The Bet Builder Feature: How To Use It for Sports Betting

If you’ve spent any amount of your time betting online, there’s a high chance you’ve come across the words “bet builder.” Among the many tools that aid online sports betting, this one is arguably the most helpful one.

In this post, we’ll cover all the capabilities of the bet builder tool and discuss how you can use it in your betting.

What Is a Bet Builder?

As its name implies, this tool, offered on online betting sites, helps bettors build bets. It’s mostly used in football betting. There are betting sites that offer bet builders for other sports, but these are less common.

In a sense, bet builders serve to replace the Request a Bet feature.

Bet Builder vs. ‘Request a Bet’ Feature

For those unfamiliar with it, the Request a Bet feature requires a bettor to tweet at their bookmaker with a hashtag representing the offer they are looking for. After that, they would need to wait for a response from the bookmaker. This response is usually in the form of a link to a bet slip containing the requested game(s).

The bet builder tool simplifies this rather long process. With bet builder bets, everything is automated. Instead of having to review each bettor’s request, the bookmaker enables punters to create custom wagers on their own. Multiple bets can be added from the same football match. What’s more, if there is a combination of bets that weren’t put together, you’ll be notified by the bet builder immediately.

One thing to note about this is that you can only create custom wagers using the feature with pre-game markets. Also, depending on the bookmaker, the bet builder allows you to add a different number of selections.

In a nutshell, using a bet builder is a means to create a unique betting selection without having to endure the long process of requesting a bet on social media.

Bet Builders and Related Contingencies

A bet builder wager is also different from an accumulator wager. Again, while they are similar, the key difference is that bet builders let you create your own related contingencies.

Related contingencies are outcomes of events that are directly linked to one another. For example, suppose you placed a bet on Liverpool to beat Chelsea in the Carabao cup final and bet on them to win 2-0. These two results are linked together because a 2-0 win also means Liverpool have won the competition. As separate bets, they could work; but you wouldn’t be allowed to place them in an accumulator bet.

There are ways to go around this rule, and using a bet builder is one of them.

So, why do bookies offer bet builders if they can be used to add related contingencies to your bet? Well, there’s a catch – the margin that bets allowed by a bet builder provide bookmakers with is very high. The more selections added to a bet builder, the longer the odds, and as a result, the higher the percentage cut for the betting site. In summary, the bookmaker stands to gain more money whether the wager is won or not.

Additionally, because betting sites know that using a bet builder service is the only way bettors can get any market combinations they want, they don’t bother about offering competitive odds, and punters have to follow their conditions.

How Bet Builders Work

Using a bet builder is straightforward. The UI may vary depending on the bookmaker, but the process is essentially the same. Naturally, you would first need to open an account. Then, select the match you’d like to make a bet on, and then choose the Bet Builder option.

You’ll be given a list of markets to add to your bet. When betting on football, the options usually offered to punters with bet builder wagers are:

  • Both teams to score
  • Half-time result
  • Full-time result
  • Total number of goals
  • Number of corners
  • Player to score anytime
  • Player to score first
  • Player to score last
  • Player to score two or more goals (or similar)
  • Player to be carded
  • Red card in match
  • Total number of cards

You can be offered more markets than what we’ve listed here, but either way, you can typically only add markets from the same football event, with the maximum being six markets. Nevertheless, these are enough to make the odds on your bet builder wager skyrocket.

The bets you pick will be added to your unique bet slip, where you can view the summary of your selections and accumulated odds. Now, confirm your odds and then place your bet.

You can go back to view the details of your bet anytime by clicking on the My Bets option.

Betting Sites That Offer Bet Builders

Looking for the best sites to use a bet builder on? Here’s our top list:

  • Bet365
  • Betfair
  • Unibet
  • 888 Sport
  • BetVictor
  • Ladbrokes

Final Thoughts

Now a popular feature that has replaced the Request a Bet feature, bet builders offer some unique betting opportunities to punters. However, they tend to be riskier than many other bet types. They’re mostly used in football, but some bookies have recently started adapting bet builder tools for other sports such as tennis, American football, basketball, cricket, and even snooker.

Further Reading

FAQ

What happens to a bet builder bet if a player doesn’t play?

If you have a void market within a bet builder bet, the entire bet is void, regardless of what happens in the other selections.

Can you cash out on a bet builder?

Yes. However, all of your selections must still have a chance of winning or must be open. If one selection is lost, the entire bet builder slip is nullified.

Table of Contents

What Is a Bet Builder?

Bet Builder vs. ‘Request a Bet’ Feature

Bet Builders and Related Contingencies

How Bet Builders Work

Betting Sites That Offer Bet Builders

Final Thoughts

FAQ

Table of Contents

What Is a Bet Builder?

Bet Builder vs. ‘Request a Bet’ Feature

Bet Builders and Related Contingencies

How Bet Builders Work

Betting Sites That Offer Bet Builders

Final Thoughts

FAQ