Full Betstar Review: An Easy-To-Use Sports Betting Platform

Betstar was founded in Australia in 2007 and is one of the longest-running online sports betting platforms in the country. But is it still worth signing up to? In this Betstar review, we’ve taken a deep dive into the most important facets of this operator, and have explored everything from the available sports markets to the odds.

Our Rating of Betstar - AustraliaAustralia Flag

Overview – Click to Find Out More
Sports to bet on 27
Avg. markets (AFL) 142
Live streaming No
Payout rate (AFL) 95%
Partnerships AFL NRL Cricket Australia
Languages offered English
Customer service Live Chat/Phone/Email
Gambling licence Northern Territory Racing Commission
Fantastic Odds
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Website www.beststar.com.au
Overall Rating 4 / 5
Players must be 18+ to join. Full Terms and Conditions apply.

Our primary goal with these reviews is to ensure that our readers find the perfect sportsbook for their individual needs and preferences. This is why we’ve covered commonly overlooked areas such as the payment methods, customer support options and web design. So keep reading to discover a thorough and fair assessment of the Betstar platform.

An Introduction to the Betstar Sports Betting Platform

In order to appeal to a large variety of players, the top sportsbooks will always offer a large selection of popular sports and lesser-known events, from local leagues to international game competitions. To kick-off of our Betstar review, we’ve looked into the available sports markets that Betstar’s customers can wager on.

Featured Sports Markets and Betting Types

Betstar offers roughly 30 different sports to wager on, with an impressive variety of AFL, Cricket, Tennis, and NRL markets among them. This should be pleasing to hear for most of our Australian readers, as AFL and Cricket, in particular, tend to generate the most betting activity in the country.

Outside of this, there are also plenty of international sports markets, with US leagues such as the NBA, NFL, and MLB also offering a wide selection of betting opportunities throughout the year. Below, we’ve listed some of the most popular Betstar sports, leagues and markets to bet on at Betstar.

The Most Popular Sports Markets at Betstar
Football (19) Basketball (10) Australian Rules (2) Tennis (3) Golf (3)
La Liga NBA AFL Australian Open US Masters
Premier League Australia NBL AFLW Wimbledon PGA Tour
Bundesliga NCAA ATP Cup US Open
Serie A Euroleague
Ligue 1 Spain ACB
Eredivisie Germany BBL

As it stands, many Australian punters enjoy horse racing and betting on AFL games. These events tend to draw the most customers at Betstar, so it is great to see that the website puts a lot of emphasis on providing competitive odds for these markets.

One of the major perks to this site is that the markets are categorised in a way so that it’s always easy to find exactly what you’re looking for. Also, as the site uses a reworked version of its hugely popular sister site Ladbrokes platform, the sports offerings are always informed by player demand.

Live Betting & Live Streaming

Because Australia has outlawed online live-betting, players must place their in-play wagers by telephone. In order to create a convenient workaround of this, Betstar has created a special Live Betting tab to clearly show the up-to-date live odds for games that are currently being played.

Players can then call the phone number listed on the page to wager using those odds. Some events have upward of 10 markets to make in-play wagers on, resulting in what is quite a diverse and exciting live betting experience. Minimum live bets are set at $20, which is fairly low compared to some other Australian bookmakers that charge around $50.

There are plenty of sports available for live betting sites, including Betstar Australia, such as the AFL, Cricket and the USA’s NCAA March Madness college basketball tournament. Unfortunately, the website does not offer live streaming of events which is admittedly one downside to using this platform.

Multi Bets Options

MultiBets are one of 24 different betting types offered at Betstar. MultiBets are a combination of numerous single bets that are added to one sports betting slip, in turn multiplying the total odds. The Betstar MultiBets offers quite a large number of bets on one slip, which can be anywhere between two to 13 legs.

Even more exciting is that players do not have to limit multiple bets to one particular sport or market, and players can even create combinations from both horse racing and sports together. This is not always the case for online Australian bookmakers, so we’ve graded this area highly in our Betstar review.

