How To Read Sports Betting Odds
Written by: Daniel Collins
Published: Tue Sep 03, 2024, 12:22 am ET
Read Time: 6 minutes
If you are interested in betting on sports and want to learn the ropes before you fully dive in, one of the most important things to check off your checklist is how to read sports betting odds.
If you are unfamiliar with sports betting, there may be some initial confusion when you look at betting lines for the first time, whether it is NFL odds, NBA odds, MLB odds, or odds for another sport or league.
Here, we break down how to read odds so that you can navigate your first sports bets with confidence.
There are a lot of good examples, such as with futures bets and over/under bets (which are also known as total bets), but moneyline and spread bets are a good place to start as they are two of the most popular ways to bet on games.
Different Betting Odds Explained
Let's look at the main categories of sports betting odds.
Now, we are going to break these down into their basic forms.
American Odds
If you live in North America, these are the odds you are most likely going to encounter when looking to place a bet. These are built for the major North American sports but can also apply to sports that are more popular around the rest of the world.
Here is an example of American odds using moneyline odds for a WNBA matchup between the Las Vegas Aces, the home team, and New York Liberty, the road team. If you are unfamiliar with moneyline bets, those are bets on a team (or an individual in sports like tennis, golf, or MMA) to win a matchup.
- New York Liberty +130
- Las Vegas Aces -150
If you want to bet on the Aces to win the game, you will need to bet $150 to win $100.
On the other hand, if you want to bet on the Liberty to win, a $150 bet will net you winnings of $195.
Here is another example of American odds using a possible point spread for the matchup between the Aces and Liberty. Many point spreads will come with -110 odds, though you will often see -120, -115, or -105, depending on the sportsbook and the timing.
- New York Liberty +3 (-110)
- Las Vegas Aces -3 (-110)
In this scenario, betting on either team to cover the spread would net you the same winnings. If you bet on the Liberty to cover the spread—which means that they will have to either win outright or lose by two or fewer points—you will need to bet $110 to win $100.
Similarly, if you bet on the Aces to cover the spread—which means they will have to win by four or more points—you will need to be $110 to win $100.
Decimal Odds
Decimal odds are more likely to be found in European-focused sportsbooks, but even if you live in North America, it doesn't hurt to know about other types of odds.
If we use the same basketball game as the example, these would be the moneyline odds for the game:
- New York Liberty 2.30
- Las Vegas Aces 1.67
Fractional Odds
In North America, fractional odds can be found when betting on horse races, but in other parts of the world, they are popular with betting on a variety of sports.
These are also very easy to calculate, as you are using the two numbers to determine your return.
Let's look at a couple of horses to demonstrate how these odds work.
- Justify 1/2
- Any Old Horse 10/1
When betting using fractional odds, the second number is the number you would wager, and the first number is the amount you would receive in return.
For these two horses, the odds are very different. If you want to bet on Justify, you will need to bet $2 to return an additional $1 in winnings for a total of $3.
If you bet on the other horse, you would receive $11 back for every $1 bet (your original $1 and the $10 from the 10/1 odds).
Where to Bet on Sports Betting Odds Today
Now that you know how to read sports betting odds, you can put that knowledge to the test by placing bets at one of the best U.S. betting sites.
If you are new to betting on sports and don't know these sites well or at all, check out our in-depth sportsbook reviews to learn more about each of these sites.
Our sportsbook reviews cover several features and factors that many sports bettors take into consideration when deciding where to place bets. Those features and factors include available betting options, deposit and payout options, sportsbook bonuses and promos, and user experience.
Other Sports Betting Information
Did you find our guide to reading sports betting odds helpful?
Along with the daily sports betting news and views we offer, we also provide many sports betting guides that break down the basics of sports betting. That includes how to bet on specific sports, leagues, and events, types of bets (such as prop bets or futures bets), betting strategies and terms, the best sports betting tools and resources, and more.
Sports Betting Guides
Here are some of the sports betting guides you can find at Betting News:
- NFL Betting Guide
- NBA Betting Guide
- MLB Betting Guide
- NHL Betting Guide
- College Football Betting Guide
- College Basketball Betting Guide
- WNBA Betting Guide
- NASCAR Betting Guide
- Super Bowl Betting Guide
- Common Betting Mistakes by Beginners
- What Are Futures Bets?
- Sports Betting Glossary
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