Reading Odds

Quick Read

Odds represent the approximate chance of a bet winning

• “+” or plus odds indicate an underdog

• “-” or minus odds indicate a favorite

• Approximate since countless factors contribute to setting odds

• This randomness leads to odds varying throughout the day and across different sites

Odds are an important part of being a profitable bettor

• Bettors can shop different sports betting sites to find the best odds

• Consistently getting good odds is the easiest way of increasing your ROI

Below I’ll show an example of reading odds and a way of determining if you’re getting good value

• DYOR, never bet anything you can’t afford to lose

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Example

Pittsburgh Pirates to win @ +191

$100 bet @ +191 would payout $291

• $291 (payout) = $191 (profit) + $100 (returned)

• Underdogs (+) can be thought of as “if I bet $100 dollars then my profit would be the odds”

New York Mets to win @ -219

$219 bet @ -219 would payout $319

• $319 (payout) = $100 (profit) + $219 (returned)

• Favorites (-) can be thought of as “the odds tell me how much I need to bet to win $100”

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Finding Value

The best way of finding value is comparing odds across betting sites

• This gives us a better idea of what odds are being offered & who is offering the best price

External Prices shows what odds are being offered elsewhere

• Spoiler alert... BettorEdge is tough to beat

Thanks for reading!