Free Bet Calculator

Q: Why is the hedge bet smaller than my free bet amount?

Because you only hedge the winnings , not the whole free bet. With a stake-not-returned bonus, the free bet never pays you the stake back, so there is nothing to cover for it. Example: a $100 free bet at +200 wins $200. If the hedge side is at -200 (1.50 decimal), you hedge $200 ÷ 1.50 = $133.33. That is more than the winnings would suggest at short prices, but at longer hedge prices the number drops fast.

Q: Do I need two sportsbook accounts to hedge a free bet?

Yes, in almost every case. Most books will not let you bet both sides of the same market on one account. A second account also gives you a better price to hedge at. Two accounts are the minimum. Three or more helps you shop for the best hedge line, which raises your conversion rate.

Q: Can I lose money hedging a free bet?

Not if you place both bets at the shown amounts. Your free bet costs you nothing, so the worst case is a smaller profit, not a loss. You can lose money if you miss the hedge, the line moves before you bet, the market voids on one side only, or you get limited and cannot place the full hedge stake.

Q: Why does the Minimum Profitable Hedge Odds box say Any odds?

Because a free bet costs you nothing, any hedge price above even money still leaves you with profit. There is no real breakeven point to worry about. The box only shows a real number when the free bet payout is tiny. Focus on the conversion rate instead. That tells you if the hedge is worth taking.

Q: What is the difference between Unit Stake and Total Stake in Settings?

Unit Stake means the amount you typed is placed on every single bet line. A $10 unit stake on a Yankee (11 lines) risks $110. Total Stake means the amount you typed is split across all lines. A $110 total stake on a Yankee puts $10 on each line. For a normal single free bet, both give the same answer.

Q: Why is the Free Play Line box greyed out?

It locks whenever your bet has more than one leg. With a double, treble, acca, or full cover bet, the calculator works out the combined price from the Selections table. Change the odds in the table rows instead. The Free Play Line will update on its own.

Q: Why do some bet types show an error message instead of results?

Any To Come and Speciality bets (like SSA, Round Robin, Flag, Alphabet, and Union Jack) recycle winnings into later bets or use a fixed grid. That conditional structure cannot be modelled with a simple hedge formula. Stick to Single, Each Way Single, Double, Treble, Accumulator, or a Full Cover bet such as a Trixie, Yankee, or Lucky 15.

Q: What hedge odds do I need to hit a 70% conversion rate?

It depends on your free bet odds. The calculator shows the exact price in the Hedge Odds for 70% Conversion box, in all three formats. As a rough guide, free bets at +200 to +400 with a tight hedge price on the other side usually land near or above 70%. Short-priced favourites almost never do.

Q: Should I hedge, or just let the free bet ride?

Hedging locks in cash every time. Letting it ride gives you a bigger payout sometimes and nothing most of the time. Over many free bets, the long-run value is similar. Hedging is the safer choice if you want steady, guaranteed money or you only get bonuses now and then.

Q: The book only takes whole dollar bets. How should I round the hedge?

Round to the nearest dollar. The change in profit is a few cents either way. Rounding down leaves a little more profit if the free bet side wins. Rounding up leaves a little more if the hedge side wins. Neither turns a profit into a loss.

Free Bet Calculator

Updated Aug 16, 2026 By Jehan Wadia

Introduction

A free bet is a bonus wager from a sportsbook. You can't cash it out, and most books keep the stake when it wins. This Free Bet Calculator shows you how to turn that bonus into real money you keep no matter who wins.

The trick is called hedging. You place your free bet on one side, then bet real cash on the other side at a different sportsbook. The calculator tells you the exact hedge amount to bet so both results pay you the same. That locked-in amount is your guaranteed profit. If you want to check a two-way price gap on its own, the Surebet Calculator and the Arbitrage Calculator handle plain cash-versus-cash hedges.

Just enter your free bet amount, your free bet odds, and the hedge odds. You'll instantly see:

Hedge bet amount — how much real cash to bet on the other side
Guaranteed profit — the money you keep either way
Conversion rate — how many cents per dollar of free bet you turn into cash (70% is a good target)
Breakeven odds — the worst hedge price that still pays you

The tool works with American, decimal, and fractional odds. It also handles stake-not-returned (SNR) and stake-returned (SR) bonus bets, each way bets, and multi-leg bets like doubles, trebles, accumulators, Trixies, Yankees, and Lucky 15s. A step-by-step breakdown shows the math, and a chart shows how your profit changes as hedge odds move. For plain returns on a normal cash wager, use the Bet Calculator.

