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How Betting Odds are Calculated

Betting Odds Explained

Last Updated on 30/05/2023
Fact checked by: Megan Jonson

If you have made use of a betting service before, you will surely have wondered just how the betting odds are calculated for certain events. Depending on the fixtures you are interested in, there will be different ways to calculate the odds.

CaptainGambling has put together this article to run through just how odds are calculated and how you can use this technique to be able to spot decent odds on the market. Each bookmaker will assign their own odds to a certain event and this leads to a large difference between the odds that are on offer. Keep reading to find out more.

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Betting Odds Explained: Why you Should know How Odds are Calculated

If you are looking to get involved with the online sports betting industry, you are certainly going to come across some odds that will apply to every sport market on offer. These odds can seem like gibberish at first as they may look like random numbers assigned to various fixtures. This is not the case, the odds assigned to each fixture are calculated by a bookmaker relative to the probability of certain outcomes related to that sporting fixture.

Bookmakers have strict processes that are followed to determine the odds that they offer and understanding these odds will help you to identify a good offer. If you are new to the world of online sports betting, head to our Beginner's Guide to Sports Betting and seek out a suitable bookmaker for beginners to make your transition into the industry as seamless as possible.

 

While each bookmaker’s process is bound to be different, our team of experts here at CaptainGambling have put together this article to bring you the general information behind how betting odds are calculated. Our team has a wealth of experience within the industry and understands the basic process that is completed to bring you the odds available with your bookmaker.

If you have a solid understanding of how these odds are calculated, you will be able to gain a further insight into the variety of fixtures that are available with each bookmaker. Our information is also presented in such a way that newcomers will also be able to understand what we go through, so keep reading to find out exactly how betting odds are calculated.

What do Betting Odds Mean?

Once you have an active account within the online sports betting industry, the first thing you will notice is that there are odds assigned to each sporting fixture. This is standard within the online gambling industry and it is a fairly easy system to use to determine just how much you could be in store to win if you place a winning wager. If you are looking to turn your online wagers into real money, you can head to our how does cash out betting work page right here at CaptainGambling Australia!

Taking the example of a standard football match with a reputable online operator, we found that the odds for an upcoming football fixture were 4.4 in favour of one team, 3.51 in favour of a draw and 1.83 in favour of the other team. To understand just what this means, let’s imagine that we are placing a $10 wager on each of those possible outcomes. If I placed the money on the first team and they managed to win, I would receive $44 in total, including my initial $10 that I wagered. If I decided to place a wager on the two team drawing, I would receive $35.1 from my $10 wager. You can simply multiply your wager amount by the decimal odds that are displayed. Obviously, if you placed your wager on the other team to win, you would be eligible to receive $18.3.

Understanding exactly what odds mean is crucial if you want to put the information of how betting odds are calculated to good use. There are certain techniques that experts use to determine if odds offered are of a high standard or if it is just a bookie looking to make some money from their customer base. If you are interested in bookmaker operations, head to our page where we answer the common question, “how much do bookies make per year?”.

Odds Formats

If you are looking to understand how betting odds are calculated, you will first need to understand the variety of odds formats that you will encounter on the market. There are three general formats that just about every bookmaker uses and if you have become used to the one, it is quite normal for an operator to offer customers the option to switch between the various formats. Our experts have put together this section to describe how the formats work.

Decimal odds

The most common of formats on the market would definitely be the decimal odds system. As seen in our previous example, the odds system is the easiest for a customer to apply to their potential wager to determine how much they could receive. The odds will always be in the form 3.2 or 4.15 and so on. You can simply take this number and multiply it with your wager to determine how much winnings you will receive if your wager manages to win.

Fractional odds

Fractional odds might be more of a school flashback. They will come in the form of a fraction, for example, 3/5 or 9/2 and these fractions will also represent just how much you can expect to win if your wager proves to be true. The difference to decimal odds is that fractional odds will display your winnings over the amount you would need to wager to receive that specific amount of winnings. In the first example, you would need to wager $5 in order to receive $3 as winnings. If you are looking to understand how betting exchanges work, be sure to head to our betting exchanges explained page.

American odds

The final format of odds that you can expect to come across would be the American odds system. With this system, you will have two values to work with, one positive and one negative. For a similar fixture, let’s say we have odds of +240 assigned to one NFL team to win and -135 to the other team. This means that if the first team were to win and you wagered $100 on them, you would be eligible to receive $240. For the negative value, you would have to wager $135 in order to win $100. This is probably the most complicated system of odds but they are still widely used with American bookies.

