Free Bets in the Netherlands: What's Available in 2026?

Free bets are the most common type of welcome bonus offered by betting sites in the Netherlands.

A free bet is pretty much what it sounds like. The bookmaker gives you a certain amount in betting credit, which you can use to place a bet without putting up your own money.

One of the main advantages of these offers is how straightforward they are. Unlike deposit match bonuses, which are common in countries like the UK and Sweden and often come with more demanding wagering requirements, Dutch free bet offers tend to be simpler.

You usually just need to make a qualifying deposit or place a bet with your own money to receive your free bets. If your selection wins, you keep the profit, without having to meet any additional wagering requirements.

In this guide, we've rounded up the best free bet offers currently available in the Netherlands and explained how they work.

Almost all licensed Dutch bookmakers currently offer free bets to new customers, but the offers aren't all the same.

Some bookmakers give you larger amounts in free bets, while others have lower minimum odds, longer expiry dates, or fewer restrictions on how you can use them. The amount you need to deposit or bet to qualify also varies from one betting site to another.

We've compared these differences and put together a list of the 10 best free bet welcome bonuses currently available in the Netherlands.

A free bet is exactly what the name suggests: a bet you can place without using your own money. Instead, the bookmaker gives you betting credit once you've met certain conditions.

In the Netherlands, free bets are most commonly offered as a welcome bonus. You'll usually need to register, verify your account, and make a qualifying deposit or place a bet with your own money before receiving them.

One important thing to remember is that if your free bet wins, you only get the profit, not the original stake. For example, if you place a €10 free bet at odds of 3.00 and it wins, you'll receive €20 rather than €30.

Claiming a free bet welcome bonus is usually pretty straightforward. Here's how it works at most Dutch betting sites:

1. Choose a licensed Dutch betting site with a free bet offer.
2. Create a new account and complete the required identity verification checks.
3. Make the qualifying deposit.
4. Activate the welcome offer if necessary and receive your free bets.
5. Use them on eligible sports markets before they expire.

Some bookmakers add the free bets to your account automatically, while others require you to activate the offer first. 

Free bets are the most common welcome bonus in the Netherlands, but they're not the only promotion available.

Some licensed bookmakers also offer:

• Odds/Profit Boosts - Rather than giving you betting credit, an odds boost increases the odds or potential payout on selected bets. These promotions are less common than free bets and often appear around major sporting events or as limited-time welcome offers.
• 2UP (Early Payout) - With a 2UP promotion, your bet is settled as a winner if the team you've backed goes two goals ahead at any point during the match. Even if the game later ends in a draw or your team loses, you keep your winnings.
• Substitution Guarantee - The Sub Safe promo protects selected first goalscorer bets. If the player you backed is substituted before scoring, your bet is transferred to the replacement player instead of being settled as a loss.
• ScoreUP - With ScoreUP, you select a player from the team you've backed to win. If that player scores the opening goal, your match-winner bet is settled as a winner immediately, regardless of the final result.

If you're interested in any of these offers, we've created dedicated guides explaining how they work and which Dutch bookmakers currently offer them.