+£26
35 mins
Paddy Power
Bet £5, Get £40 in Free Bets•35 mins
Bet £5, Get £40 in Free Bets
+£26What is Paddy Power?
Paddy Power has been around since 1988, starting life in Dublin. They're part of Flutter Entertainment (the same group behind Betfair and FanDuel) and fully regulated by the UK Gambling Commission.
They have hundreds of betting shops across the UK and Ireland, but we're using the online version.
Launched
1988
Google Play
4.4 (42k)
★★★★★★
Key Terms
Your numbers
You make+£26
You need upfront£180
£5 Paddy Power + £175 Smarkets
Not spent – it moves between your accounts and comes back when you finish
The rules
Qualifying bet£5 at odds 2.00+
Deposit methodDebit card, Pay by Bank, or Apple Pay
Qualification windowWithin 30 days of opening your account
Free bets creditedOn bet settlement
Free bets expire30 days
Step by Step Guide
Dan's overview
Optional·3 min read
Paddy Power's welcome bonus typically returns around £26 in winnings, and possibly more. You put £5 into Paddy Power and place one qualifying bet (costs roughly 25p). They give you 0 x £0 free bets to use as Bet Builders, Accumulators, or Multiples.
You need about £180 total across your accounts, but none of that money is spent. It just moves between your accounts to cover both sides of the qualifying bet.
It takes about 25 minutes of actual work, spread over a couple of days. Unlike standard free bets, these can't be perfectly matched on the exchange. The £26 estimate is what they typically return when you place sensible Bet Builders or accas.
Start here
Get Smarkets ready
Every matched betting offer uses the Smarkets betting exchange to lock in your profit. Set it up once and you're ready for all of them.
- 1.Create a free Smarkets account
- 2.Deposit £175 – that covers the lay bets for this offer
When you place a bet on Paddy Power, you also place an opposite bet on Smarkets to cancel it out. If Paddy Power's bet wins, Smarkets needs to pay the difference, and the £175 is there to cover that worst case.
You won't lose this money. It just needs to be in your Smarkets account while the bet settles. After the match, the unused balance is yours again.
1
Sign up with Paddy Power
10 mins
- Click the button below to go to Paddy Power.
- Register an account and deposit £5 using a debit card, Pay by Bank, or Apple Pay. E-wallets like PayPal or Skrill won't qualify.
- Switch to decimal odds: go to Settings and change Odds Format to Decimal.
2
Place your £5 qualifying bet
5 mins
Within 30 days of opening your account
This unlocks your £40 in free bets. We'll match your bookmaker bet on the exchange so your qualifying loss stays small, usually 10-40p.
Use the finder below to get a low-loss match with the exact stakes for both bets.
3
Use your 4 x £10 free bets
15 mins
Each free bet must be used as a Bet Builder, Accumulator, or Multiple. Singles are not allowed for this offer. Bet Builders are usually the easiest: stack two or three picks in a single match (e.g. "Liverpool to win + over 2.5 goals") to reach combined odds around 4.0+ for the best return.
4
Withdraw your funds
5 mins
- Once your free bet match has finished, check your Paddy Power account balance.
- Withdraw any remaining money in Paddy Power to your bank account.
- Check your Smarkets balance. Your qualifying-bet lay should have settled there. Move any Paddy Power winnings into Smarkets too, a healthy exchange balance lets you tackle higher-value offers next, some worth £30–50+ each.
- Don’t close your Paddy Power account. Bookmakers sometimes send existing customers extra free bet offers.
Offer Complete
Finished? Tick off each step above to view and track your total profit.
Paddy Power's sportsbook is operated by PPB Counterparty Services Limited, licensed by the UK Gambling Commission (account 39439).
18+. Gambling can be addictive. If you feel you may have a problem, visit BeGambleAware.org. Matched betting involves placing bets with real money. While the mathematical approach minimises risk, losses can occur if instructions are not followed exactly.