Smarkets vs Betfair in two paragraphs
Both firms run betting exchanges licensed by the Gambling Commission as remote betting intermediaries. Each matches your back or lay bet against another customer and takes a cut of net winnings on every market. Betfair opened in June 2000 as the first betting exchange, and Smarkets followed in 2008 with a pitch built on lower commission.
Our short answer to Smarkets vs Betfair: an everyday football punter on modest stakes will usually pay less at Smarkets, while anyone who trades in-play, bets on smaller sports or stakes larger sums will find Betfair fills orders that Smarkets cannot. There is a strong case for holding both accounts and checking each price before you place a bet.
| Fact |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Football margin (median) | 3.05% · first 13 days of odds | 4.38% · first 13 days of odds |
| Premier League margin | 2.42% | 4.02% |
| Standard commission | 2% of net winnings | 5% of net winnings |
| Cash out | Yes | Yes |
| Live streaming | Yes | Yes |
| Withdrawals | Open Banking about 12 hours; PayPal, Skrill, Neteller and Trustly 1–2 business days; debit cards 1–6 business days; bank transfer 5–10 business days. Free; closed loop. | E-wallets (PayPal, Skrill, Neteller) 1–4 hours; Apple Pay 2–3 working days; debit cards 2–5 working days (Visa Fast Funds on eligible Visa Debit); bank transfer 1–5 working days |
| App Store rating | 4.8/5 | 4.7/5 |
| Google Play rating | 2.8/5 | 4.3/5 |
| Licensee | Smarkets (Malta) Limited · UKGC 39173 | TSE Malta LP · UKGC 39561 |
0% Commission for 60 Days with Code COMMFREE
New customers only, 18+. Enter code COMMFREE at registration to trade at 0% commission on bets that settle within 60 days of your first deposit. The first deposit must be at least £10 by debit card or instant banking; e-wallet, PayPal, Revolut and prepaid card deposits do not qualify. Full T&Cs apply. Please gamble responsibly. GambleAware.org 18+
Please gamble responsibly. GambleAware.org 18+
Commission: Smarkets vs Betfair on cost
Smarkets’ Standard tier, which covers almost every customer, takes 2% of your net profit on a market and nothing on a market you lose. Betfair applies a Market Base Rate of 5% on football and most sports, netted the same way. On those defaults, Smarkets vs Betfair is a clear win for Smarkets on the cost of a winning position.
Betfair’s My Betfair Rewards packages change the picture for UK customers. Rewards is the default and keeps 5%. Basic drops the charge to 2%, level with Smarkets, but takes away Sportsbook and Exchange promotions. Rewards+ raises it to 8% in return for extras such as a monthly loss refund. Packages can be switched once a month, at its start.
Heavy users meet a second layer. Smarkets requires anyone placing more than 1,500 bets or staking over £1m in a calendar month to opt in to its Pro tier, charged at 1% on each settled order. A 3% Select rate applies once net profit over the previous 12 months passes £25,000. Smarkets says about 0.2% of customers reach these thresholds.
Betfair’s Expert Fee replaced the old Premium Charge on 6 January 2025. It looks at gross profit over the last 52 weeks in which the account was active, for accounts in lifetime profit with more than 100 markets bet: nothing below £25,000, 20% between £25,000 and £100,000 and 40% above that. Those rates are the total share of gross profit paid in fees; Betfair tops up the commission you generated each week to reach them, after a buffer for earlier losses and commission. Both exchanges begin charging steady winners more at the same mark, though the two charges are calculated very differently.
Take a round example. Suppose your exchange bets produce £500 of net winnings in a month. Smarkets on its Standard tier keeps £10 of that. Betfair keeps £25 on the default Rewards package, £10 on Basic and £40 on Rewards+. Over a year at that level, the gap between Smarkets and Betfair’s default package comes to £180.
Liquidity: where Betfair earns its higher fee
Liquidity is the money waiting to be matched, and it is Betfair’s strongest card. Premier League football, the Cheltenham Festival and Wimbledon match fastest there, with narrow gaps between back and lay prices. Third-party trading software connects through Betfair’s API, and the professional traders using it help keep the queues full on the busiest markets.
Smarkets is well stocked on Premier League football and UK racing, and strong on politics. On niche sports and minor in-play markets it is shallower, so a large stake can sit unmatched or push the price. Stakes are not capped per customer at Smarkets, which means the real ceiling is whatever money others have offered at your price.
In any Smarkets vs Betfair decision, the commission saving only counts if your bet is matched at a comparable price. For football, the table above shows how close the exchanges sit after commission, and where they are close the cheaper fee wins. On a tennis qualifier or lower-league in-play market, Betfair’s deeper book can outweigh three points of commission.
Trading tools and the 90-minute payout
Smarkets’ Trade Out button works out the stake needed to close a matched position at the current price, before the start or in-play. Its keep in-play option stops an unmatched bet being cancelled when the market is suspended at kick-off. The help centre’s bet and hedging calculators accept any commission rate, so they work for Betfair positions too.
Betfair offers cash out on the exchange, and its Match Odds 90 markets settle at the 90-minute mark, so a stoppage-time equaliser cannot undo a winning back bet. The exchange takes singles only, with multiples left to the Sportsbook. As a side point, both firms also run fixed-odds products, the Betfair Sportsbook and SBK, which carry ordinary bookmaker margins.
