What are FPL bonus points?

In each FPL match, at least three players will receive bonus points. The system rewards positive actions whilst punishing negative ones. We take a look through some of the most asked questions when it comes to bonus points

In Fantasy Premier League (FPL), every manager is given an initial £100m budget to build a squad of 15 players. As well as through goals, assists, clean sheets and penalty saves, players can gain points via bonuses.

Following Fantasy Football Scout’s introductory guides to the Wildcard, Free Hit, Triple Captain and Bench Boost chips, here is an explanation of how bonuses work in FPL.

READ MORE: What is FPL?

How many FPL bonus points are given?

Using underlying data, at least three players per match will be rewarded for their performance.

The player with the highest Bonus Points System (BPS) score will get three additional points, the second-best will get two and the third-best gets one.

Sometimes, players will sit joint near the top and – using the example of Manchester City – this is how points would be distributed.

BPS leaders	3 points	2 points	1 point
Haaland (40) De Bruyne (36) Foden (30)	Haaland	De Bruyne	Foden
Haaland, De Bruyne (40) Foden (31) Stones (29)	Haaland & De Bruyne		Foden
Haaland (40) De Bruyne, Foden (36) Stones (29)	Haaland	De Bruyne & Foden
Haaland (40) De Bruyne (36) Foden, Stones, Ederson (29)	Haaland	De Bruyne	Foden, Stones & Ederson

What are they given for?

The BPS system tries to reward all types of players, not just the ones that score goals.

Positive actions such as ball recoveries, tackles, clearances and pass completion rates are also given points, with negative actions taking points away.

Positive actions	Negative actions
[+24] Forward scores a goal	[-9] Red card
[+18] Midfielder scores a goal	[-6] Own goal
[+15] Goalkeeper saves penalty	[-6] Missing a penalty
[+12] Goalkeeper and defender goal	[-3] Conceding a penalty
[+12] Goalkeeper and defender clean sheet	[-3] Yellow card
[+9] Assist	[-3] Missing a big chance
[+6] Playing 60+ minutes	[-3] Error that leads to a conceded goal
[+6] 90% pass completion (30+ passes)	[-1] Error that leads to a conceded attempt
[+4] 80-89% pass completion (30+ passes)	[-1] Shot off target
[+3] Playing 1-60 minutes	[-1] Being caught offside
[+3] Scoring the winning goal*	[-1] Being tackled
[+3] Creating a big chance	[-1] Conceding a foul
[+2] Each save or net successful tackle**
[+2] 70-79% pass completion (30+ passes)
[+1] Each successful dribble, key pass or open play cross
[+1] For every 3 ball recoveries
[+1] For every 2 clearances, blocks and interceptions

* If a match finishes 4-1, for example, the player who made it 2-1 would get winning goal points

** Net successful tackles is the positive total of all successful tackles minus unsuccessful ones.

When are FPL bonus points added?

They are awarded on the official FPL site approximately one hour after that day’s final match has ended, although impatient managers can click on an individual fixture to see its live BPS leaders.

Which players are best for FPL bonus points?

Unsurprisingly, given that goals are the most-rewarded action, Harry Kane (48) and Erling Haaland (40) collected the most bonus points during the 2022/23 campaign.

Narrowly behind them was defender Kieran Trippier (39). The Newcastle right-back’s nine assists and 16 clean sheets contributed massively, as did his regular completion of 90 minutes and a number of successful crosses that was the most by far.

Ivan Toney (35) and Martin Odegaard (30) complete the top five, with Mohamed Salah (23) down in joint-eighth.

Finally, an interesting quirk is that Leicester’s Harvey Barnes scored 13 times yet failed to collect a single bonus point.