More punters in South Africa have turned to mobile betting than ever before. Luckily, there are some excellent online betting apps out there to choose from.
If you’re new to online betting apps, this is the perfect page for you. We explain how to install sport betting apps, which are the best betting apps in SA, and how to bet without paying for mobile data.
South Africa’s 7 Best Online Betting Apps |
How to Place Bets on Online Betting Apps |
How to Install Sport Betting Apps |
Betting Apps vs. Mobile Betting Sites |
SA Online Betting App FAQs |
If you’ve looked at our list of South Africa’s best online betting apps, you might be wondering how it is we came up with it. Why these bookmakers and not others? Why are they in this order? Well, the answer is actually pretty simple. We look at the 4 most essential factors for South African punters.
Plenty of punters in South Africa have had to make the switch from using brick-and-mortar bet shops to online betting. The thing is, though, online betting works differently. So how do we actually place bets from our phones?
First of all, we recommend picking one of the top sport betting apps listed above and making an account. Once you’ve done that, place your first deposit. From here on, it’s extremely easy!
As you can see, placing a bet on your phone just takes a few seconds. Instead of having to make time to go down to the bet shop, wait in the queue, and place your bet, you can do it all in a few taps from your phone!
We’ve said a lot about we made our list of South Africa’s best sport betting apps, but this is where we want to shine the spotlight on each of them. If you’re looking for a new betting app, we recommend choosing one of these:
Online Bookmaker | Android App | iPhone App | Mobile Site |
![]() Join Betfair |
✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
![]() Join 1xBet |
✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
![]() Join Mr. Play |
❌ | ✅ | ✅ |
![]() Join Hollywoodbets |
❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
![]() Join Bet.co.za |
❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
![]() Join Supabets |
❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
![]() Join Dafabet |
❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
Betfair are one of the best and most popular online bookmakers in the world. South African punters should make sure they don’t miss out on Betfair’s phenomenal online betting app experience.
Whether you’re using an iPhone, an Android device, the Betfair app is one of the best sport betting apps on the planet, and definitely South Africa’s finest.
Punters should be aware, though, Betfair isn’t the most economical app when it comes to bandwidth usage, though with their top-notch live-streaming service, their amazing betting exchange, and other features, it’s worth the data usage for many out there.
Punters looking for premium features like live streaming, regular updates, and mobile-specific bonuses should definitely check out the 1xBet sport betting app.
While punters can’t deposit or withdraw using South African Rand, the premium features are worth the cost of currency exchange fees.
1xBet have iOS and Android apps, as well as a fully responsive mobile site. If data consumption is a concern, then we definitely recommend using their smartphone apps.
Mr. Play made it to the top of our list for a few reasons, but the chief among them being their excellent Android app and mobile site. With so many punters in South Africa using Android devices and feature phones, Mr. Play are a great option to consider when looking for a sport betting app in South Africa.
iPhone users, however, are less lucky. There are no iPhone or iPad apps available at Mr. Play, though their mobile site is identical to their Android betting app.
Another reason Mr. Play ranks so high up on our list of SA’s best online betting apps is that Mr. Play accept South African Rand! Punters don’t need to waste any of their money on currency conversion fees.
If you’ve never used sport betting apps before, then you might not know where to find them or even how to install them. Don’t worry, though, it’s exceptionally easy!
There are two main ways to do this, and this will depend on what your online bookmaker of choice offers. We’re going to start with the easiest method, which works on both iOS and Android phones and tablets.
💡 TIP! If you’re new to sport betting apps, don’t forget to look at our easy guide to using online betting apps before you go! |
The easiest way to do this is when the sport betting app you’re looking for is listed on either the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. If it’s listed in the official app store on your phone, then installing the sport betting app is the same as installing any other app.
The second option is only available on Android devices. Because Android is an open-source, customizable OS, you can install apps that aren’t listed on the Google Play Store!
This might sound really complicated, but it can be done in just 4 simple steps.
No, you can also place bets on mobile betting sites. These work on almost all devices that have a web browser, including feature phones and older smartphones.
Of course, a newer smartphone is guaranteed to give you a good online betting experience if you pick the right online bookmaker or sport betting app. However, you don’t need to have expensive electronics to enjoy betting, whether it’s through a browser or an online betting app.
