How to find arbitrage bets: 3 Ways You Should Try [2023]

There are three main methods to find arbitrage bets. The hardest way of finding arbitrage betting opportunities can be by looking for them manually.

The budget-friendly method is using a free tool.

But the most profitable is opting for a paid sure bet finder.

In this guide, you will find a video about each strategy and a more detailed written guide on how to find arbitrage bets.

When you gather information about arbitrage betting, you are facing several questions about this betting industry.

Back in time when I started, it was hard to get detailed information or data about arbitrage betting.

One of my first questions was about the following:

How to find arbitrage bets?

There are three main possibilities for finding arbitrage bets or opportunities at bookmakers:

1. Finding sure betting opportunities manually by opening the same match at both bookmakers and comparing odds for arbitrage opportunities
2. Using free arbitrage betting software for searching
3. Using Paid scanner Software services for searching Arbitrage bet opportunities

All these ways of finding arbitrage betting opportunities have their benefits and disadvantages. In the following part of this article, you can find out which way of spotting sure bets suits your needs best.

1. Find arbitrage bets manually

The industry of smart betting has evolved a lot in the past few years.

Arbitrage bettors and matched bettors aim for a guaranteed profit regardless of the outcome.

This risk-free way of hunting guaranteed profits can be achieved by finding sure betting opportunities manually by simply opening the same event on two different browser tabs.

Check my review about RebelBetting and find out how to profit from overpriced betting odds and start arbitrage betting in the USA!

They are finding new ways of finding new opportunities.

Sad news for all of us bettors, the bookmakers are evolving too in that same speed, making it harder and harder to find arbitrage opportunities.

Back in 2010-2015, it was fairly easy to find arbitrage betting opportunities manually.

The bookmakers have made a lot of mistakes, and you could place bets easily.

As time passed, the arbitrage betting finders got bigger, and they scanned a lot of bookmakers.

These services got greater attention from bettors, so more and more of us started to use them.

Even though scanner services are making it hard to find wrong odds manually, there is still some hope to spot arbitrage opportunities without opting in for paid software.

But if you are comparing your slow/local bookies with arbitrage friendly bookmakers, you still have the chance to spot weak betting markets.

The more people are using these services the more people are betting on the same outcome of a match.

This means that an arbitrage opportunity is getting too much attention and the odds on those bets are dropping.

For a beginner arbitrage bettor, this means that the chance of finding an arbitrage opportunity is getting small.

These odds comparison sites can not scan every bookmaker and every market at events.

Knowing this you can have better chances of finding arbitrage bet opportunities.

Tips: how to find arbitrage opportunities manually:

To find sports arbitrage opportunities manually, you need to open the same sports event in two different browser tabs, hopefully on two monitors, and compare betting markets and outcomes on a one-by-one basis.

• Find some bookmakers that are available in your country (and they are also trustworthy, based on other bettors’ opinions)
• Have a look at arbitrage scanner services, whether they are scanning that bookmaker or not (it is hard to find one that is not scanned, but hope for the best)
• Choose a sport that you are familiar with. I think for beginners, football and tennis betting are the best, to begin with
• Open the same sports event at more bookies
• Compare the odds of the same market at every bookmaker you have. In the beginning, try the markets with only two outcomes: over/under goals, over/under corners, and over/under cards. If you are familiar with handicap markets you can have a look at them too.
• For manual search, I would suggest having more attention to tennis markets between your bookmaker and a sharp bookie. Check my Pinnacle review (best bookie for sure betting) or my article on accessing Pinnacle in the UK.
• For comparing odds, you can find several free calculators by searching on google for a betting arbitrage calculator

Finding sure bets manually before the start of the event is very hard.

I think it is not worth your time.

But finding wrong odds and arbitrage opportunities in a live event is still a good possibility these days.

Tips for finding arbitrage betting opportunities manually on live events

If you are a beginner in arbitrage betting it is good to know that bookmakers are making the most of their mistakes in live events.

Even though you have more arbitrage bet possibilities, the odds are moving really fast.

Being successful in manual searching at live events needs a lot of experience.

I genuinely think that if a scanner is covering your bookies, you can make significantly more with a paying service.