The apps, side by side
Both exchanges have dedicated apps. Smarkets’ iPhone app is rated highly on the App Store, but its Android version scores far lower on Google Play, an unusual split between the two stores. Betfair’s exchange app rates well on both and is separate from its Sportsbook app. The current scores for each sit in the comparison table near the top.
If you use an Android phone, try the Smarkets mobile website alongside the app before relying on either. Betfair’s app adds biometric login, bet notifications and full in-play trading. Support differs more than the apps do: Betfair runs live chat around the clock once you log in, while Smarkets’ chat opens from 09:00 to 23:00 GMT.
Payments and payouts
E-wallet users get their money faster from Betfair: PayPal, Skrill and Neteller withdrawals take one to four hours there, against one to two business days at Smarkets. The quickest Smarkets route is Open Banking, at about 12 hours, and it charges nothing to deposit or withdraw. Debit card payouts take one to six business days at Smarkets.
Smarkets runs a closed loop, returning money to the method it came from, split across methods if you used several. Its minimum deposit is £10, or £20 by PayPal. Betfair takes £5 by debit card, Apple Pay or Pay by Bank, and £30 through the e-wallets. Credit cards cannot be used for betting in Great Britain, at either exchange.
Offers for new exchange customers
Neither exchange hands out a free bet in the bookmaker sense. Smarkets gives new customers 0% commission with the code COMMFREE on bets that settle within 60 days of a first deposit of £10 or more by debit card or instant banking. First deposits by PayPal, Revolut, other e-wallets or prepaid cards do not qualify.
Betfair has no sign-up offer on its exchange at the moment; the exchange promotions page lists only Refer and Earn, which pays an existing customer £10 in cash per friend who joins and stakes £10. Customers on the Basic package forgo exchange promotions, so check which package you hold. Judge both exchanges on commission and liquidity first, since the offers touch only your opening weeks.
Safer gambling tools on each exchange
Smarkets offers net and gross deposit limits plus loss and stake limits; lowering a limit is immediate and raising one waits 72 hours. Time-outs run for 1, 7, 31 or 42 days, and self-exclusion for six months, a year, five years or permanently. Betfair adds session limits and reality checks to its deposit limits, loss limits, time-outs and self-exclusion.
A loss limit suits exchange trading, where a run of in-play positions can drain an account quickly. Both firms take part in GamStop, which blocks every licensed operator in Great Britain with one free registration. Betfair’s exchange licensee was among four Betfair and Paddy Power companies that agreed a £2m settlement with the Gambling Commission in December 2025.
Smarkets vs Betfair: our verdict
Choose Smarkets if most of your exchange betting is Premier League football or UK racing at stakes the market absorbs easily: the 2% rate, 60 commission-free days and fee-free payments keep costs low. Choose Betfair if you trade in-play, bet on smaller sports or need size, and pick its Basic package unless promotions clearly pay their way.
Betfair vs Smarkets is rarely an either-or choice for regular punters, since opening both costs nothing and checking two prices takes seconds. Our betting exchanges page adds Matchbook to the picture, and the full Smarkets review and Betfair Exchange review cover licences, payout routes and complaint procedures in more detail.
Frequently asked questions
Is Smarkets cheaper than Betfair?
On the default settings, yes. Smarkets charges 2% of net winnings per market on its Standard tier, while Betfair's default Rewards package charges 5%. Betfair's Basic package matches the 2% rate but removes promotions.
Which exchange has more liquidity, Smarkets or Betfair?
Betfair. It holds the deepest markets in Britain, especially on football, racing and tennis. Smarkets is well stocked on Premier League football, UK racing and politics, but thinner on niche sports and minor in-play markets.
Can I switch my Betfair commission package to match Smarkets?
Yes. Choosing the Basic package under My Betfair Rewards brings the charge down to 2%. You give up Sportsbook and Exchange promotions in return, and you can change package once a month, at the start of the month.
What happens to very successful customers on each exchange?
Smarkets applies a 3% Select rate once net profit over the previous 12 calendar months passes £25,000. Betfair tops up commission with an Expert Fee once gross profit over the last 52 active weeks passes the same figure, so that total fees reach 20% or 40% of that profit.
Does Smarkets have a cash out like Betfair?
Yes. Smarkets calls it Trade Out: a button works out the stake needed to close a matched position at the current price, before the start or in-play. Betfair offers cash out on its exchange as well.
Which exchange app is better, Smarkets or Betfair?
Both iPhone apps are rated highly. On Android, Betfair's exchange app scores well while Smarkets scores much lower on Google Play, so Android users may prefer the Smarkets mobile website.
Is there a welcome offer at Smarkets or Betfair Exchange?
Smarkets offers 60 days of 0% commission with the code COMMFREE after a qualifying first deposit. Betfair runs no sign-up offer on its exchange at the moment; its only exchange promotion is Refer and Earn for existing customers.
Are Smarkets and Betfair Exchange licensed in the UK?
Yes. Smarkets (Malta) Limited holds Gambling Commission account 39173 and TSE Malta LP holds account 39561. Both hold remote betting intermediary licences, the category every exchange needs.