- How To Read The Moneyline Odds Today
- How Do You Read The Money Line Odds
- How To Read A Moneyline
- How To Read The Moneyline Odds
- How To Read The Moneyline Odds Genesis Open
- How To Read The Moneyline Odds For Today
How to Read Lines. Most newspapers and online sports betting sites publish the line on a. Now the number to the side of Team/Player is the moneyline. Betting Sites » How to Bet on Sports » How to Read Odds: Sports Betting Odds. What this does is it allows you to quickly read the odds and calculate how. If you're new to betting learning how to read betting odds can be a minefield. Learn how to become an expert at online-betting.me.uk.
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Learning how sports betting odds work can be intimidating at first, but our guide will teach you how to read odds in no time! This primer is designed for beginners who are curious about common wagering practices and terms.
Learn to Bet on Sports & Gamble Online & Offline
For starters, you will need somewhere to place bets. If you are in Vegas, great! You can bet at one of the sportsbooks in their casinos. As more and more states pass laws to legalize sports betting, you will also be able to place wagers at local casinos in your area. You could also find a local bookie to bet through, but we recommend betting online.
How Online Betting Works
We have an excellent list of the top places to bet online (that take U.S. customers). If you are looking to maximize your first deposit, we also have a great comparison of the best sportsbooks signup bonuses for you. Once you’ve read the primer below on reading the odds, you will have no problem navigating these sites.
Las Vegas Sports Betting at the Ticket Window
Betting sports in Vegas is likely going to be the option with the biggest learning curve. You will understand the odds after reading this article, but there are a few other rules and common practices you want to be familiar with that are specific to Vegas.
Many books now offer their own betting apps that make this process a little bit easier, however, the drawbacks are that you must make a deposit upfront for how much you want to bet with, plus you don’t get free drink tickets when you place bets on the app. We’ll step through how you would place a bet in person at the ticket window.
Step-by-Step Guide to Placing Sports Wagers in Vegas
“I’ll take number 403, Cowboys -8, for $110 straight up.”
- Use the rotation number/numbers and the name of the team/teams you want to bet on. The rotation number appears to the left of each team (see image above) and is used as a unique identifier so that there is no confusion about what you want.
- State the amount you would like to bet. This is how much you are wagering, not how much you want to win. Most books use -110 odds (more on this later), so if you want to win $100, you’d state $110 as your wager amount.
- Indicate the type of bet you are placing. For individual bets, just say “straight” or “straight up”, otherwise you will need to explain that you are taking a parlay or some other bet type.
- Repeat as necessary.
How to Read Sports Betting Lines
There are nearly infinite ways to bet sports. If you can think of something to bet on, there is a good chance you can find somewhere to bet on it. What we are going to focus on is the most common types of wagers: point spreads, over/unders (totals), and money lines.
What Does the Plus (+) and Minus (-) Mean in Sports Betting?
One of the first and most important aspects of sports betting every new player must learn is what the different symbols mean. A plus or a minus can mean different things in different situations. They are used for both point spread and money line betting, as well as for the price/juice of each bet.
This is explained in more detail below, but the most important thing to be aware of is that negative numbers represent favorites, while positive numbers represent underdogs. The same is true whether you are looking at a spread or a moneyline, but how these numbers are used is very different. You also need to know that prices on spreads/totals do not impact who/what is favored, it is used to determine how much the bet pays out. Read on for the complete explanation of each of these concepts.
Point Spreads Explained
The point spread is the projected number of points that separate two teams. A game with a spread will have a favorite (the team expected to win) and an underdog (the team expected to lose). A favorite “gives” points and is identified with a minus sign next to their point spread. The underdog “gets” points and is identified with a plus sign next to their point spread.
| Teams | Spread | Price/Vig |
|---|---|---|
| New York Jets | +7 | -110 |
| New England Patriots | -7 | -110 |
In the example above, the point spread is 7 points. Patriots are favored by 7 points against the Jets.
If you bet on the Jets +7, they must either win the game outright or lose by 6 points or less. If they lose by exactly 7 points, the bet is considered a push and is canceled.
If you bet on the Patriots -7, they must win the game outright by more than 7 points. If they win by exactly 7 points, it’s a push.
Bet Prices: What Does -110 Mean? If I Bet $100, What do I Win?
