smaller opportunities is a missed chance to boost your overall profits.

In matched betting, every bit of profit counts. 

Keep an eye on casino offers too. Perhaps you have always thought that online casinos are designed to make the house always win. And it’s true that online betting websites make the highest profits in that section.

That’s the exact reason why every now and then good casino offers come around the corner. And some of them allow you to make an easy calculated profit. Those are yours to take!

So don’t ignore these small offers in sport or casino. When you take advantage of them, you are going to increase your overall earnings and make your matched betting strategy more sustainable in the long run.

9. Gambling Instead of Matched Betting

A dangerous mistake in matched betting is confusing it with gambling. Instead of sticking to the principles of matched betting, some bettors get tempted by the prospect of bigger wins and start taking unnecessary risks.

This shift from risk-free betting to gambling can lead to significant losses. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, you can refer to our article on gambling addiction where you will find useful links on how to find help.

Remember that matched betting is designed to minimize risk by using mathematical strategies to guarantee a profit. Expecting to earn hundreds of thousands a month is unrealistic. The goal is to create a steady income stream and support your monthly budget.

10. Not Using Specialized Software for Matched Betting

You saw this coming, right? How can you do matched betting without NinjaBet? 

The largest mistake in your matched betting journey is not to use a specialized software to support your effort. 

Tools for odds comparison, calculation and profit tracking can significantly streamline the whole process and save you countless hours each week. No need to spend your evenings searching for the best opposing odds when you can simply spend that time with your family.

Putting all numbers in the calculator allows you to make a quick final check. Once you confirm the odds, you are good to go and the risk of human error is shrank to a minimum.

And step-by-step tutorials give you necessary details in the easiest possible way.

Make sure you read them carefully. If you feel like you missed something, it’s better to read it over again.

One of the best practices is to proceed with the offer only when you are completely sure you understood the full strategy from start to finish. 

If you have an open question, you can always get in touch with the support team via live chat or email. Sometimes people new to matched betting have trouble defining their question. In that case NinjaClub comes in quite handy as there are hundreds of discussions where you can read relevant information, ask a question and interact with other Ninjas.

So how about giving NinjaBet a try and registering that free account today? Click the button below and get started!

Wrapping Up

That was our list of the top 10 mistakes you need to avoid when getting started with matched betting. We hope you enjoyed the article and we are super excited to get your feedback.

What would you add to the list? What’s the biggest mistake you have made so far?

Get in touch with us at [email protected] and share your story!