As one of the biggest bookmakers on the planet, William Hill is a familiar name to customers around the world. Upon visiting their site, you are likely to first notice their distinctive dark blue and yellow colour scheme. This is what first caught my attention, but as I later discovered, there is much more that separates Wiliam Hill from the competition than simply their fine design.
Pros and Cons
- Pros
- Great mobile apps
- Lots of promotions
- Large list of sports covered
- Top-class customer service
- Fast withdrawals
- Cons
- Odds are not the highest
- Limited live steaming availability
Who Is William Hill Best For?
William Hill’s well-rounded gaming offering makes it suitable for almost all fans of gambling. It is particularly great, though, for anyone who likes to bet in shops as well as online. The fact you can link your online account with in-shop activity and receive perks when doing so is a huge plus.
The only type of gambler that William Hill is not ideal for are those who want the best returns on each wager. The odds here are perfectly acceptable, but William Hill takes a slightly bigger margin across most sports than some competitors.
William Hill Sports Betting Coverage
William Hill boasts a list of 38 sports on its A-Z list, an impressive number that few sites can top. Admittedly, the list does include a couple of non-sports categories, such as politics, but the vast bulk are sports. From this sizeable list, you have all the popular options, such as the three highlighted below. In addition to this, though, William Hill covers a range of much smaller sports that you will not find at every online bookmaker. Thanks to this, the William Hill sports breadth is hard to beat.
- American Football
- Awards
- Basketball
- Boxing
- Cricket
- Darts
- Entertainment
- Football
- GAA Football
- Golf
- Handball
- Ice Hockey
- MMA
- Motor Sports
- Motorbikes
- Netball
- Politics
- Rugby
- Snooker
- Tennis
- Volleyball
- Baseball
- Winter Sports
- eSports
- Horse Racing
- Greyhounds
- Specials
- Aussie Rules
- Formula 1
- Gaelic Hurling
- Lacrosse
- MotoGP
- NASCAR
- Table Tennis
- TV Shows and Movies
- Virtual Sports
- Water Polo
Football
Football is a big priority for William Hill, but what does this mean exactly? For starters, you will find odds for a huge number of leagues and competitions. If looking at English football, for example, William Hill covers fixtures as low as the eighth tier. For most William Hill football action, customers will also find a huge selection of markets to choose from as well. A standard top division clash, for example, would normally feature around 700 betting options.
Horse Racing
Horse racing may not be as popular as football globally, but for any bookmaker operating in the UK, it is a must-have. As well as covering all UK and Irish racing, William Hill online covers action from across the world, including North America, South America and Australia. The sheer number of races they provide odds for is impressive and will satisfy the needs of even the biggest racing fans.
Greyhounds Racing
Another sport William Hill covers extremely well is greyhound racing. In addition to having all UK action, plus races overseas, virtually all events come with a free live stream. If that is not enough to impress, know that William Hill also offers daily special bets, bet boosts, trap challenges and extra places on selected races. It is a complete greyhound offering and as good as anything you will find elsewhere.
Betting Markets, Odds and Margins
A real strength of William Hill is how many markets they provide. No matter which sport you are looking at, almost any major event within it will have lots of betting options. Typically, across markets, William Hill takes a margin of around 7-10%, meaning the payout percentage is around 90-93%. Although this is distinctly average, you can sometimes increase your odds via ‘boost’ promotions. Additionally, you can occasionally find higher payouts on selected sports, for example, basketball and American football.
William Hill Live Betting
The in-play section of William Hill is neatly presented.
Sports have their own categories, and then there are subcategories for different competitions.
On the desktop site, there is also a filter to only show events that come with a live stream.
When inside a particular fixture, you will most likely see some form of live match-tracker plus some useful game statistics.
Just underneath, you have betting market categories to help you find the bet you want.
The small cash symbol beside any market indicates it is eligible for cash out, which is most of them.
Overall, I found betting in-play at William Hill to be extremely straightforward on both desktop and mobile.
William Hill Top Betting Features
William Hill provides users with all the features you would probably expect from such a big industry name. They do most of them very well, but their live-streaming coverage has room to expand.
- Bet Builder – Through the Build #YourOdds tool, users can create a single-match acca. You can select numerous markets relating to a specific team, player, or the match as a whole.
- Cash out – Customers at William Hill enjoy control over their betting thanks to the cash out feature. As well as a full cash out, it is possible to select a partial cash out for the many eligible markets.
