Betting payment methods at UK online bookies

The safest, most efficient, and newest ways to fund (and withdraw from) UK betting accounts.

UK Betting Payment Methods

There’s no point building the world’s best online bookie if the only way your punters can deposit money is via travellers cheques, pawning family heirlooms, or something equally impractical.

Betting Site Payment Methods

The top UK betting sites offer many different payment methods.

Payment methods are one of the most important factors when choosing a new bookie.

Realistically, there aren’t any UK online bookies who are that bad when it comes to payment methods, but it’s certainly a differentiating factor for our overall bookmaker ratings, as some offer much better deposit and withdrawal options than others.

Deposits & Withdrawals Tip
Ryan
Ryan

It’s worth keeping in mind that a standard policy for many online bookies in the UK is to process withdrawals back to the same payment method used to make a deposit.

If you want to withdraw to a different payment method (for example, if you deposited via a payment method that doesn’t support withdrawals), you should be prepared to jump through a few more verification hoops.

Each payment method has its own advantages and disadvantages, so it’s not really a case of one being objectively better than another.

It’s up to you to pick the payment method that best suits your individual situation.

Debit Cards

Payment Methods Debit Card

Debit Cards for Online Betting: Pros and Cons

As is the case with lots of online transactions, you are able to use your debit card with most - if not all - top betting sites. Not only is this option widely available, but it is straightforward to use as you don’t need to set up anything extra (assuming you’ve already got a debit card).

Debit card deposits are the best deposit option when it comes to claiming betting site offers.

In many cases, bookmaker sign up offers will only be available to punters depositing using certain payment methods. Debit cards are always included on this list, so they’re the safest option if you’re keen to ensure you qualify for one of the sign-up bonuses below:

You may have noticed that credit cards are missing from this list. That’s because in April 2020, the Gambling Commission (the regulatory body that oversees the UK gambling industry) announced a ban on bookies accepting credit card deposits.

This ban was implemented due the high number of problem and vulnerable gamblers using credit cards and exposing themselves to significant risk and harm.

Sports Betting should be fun and safe. If you have any worries about your gambling, you can access free & confidential help at BeGambleAware.

PayPal

Payment Methods Pay Pal

PayPal for Online Betting: Pros and Cons

While other eWallets are making waves within e-commerce and online betting, PayPal is still the undisputed number one in terms of popularity and usability.

PayPal is accepted by many leading sportsbooks and casinos.

Many punters already have a PayPal account. If you don’t, it is quick and easy to set up and transactions could not be more straightforward once you’ve linked it to your chosen betting site.

Best UK Bookmakers with PayPal

  • 888Sport (min. PayPal deposit: £10)
  • Betway (min. PayPal deposit: £5)
  • Betfair (min. PayPal deposit: £10)
  • Mr. Play (min. PayPal deposit: £10)
  • Kwiff (min. PayPal deposit: £5)
  • BetUK (min. PayPal deposit: £10)
  • LiveScore Bet (min. PayPal deposit: £10)
  • BoyleSports (min. PayPal deposit: £10)
  • Paddy Power (min. PayPal deposit: £10)
  • Betfred (min. PayPal deposit: £5.50)

Many sign up offers aren't available if you make your initial deposit with an eWallet like PayPal, but these ones are:

Skrill

Payment Methods Skrill

Skrill for Online Betting: Pros and Cons

One of the most popular UK betting site payment methods, Skrill is an eWallet service that does not charge deposit fees (something that PayPal users may encounter, especially if currency conversion is involved in the transaction).

It takes a matter of minutes to set up a Skrill account.

Once verified, you can add money to your Skrill wallet via debit card, and then deposit and withdraw at betting sites.

Paysafecard

Payment Methods paysafecard

paysafecard for Online Betting: Pros and Cons

Paysafecard is a prepaid card service. Users purchase a PIN which can then be used to pay for services and goods online.

You can buy a paysafecard PIN in shops or online and many betting sites accept this as a deposit method.

While depositing with Paysafecard is quick, easy, and anonymous, you will need a separate payment method for withdrawals.

Neteller

Payment Methods Neteller

Neteller for Online Betting: Pros and Cons

Neteller is an eWallet that is an increasingly common payment method on online betting sites for UK punters.

Neteller is quick, trusted, and secure.

Using your bank account, you can load your Neteller wallet with funds, and you can then complete transactions at betting sites without your bank seeing your gambling activity.

❗Note: Some sites, like 888Sport, only allow Neteller deposits at the casino and not the sportsbook.

Apple Pay

Payment Methods Apple Pay

Apple Pay for Online Betting: Pros and Cons

Apple Pay is a digital payment tool that can be used for quick transactions on Apple devices, most notably the iPhone.

Plenty of UK betting sites accept Apple Pay, and this is one of the fastest ways to add funds to your account.