The 3-digit numbers to the far right are the listed prices for these bets. This is also called the odds, vig, or juice. An easy way to think of it is the amount you must risk to win $100 on this wager. In our example, -110 means you must risk $110 if you want to win $100. -110 is pretty standard, but you will find different options. We will cover those in more depth when we talk about money lines. The price of the bet has no impact on which team is favored. Only the plus or minus on the point spread matters. This is handled differently when you bet strictly on the moneyline.
What is the Money Line? (How Moneyline Betting Works)
A moneyline bet is on a team to win the game outright (without a point spread) at an adjusted cost. Just like with point spread betting, the favorite will have negative odds, while the underdog will have positive odds. The difference here is in the price or payout depending on which team you take.
| Teams | Moneyline |
|---|---|
| New York Jets | +240 |
| New England Patriots | -280 |
A favorite (e.g. Patriots -280) on the money line works just like our bet price example above. In our new example, the Patriots are listed at -280, meaning you would need to risk $280 for a return of $100 on them. It follows that a winning bet on the Pats pays $100 (plus your initial investment of $280 back). This added risk is why betting the spread is usually more popular, especially on favorites.
Underdogs (e.g. Jets +240) work a bit differently. Instead showing how much you need to risk to win $100, this line tells you how much you stand to win on a $100 wager. That means if you bet $100 on the Jets, and they win, you would win $240. If the Jets lose, you are only out your original $100 wager.
Totals: What Over/Under Means in Sports Betting
The terms “total” and “over/under” are synonymous when placing wagers. This type of bet is on the sum of the points scored by both teams in a game. The bookie sets the number for the total, then you predict whether they will score more or less points than the set number.
| Teams | Total | Price/Vig |
|---|---|---|
| New York Jets | Over 42.5 | -105 |
| New England Patriots | Under 42.5 | -115 |
The over/under in this example has been set at 42.5. If you project the Jets and Patriots to combine to score more than 42.5 points, you would place a wager on the over. If you think they will score less than 42.5 points, you would bet the under. Let’s say the final score of this game is Patriots 27, Jets 24. Which bet would lose and which bet would win? The sum of all points scored is 27 + 24 = 51, so an over bet wins and an under bet loses.
You may also note the bet price is not -110 like we have seen before. It is common practice by sportsbooks to adjust prices on or around key numbers for spreads and totals, especially in football.
Understanding Sports Betting
We hope this short beginner’s guide to understanding and interpreting odds will give you the confidence to get out there and start making winning bets. Our experts are here to help you on this journey, so do not hesitate to contact us with any questions you have about sports betting! We have only scratched the surface on reading betting lines, but this is an excellent place to start.
One sport that has a few extra quirks is golf. I wrote up a guide to golf betting that explains these unique features so you can feel comfortable wagering on PGA events too.
Most newspapers and online sports betting sites publish the line on a football or basketball game simply as a single number. In our example we will use Chicago against New York in which Chicago is favored by 4 points versus New York. Some bettors refer to this as the favorite laying 4 points, and the underdog getting 4 points. The spread is typically displayed in the following format:
- Chicago -4
- New York +4
By betting the spread, a sports bettor wagers on the amount of points a team is projected to win or lose by. In the example above, -/+4 is the spread. Since the spread is 4, Chicago must win by 5 or more points to win the bet, while New York can lose by 3 or fewer points to win the bet. If Chicago wins by exactly 4, then the bet is a push and no one wins or loses money.
Often there is a number to the side of the spread, such as Chicago -4 (-110). This is to show how much extra money a bettor must risk on their wager.
The (-110) important for calculating payouts and break-even percentages. Since it is -110, we must bet 1.10 to win 1.00, so for each $1 we want to win, we have to risk $1.10. For example, a sports bettor must risk $11 to win $10, $55 to win $50, $110 to win $100, $1100 to win $1,000 and so forth. If the line is a single number, like in the first example, -110 is simply assumed As you may have noticed, bettors are risking 10% more than they can possibly win from their wager.
How To Read The Moneyline Odds Today
There’s a technical term for this extra fee: vigorish. The vigorish, also known as “vig” or “juice”, gives sportsbooks a mathematical advantage, commonly referred to as the house hedge. You have likely seen similar fees for casino games. This how sportsbooks make a profit. Since sportsbooks charge a fee, sports bettors winning only 50% of their bets will likely end up losing money in the long term. Taking into account the vigorish, you need to win not half of your bets but at least 52.4% to break even on traditionally-juiced lines (-110).