- Live streaming – Live streaming is available at Wiliam Hill, although not in abundance. Only a small fraction of all in-play events they cover feature a live stream. They do at least provide footage for most horse and greyhound racing, though.
- #Your Odds – Through this great feature, you can request odds for a personalised bet by tweeting @WilliamHill with the hashtag #YourOdds. The Twitter (X) team will then usually write back and provide you with a direct bet slip link.
How to place a bet at William Hill
Placing a bet at William Hill follows the usual format you will experience at most sites:
?- Use the menu options or the search function to find the event you want to bet on.
- Select the event to reveal all possible betting markets.
- Select the odds of the bet you wish to place. Doing so will add it to your betslip.
- You can repeat steps 1-3 to add multiple bets to your betslip.
- When ready, click ‘betslip’ and select your bet type from either ‘quick bet’ or ‘all multiples’.
- Enter your stake in the appropriate box and then hit ‘Place bet’.
William Hill Compared to Other Bookmakers
Most of the big UK bookmakers tend to offer a lot of the same features. If one comes up with a great idea, there is a good chance the rest will follow soon after. So, when looking at features, there is no major difference between William Hill UK and the likes of bet365 and Boylesports. There is a bit more variation when it comes to promotions, and William Hill does well in this area, offering more variation than many rival brands.
Compare William Hill with more bookies| Welcome Bonus | Live Betting | Live Streaming | Cashout | Apps | Bonus Percentage | Turnover | ||
￡30 | - | - | ||||||
18+. Play Safe. From 00:01 on 18.10.2022. ￡30 bonus. New customers using Promo Code R30 only. Minimum ￡10 stake on odds of 1/2 (1.5) or greater on sportsbook (excluding Virtual markets). Further terms apply. #ad T&C apply | gambleaware.org | gamstop.co.uk | Play Responsibly | ||||||||
￡30 | 300% | - | ||||||
New Customers only. Registration required. Bet £10* & Get £30* in Free Bets. Sign up, deposit between £5* and £10* to your account and bet365 will give you three times that value in Free Bets when you place qualifying bets to the same value and they are settled. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits. Min odds/bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. +18 | Terms & Conditions time limits & exclusions apply. | gambleaware.org
#Advertisement | ||||||||
￡25 | - | - | ||||||
18+. UK Customers (Excluding NI) only. Cash stakes only. Min £10 stake required for initial £5 free bet. Min odds ½. Max £25 in free bets. Subsequent free bets equal 50% average of each 3 £5 max qualifying bets. 13 settled bets required to receive full £25 free bet. Qualifying bets must be placed on sportsbook within 30 days of opening account. Cashed out bets will not qualify towards your average stake. One free bet offer per customer, household or IP address only. Free bet expires after 7 days. Payment method restrictions apply. 18+. T&Cs apply. | gambleaware.org | gamstop.co.uk | ||||||||
William Hill Plus Card
The William Hill Plus Card is an essential piece of kit for anyone who bets in physical William Hill betting shops and through their online services. Through the free Plus Card, betters can track and cash out their in-shop bets online via the PLUS web app. They can even place bets in-store using the balance of their online account and withdraw online funds.
In short, the Plus Card bridges the gap between in-person and online betting. Registration is super quick, and you can pick up your card at any of the many William Hill high street stores.
William Hill Casino – Top Games and Features
The ‘Vegas’ section of the William Hill website/app is where you will find their selection of casino games. There is plenty to go at here as William Hill has built an impressive catalogue of games.
As well as a large list of slots, users can also try out scratchcards, bingo, slingo, roulette, blackjack, poker and some ‘arcade’ games. For anyone keen on games with a progressive jackpot prize, William Hill has plenty of these, too, some of which have a seven-figure prize pot.
The live casino is very much up to the same standard, as there is a wide range of immersive and high-definition tables for you to sit at. Here, you can play many classic games such as blackjack, baccarat, sic bo, stud poker and hold’em in their traditional form or with a modern twist.
On top of this, there is a mixed selection of fun ‘game style’ options, which have proven a hit among gamblers.
If casino action is more your scene, know that William Hill runs a casino-specific welcome bonus. Through this, new customers can enjoy a first deposit bonus.
Mobile Gambling Options – Is There a William Hill App?