How to use our Free Bet Calculator

Enter your free bet amount, the odds on your free bet, and the odds on the other side at a second book. The calculator shows how much to bet on the hedge, your guaranteed profit, and your conversion rate.

Odds Format: Pick American, Decimal, or Fraction. All odds you type must match this format. The Odds Calculator converts between the three if you need a quick lookup.

Settings & Bookmaker Rules: Open this to set unit or total stake, the each way rule, and any win bonus, consolation, or best odds guaranteed uplift your book gives.

Bet Type: Choose the shape of your bet, like Single, Double, Treble, Accumulator, or a full cover bet such as a Yankee. Multi-leg returns can also be checked against the Parlay Calculator.

Number of Selections: Type how many legs your bet has, then press Set. Some bet types lock this number for you.

Accumulator Fold Size: For accumulators, set how many legs must win in each bet line.

Free Bet Amount: Enter the dollar value of the free bet sitting in your account.

Free Bet Type: Pick SNR if you only keep the winnings, which is normal at most books. Pick SR if your book also gives back the stake.

Free Play Line: Enter the odds of the bet you place your free bet on. With more than one leg, the calculator works this out for you.

Hedge Line: Enter the odds for the opposite result at the book where you bet real cash.

Each Way: Turn this on for win and place bets. It adds a Place Odds column to the table.

Include Bonuses: Turn bonuses on or off without losing the values you saved in Settings.

Selections Table: For each leg, set the status (Won, Placed, Lost, or Void), the win odds, and the place odds. Click the number button to add Rule 4 cuts, dead heat details, or joint favourite details.

Compare Scenarios: Type three sets of hedge odds to see profit and conversion side by side.

Hedge Examples Tab: Pick your state, your free bet book, the bet amount, market limits, and the books you use to see sample hedges. These are simulated numbers, not real odds.

Press Calculate to see your results, or Clear / Reset to start again.

What Is a Free Bet?

A free bet is a bonus wager a sportsbook gives you. You do not risk your own money on it. But you also cannot cash it out. To turn it into real money, you have to use it.

Stake Not Returned vs. Stake Returned

Most free bets in the U.S. are Stake Not Returned (SNR). If your bet wins, you keep only the profit, not the free bet amount. So a $100 free bet at +200 pays you $200, not $300.

A few books offer Stake Returned (SR) free bets. Those pay the profit and the stake back, just like a normal cash bet. Always check your book's rules, because this changes your math a lot.

How Free Bet Hedging Works

Hedging means you bet the other side of the same game with real cash at another sportsbook. Then you win money no matter what happens.

Place the free bet on one outcome.
Bet real cash on the opposite outcome somewhere else.
Size the cash bet so both results pay about the same.

The math is simple. Take the free bet winnings, then divide by the decimal odds of the hedge side. That gives your hedge stake. When you are staking your own money instead of a bonus, the Kelly Criterion Calculator is a better guide to bet sizing.

Conversion Rate

Conversion rate tells you how much real cash you keep from each dollar of free bet. If a $100 free bet leaves you with $72 in locked profit, that is a 72% conversion rate.

70% or more — excellent
55% to 69% — good
Under 55% — below average

Around 70% is the common benchmark bettors aim for. To see the same idea as a plain percentage of any figure, try the Percentage Calculator.

Tips for Better Conversion

Higher odds usually convert better with SNR free bets, because you keep more profit for the same stake. Underdogs near +200 to +400 often work well. But you also need a close hedge price on the other side. A big gap between the two prices eats your profit. Strip the bookmaker margin out first with the No Vig Calculator to see which side is really priced fairly.

Also watch the limits. If your free bet is large, use big markets like NFL and NBA moneylines. Small markets may not accept a big enough hedge bet.

Odds Formats

Odds come in three styles. American uses plus and minus signs, like +150 or -110. Decimal shows the total return per $1, like 2.50. Fractional shows profit over stake, like 3/2. They all mean the same thing, just written in different ways. The Betting Odds Calculator shows implied probability for each price, and the Decimal to Fraction Calculator helps if you need to rewrite a decimal price by hand.