Unfortunately, you will need to use an alternative method to withdraw your funds.

Google Pay

Payment Methods Google Pay

Google Pay for Online Betting: Pros and Cons

Google Pay is basically the same thing as Apple Pay (i.e., a digital wallet) for those of you that use Android phones, tablets, smartwatches, or other devices.

Google Pay is super easy to use and deposits are processed quickly.

Like with Apple Pay, Google Pay doesn’t support withdrawals so you’ll have to find another way to get your winnings out.

Trustly

With Trustly, punters can make deposits at betting sites from a linked online bank account without needing to use a card or separate banking app.

Trustly is quick and hassle-free: it offers instant deposits and withdrawals.

The platform is also secure and encrypted so users' financial information is safeguarded.

Trustly is widely accepted by reputable UK betting sites.

ecoPayz

Like other popular e-wallets, ecoPayz offers instant deposits and fast withdrawals and keeps your personal and financial information safe.

The kicker with ecoPayz, though, is its prepaid Mastercard option.

This is super handy to help you stay in control of your betting budget by setting limits and avoiding overspending.

MuchBetter

MuchBetter is a secure and convenient digital wallet app that lets you deposit and withdraw funds from your betting account quickly and easily.

You can earn rewards for every transaction you make with MuchBetter.

It's not as widely available at UK betting sites as some other e-wallets on this list but, like the others, it uses state-of-the-art security measures to protect your personal and financial information.

Cash

Payment Methods Cash

Cash for Online Betting: Pros and Cons

Some of you punters prefer not to make transactions online using their debit card or an eWallet. Fortunately for you lot:

Several bookmakers with high-street shops allow punters to connect their offline and online activity.

This means that you can walk into a betting shop and deposit cash which then becomes available to use on an online account. If you win money online, you can simply return to the shop and collect the cash.

Paddy Power customers can even use any PayPoint to deposit funds.

The William Hill Plus card and the Coral Connect card are two of the better products developed by a high-street bookie allowing punters to link their in shop and online activity. Find out more by reading our in-depth articles on each feature.

Ladbrokes The Grid: How it works (+ benefits and offers)
Apr 14, 2023

Use a Ladbrokes The Grid card to manage your shop bets online, transfer shop winnings to your online account, track bets, access exclusive offers and more.

William Hill Plus card: How it works (get exclusive free bet offers)
Apr 15, 2024

Link your in-shop and online betting activity with the William Hill Plus Card and track your bets with the Plus app.

Coral Connect card - How it works & how to get one
Apr 14, 2023

Bet online and withdraw winnings in cash at Coral stores with the Coral Connect card.

Boku

Payment Methods Boku

Boku for Online Betting: Pros and Cons

Boku is something of a new kid on the payments block. It is a pay-by-phone solution where the only thing that is required is a phone contract.

All users need to provide to make a transaction with Boku is their phone number.

Nothing else is required. No bank account details, no nothing. Payments made with Boku are automatically added to your phone bill. There is currently only one UK betting site that allows you to deposit directly via Boku (however, you can use Boku to fund your Neteller wallet and then make the deposit from Neteller).

Boku Betting Sites - Editor's Pick: BoyleSports

Bet £10 Get £20 + £10 Casino bonus

BoyleSports is currently the only UK online bookie that offers direct deposits via Boku. It’s a top quality bookie with a great sign up offer as well as plenty of live streaming and regular existing customer promos.

18+. New UK customers (Excluding NI) only. £35 in FREE Bets (FB) as £20 in sports bets & a £10 casino bonus (CB). Min Deposit £10. Min stake £10. Min odds Evs. FB applied on 1st settlement of any qualifying bet. FB 7-day expiry. 1 FB offer per customer, household & IP address only. Account & Payment restrictions. 14 days to accept £10 CB, then active for 3 days. CB 5x wagering & max redeemable £100. Game restrictions apply. Cashed out/Free Bets won’t apply. 30 days to qualify. T&Cs Apply. 18+. Applies to bets placed on 1 Goal Ahead market. Get paid out as a winner if your team takes the lead, even if they draw or lose. 90 mins only. Applies to Singles & Multiples. Account & payment restrictions apply. T&Cs apply.

Cryptocurrencies

Cryptocurrency has not really gained traction as a deposit method for UK betting sites. That's partly due to strict Gambling Commission (UKGC) source of funding and anti-money laundering regulations (it's difficult to validate the providence of crypto assets that are inherently anonymous).

While some cryptocurrencies are a bit baffling in the sense that their value seems to hang on whether Elon Musk decides to tweet or not, one of the more trusted (or at least well-established) cryptocurrencies is bitcoin.

Bitcoin Gambling

Payment Methods Bitcoin

Bitcoin for Online Betting: Pros and Cons

At the moment, funding a UK betting account using bitcoin is not exactly plain sailing simply because there aren’t that many bookies that accept it as a deposit method. Furthermore, getting hold of Bitcoins isn’t always easy.