For example, Surebet.com is displaying sure bets from 190+ bookies for 27 euros a month.

Or OddsJam is covering 50+ bookies from the US and has a 7-day free trial.

I don’t get why someone with a starting capital of over 500 euros would not opt in for a cheap service like this.

They can increase your monthly profits by even 15 times.

These arbitrage betting tips will give you a good headstart but also requires the most experience.

• Markets that are moving fast are one of the best opportunities for finding arbs
• It is better to place the first bet on the wrong odds (they are more likely to drop)
• Markets that may be good on football: over/ under goals, corner, handicap markets, next corner market, over/under red or yellow cards
• Markets for arbitrage bets on tennis: over/under games in the set and the match too, handicap markets, set winners. It is better to wait for the breaks to place your bets.

• This way, you reduce the chance of losing a large amount of money. That is because if the market is not moving in the right way on the next points, the odds you have to place is dropping.
• Good markets on Basketball could be over/under points, handicaps, and winners in quarters or half. The same rule applies as on tennis if you are not very experienced in betting on basketball.

Finding arbitrage bets on live events is mostly for more advanced bettors.

So if you have just started your betting journey, you can have more chances with the next method to find sure bets with free software like surebet.com.

2. Find arbitrage betting opportunities with a free software

For beginner arbitrage bettors, this method Is the most favorable for finding arbs and growing your bank.

These services scan the bookmakers with scripts and compare their odds of finding arbitrage opportunities.

Advantages of using free arbitrage scanners:

• If you are a beginner arbitrage bettor, you can gain experience without paying for the service
• You can grow your bank faster than finding arbs manually (if you are a beginner)
• You can check which bookmaker can be good for your needs
• You can complete your bonus requirement rollovers faster

Disadvantages of using free arbitrage scanners:

• The maximum % of return on arbs at free scanners is only 1%
• Most of them are showing the arbs with a delay of approximately 1 minute. So those who have paid for the arbitrage scanner service have a 1-minute advantage of placing those bets before the odds start dropping
• A lot of people are using these free services, so the chance of being flagged as an arber is high
• You miss a lot of good opportunities because of delays and the 1% limit on profit
• If you are arbitrage betting from the UK (with hundreds of bookies) it’s wasting time betting on such low arbs

Down below, you can find some arbitrage scanner services which have a free platform too.

I have an affiliate partnership with each of them. But I’m promoting only the services I have used for at least some months.

You can find my more detailed review and comparison table of free arbitrage betting software here.

You might ask: how do you spot sure betting opportunities with free arb software that is still up?

It’s a fair question.

Everybody can have access to the same markets, bookies, and betting opportunities as yourself when using a free tool.

I’m trying to help people to find the best tools for their activity, and won’t tell a big secret when I say that most people are looking for a free tool.

How to find sure bets that are still available

First thing first, you need to use software that does not have a significant delay in displaying the odds.

For this matter, BetBurger can seem almost useless when looking for a free sure bet finder.

But professionals use their free services to spot potential events and markets; for sure betting can also profit from their scanner.

Based on my experience, the 2-week free trial of RebelBetting (for Europe and the US mainly) and the 1-week trial of OddsJam (USA and Canada) are your best shots for pre-match sure betting.

Both offer their services with a slight limitation on the profit % (in the free trial), allowing you to spot arbitrage bets that are still live.

In summary, you really need to understand that;

Similarly to other businesses, if you really want to make serious profits, you will need to shift from using arb tools towards paid services.

The amount of guaranteed profit you can make with a premium tool is significantly different.

They offer different odds, and they will help you have a different profit margin for the same amount of time invested.

3. Find arbitrage opportunities with Paid arbitrage software

Using the paid version of these services most of the time has a significant impact on the quality and the number of your sure betting opportunities.

This way, you will not face delays, and there will be no maximum profit % limitation at arbitrage bets.