One thing that Betstar does not offer are clearly defined system bets. These are similar bets to multi bets, though system bets tend to be more successful.

Betting Minimums and Win Limits at Betstar Australia

All bookmakers will have different limits on how small bets must be and the maximum daily winnings. Betstar’s minimum wager is 50c which is particularly low considering some competitors require minimums of up to $5 per wager. As for maximum wins, this depends on what is being bet on.

For sports, players can win anywhere between $10,000 and $50,000 per day, depending on the sports. As for racing, this will depend on the venue where the race took place, with the highest maximum win being $100,000. This is quite standard and indicates that the platform is perfect for both fiscally conservative and high-roller players.

The Odds and Payouts8

The Betstar odds are relatively competitive with many of Australia’s other major sportsbooks, though this is mostly due to the fact that the site is essentially a clone of the Ladbrokes platform. That said, these sites utilise a margin of 5.5%, which is slightly higher than the industry standard of 5%. This essentially means lower odds for players.

The website uses the decimal system to display its odds, which is also fairly standard for Australian sportsbooks. Below, we’ve provided a list of Betstar odds levels for its most popular sporting events.

Odds Levels for the Largest Sports Markets
  • .
  • AFL 95.33 - 97.09%
  • NRL 96.98 - 98.18%
  • Cricket 96.55 - 97.64%
  • Tennis 93.98 - 98.32%
  • Horse Racing 95.14 - 98.11%
  • Supercars 94.38 - 96.53%
  • Golf 94.78 - 97.78%
  • Soccer 97.26 - 98.12%
  • ..
  • .....
  • Return to Player (%)

A particularly exciting feature that is available exclusively for horse racing is the ‘Pick Your Own Odds’ betting option. This gives you the opportunity to choose your own minimum winning margin for the runner. The odds will update to implement your suggestion, and despite this increasing the risk, it also gives you the chance to boost your rewards.

The in-play payouts are relatively competitive, though are still impacted by the platforms slightly higher-than-average payout margins. Just keep in mind that live odds, in particular, are subject to major fluctuation, so it’s important that you wager on the desired offered odds before it’s too late.

Accepted Payment Methods

Several payment options are available with which to make deposits into your Betstar account, and a majority of these are also able to process withdrawals. These include Paypal, Mastercard and Visa, which are perhaps the most trustworthy and reliable payment methods available in Australia.

We recommend using Visa at Betstar, due to its fast deposit times and high withdrawal limit. We suggest comparing Betstar to our other top Visa betting sites before playing.

Below, we’ve listed details for these versatile payment methods available at Betstar.

Payment Methods Withdrawal Limits Deposit Limits Withdrawal Time Deposit Time Fees
Visa Unlimited AU$10- AU$40,000 1 – 5 days Instant Free
MasterCard Unlimited AU$10- AU$40,000 1 – 5 days Instant Free
PayPal Unlimited AU$20 – AU$12,500 Up to 1 day Instant Free
POLi Unlimited AU$5 – AU$20,000 N/A Instant Free
Bank Transfer Unlimited AU$100 – AU$100,000 2 – 10 days 2 – 10 days Free

As you can see, different payment methods have varying transaction times and limits. For most players, PayPal will be the best method to use due to its fast speeds and security features. However, you may be charged fees from PayPal for these transactions. Credit cards are also convenient, though withdrawals tend to be delayed.

An Easy-To-Use Platform

Betstar utilise a clear and easy-to-navigate platform that makes it easy to find all of the markets and sports you would want to find. That being said, the platform’s aesthetics are disappointing in that they are essentially the same as the Ladbrokes platform, just with a revised blue colour scheme.

That said, the website provides clear links to relevant help sections, which is great for new players. Most notably, it includes a ‘Help’ tab in its main bar, so this means that it’s always easy to find assistance through either FAQs, video tutorials or customer support.

Once you start placing bets, the bet slips are also clearly displayed, and the platform facilitates multiple bets to make the process much more convenient. All in all, while we haven’t given full marks to the web design in our Betstar review due to its derivative design, it is still a fast, secure, and reliable platform.

