Q&A for How to Read Odds

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Question

What does -13, for example, mean in football?

Community Answer

The "-13" means that a football team is favored to win by 13 points. For you to win the bet, the team must win by more than 13 points.

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Question

If the odds are 5/3, and I bet $100, what is the payout if I win?

Community Answer

5/3 odds equates to a +166 money line bet, meaning a $100 bet would return $266 (your original $100 bet plus $166).

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Question

What does it mean if, in the presidential election, I see one candidate with a 175 and another with a +225?

Community Answer

The 175 should read -175. (-) means you pay and (+) means you get. So for -175 you pay $175 to get $100 (in addition of your initial bet $275 in total) and for +225 you get $225 when you bet $100 ($325 in total).

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Question

If someone bets $50, and the odds are -120, what is winnings/loss?

Community Answer

-120 means the team is the favorite to win, so you have to put up $120 to win $100 (plus your original bet). A $120 bet would return $220 (original bet of $120 plus the $100 you won). Betting $50 on a -120 money line would return your original bet of $50 plus winnings of $41.66, or $91.66 total.

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Question

What does 2/11 odds mean?

Community Answer

Your profit is *2/11. So if you wager $110 and win, you'll get $130 back, a $20 profit.

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Question

What does odds of 9 to 4 mean on a baseball team to win the World Series?

Community Answer

If the odds are 9/4 and you wager $100, you divide the $100 by the last number (4) so this would be $25. Then multiply it by the first number (9), which would come out to $225 as your profit made from the $100 you bet. Add the bet you made & the profit made by the bet. So the final taking would be a total of $325.

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Question

When I see a whole number alone on an odds sheet, what does it mean? For example, instead of 3/5, the odds are shown as 15 or 25.

Community Answer

If you're seeing 15 or 25 instead of 15/1 or 25/1, you're seeing a decimal form of odds, as opposed to fractional. Multiplying your stake by decimal odds gives your total return, not your profit(which is total return -stake). To get to fractional from decimal, add 1. So 3/1 fractional = 4 decimal (just 4). 4/6 frac = (4/6+1) dec = 10/6 = 5/3, or 1.666, which is rounded to 1.67 by bookies. To go from decimal to fractional, subtract 1(which makes sense from profit = total return - stake) So 15 dec = 14/1 frac. 2.33... dec = 1.33/1, or 133/100.

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Question

What do 2/9 odds mean?

Community Answer

Your profit is *2/9. So if you wager $110 and win, you'll get $134.44 back, a $24.44 profit.

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Question

What about a 4/5 odds, and how would you come up with the money line number?

Community Answer

1 + 4/5 = 1.8, so on a $100 bet, your take home would be $100 (original wager) plus $180 (winnings), or $280.

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Question

What does -3 mean on a betting slip?

Community Answer

-3 means the team is the favorite to win, so you have to put up $3 to win $100 (plus your original bet). A $3 bet would return $103 (original bet of $3 plus the $100 you won). Betting $50 on a -3 money line would return your original bet of $50 plus winnings of $1,666.66, or $1,716.66 total.

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Question

What does two to one odds mean?

Community Answer

You win twice what you bet. So if you bet one dollar and win, you get back three dollars.

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Question

What are the winnings on a 1£ bet at 50/1?

Community Answer

If you bet £1 at 50/1, your total return would be £51, with a profit of £50. 50/1 (odds)= 50. 50 x £1 (stake) = £50. £50 + £1 (original stake returned on victory) = £51.

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Question

How do I read fractions in the odds?

Community Answer

They're just normal fractions and show your possible return (not including initial stake), so just calculate the fraction times the wager to work out your winnings (i.e. 4/1 means 4 divided by 1 = 4, so if you bet $10 at 4/1 your return would be $10 x 4 = $40, plus your original wager of $10 would be returned to leave you with $50 in total). If the odds are 1/4, then 1 ÷ 4 = 0.25, so you'd have 0.25 x $10 profit ($2.50), so you'd end up with $12.50 once your original wager has been returned.

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Question

How do I know how much I've won when betting and reading the odds?

Community Answer

+500 means that if you bet $100 you walk away with $600. -500 means you have to bet $500 to walk away with $600. Based on $100 per bet scale. +1500 means that if you bet $100. You walk away with $1600. (1500 plus your $100). -1500 means you have to bet $1500 to walk away with the same $1600. (100 plus your 1500).

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Question

What does it mean when a team is plus when betting?

Community Answer

You win more. The majority of bets are placed against them. +500 means if you bet $100 and they win, you walk away with $600. +101 means if you bet $100, you walk away with $201 if they win. +25 means if you bet $100, you walk away with $125 total If they win.

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