A common misconception is that, because of this fee, sportsbooks stand to make 10% from the total amount of money bet, also known as the handle. For clarity’s sake, the commission charged to sports bettors is actually 5%. Remember, there is action on each side of a betting line. Say the betting handle on New York vs. Chicago is $1100, divided evenly between the two teams. With $550 to win $500 wagered on Chicago -4 (-110) and $550 to win $500 on New York +4 (-110), the sportsbook will profit $50 off this game, or 5%, so long as Chicago does not win by exactly four points. In the case of a push, all money wagered on the spread will be returned to bettors.
While -110 is typical for spreads and totals, in the era of online sports betting, competition among legal US sportbooks often leads to better deals for customers. One no longer needs to risk an extra 10% on every wager. Some US sportsbooks will run promotions where sports bettors only have to risk an extra 5% on most games instead of 10%. In this case, the line would look like:
- Chicago -4 (-105)
- New York +4 (-105)
How Do You Read The Money Line Odds
One would only risk $105 to win $100 a wager on Chicago winning by 5 or more points. If you win, you still win $100, but if you lose you’ll only lose $105 instead of $110. It may seem like a small difference, but that extra $5 can add up over the course of a season.
Sometimes the line will be displayed as a rather larger number to the side of the point spread. Let us look at an example where you would need to wager $120 in order to win $100:
- Chicago -4 (-120)
- New York +4 (-100)
How To Read A Moneyline
In this case, the bookmaker is getting a lot of action on Chicago. The bookmaker has two choices. Option A) they move the spread to Chicago -4.5/New York +4.5, or B) if they like the current spread, they can stick with Chicago -4 and move the “juice” instead, hence -120.
Now bettors will risk $120 to win $100 on Chicago -4. On the other hand, those wagering on New York +4 will only risk $100 to win $100 (even money). This is how the bookmaker incentives bettors to wager on New York and balance their sportsbook’s betting handle.
You might find one sportsbook with Chicago -4 (-120) and Chicago -4 (-110) at a different sportsbook. This is why it’s so important for sports bettors to shop for the best lines across the US sports betting industry. The best way to shop lines is to use our odds comparison tools, which you can find for NFL, NBA, MLB, NCAAB, NCAAF and NHL.
In general most bookmakers apply the principle that the difference between betting on the favorite and the underdo is 20 cents. So if the favorite is -115 then the dog is -105. If the favorite is -125, then the dog is +105. And if the favorite is -110, then the dog is -110.
The same principle applies to wagers on the point total (Over/Under) of the game. If the game total is O41 (-120), U41 (-100) then a $120 wager on the over will win $100 while $100 on the Under will win $100. If the line simply states 41, then you are risking 1.10 to win 1.0 whether your bet is on the over or the under. Again, you can minimize the difference between the over and under and favorites and underdogs by using our odds comparison tools to shop lines.
How To Read The Moneyline Odds
A Moneyline bet is a wager on the outcome of the game regardless of the point spread. So if you bet the moneyline, you are betting on a team to win the game straight up (or outright). Moneyline wagering is more popular for MLB, NHL, golf matchups and combat sports such as the UFC and boxing, but you can also find moneylines for football and basketball. The usual display for a moneyline wager is as follows:
- X Team/Player -200
- Y Team/Player +170
As you can see, the spread disappeared. Now the number to the side of Team/Player is the moneyline. The moneyline is fluid, fluctuating based on the matchup and the amount of money being bet on each side. In this particular example, a sports bettor must risk $200 to win $100 (2-to-1) if they’re betting on the favorite to win the game. One may bet $200 to win $100, $150 to win $75, $10 to win $5 and so forth. The bottom line is the same, one has to risk twice as much as they want to win.
How To Read The Moneyline Odds Genesis Open
A $100 wager on the underdog will net the sports bettor $170 if the underdog pulls off the outright upset. One may bet $100 to win $170, $200 to win $340, etc. The bottom line is the same, a bet on the underdog results in a +170% ROI if the underdog wins.
This principle is universal for moneylines, regardless of the team or sport. If Tiger Woods is -180 vs. Phil Mickelson +160, golf bettors must risk 1.80 to win 1.00 on Tiger. Those betting on Phil will risk 1.00 to win 1.60
If you’re new to sports betting, we hope this page helped answer some important questions. We also have a parlay calculator for your convenience, along with the odds comparison tools mentioned above. Be sure to use all of our sports betting tools and tips to help save you time and money at legal US sportsbooks.
How To Read The Moneyline Odds For Today
Note: Lines and scores highlighted in blue signify an update within the last ten minutes.