We like to refer to Smarkets as a unique sports betting site that’s not like the regular bookmakers you know. It was founded in 2008 by Jason Trost and Hunter Morris. Just in case you don’t know, Jason Trost is also the founder of the bookmaker, SBK. According to Jason Trost, Smarkets was created to address the limitations he observed in the sports betting industry. He wanted a sports betting site that would apply the principles of financial markets to sports betting.
Smarkets operates solely as a betting exchange, and it allows users to bet against each other rather than against the house. It offers over 20 sports, including football, basketball, horse racing, and boxing. There’s so much you’ll be learning from this review. Sit tight, and let’s get started!!
From our time we spent checking and reviewing every feature of Smarkets, we only found one promotion, which is basically for new players. Existing players do not have any offers. This could be as a result of the fact that Smarkets does not operate like the bookmakers we know. They operate a betting exchange, which in itself is more profitable to players.
Once the stated no commission days are fulfilled, a standard 2% commission applies to every bet you place.
There are no free bets on Smarkets at the time of our review.
At the time of our review, Smarkets only offered a no-commission welcome bonus for new players. Existing players do not qualify for any promotion.
At the time of this review, there’s no seasonal offer on the Smarkets promotion page.
There are no mobile-exclusive bonuses on the Smarkets app. The same welcome bonus applies to the app.
Smarkets does not currently offer a loyalty or VIP club bonus.
The welcome bonus doesn’t come with any complicated requirements; only ensure that while registering, you add the code. Without the code, you won’t be able to claim the no-commission welcome bonus. To learn more about the welcome offer, you should visit the promotion page of Smarkets.
Registration on Smarket can be completed in under 2 minutes. Here’s what you need to complete your registration:
When you open Smarkets on your browser or app, you’ll find an interface that looks just like this. Click on the “Create Account” button at the top right of the homepage.
You’ll be directed to this page where you have to input your email address, create a password, enter your first name & last name, date of birth, address, and phone number. In filling this, ensure you enter the promo code to get the welcome offer.
Here you’re asked to proceed with a deposit to activate the no-commission bonus. You may choose to skip or complete the process. Accept the terms and continue.
Please note that your registration is not complete without a full verification of your identity. It’ll be required before withdrawal. Navigate to your account and verify with a government-approved ID.
We’ve stated earlier how Smarkets offers over 20 sports with top tournaments and thousands of markets to bet on daily. You’ll find internationally recognized sports as well as Irish-specific tournaments, including football, horse racing, baseball, basketball, rugby, golf, and so much more. Here we have compiled a list of some of the sports you’ll find on Smarkets
To help you bet better and have some sort of edge in the market, we’ve checked through to know the betting tools made available by Smarkets. If these tools are utilized well, they can help you maximize betting opportunities. Here are the available betting tools on Smarkets:
Smarkets’ live betting is very advanced and can easily be understood by an experienced punter. The live betting market allows you to jump in as the event is taking place. When you open the live betting section of football, you’ll find popular advanced betting markets like full-time result, BTTS, goal over/under, and goal range.
Smarkets live streaming covers only sports like horse racing and greyhound racing. The horse racing coverage includes the UK, Ireland, and many international events. The live streaming is smooth and loads in high quality. One downside we observed is that you cannot access the live streaming option without first registering and placing a bet on the race you want to watch.
To stream, you need to place at least €1 bet on the event. We enjoyed the live stream, and it’s what we recommend. Go check it out for yourself.
Smarkets is not like the usual bookmakers you know; it’s a betting exchange, not a sportsbook. This simply means they don’t set or offer odds themselves; instead, players bet against each other, and Smarkets simply facilitates these trades. Smarkets acts as a middleman, matching opposing bets and taking a small commission on the winner’s net winnings. Remember that new customers enjoy 0% commission for the first 60 days after signing up with the COMMFREE promo code. Once this period ends, a low 2% commission is charged on winning trades.
You can make a payment on Smarkets via credit/debit cards, e-wallets, and bank transfer. Your deposits will most likely be processed instantly, while withdrawals need to go through approval before they’re processed. The minimum amount you can deposit and withdraw is capped at €10, with the exception of Bank Transfer, which has a minimum withdrawal of €20. Maximum withdrawals vary by method. At the time of this review, Smarkets does not support payment via cryptocurrency, and transactions in Ireland are in euros (EUR).
