What are The Odds and How They Work?

Betting odds represent the implied probability of a particular outcome occurring in an event and determine the potential profit from that bet.

Stake + profit = payout

The first thing to understand is the difference between payout and profit. When you place a bet, you give your stake to the sportsbook. If you win, the sportsbook returns your stake and pays your profit.

Stake	Profit	Payout
1	1	2

NOTE: You can’t count the returned stake as profit because it was your money to begin with.

Types of Odds

Decimal Odds

Decimal odds are the most common odds format in the modern era. They are simple to calculate because the number represents the total payout rather than just the profit.

⭐ The Formula: Stake x Decimal Odds = Payout

➡️ If the odds are 1.32: You receive 1.32 m฿ for every 1 m฿ staked. This includes your 1 m฿ stake and 0.32 m฿ profit.

➡️ If the odds are 12: You receive 12 m฿ for every 1 m฿ staked. This includes your 1 m฿ stake and 11 m฿ profit.

➡️ If the odds are 2.00: it’s called “even money” because if you bet 1 m฿, you will either lose 1 m฿ or win 1 m฿.

Breakdown:

Decimal Odds	Stake	Profit (m฿)	Total Payout (m฿)
1.32	1 m฿	0.32	1.32
2.00 (Evens)	1 m฿	1.00	2.00
12.00	1 m฿	11.00	12.00

Fractional Odds

Fractional odds are expressed as 2 numbers with a / in between, like a fraction. Think of it as profit/stake. The first number is the amount you will profit if you stake the second number.

⭐ The Rule: The 1st number is the profit you make relative to the 2nd number, which is your required stake.

➡️ Example 4/6 odds: You must stake 6 m฿ to win 4 m฿ profit. Your total payout is 10 m฿.

➡️ Example 12/1 odds: You win 12 m฿ profit for every 1 m฿ staked. Your total payout is 13 m฿.

➡️ Odds written as 1/1: refer to as “Evens.”

Breakdown:

Fractional odds	Stake	Profit	Payout
4/6	6.00	4.00	10.00
1/1 (Evens)	1.00	1.00	2.00
12/1	1.00	12.00	13.00

American Odds

American odds center around the number 100, and they use a positive (+) or negative (-) sign.

⭐ The Rule: What you will win (+), or what you must bet(-).

• Positive (+) Numbers (Underdogs): How much profit you will make for every 100 units staked.
• Negative (-) Numbers (Favorites): How much you must stake to make 100 units of profit.

➡️ Example -220: You must stake 220 m฿ to win 100 m฿ profit. Total Payout: 320 m฿

➡️ Example +480: If you stake 100 m฿, you win 480 m฿ profit. Total Payout: 580 m฿.

American Odds	Type	Stake (m฿)	Profit (m฿)
-220	Favorite	220.00	100.00
+100	Evens	100.00	100.00
+480	Underdog	100.00	480.00

Implied Probability

To truly understand how odds work, you need to know how to turn those numbers into a percentage. This tells you how often the sportsbook expects the event to happen.

For a more in-depth look at odds and if you are getting good value from your sportsbooks, check our odds as probability with overrround page.