Handbook / 6
15 rules from the desk
You’ve learned the basics of arbs between two bookmakers and between a bookmaker and a prediction market. These are the rules that keep your money safe and take you to the next level. Most of them we learned with our own.
El Capone · six years doing arbs, runs support in the members chatUpdated 6 Nov 2026
01
Get your reps in on pre-match first.
Prices there can sit still for a long time. You get to see where the profit actually comes from, and you learn the markets while you’re at it.
02
Careful with pre-match when a prediction market sits at 49, 50 or 51¢.
A big gap plus a coin-flip price usually means the match might get postponed. The bookmaker will refund you. The prediction market can settle it against you, and that’s your balance gone.
03
Don’t bet into a huge gap between two bookmakers in pre-match.
Most likely one of them just mispriced the line, and they’re fully within their rights to void your bet. Sometimes even after that leg has won, so you end up with one refund and one loss.
04
Round your stakes on bookmakers.
It lowers the chance of getting limited or sent to verification. Need $513 on a book? Put $510.
05
If a big amount builds up on a bookmaker, withdraw it in parts.
You’ll run into fewer verifications and extra checks.
06
Before you go live, know exactly where your markets are.
On every venue. You don’t want to be hunting for the handicap tab while the price moves.
07
Register on every bookmaker with real details that will pass verification.
Sooner or later most of them ask. Make sure you can answer.
08
Night-time basketball can pay very big percentages.
But only for people who’ve been doing arbs for a long time or have really drilled live matches. The money is high and so is the risk: prices converge very fast.
09
Use the official Pulse extension.
You won’t have to remember anything. You’ll see right on the bookmaker’s page how much to stake, where, and at what price.
10
Don’t go all-in on two venues.
Spread your money evenly across the books and prediction markets you like. If one of them asks for verification you’re not stuck, and you catch more events.
11
If the price moves after your first leg is accepted, hedge at a loss.
On the bookmaker or the prediction market, doesn’t matter. Don’t sit and wait for it to come back.
12
Not sure you did it right? Ask in the private chat.
Someone experienced will always answer. It saves you from dumb decisions and losses.
13
Hedged at a loss? Step away.
Get a coffee, breathe. Do this with a cold head. It’s your income, and there’s no room for tilt.
14
Early on, don’t chase big percentages or fire lots of arbs at once.
Understand the mechanics first, learn how each bookmaker behaves, get some experience.
15
You’ll always have time to make money.
There are literally hundreds of chances every day. If you’re new, practise with small amounts. That’s how the mechanics stick and you memorise the markets.