These payment methods are some of the best you’ll get in Ireland. They are fast and reliable. If you want to make a withdrawal that’s below €5,500, we recommend you use PayPal. While large withdrawals should be processed via bank transfer.
Smarkets has a dedicated mobile app for Android and iPhone users. We’ve tested the apps, and they work just as smoothly as the mobile site. There are a few distinguishing factors between the app and the site, for example, the app has push notification that gives you steady updates on your trades and market changes. Another feature is the quick log-in with fingerprint and two-factor authentication for added security.
The iOS app has a high rating of 4.8 stars out of 5 by over 4.6k users. This is considered to be very good, and you know the ratings are from actual players. If you’re a lover of mobile app betting like some of us, then we recommend the app for you. If you’re indifferent, the mobile site can still serve the purpose you want. Both are excellent. The apps are available for download on the Google Play Store and App Store.
Smarkets’ customer support is available mainly via email, live chat, and Twitter (X). It takes less than 3 minutes before you’re connected to a customer support via live chat, while email support can take up to 24 hours to respond to your enquiries and complaints. The Twitter (X) social media account operates similarly to email, and the response is typically fast and within hours. Out of these 3 customer support channels, the live chat remains the best for us. The response is fast, and they’re professional too.
Before contacting customer support, you may want to go through the FAQ section because some of the questions you may have would have been answered. The FAQ section can be accessed when you click on the help center at the bottom of the homepage. Lastly, customer support is available in English (United Kingdom), English (United States), Portuguese, and Swedish.
Smarkets has 6 responsible gambling tools. We’ve checked each of them, and they’re just in line with standard procedure. Here’s a list and brief explanation of the responsible gambling tools available on Smarkets:
If you ever feel overwhelmed about trading and need support, Smarkets has made available organizational support to help you cope. There are organizations like GamCare, Gamblers Anonymous, and Gambling Therapy. We strongly recommend contacting any of these organizations to get professional help if needed.
We dedicated quality time to get users’ feedback on their betting experience on Smarkets. We read hundreds of reviews from top-rated sites like Trustpilot, and the result shows lots of positive feedback and just a little area for improvement. While some players have openly commended the customer support for professionalism and timely response, others have criticized them for their inability to withdraw due to failed KYC verification. We cannot overemphasize the need to verify your account before making deposits and placing bets; that’s the only way you can be sure that you can place withdrawals and get them approved. These complaints are a result of not verifying accounts before playing.
Here’s one of the many comments we found on Trustpilot.
James Wade 4/5 Stars
“Perennial 0% commission offers, no messing about with withdrawals, exactly what you’d want in an exchange. The one drawback is that they’ve been known to take weeks to sort out KYC stuff and lock accounts while they do so, but as long as you answer the questions, it’s fine.”
As explained earlier, Smarket is not a bookmaker; it is exclusively a sports betting exchange. Smarkets does not offer casino games; it operates solely as a sports betting exchange and allows players to back and lay bets on various sports. It’s focused on providing low commission and peer-to-peer trading rather than traditional casino entertainment.
Our Opinion on Smarkets is that they have one of the best live chat customer support. We didn’t just rely on the comments of players; we tested them for ourselves and found the support to be very helpful and professional. The sports catalogue is in alphabetical order, and there’s a quick link to help easily navigate the watchlist, in-play options, and top sports. We particularly like where the live chat and search filter are placed. They’re just at the top of the homepage, which is unusual but very thoughtful. Because of where they’re placed, we were able to search games easily and contact support fast.
The in-play market is very advanced, and it contains most of the advanced market experienced players would like to play. Another section we checked was the live stream, and it didn’t quite meet our expectations. We only found 2 sports coverage (greyhound and horse racing), and we need to place bets before we can watch the match. Two things that may appear as a downside are the unavailability of Irish-specific sports like Gaelic football and hurling, and the lack of promotions for existing players.
The app is great, betting tools are on point, and everything on the app and site seems to work just fine. We recommend Smarkets for all types of players, especially those who don’t mind the unavailability of multiple promotions.