Bet Types

Free bets can go on a single pick or on many picks at once. Doubles, trebles, and accumulators multiply the odds of every leg. Full cover bets like Trixie, Yankee, and Lucky 15 split your stake across many small bets so you can still win if one leg loses. The Round Robin Calculator covers that style of stake splitting in more detail. Each Way bets split the stake between the win market and the place market, which is common in horse racing.

Things That Change Your Payout

Rule 4: A cut to your odds when a runner is pulled from a race.
Dead heat: A tie for a spot, so your payout is split.
Best Odds Guaranteed (BOG): Extra money if the closing price beats your price.
Consolation: A small refund if your bet loses.

These rules differ by sportsbook, so read the terms before you place the bet. If you want to judge the long-run value of a wager rather than a locked hedge, the EV Calculator and the Probability Calculator are useful companions, and any profit you book may be taxable, so check the Tax Bracket Calculator.

Formulas used

American to decimal odds conversion

d = \begin{cases} \dfrac{A}{100} + 1 & A > 0 \\[6pt] \dfrac{100}{|A|} + 1 & A < 0 \end{cases}

Decimal to American odds conversion

A = \begin{cases} (d-1) \times 100 & d \ge 2 \\[6pt] -\dfrac{100}{d-1} & d < 2 \end{cases}

Free bet winnings (Stake Not Returned vs Stake Returned)

W = \begin{cases} G - S_{\text{ret}} & \text{SNR} \\ F \times d_{FB} & \text{SR} \end{cases}, \quad G = s_u \times (M_{win} + M_{place}) \times k

Optimal hedge stake

H = \frac{W}{d_H}

Guaranteed profit

P = H \times (d_H - 1) = \frac{W (d_H - 1)}{d_H}

Conversion rate

C = \frac{P}{F} \times 100\%

Hedge odds required for a 70% conversion rate

d_{70} = \frac{1}{1 - \dfrac{0.70 \times F}{W}}

Effective leg odds with Rule 4, BOG, dead heat and joint favourite adjustments

d_{\text{leg}} = \left[1 + (d-1)\left(1 - \frac{R_4}{100}\right)\left(1 + \frac{BOG}{100}\right)\right] \times \frac{1}{n_{dh}} \times \frac{w_{jf}}{t_{jf} - nr_{jf}}

Frequently asked questions

Why is the hedge bet smaller than my free bet amount?

Because you only hedge the winnings, not the whole free bet. With a stake-not-returned bonus, the free bet never pays you the stake back, so there is nothing to cover for it.

Example: a $100 free bet at +200 wins $200. If the hedge side is at -200 (1.50 decimal), you hedge $200 ÷ 1.50 = $133.33. That is more than the winnings would suggest at short prices, but at longer hedge prices the number drops fast.

Do I need two sportsbook accounts to hedge a free bet?

Yes, in almost every case. Most books will not let you bet both sides of the same market on one account. A second account also gives you a better price to hedge at.

Two accounts are the minimum. Three or more helps you shop for the best hedge line, which raises your conversion rate.

Can I lose money hedging a free bet?

Not if you place both bets at the shown amounts. Your free bet costs you nothing, so the worst case is a smaller profit, not a loss.

You can lose money if you miss the hedge, the line moves before you bet, the market voids on one side only, or you get limited and cannot place the full hedge stake.

Why does the Minimum Profitable Hedge Odds box say Any odds?

Because a free bet costs you nothing, any hedge price above even money still leaves you with profit. There is no real breakeven point to worry about.

The box only shows a real number when the free bet payout is tiny. Focus on the conversion rate instead. That tells you if the hedge is worth taking.

What is the difference between Unit Stake and Total Stake in Settings?

Unit Stake means the amount you typed is placed on every single bet line. A $10 unit stake on a Yankee (11 lines) risks $110.

Total Stake means the amount you typed is split across all lines. A $110 total stake on a Yankee puts $10 on each line.

For a normal single free bet, both give the same answer.

Why is the Free Play Line box greyed out?

It locks whenever your bet has more than one leg. With a double, treble, acca, or full cover bet, the calculator works out the combined price from the Selections table.

Change the odds in the table rows instead. The Free Play Line will update on its own.

Why do some bet types show an error message instead of results?

