To bet on the NFL, you pick one of three core markets on a game (the point spread, the moneyline or the total), read the number and the price beside it, and risk a stake you have sized in advance. Everything else in NFL betting, from player props to Super Bowl futures, is built on those three bets and on reading a line correctly. This guide walks through each bet type, one full game settled three ways, the bankroll habits that keep a season fun, and how to bet with friends peer-to-peer instead of against a house.
The three NFL bets every beginner should know
Almost every NFL game is posted with the same three markets. Learn these and you can read any board.
- Point spread. The spread is a head start in points given to the underdog so both sides are worth betting; the full walkthrough lives in our guide to what a point spread is. A favorite at -3.5 has to win by 4 or more to cover, and the underdog at +3.5 covers by winning outright or losing by 3 or fewer. If a minus number still trips you up, this explainer on negative spreads covers it.
- Moneyline. A moneyline bet is simply on who wins the game, with no points involved. The favorite carries a minus price and pays less than you risk; the underdog carries a plus price and pays more.
- Total (over/under). A total is a bet on the combined points both teams score. If the total is 44.5, the Over needs 45 or more and the Under needs 44 or fewer. Weather, pace and injuries all move it, and our NFL totals guide goes deeper.
Props (bets on a player or a moment inside the game), parlays (several bets tied together) and futures (season-long bets) all come later. Futures in particular have their own page: the Super Bowl odds board and our NFL futures guide cover them, and August games are covered in the NFL preseason betting guide.
How to read an NFL line
Every NFL bet has two parts: the number and the price. The number is the condition you need (win by 4, score 45 combined). The price, written in American odds, tells you what you win.
- A minus price is how much you risk to win $100. At -110, you risk $110 to win $100. At -175, you risk $175 to win $100.
- A plus price is how much you win on a $100 stake. At +150, a $100 bet wins $150.
Every price also carries an implied probability, the win rate you need to break even. A -110 price needs you to win 52.4% of the time (110 divided by 210). A +150 price needs 40%. If you want to check any price quickly, the odds converter turns it into a percentage.
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One game, settled three ways
Here is how a single game board looks, and how one final score settles every bet on it. Say the posted lines are Favorite -3.5 at -110, Underdog +3.5 at -110, Favorite -175 and Underdog +150 on the moneyline, and a total of 44.5 at -110 each way. The game ends 24-20 for the favorite.
A 4-point win clears the 3.5 hook, and 44 total points falls one short of the Over. Move the final to 23-20 and the spread flips to the underdog.
- Spread. The favorite won by 4, more than 3.5, so Favorite -3.5 covers. A $110 bet returns $210, your $110 stake plus $100 profit.
- Moneyline. The favorite won, so Favorite -175 wins. A $175 bet profits $100. The same $100 on Underdog +150 would have won $150, but it lost.
- Total. The teams scored 44 combined, below 44.5, so the Under wins and the Over loses.
Notice the half point. Because 3.5 and 44.5 are not whole numbers, neither bet can land exactly on the line, so there is no tie (a push) and no refund. Change the final to 23-20 and the favorite still wins the moneyline but fails to cover, which is why the spread and the moneyline are separate decisions.
One more thing the example shows: add the two moneyline break-even rates together (63.6% for -175 and 40% for +150) and you get 103.6%, not 100%. That extra 3.6% is the margin built into the prices, and it is the cost you pay to bet into a posted line.
Bankroll basics before kickoff
An NFL regular season runs 18 weeks, so the goal is to still be betting in January. Three habits do most of the work:
- Set a bankroll. Pick an amount for the season that you can afford to lose entirely, and keep it separate from everyday money.
- Bet in units. A unit is a fixed slice of the bankroll, commonly 1% to 2%. On a $500 bankroll, a 2% unit is $10, and every standard bet is one unit. The bankroll calculator does the sizing for you.
- Track every bet. Write down the bet, the price and the result. At -110 you need to win 52.4% just to break even, so a record is the only honest way to know whether you are ahead of that number.
Parlays are tempting on a full Sunday slate, but each leg you add multiplies the chance of losing. Keep them small and occasional while you learn.
Betting the NFL with friends, peer-to-peer
A lot of NFL betting was never about a sportsbook in the first place. It is a bet with your brother-in-law on the rivalry game, or a season-long pool at work. Our free NFL pick'em sheet covers the pool, and the NFL hub lists every game on the week's slate.
Peer-to-peer betting takes that same idea and puts real prices behind it. Instead of accepting a line from a house, you bet against another person, and either of you can propose the number. That removes the built-in margin from the example above, so your break-even at even money drops to 50% instead of 52.4%. Our peer-to-peer betting guide explains how the matching works. BettorEdge is available to eligible users.
How to bet on the NFL FAQ
What is the easiest NFL bet for beginners?
The moneyline is the easiest NFL bet for beginners because you only need to pick the team that wins the game, with no point spread involved. Favorites carry a minus price and pay less than you risk, while underdogs carry a plus price and pay more. Once that feels natural, the spread and the total are the next two bets to learn.
How does NFL betting work?
NFL betting works by choosing a market on a game, usually the spread, moneyline or total, and staking money at the posted price, which sets how much you win. A price of -110 means you risk $110 to win $100, and +150 means a $100 bet wins $150. When the game ends, the final score settles every bet on the board at once.
What does -3.5 mean in NFL betting?
A -3.5 line in NFL betting means the favorite must win by 4 or more points for a bet on that side to cover. The underdog at +3.5 covers by winning outright or losing by 3 or fewer. The half point means the bet can never land exactly on the number, so there is no push.
Once you can read a spread, a moneyline and a total, the only thing left is the price you pay for them. On BettorEdge community odds you bet NFL games against other real bettors and can set your own number, with no house margin stacked on top. Open BettorEdge and get this price for real, peer-to-peer.
Run your pool on BettorEdge.
Brackets, calcuttas, survivor pools and leaderboards, all in one place. Start a competition with your group and track it live on BettorEdge.