Profit Boosts

Profit boosts are one of the lesser-seen matched betting offer types. They don’t pop up all that often, but there are some tidy profits to be had when they do!

In this guide, I’ll explain what a profit boost is, how they work and show you how to take advantage of them using matched betting.

What is a profit boost?

A profit boost occurs when a bookmaker offers to boost your profit if your bet wins.

Profit boosts are very similar to price boosts in that you ultimately end up with more winnings. However, your profit gets boosted upon settlement rather than the price boosted at placement.

How do profit boost offers work?

Profit boost offers are pretty straightforward. Place an eligible bet, and if it wins, the bookmaker will boost your winnings on settlement. You may need to select a profit boost ‘token’ in your bet slip when placing your bet.

Bookmakers will usually pay profit boosts in cash. However, there may be occasions where they pay them as a free bet or bonus. That’s not an issue, though; it just means there’s an extra step to complete to get your profit.

Bookmakers will usually boost profits by a set percentage. Reload offer profit boosts are generally in the region of 25% to 50%. Sign up offer profit boosts are more lucrative, with bookmakers sometimes offering to double (100%) or even treble (200%) your odds.

Profiting from profit boosts

Let’s look at a profit boost offer run by Unibet.

Unibet

You must always read the terms and conditions thoroughly before getting involved. Here are the main points to note for this Unibet offer.

• The offer applies to pre-match single bets placed on Arsenal v Man City.
• Maximum stake of £25.
• Minimum odds of 1.40 (2/5).
• The profit boost will be paid in cash.

So, there’s nothing too troublesome about this offer. Place an eligible bet on Arsenal v Man City, and if your bet wins, Unibet will boost your profit by 25% in cash.

Step 1: Check the odds at Unibet

Before you place any bets, you need to know if there’s a profit up for grabs. To work that out, you need to know the odds available.

Here are the Full Time odds for Arsenal v Man City at Unibet.

Unibet

Step 2: Check the lay odds at the exchanges

It’s entirely up to you which betting exchange you use to lay your bet. Your decision will likely depend on the commission rate you pay at each exchange and the lay odds available.

Here are the lay odds for Arsenal v Man City at Betfair.

Betfair

Step 3: Assess the value of the offer

Now you have some back and lay odds; you can work out whether or not this offer is worth doing.

It’s best to place a profit boost bet at high odds as the higher the odds, the more effect the profit boost will have. With that in mind, looking at the odds above, Arsenal are the best option with back odds of 6.25 and lay odds of 6.40.

The next step is calculating your ‘effective odds’; the back odds you’re getting with the profit boost factored in.

The back odds of 6.25 are in decimal form, so you first need to minus 1.00 for the stake. You can then multiply by your percentage boost and add the stake back.

6.25 (back odds) – 1.00 (stake) = 5.25
5.25 x 1.25 (25% boost) = 6.5625
6.5625 + 1.00 (stake) = 7.5625 (effective odds)

So, although you’ll be placing your bet at back odds of 6.25, with the 25% profit boost factored in, you’re effectively getting back odds of 7.5625.

Let’s enter those numbers into my Matched Betting Calculator.

As you can see, the calculator tells you that no matter the outcome, you’ll make a minimum fixed profit of £3.28.

Step 4: Place your bet at Unibet

Now you know the offer has value, you can go ahead and place your bets. So, you would place the maximum stake of £25 on Arsenal at Unibet.

Place £25.00 on Arsenal @ 6.25 = Potential profit of £131.25

Step 5: Place your lay bet at the exchange

The calculator above tells you to lay £29.77 against Arsenal.

Lay £29.77 against Arsenal @ 6.40 = Potential liability of £160.75

Let’s look at your overall profit/loss for each possible outcome.

So, no matter the outcome, you’ll make a minimum fixed profit of £3.28.

What if the profit boost isn’t paid in cash?

Bookmakers usually pay profit boosts in cash. However, sometimes a bookmaker will pay a profit boost as a free bet or bonus. If that’s the case, you need to make a slight adjustment when working out your effective odds.

Let’s use the same offer above, but the bookmaker is now paying the 25% profit boost as a free bet.

The first thing to do is work out the value of your potential free bet.

6.25 (back odds) – 1.00 (stake) = 5.25
5.25 x £25.00 = £131.25 (winnings)
£131.25 x 0.25 (25% boost) = £32.81 (free bet)

You can convert any free bet into 80% cash using straightforward matched betting. So, you should make £26.25 cash from your £32.81 free bet.

You now need to divide the sum of your returns by your initial stake.

£25.00 x 6.25 = £156.25 (returns incl. stake)
£156.25 + £26.25 (cash from free bet) = £182.50
£182.50 ÷ £25.00 = 7.30 (effective odds)

So, although you’ll be placing your bet at back odds of 6.25, with the 25% free bet factored in, you’re effectively getting back odds of 7.30.

Let’s enter those numbers into my Matched Betting Calculator.

As you can see, the extra step of converting your free bet into cash reduces your minimum fixed profit to £2.30. You’ll need to decide whether the smaller profit is worth the extra time spent.

Final words

Profit boost offers are pretty straightforward and don’t take much time to complete. Most profit boosts are paid in cash, so it’s a simple case of working out your effective odds and placing your bets.

Profit boost offers don’t pop up all that often, but when they do, there are some tidy profits to be had!

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