What is a stake-not-returned (SNR) free bet?
SNR free bet — A stake-not-returned free bet pays out only the winnings if it wins — the stake itself is kept by the bookmaker, which is the dominant UK free-bet structure.
A stake-not-returned free bet — almost always written SNR by matched bettors — is a free bet where the bookmaker pays out only the winnings if your selection comes in. The stake itself is kept by the bookmaker. Place a £30 SNR at 3.0 odds; if the selection wins, the bookmaker credits you £60 (the £20-per-£10-staked winnings) rather than £90. The token is consumed whether the bet wins or loses.
SNR is the dominant structure for UK welcome offers and the default that most matched-betting calculators assume. Sky Bet, Bet365, William Hill, Paddy Power, Coral, Ladbrokes — every major operator's flagship "Bet £10, get £30 in free bets" promotion issues SNR tokens. The reason is simple: SNR is cheaper for the bookmaker. A £30 SNR at evens is worth £30 of expected payout to a casual punter; a £30 stake-returned bet is worth £60.
For a matched bettor, the SNR distinction matters because it changes the lay calculation. The lay stake is sized to balance only the winnings side, not the full back-stake-plus-winnings. Our bonus calculator handles this automatically once you tick the SNR option, but the underlying ratio is useful to know: typical SNR extraction is 70–80% of face value, with higher odds (5.0–10.0) sitting at the upper end of that range. The full mechanics, including which odds bands extract best, are covered in our free bets guide, and the SNR vs SR comparison is the first thing to check before sizing any free bet.
Worked example
Bet365 credit a £30 SNR free bet after a £10 qualifying bet has settled. You back £30 of the SNR on a 6.0-priced selection at Bet365 and lay £19.40 at 6.10 on Smarkets. If the back wins, Bet365 pays out £150 of winnings (no stake returned, because SNR), the exchange settles a £99.45 liability, and you net around £24. If the back loses, the bookmaker keeps the SNR stake (it was a token, not your money), and the exchange pays you the £19.40 lay stake less 2% commission — £19.01 in cash.
The two outcomes don't perfectly match, which is the SNR signature: extracted value is roughly £22 across both outcomes, equivalent to about 73% of the £30 face. That's the matched-betting yield from a typical SNR. Walked through end-to-end in our matched betting beginner guide.
Common mistake
Sizing the lay stake as if the free bet were stake-returned. A £30 SR free bet at 6.0 lays at £29.10; a £30 SNR free bet at 6.0 lays at only £19.40. Get this wrong by ticking the wrong calculator option and the variance between back-wins and lay-wins blows out — you'll either over-lay (and lose money on the back-wins side) or under-lay (and lose money on the lay-wins side). Always check the bookmaker's T&Cs for "stake not returned" or "winnings only" wording before placing the lay.