You do not have to use the William Hill apps for long to recognise that a lot of work has gone into them. Both the Android and iOS apps perform extremely well, allowing users to browse markets and play casino games very smoothly. As well as running well, technical problems are a rarity as William Hill provide fast updates whenever they encounter an issue.
I must also credit the app for being simple to navigate. It largely follows the same sensible structure as the desktop site, making it easy to get where you want. Do not just take my word for it, though; on both the App Store and Google Play Store, the William Hill apps are both extremely well-rated.
Registration Process and Account Verification
If you are over the age of 18, to create an account at William Hill, follow the steps below.
- Start by clicking the ‘Join’ button across the top menu.
- Fill in all the fields, including your name, date of birth, mobile number and address. Once entered, click ‘continue’.
- On the next page, enter an account username, password and an answer to a security question. You also need to select a deposit limit.
- If you wish to redeem a promo code, click where it says ‘Add promo code’ and redeem the code in the box that appears.
- Decide on your contact preferences by unticking/ticking the boxes and then select ‘Agree and join’.
William Hill will then attempt to verify the details you have provided by cross-referencing them against databases like the electoral roll. If successful, which occurs in most cases, you will be fully verified and able to start betting. This is what happened to me, meaning I was able to deposit just two minutes after clicking ‘Join’!
If William Hill are unable to verify your details, they will ask you to send them proof of your identity and address.
William Hill New Customer Offer – Bet ￡10 and Get ￡30 in Free Bets
The sports welcome offer at William Hill treats new players to ￡30 in free bets when they bet ￡10. To claim, customers need to enter the promo code R30 when signing up and place a ￡10+ bet at odds of 1/2 or greater. Once William Hill settles the bet, you will release ￡30 in free bets, which have a seven-day expiration.
As far as relatively low-risk welcome offers go, this is a particularly good one, in my opinion. Players only need to place one short-odds bet to qualify for three times the value in free bets. The only thing you need to watch out for is the ineligible deposit methods, as there are several exclusions.
Payment Options – Deposits and Withdrawals
William Hill does not support a huge number of payment methods for deposits and withdrawals, but they have several very widely used options. There are no fees for any of the deposit/withdrawal methods, and transaction speeds are quick. With Visa Direct, for example, you can have a withdrawal in your bank account between 30 minutes and four hours. So, getting your money in and out of your William Hill account is not only free but often fast!
| Payment Method | Deposit Minimum | Deposit Maximum | Time for Deposit |
|---|---|---|---|
 Visa | ￡5 | ￡99,000 | Instant |
 MasterCard | ￡5 | ￡99,000 | Instant |
 Maestro | ￡5 | ￡99,000 | Instant |
 Postepay | ￡5 | ￡99,000 | Instant |
 Diners Club | ￡5 | ￡99,000 | Instant |
 WilliamHill CashDirect | ￡10 | ￡5,000 | Instant |
 Paysafe Card | ￡10 | ￡200 | Instant |
 PayPal | ￡10 | ￡5,500 | Instant |
 Skrill | ￡10 | ￡80,000 | Instant |
 Neteller | ￡10 | ￡25,000 | Instant |
 ApplePay | ￡5 | ￡99,000 | Instant |
 Fast Bank Transfer | ￡10 | ￡10,000 | Instant |
 Bank Wire Transfer | |||
 TrueLayer | ￡5 | ￡99,000 | Instant |
| Payment Method | Withdrawal Minimum | Withdrawal Maximum | Time for Withdrawal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Visa | ￡5 | ￡33,000 | up to 4 hours |
| MasterCard | ￡5 | ￡33,000 | 1 to 3 days |
| Maestro | ￡5 | ￡33,000 | 1 to 3 days |
| Postepay | ￡5 | ￡99,000 | 1 to 3 days |
| Diners Club | ￡5 | ￡99,000 | 1 to 3 days |
| WilliamHill CashDirect | ￡10 | ￡9,900 | Instant |
| Paysafe Card | |||
| PayPal | ￡10 | ￡5,500 | Same day |
| Skrill | ￡5 | ￡80,000 | Same day |
| Neteller | ￡5 | ￡25,000 | Same day |
| ApplePay | |||
| Fast Bank Transfer | |||
| Bank Wire Transfer | ￡25 | ￡100,000 | 3 to 5 days |
| TrueLayer | ￡5 | ￡33,000 | Same day |
As my bank supports Visa Direct, this made it the obvious choice for me, as I ended up getting my first withdrawal less than an hour after requesting it.