How to Place Your Betstar Bet

Placing a bet using the Betstar sports betting platform is an extremely fast and easy process. All you’ll need to do is create a player account, wait until your identity is verified, make a deposit, and place your bets. There are several betting options available, all of which are well-explained through online tutorials.

In order to guide you through your first bet, we’ve provided a three-step guide below. Just be sure to have all of your relevant identification documents on hand to make this process as quick and streamlines as possible.

  • [1] Open an Account Betstar Account Opening Click to Register at the homepage. Provide your personal information such as your name, date of birth and documents. Use the Know Your Customer system to verify your age and website eligibility.
  • [2] Find Sports Market Betstar Sports Markets Once your first deposit has cleared, research the sports leagues that interest you, and select the market and odds that you wish to place a bet on.
  • [3] Enter Stake Betstar Placing bet A bet slip will open. You can either submit a single bet or add additional markets to create a multi-bet. The overall odds will be calculated as you add your selections. Confirm the Bet.

Due to Australia’s law ban on online live betting, you will need to make your live bets over the phone. The odds for all in-play events will be displayed in the In-Play tab at the top of the page. A telephone line will be clearly provided which you can call to place these wagers.

About Betstar Australia

The Betstar brand has gone through major changes since it first debuted on the Australian market in 2007. In this section, we’ve explained some further details about the company and its business practises, ranging from information about its history, its safety and licensing details and the quality of its customer service.

Betstar Company Background & Interesting Facts

Betstar Australia was one of the first local online sportsbooks to open in the country and was established by father and son Michael and Alan until the company was sold to the UK Ladbrokes Coral Group in 2014. The company is headquartered in Brisbane, though also runs offices in Darwin.

To this day, the website’s staff are deemed to be trusted experts on Australia’s horse racing industry and are frequently quoted by the country’s biggest newspapers on racing gambling matters. There are currently more than 40 staff members working for Betstar.

All About the Betstar Business
Company Support Security Player Protection
Name: Betstar Live Chat: N/A Encryption: 2,048bit SSL Deposit Limits: Adjustable
Head Office: 61-473 Lutwyche Rd, Lutwyche, Queensland, 4030, Australia Phone: 1300 238 782 Licence Number: Betting Limits: Adjustable
Owner: Ladbrokes Coral Email: support@betstar.com.au Testing Agency: eCOGRA Self Exclusion: Available
Employees: 40 Fax: Audit Organisation: eCOGRA Child Protection: Guaranteed
Registered Players: Unknown Other: Betting help FAQs Anti Money Laundering Controls: KYC Partner Organisations: Gambling Help Online

Since its acquisition, Betstar has used the same web platform as its sister Ladbrokes site. The company cooperates with Australia’s largest sporting leagues including the AFL, Cricket Australia, NRL and Tennis Australia to license their accurate sports statistics to inform its odds. The company has an annual turnover of around $300 million.

Customer Support Options8

No matter how good a website’s reputation is, you should always be prepared for the possibility of technical issues. The best way to be sure that you won’t run into any major problems is by taking the time to see that your chosen sportsbook offers a responsive, accessible and helpful customer support service.

The ideal customer support is available 24/7, and will offer a number of different contact methods to cater to a wide pool of players. In our experience, live chat messaging services tend to be the most convenient and fast method to find the help you need.

Unfortunately, Betstar does not offer live chat so we weren’t able to award the site top marks in this section of our Betstar review. However, it does provide a 24/7 telephone line, email service and contact form. It also provides an FAQ list to answer more common problems.

Another drawback is that support is only available in English. If you want a great bookmaker with stellar customer support and additional languages, check out our Ladbrokes review.

Licensing, Player Safety & Security10

A sportsbook must first be approved of an online gaming license by a state gaming regulator to offer sports betting odds in Australia. Betstar is licensed with the Northern Territory Racing Commission, which the primary Australian licensing agency for the country’s online sports betting platforms.