If you’re using a feature phone, then we recommend sticking to the mobile site, as sport betting apps for feature phones are extremely rare.
💡 Did You Know? Hollywoodbets is one of the only online bookmakers that focus on feature phones. You can download the Hollywoodbets feature phone betting app from their site! |
You’ve probably noticed by now that not every online bookmaker has a sport betting app. Some betting sites choose to focus on having a top-notch mobile site rather than working on apps for specific ecosystems like iOS or Android.
For punters who are looking to place bets on their phones, the question remains: Which is better, a mobile site or an online betting app?
The truth is, it depends on the bookmaker and on what device you’re using. Realistically speaking, there isn’t a massive difference between them, but they still each have their own pros and cons.
For example, sport betting apps take up space on your device, and all apps have device requirements. If an online betting app requires a specific version of Android, but your phone or tablet is running an older version of the operating system, you won’t be able to download the betting app.
To make things easier for you, we’ve put everything in a handy table:
Sport Betting Apps | Mobile Betting Sites |
✅ Use less data | ❌ Use more data (unless Data-Free) |
❌ Take up storage space | ✅ Does not take up storage space |
✅ Push notifications | ❌ Rarely have push notifications |
❌ Require a smartphone | ✅ Work on all devices with a web browser |
✅ Biometric log-in | ❌ No biometric log-in |
❌ Not available for all bookmakers | ✅ Available for almost all bookmakers |
As we mentioned when taking a closer look at the best sport betting apps, there are plenty of excellent mobile betting experiences out there that can be found on your phone’s browser.
The three best options for South African punters are undoubtedly the ones provided by our top, local bookmakers. This isn’t a patriotic sentiment, but we believe that these three mobile betting sites know how to serve South African punters better than anyone else out there.
You may know Hollywoodbets as a high street bet shop, but they’re much more than just that. Hollywoodbets have South Africa’s best and most unique sport betting app.
You may not be able to install the Hollywoodbets app on your iPhone or Android, but Hollywodbets are the only bookmaker we know of that continue to support an online betting app for feature phones!
Their mobile site is exceptionally easy to use, so Android and iPhone users are still better off than punters who stick to their desktop site. It’s faster, smoother, and everything is a lot easier to find on their mobile site.
Like we mentioned in our Hollywoodbets review, this is an obvious choice for South African punters.
Bet.co.za may not have any native smartphone apps, but that hasn’t stopped them from creating a first-class mobile betting site. In fact, we recommend using their mobile site over their desktop site for a number of reasons.
For starters, Bet.co.za has some betting features that are only available on mobile, like their Build-A-Bet tool. Also, it’s much easier to navigate Bet.co.za’s mobile site, as the UI is drastically different to that on their desktop site.
If that isn’t enough to sway you, not only do they accept popular payment methods like SiD Instant EFT, but they also have a huge selection of bonuses and promotions to give punters plenty of added value.
We saved the best for last with Supabets. While bookmakers like Hollywoodbets and Betfair may be household names in South Africa, Supabets have a completely unique feature that makes their web betting app more accessible than anyone else’s.
Supabets have a Data-Free mobile site. What this means is that punters don’t need to worry about their data limits, or much using the mobile site will cost them. It’s completely free.
On top of that, Supabets have excellent betting features, and very well-priced odds. If you’re a punter who wants value for money and free mobile data, Supabets is the only real choice.
As we mentioned above, the more international betting companies tend to provide the best betting apps. If you're in either Asia or Europe, we recommend taking a look at the following pages to help you find the best betting apps available in your region:
Betting Apps in the UK |
Betting Apps in India |
Now that you know all the ins and outs of mobile betting in South Africa, all that's left to do is actually start betting on your phone. For those readers who still aren't sure which bookmaker to go for, we recommend just taking your pick from our list of the best betting apps in South Africa.
Each of those bookmakers was hand-picked by our experts, and chosen because we believe they're the safest and most reliable bookmakers out there who also offer great betting apps.
If you're brand new to using betting apps, then you should definitely take a look at our guide to placing bets on your phone above. This will have you up and running in just a few minutes!