How We Test & Rate Betting Sites
Author
Reviewed By
Last Updated: 5 August, 2024
At Sporting Post UK, we want to give you objective, unbiased reviews that will inform you of the pros and cons of each betting site and app, rather than just giving you our personal opinions.
As such, we rate every single app using the same scale, to make things clear, concise and simple to understand.
Here’s a rundown of how our review process works.
Review Criteria
In every review, we use the same nine criteria to judge different betting apps and sites.
This will help you to better understand the specific pros and cons of each, and will also make comparing through our reviews much easier.
The review criteria that we use are:
1. Safety
To assess the safety of a bookmaker, we check whether it has a UK licence, and analyse its operating history, so you can rest assured that your money will be safe when betting.
We will also highlight any specific safety features that the betting site employs to keep its users protected.
2. Mobile Betting App
We will show you the layout of the mobile app, how it functions on an everyday basis and what the overall user experience is like.
We will also detail any unique features, customisation options and big pros/cons.
We will also detail the process of making a bet, analysing how easy it is for everyday use.
3. Web betting site
We will personally test the website, checking out its features, highlighting the best bits and detailing the biggest cons.
We will also show you how to make a bet and detail any customisation options available.
4. Deposits & Withdrawals
We assess the number of deposit and withdrawal methods available, to make sure that adding and withdrawing funds is a smooth and simple process.
We will also highlight any associated fees with the bookmaker, and detail how long deposits and withdrawals can take.
5. Markets
In this review section, we will look at the number of sports you can bet on for each betting app.
We will also explore the overall quality of each market, and compare the selection to other UK betting betting sites.
6. Pre-Match Betting
We will assess how good the pre-match betting features are, taking into account user-friendliness, versatility and any other relevant factors.
7. In-Play Betting
In this section, we will assess how good the betting site’s in-play betting is.
To do this, we will test the watching service, and live markets and break down the overall usability of the betting site for live bets.
8. Welcome Incentive
In the penultimate review section, we will detail any current welcome incentive that the betting site is offering to new users.
Sign-up bonuses can be a make-or-break factor when deciding between betting sites, so we will also compare and contrast the betting site’s incentive to others.
9. Customer Service
Finally, we will assess the quality of the betting site and app’s customer service, personally testing all of its features like live chats to assess response times and response quality.
Scoring Breakdown
Scoring shouldn’t be a confusing metric.
So, we’ve kept things simple by using a points system for each review criterion. This is then converted into a star rating.
Here’s a breakdown of what the points system looks like:
We then use these individual points to come up with an overall rating of each betting site.
This can help you to understand if, on the whole, a betting site is right for you.
Overall Rating
To give the betting site an overall rating, we calculate the average score of all the criteria.
This gives us the overall percentage score of each betting site, which will then be converted into a star rating.
Here are the star bands for the overall rating:
Example
To solidify your understanding, here’s an example of a review of betting site X.
In the individual categories, it scored as follows:
Based on these figures, the mean score equates to 66.3 points giving betting app X a 3.5 star rating overall.
Why You Can Trust Our Reviews
Here are the three main reasons why you can trust our reviews:
Objectivity: We look at each part of every betting site and app objectively, basing the overall rating on universal criteria. This means that you can easily compare betting sites using different reviews to find the one that’s right for you.
Simplicity: When reading our reviews, you won’t be bombarded with complex jargon, page-long paragraphs and pointless anecdotes. Instead, we aim to provide clear and concise reviews that will help you get an understanding of a betting site in just a few minutes.
Thorough Analysis: We leave no stone unturned, and we will make you aware of every single feature a platform has (or doesn’t). We also test each website to give you an accurate idea of how each performs in an everyday setting.
Contributors
Bradley Gibbs
Author
With over 12 years of experience, Bradley Gibbs is a seasoned sports betting writer and tipster specialising in uncovering value bets across football, horse racing, tennis, and golf. His extensive coverage of these sports has been featured on numerous websites and in The Racing & Football Outlook, a renowned UK betting publication. Bradley's expertise lies in identifying betting edges and delivering insightful, data-driven content for informed wagering.
Josh Miller
Reviewed By
Josh Miller, Sporting Post’s Sports & Casino Editor, brings over five years of experience in feature writing, blogging, and SEO. With a strong background in football coverage and sports betting, his work has been featured in VAVEL. Josh also writes extensively about online casinos, providing expert insights into games, bonuses, and gambling trends. His engaging and informative content makes him a reliable resource for Sporting Post readers.