There is a wide range of benefits to licensing beyond the legal ramifications. For one, operators must prove that they are offering a secure service. Betstar has done this by securing its site with 2,048bit SSL certificate protection, which encrypts users connections to the site and protects players private data against scammers.

Betstar has also partnered with several responsible gambling organizations to ensure that it is not acting in an unethical way. The website has included several player protection features such as deposit and loss limits, self-timers and self-exclusion mechanics. It has also been independently tested by third-party agencies to ensure its system aren’t rigged, making the Betstar sports betting platform highly trustworthy.

Bonus Points5

As we wrap up our Betstar review, there are still a few more items that are worth considering that can affect the overall score of the website. Here, we’ve awarded some additional marks for Betstar’s other features, whether they be extra novelty markets, promotions, sponsorships and any awards it may have won.

We have awarded Betstar extra points due to its many partnerships with Australia’s most popular sporting leagues. This proves to us not only that the site is using accurate data, but that it is also trusted by legitimate sporting organizations to help keep the integrity of their leagues intact.

  • Live Streams 0/3
  • Sponsorship 3/3
  • Awards 0/2
  • Extra Markets 1/1
  • Bonuses 0/1
  • Bonus Points 5

Betstar Australia also offers plenty of fun novelty or political betting markets, which allows customers to wager on everything from foreign elections to award show ceremonies. All in all, Betstar is a simple yet worthy sports betting platform that is well worth your time.

Conclusion: A Reliable, Secure Betting Platform

The Betstar online sports betting platform is a market-rich, reliable and trustworthy website that caters well to the Australian market. There is a great selection of betting types and markets on dozens of sports, and the site includes an easy-to-use in-play betting tab to facilitate seamless live bets.

The website facilitates some of Australia’s most trusted payment providers including major credit cards and PayPal. Furthermore, the site is easy-to-navigate and you will have no trouble placing bets or making adjustments to your personal account controls.

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Strengths and Weaknesses of Betstar
  • Major Strengths
  • Plenty of sports
  • Highly secure
  • Major Weaknesses
  • No live chat
  • Higher-than-average margins
  • Minor Strengths
  • Easy to navigate
  • Minor Weaknesses
  • Clone web platform
  • No live streaming
Players must be 18+ to join. Full Terms and Conditions apply.

For the most part, we were impressed with what we found during this Betstar review, although there are a few negative points worth mentioning.

For one, the higher-than-average margins mean that Betstar’s odds aren’t as good as its competitors. Also, the lack of live streaming leaves a lot to be desired.

If these are dealbreakers for you, check out our list of great Australian bookmakers. We broke down the top sportsbooks by category, so you can find one suitable to your preferences.

Frequently Asked Questions

Below, we have provided answers to commonly asked questions about the Betstar betting platform. We’ve provided a jump link to the relevant sections of our review in each answer if you want to find more information on each topic. If you have further questions, email us at info@bestbettingsites.com and one of our friendly sports betting experts will get back to you as soon as possible.

💳 What payment method should I use?

Of all the available payment methods, we have found that PayPal is the best option to use for online sports betting transactions. This payment method is great as it comes with additional security features and can be used to make deposits and withdrawals. PayPal transfers also tend to be instantaneous too.

⚖️ Is it legal to make in-play bets in Australia?

Yes, it is legal to make in-play bets in Australia, though online live betting is not legal. You will therefore need to use a telephone service to make these bets. Fortunately, Betstar has a dedicated In-Play betting tab that shows live odds and provides a phone line to make these bets quickly and conveniently.

🤔 Who owns Betstar?

Betstar Australia is owned by the Ladbrokes Coral group. While the Betstar company began as an Australian-owned business, it was bought by the UK gaming giant in 2014. Ladbrokes has a global reputation for being a reliable sports betting platform and has won plenty of industry awards over its storied history.

🔢 Does Betstar offer the best odds?

Betstar uses higher-than-average betting margins, which means that it is unfortunately not the best option when it comes to odds. That said, these are not much higher than the competition, and players can stand to win a lot more money than high-odds sites such as Betfair.