Free tool
Commission calculator.
Commission is the quiet cost of every winning market. Enter your net winnings and your exchange's rate, and see what actually lands in the balance.
Rates vary — check yours. Commission differs by exchange, market and sometimes region, and exchanges change their structures. Consistently profitable Betfair customers may also face the separate Expert Fee — estimate that with our Expert Fee calculator.
Why the rate matters more than it looks
Commission applies only when you win, which makes it feel small. But a trader netting £20 a market at 5% gives up £1 each time — £100 across a hundred markets. The same trading at 2% gives up £40. Same skill, same markets, £60 difference: commission is a cost of doing business, and businesses that ignore their costs don't stay businesses.
Straight answers
How does betting exchange commission work?
Exchanges charge commission on your net winnings in each market — not on stakes, and not on losing markets. Win £50 net in a market at 5% commission and you pay £2.50, keeping £47.50. Lose the market and no commission is due.
What commission does Betfair charge?
Betfair's commission is based on a market base rate, typically 5% on most markets for most customers, with discounts in some regions and promotions. Other exchanges differ — Smarkets and Matchbook have historically charged around 2% on popular markets. Always check the current rate on the exchange itself; rates change.
Is exchange commission charged per bet or per market?
Per market. Your backs and lays in the same market are netted off, and commission applies once to the net winnings. Ten small trades that net £8 in one market pay commission on £8, not on each trade.
Why does commission matter so much for traders?
Because traders operate on thin margins. A strategy clearing 3% per market loses most of its edge to a 5% commission rate but survives a 2% one. Commission is one of the true costs of trading — the arithmetic every seller of dreams leaves out.
Costs stated plainly are the start of treating this like a desk, not a punt.
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