Betfair App Review for iOS and Android
If you want to place wagers at Betfair, and you want the convenience of mobile play – you have to download the Betfair app! Here’s a full breakdown of how this app works.
Downloading the Betfair app for iOS and Android
Contents
If you’ve explored the world of online sports betting in Australia before, you’ll probably be aware of the Betfair brand. This betting site was one of the first to operate as an exchange instead of your traditional sportsbook, and the Betfair app brings the overall experience to new heights. It’s currently available for Android and iOS operating systems, and here’s how you download them:
Android
- Tap the Android APK file shown here
- Hit ‘trust’ when the pop-up appears
- Wait for the file to download
- Load up the app and you’re good to go
iOS
- Open up the App Store on your device
- Type in ‘Betfair’
- Tap the download button and enter your Apple ID
- Wait for the app to download
- Sign in / sign up to enjoy
Although the process of downloading the apps for both iOS and Android is a little different, it’s pretty convenient to get both of them. The process from start to finish should take just a few minutes, and since you can download the app on any smartphone/tablet device – you can choose which is most convenient for you.
Registering for a new account on the Betfair app
The first thing to do before you can create a new account with Betfair is to download the app, which is where you must follow the steps shown above. Once this is done, you can then begin the registration process, which shouldn’t take longer than five minutes. Of course, for step one, you’ll need to establish a username and password, and we would advise saving such details on your device to make signing in as easy as possible in the future. Once you’ve set this up, Betfair will ask for details like your full name, address, DOB, as well as your phone number, and you’ll then get the chance to set up extra security measures as well as any account restrictions you desire.
We’d also advise turning on marketing communications/push notifications from the app so that you keep your finger on the pulse for all changes relating to Betfair and its offerings.
Available features and betting markets on the Betfair app
Sports and markets covered at Betfair
Betfair is one of the more comprehensive bookmakers in Australia, with betting offerings for 20+ sports right now, and coverage of thousands of events each year. Of course, Betfair covers classics like horse racing, Aussie rules, rugby, cricket, tennis, and soccer, and since it’s an exchange – you can place lay and back bets for almost every market. This automatically boosts the range of bets you can make for each event, and again, thanks to Betfair being an exchange, you’ll typically find that the odds are some of the best in the market. Most pre-match bets can be made for as little as $1, which helps to keep things accessible for all.
And one of our favourite things to explore on the app is the various enhanced markets that Betfair creates from time to time. This can often be a market that Betfair has pumped up the odds for, but there can also be bets such as accumulators that Betfair has crafted too – making the whole experience both fun and convenient.
Making a bet on the app
To actually make a bet on any of Betfair’s markets, you have to get some money deposited. This is the very first port of call for all new members, and since you can deposit funds successfully for as little as $5 (depending on your chosen method), the barriers to entry here are pretty low. Of course, you can also deposit much more than $5 if you wish, but that’s up to you. Now, once you’ve got the money in your account, simply navigate to the betting markets and follow the steps below to make a wager:
- Pick a market that looks appealing
- Tap that market to add it to your slip
- Scroll to the stake box & enter an amount
- Hit ‘place bet’ to get it processed
Regardless of the sport and/or market you ultimately decide to wager on, these steps must be followed to get the wager down. The only exception really would be if you wanted to make a parlay bet, where you’d need to add multiple selections to your slip before entering the stake and processing the bet.
Back and lay bets
You will also notice a slight discrepancy between the odds for back and lay markets, especially for the exact same wager. There is something else we would like to draw your attention towards here as well, and this is something that the Betfair app allows all users to do. At first glance, some players think that you can only make back and lay bets for the standard moneyline and other main markets. However, this is simply not the case. Once you open up the other markets that Betfair has available for each event, you'll also notice this exact same structure remains in place.
But before we move on to our next feature, we would advise that you become familiar with how lay bets actually work. There is a section of the Betfair app dedicated to teaching you how to do this, which is ideal for beginners, and it is also useful for intermediate pointers to brush up on any changes made to the platform.
Calculator
Another great reason for using the calculator is because it allows you to monitor your bank balance, and come up with an estimate as to how things could change depending on whether a bet wins or loses. Again, this is incredibly useful for lay betting. Another scenario where the calculator can be handy is if you are planning on making parlay bets, which, as a reminder, are bets that contain multiple legs in one long bet slip. Prior to making such a bet, you can use the calculator to get an exact number regarding what the potential payout could be, and this can help you to determine the risks and what kind of stake you should be looking to place.
Streaming
As for the events that you can actually stream from the Betfair app, the supported events may come as a surprise. Since Australian based sports are largely swallowed up by the major TV networks, you won't always be able to stream events for sports such as cricket, rugby, or Aussie rules – not for domestic competition anyway. But when you start to look at other events such as NBA basketball or international football, you will generally find that there are quite a number of events you can stream. To add to this, we could not wrap up our review of this feature without mentioning the sensation of quality.
While the streaming quality is somewhat dependent on an adequate internet connection, assuming you do have this, you will be treated to HD sport streaming from wherever you might be. And surprisingly, the streams for various events are not too far behind the actual live event. This is a common criticism of streaming services along with other betting apps in Australia, where the video streams can often be somewhere between 20 and 30 seconds behind the live event. Needless to say, this can somewhat take the sting out of watching ‘live sport’.
Supported banking methods
As you’d expect from such a prolific betting brand, Betfair has a bunch of methods you can use to make deposits. After all, this is the first thing you have to do before you can place any wagers whatsoever from the Betfair app, and you can use methods such as debit cards, direct bank transfers, e-wallets like Skrill/Neteller, and a couple of others. Most deposits will come through and be added to your real money balance immediately, although we’d always recommend verifying the details provided to open your account as soon as you can – as this can directly impact the speed of payments on the app, for both deposits and withdrawals.
Top three features of the Betfair App
For Betfair to have really excelled in the Australian market, you’d generally think that there have to be some key features on the app that separate it from the rest. For us, there are three that stand out:
- Back and lay bets
This is a well-known benefit of betting exchanges in Australia, as punters can bet ‘for’ an event or ‘against’ an event. With Betfair, this can be done for hundreds of different markets each day, which is pretty cool!
- Calculator
This is more beneficial for those that are planning on making lay bets, as it’s important to understand the stake compared with the odds that are shown. Things are a little more complicated with lay bets vs back bets, which is where the built-in calculator proves to be super useful.
- Streaming
Betfair is one of the few betting sites that allow streaming through the app, which essentially gives you access to live sport whenever you please. On that note, you need to maintain a funded account to be able to watch each event, and you simply need to hit the play button to get things going.
User experience
There’s a common impression surrounding betting exchanges that they are difficult to use, confusing to figure out and that they require a steep learning curve. But given the way in which the Betfair app is set up, things really couldn’t be more self-explanatory. Bets are distinguished by colour, odds are large and clear to see, and you’ll always be shown your liability before placing a bet.
Our Betfair App Review – a cut above the rest
To conclude, we absolutely love the Betfair app. It’s already handy that the app can be downloaded on Android/iOS devices, but given the depth of sports to bet on, the premium features such as streaming, and the overall performance of the app, it’s clearly one of the best there is.