Any To Come and Speciality bets (like SSA, Round Robin, Flag, Alphabet, and Union Jack) recycle winnings into later bets or use a fixed grid. That conditional structure cannot be modelled with a simple hedge formula.

Stick to Single, Each Way Single, Double, Treble, Accumulator, or a Full Cover bet such as a Trixie, Yankee, or Lucky 15.

What hedge odds do I need to hit a 70% conversion rate?

It depends on your free bet odds. The calculator shows the exact price in the Hedge Odds for 70% Conversion box, in all three formats.

As a rough guide, free bets at +200 to +400 with a tight hedge price on the other side usually land near or above 70%. Short-priced favourites almost never do.

Should I hedge, or just let the free bet ride?

Hedging locks in cash every time. Letting it ride gives you a bigger payout sometimes and nothing most of the time.

Over many free bets, the long-run value is similar. Hedging is the safer choice if you want steady, guaranteed money or you only get bonuses now and then.

The book only takes whole dollar bets. How should I round the hedge?

Round to the nearest dollar. The change in profit is a few cents either way.

Rounding down leaves a little more profit if the free bet side wins. Rounding up leaves a little more if the hedge side wins. Neither turns a profit into a loss.

What happens if the game is postponed or the bet is voided?

Look at the last row of the Outcome Breakdown table. If both bets void, your cash hedge stake comes back and the free bet credit usually returns to your account. Net result is $0.

The risk is a one-sided void, where only one book cancels. Then you are left with an open bet and no cover. Check each book's void rules before you place.

Is the Hedge Examples tab showing real sportsbook odds?

No. Every number on that tab is made up by a math model to show how the tool works. The book names are generic labels, not real operators.

Never place a bet from that table. Use it to learn what a good hedge looks like, then check real prices at your own books and type them into the Manual Calculator.

Why does my profit go up when the hedge odds get longer?

Your free bet winnings are fixed. Longer hedge odds mean you risk less cash to cover that same amount, so more of the payout stays as profit.

This is why the chart line rises to the right. It is also why shopping for the best hedge price matters more than picking the perfect free bet side.

How do I hedge an each way free bet?

Turn Each Way to Yes. A Place Odds column appears in the Selections table, and you set the place fraction (1/4, 1/5, and so on) in Settings.

Each way bets are harder to hedge fully because you would need to cover both the win market and the place market. The Outcome Breakdown table adds a places-only row so you can see that result too.

What do Unit Stake, Number of Bets, and Total Stake tell me?

Number of Bets is how many separate bet lines your chosen bet type creates. A Lucky 15 makes 15 lines.

Unit Stake is the money on each line. Total Stake is unit stake times number of bets, so it is the full amount of free bet credit you are using.

Conversion rate is always measured against Total Stake.

Does the calculator account for taxes on my winnings?

No. Every figure shown is before tax. Gambling profit can be taxable where you live.

Treat the guaranteed profit as a gross number and set aside part of it if you owe tax on it.

What does the Outcome Breakdown table show me?

It lists every way the bet can settle and the cash you end up with in each case. The free bet side winning and the hedge side winning should show nearly the same net number. That is proof the hedge is sized right.

Extra rows appear for places-only results and consolation refunds when you turn those options on.

My free bet has a minimum odds rule. Does that change anything?

Not for the math, but it limits your choices. Many books require odds of -200 or longer before the bonus counts.

That rule usually helps you. Longer free bet odds convert better anyway, so pick a side that clears the minimum and has a tight hedge price at another book.

Can I use partial hedging to make more money?

Yes, but it is no longer guaranteed. Betting less than the shown hedge amount leaves you exposed if the free bet side loses.

Enter the full hedge stake first to see your locked profit. Then decide if giving up that certainty is worth the extra upside.

Do my Settings and odds format stay saved?

They stay while the page is open. The Clear / Reset button puts everything back to the defaults: American odds, $100, SNR, single bet, no bonuses.

Switching the odds format rewrites every price on screen for you, so you never have to convert by hand.

Why did my conversion rate drop after I entered the real hedge line?

Because of the gap between the two prices. Sportsbooks build a margin into both sides, so the hedge price is always a bit worse than fair.

The wider that gap, the more profit you lose. Compare a few books, and use markets with tight two-way pricing like NFL and NBA moneylines.