Advantages of using paid arbitrage scanners:

• No delay in showing new arb opportunities
• No profit % limitations
• You can see arbitrage opportunities that are not available in the free version due to these limitations
• Way bigger returns on your arbs

Check my review about the cheapest yet well-developed arbitrage betting software: Breaking Bet

Disadvantages of using paid arbitrage scanners:

• Some of the subscriptions can be expensive for a beginners experience and bankroll
• There is a chance that you get limited at bookmakers before the subscription ends at scanner service – if you do not have new accounts, that could mean dead money
• You might feel pushed to use the software even if you do not have the mood or time for work (because you paid for it).

On the following link, you can read my review and table about the best value betting software, and the following article includes the same table about sure bet finders.

To avoid any misunderstanding, I have to note that price differences do not mean a very big quality difference as, well.

How to Identify/Find Arbitrage Betting Opportunities?

1. Make a list of your bookies:

To identify the right arbitrage betting opportunities, you need to have a list of your local bookies.
I would advise using only the ones with a good reputation.

This betting technique is not welcomed, so the last thing you want to experience is facing a bookie that has a background of banning accounts for no reason.

2. Open accounts at sharp/Asian bookies:

You need a trustworthy betting site or sports betting broker to cover/hedge your initial bet.

To practice sure betting with success:

• you need at least one side of your bets to be at bookies that won’t limit your maximum stakes,
• and have a fairly high stake limitation in general.

3. Set up the filters:

After opening accounts at the above-mentioned bookies and you have some funds on your accounts, you need to set up your filters with the sure betting software.

To identify the right arbitrage betting opportunities you need to open the settings and choose only the bookies that you have funds.

For many, it might sound like a piece of obvious advice, but believe me, many people (me included) need to know the very basics when they are beginners.

Selecting the required sports, markets, and odds ranges can come when you already have an idea about how to find arbitrage betting opportunities at your local bookies.

4. Follow the right sure bets:

The right way to find and identify sports arbitrage betting opportunities that are good is by looking for sure bets that are available for several seconds or even minutes.

Many of these opportunities disappear from one second to another.

These can happen because of a short delay at one bookie, not because of a real sure betting opportunity.

5. Calculate the stakes:

Now you know how to get arbitrage bets displayed on your screen.

The next step is calculating the right stake for your bets.

Each relevant arbitrage betting finder has a dedicated calculator for each betting opportunity.

You will notice them as a calculator icon on each sure betting opportunity pop-up window.

Here you can fix one leg of your bets and include the stake you need at your slow bookmaker.

The tool will display the right stakes for the other outcome.

6. Place the sure bets:

You succeeded in learning how to find arbitrage odds and how to calculate the right stakes.

Here comes the hardest part of your activity.

Getting the best arbitrage opportunities is not enough.

You need to be fast at each step to accomplish it successfully.

Opening the right event and market in time and inserting the right odds is the crucial part of profitable arbitrage betting.

The odds might shift in seconds, and if you are not fast enough, sometimes you need to cover your bets with a loss.

7. Treat mistakes accordingly:

As I already mentioned, sometimes you will make mistakes or run into falling odds.

After many years of sure betting, I know how and where to find arbitrage bets that have a very low chance of dropping while I cover each outcome of the bets.

But when this happens, I always hedge my bets no matter how big the loss can be.

Taking a guaranteed 10-25% loss is way better than risking one of 100%.

Conclusion: How to find arbitrage betting opportunities

To find arbitrage betting opportunities, you need to follow one of the following three possible methods: 1. find sure bets manually; 2. use a free arbitrage finder tool; 3 opt-in for a paid fast arbitrage bet scanner service.

Finding arbitrage bets on free services could be very helpful while completing rollover requirements on bonuses or when you are starting to learn about this industry of sure bets and smart betting in general.

Paid arbitrage scanner services will give you a big boost in the quality and quantity of your bets.

These services come at high prices for a beginner.

Opting for a weekly subscription can help you in deciding if the service is appropriate for your needs.

Read more in my arbitrage betting guide article or in one of the following relevant articles:

• Arbitrage betting software USA
• Arbitrage betting software Canada
• Arbitrage betting software Australia
• Arbitrage betting software UK
• Arbitrage betting formula & calculation
• Football arbitrage betting with example

Want to know how much can you make from arbitrage betting?

Read my article about this topic too!

My other article on arbitrage betting vs matched betting can also be an interesting read before your jump into one of these strategies.

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