However, if you can get past those two hurdles and you do have a BTC wallet loaded with funds, then there are ways to fund UK betting accounts using Bitcoin.

Bitcoin Betting Sites - 888Sport

No longer accepting new UK players Click 'Claim' to check latest live offers

UK punters can deposit bitcoin at 888Sport via Skrill. That's another box ticked for what is one of the best online sports betting products around.

As we alluded to above, many operators have found it tough to convince the UKGC that they should be able to offer cryptocurrency payment methods or fund their business using crypto-assets.

Some new sportsbooks, like Duelbits, offer crypto payment methods in other jurisdictions outside the UK, but it remains to be seen whether they will be able to do the same once they launch in here:

Duelbits UK: New sportsbook now live (is it legit?)
Sep 30, 2022

Duelbits is a new online gaming operator and the official European betting partner of Aston Villa FC for the 2022/23 season.

Instant Withdrawal Betting Sites

Modern-day society runs at a million miles an hour and attention spans are often limited to the length of the latest TikTok post to go viral.

That means people expect all aspects of their lives to be available on demand, including financial services, so UK online bookies have had to up their game recently to ensure punters get what they want (money) when they want it (now).

The withdrawal method with the fastest transaction times is typically Visa debit, thanks to their Fast Funds feature.

When people in the betting industry talk about 'instant' withdrawals, what they mean is that the bookie releases the funds instantly rather than subjecting it to review. The transaction speed is still dependant processing time on the payment provider's side.

Best Instant Withdrawal Betting Sites

  1. Betfair Withdrawal Time - Up to two hours
  2. Paddy Power Withdrawal Time - Up to two hours
  3. Parimatch Withdrawal Time - Within 30 minutes of approval
  4. BetVictor Withdrawal Time - Within 30 minutes of approval
  5. Ladbrokes Withdrawal Time - Up to four hours
  6. Coral Withdrawal Time - Up to four hours
  7. Bwin Withdrawal Time - Up to four hours
  8. William Hill Withdrawal Time - Up to four hours

Fast Withdrawal Betting Sites

Perhaps you don’t have a Visa debit card (or the requisite prepaid card). But fear not, all is not lost! You can still get your money pretty quickly via other payment methods.

At bookies where Visa Fast Funds is not available, eWallets like PayPal are often the fastest withdrawal option.

Look out for any bookie where eWallets like PayPal, Skrill and Neteller are available. Remember that some eWallets, like Apple Pay and Google Pay, do not support withdrawals.

Betting Site Payment Methods: The Final Word

Ryan
Ryan

There are plenty of different ways to spend your money online these days. The wealth of options is a good thing for us lot, because we can pick and choose between the different providers and go with one that best suits our needs. Key things to think about when you're picking a payment method for online betting in the UK are:

  • Is this payment method available at the bookie I want to sign up with?
  • Will I be eligible for the sign up bonus if I deposit with this payment method?
  • How long do deposits and withdrawals take with this payment method?
  • Can I make withdrawals using the same payment method as I used to deposit?
  • What are the deposit and withdrawal limits for this payment method?

Ryan (My Betting Sites expert)

Betting Site Payment Methods FAQs

Which Betting Site Withdrawal Method is Fastest?

If you want your winnings in your account as fast as possible, then the following sites that offer instant withdrawals (subject to processing times at the payment provider) should be right up your street:

    What are the Best PayPal Betting Sites?

    One of the biggest problems with using PayPal to deposit at a betting site is that new customer sign up offers are often only available to punters depositing via debit card. Therefore, we’d say that the following sites, at which PayPal deposits qualify you for the welcome bonus, are the best options:

    • Kwiff
    • LiveScore Bet
    • Bet365
    • STS
    • BetStorm
    Is Betting With Bitcoin Possible in the UK?

    Using bitcoin as a payment method is accepted at some UK online bookies, but it’s not a widely available option. The best bookies currently supporting bitcoin deposits include 888Sport (via Skrill).

    Do I Have to Deposit and Withdraw Using the Same Method?

    You don't have to (for example, at some bookies you can deposit with Apple Pay but this payment method doesn't support withdrawals), but it is easier. It is recommended that you choose a deposit method that you can also use to withdraw funds, such as Visa, MasterCard, PayPal, and most other eWallets.

    Which Online Betting Site Payment Methods are Free?

    Debit card deposits and withdrawals are usually free, but the terms of each betting site can differ. eWallets often have charges associated when adding or removing funds, and bank transfers can also incur fees but only small ones.

    Can I Bet Online Without Giving my Card Details?

    Absolutely - there are various ways to enjoy online betting without using your bank account or debit card. Some bookmakers, such as Paddy Power and Coral, allow cash deposits on the high street. There is also the option to use eWallets like Neteller or Skrill.