How Helpful is William Hill Customer Support?
One of William Hill’s biggest strengths, in my opinion, is the quality and speed of customer support. William Hill directs most enquiries through its live chat system. You will start talking to a robot that can provide some basic information, but it is easy to move over to a friendly and efficient human operator.
Another benefit of the live chat system is that it remains open until the agent has resolved your issue. If you have something more pressing to sort, you can simply minimise the chat and return to it at a convenient point.
William Hill also responded to help queries on X (formerly Twitter) between the hours of 8 am and 11 pm.
Security and Licensing
William Hill (operated by WHG) has licences issued by the UK Gambling Commission, the Government of Gibraltar and the Malta Gaming Authority. They are also registered as an IBAS (Independent Betting Adjudication Service) bookmaker. This is a service customers can go to if they have an unresolved issue with a bookmaker.
Although we know William Hill operates using an encrypted connection, they do not go into details about their security measures. This is not a concern, though, as they have had a long history without any major data breaches.
William Hill Responsible Gambling Features
As well as having partnerships with various responsible gambling charities, William Hill users can easily set up account restrictions. Within the ‘Safer Gambling’ section of your account, you can create deposit limits (daily, weekly, monthly) and gaming time reminders. For a full withdrawal, players can create a time-out period (up to 42 days), set a self-exclusion (six months to five years) or close their account completely.
Additional tools like loss limits would be welcome, but the current Responsible Gambling measures are satisfactory.
User Experience and Feedback
If you look at online reviews of William Hill, you will predominately find complaints. This is true of virtually all online bookmakers, though, as such review sites attract dissatisfied customers, not the majority who have a trouble-free time.
Many complaints claim games are ‘rigged’, but this is simply not true. William Hill games all use tested random number generators to ensure their fairness and to check RTP figures are accurate.
There is positive feedback out there, too, though, much of it praising William Hill’s customer support for being helpful and fast. Other customers approve of the various promotions the company offers, believing they provide good value for money.
Although you should not dismiss all bad feedback, William Hill is an incredibly well-trusted betting brand. Genuine problems will occasionally arise, but this is a reliable name that has only survived for so long by having happy, returning customers.
William Hill shops
There are around 1,400 William Hill betting shops in the UK, meaning your nearest branch is probably not too far away. These branches attract people who exclusively bet in-store and those who also place some bets via their William Hill online account. For the latter group, those with a Plus Card can deposit and withdraw to/from their online account in-store. They also can cash out store-placed bets via the Plus web app.
History and Background of William Hill
William Hill have been taking bets since 1934, so they really do have a lot of history. Unsurprisingly, a man named William Hill founded the business all these years ago. It has since changed hands numerous times, but the current owners are 888 Holdings, who purchased the European side of William Hill operation for just shy of ￡2bn.
Although the core of William Hill’s offering is in the UK, where they have well over 1,000 stores, they also operate in many other nations. In more recent years, they have expanded into the likes of Latvia and Colombia.
Our Verdict and Rating – Why You Should Bet at William Hill
With William Hill, you are getting a highly trusted bookmaker with decades of experience. The reason they have flourished in such a competitive market becomes clear when you use their services. As well as offering excellent sports coverage and casino games, William Hill runs a great deal of promotions. Whether it is odds boosts, enhanced prices, extra places or free bets, there is always plenty to enjoy.
When also factoring in the high levels of customer support available, I believe William Hill is a top-class bookmaker.
Nostrabet’s Final Rating for William Hill: 4.9 / 5.
FAQ
Is William Hill a safe and secure platform for online betting?
Yes, William Hill is as safe and secure as any bookmaker you are likely to find.
Can I set limits on my betting activity on William Hill?
At William Hill, everyone can place limits on how much they can deposit in order to limit their betting activity.
Can I bet on virtual sports on William Hill?
Yes, William Hill has several virtual sports, including horse racing, greyhound racing and football.
Is William Hill available in every country?
No, William Hill operates in many countries, but not all of them. If you are from an ineligible international area, you will not be able to select your country during registration.
Can I withdraw my winnings from a physical William Hill Shop?
You can withdraw winnings from an online bet from a William Hill shop. To do this, though, you require a free William Hill Plus card linked to your online account.