How they’re Calculated

Now that we have a solid understanding of what odds you can expect to find within the world of online sports betting, we can take a closer look at how betting odds are calculated. In order to better understand how the process is completed, let us take the example of a football match’s odds, say Manchester City versus Chelsea in a FA Cup semi final game. Bookmakers will then take a number of factors into consideration before assigning a probability to each team’s success. They will consider previous fixtures between the two teams, the form of each team and just about any other data they can get their hands on.

With all the data, the experts at each bookmaker will narrow the possibilities down to a number of probabilities of outcomes. You may have odds for City winning outright in normal time, or Chelsea doing the same. Since there can’t be a draw in normal time, there will also be odds for each team winning the match in extra time and odds for each of them winning through penalties. The probabilities of each outcome will be determined and transformed into the odds that we have come to be familiar with. Generally, the probability behind the odds is equal to your stake over the total payout. Bookmakers take all the data they can manage into consideration before offering their odds.

Searching for the Best Odds

With each bookmaker having fairly different odds available for similar markets, it is possible to find some better odds for a specific fixture with a different online operator. You may have one bookmaker who tends to favour Chelsea in the previous fixture while another may prefer Manchester City. Depending on which team you are inclined to wager on, you can take advantage of this odds discrepancy by choosing to wager with the bookmaker that will give you the biggest payout. You could also consider some betting strategies to apply to fixtures that are relatively tight.

While the odds may differ between operators, it is still quite a challenge to keep up with every offer on the market to know that you are receiving one of the best. It would take an immense amount of time to browse through all of the bookmaker services, fortunately, our team of experts here at CaptainGambling have done all the hard work for you. We have put together a number of pages that make gathering this information easier. To take a look at just how you can fund your account, head to our deposit methods for betting in Australia page.

3 Tips to Help you Spot some Great Odds

With so many offers on the market, you may feel a bit lost when trying to find the best odds out there. We have put together these three tips to guide you along your way when deciding on which bookmaker to use.

Check competing offers

The most important thing you can do is check what competing offers are available for the specific fixture you are interested in. If you have done your research and you know what you are planning to wager on, you should take a look through our service here to see exactly what odds are available for the specific fixture. You can then browse for the best offer relative to the stake that you are going to place. This may drastically increase the amount of funds you are eligible to win so it is always worthwhile.

Make use of our reviews

With the odds in mind, you will then need to consider the quality of the online bookmaker service that you are planning on using. It is no use having the best odds available to you when the bookmaker’s service is lacking. To avoid this, you can browse through some of our comprehensive bonus and operator reviews to get an idea of which bookmaker is the best for beginners in Australia and which ones might rank best for more advanced bettors. These reviews are all conducted in the same format to make it easier for readers to compare the services that are out there. Be sure to browse through a couple of them.

Conclusion

This concludes our how betting odds are calculated article. If you have been through the information available on this page, you will have a solid understanding of exactly why you need to understand what do betting odds mean and just how you can apply that information when making a wager. Keep in mind that the format of the odds may differ and if you are ever confused, check back here to find our informative descriptions of each. Finally, keep our tips in mind when you are shopping around the market to ensure that you find your perfect offer.

How Betting Odds Are Calculated FAQ

🔍 Where can I find betting odds explained?

If you are active within the online sports betting industry, you will be making use of odds that are provided by bookmakers just about all the time. These odds have been carefully calculated by the relevant bookmaker to provide customers with a numerical way to determine just how much they can expect to receive if they place a winning wager on the certain fixture. Our article here at CaptainGambling discusses everything odds related and the information is freely available to anyone interested. Head to our page to find out more.

🧮 Can I find out how to calculate betting odds?

Odds might seem to be just a number assigned to your preferred sporting fixture, but they are carefully calculated by bookmakers to ensure that they do not end up losing too much money. It is a representation of the probability of various outcomes related to the fixtures you are interested in. If you are looking to find out just how these betting odds are calculated, you can head to our page to find a comprehensive look at the odds that are on offer and how they are generally calculated. Our CaptainGambling service is available to anyone looking for information.

🤔 Do bookmakers share how betting odds are calculated?

Depending on which bookmaker you have signed up with, you might be able to see just how they go about calculating their odds. It is fairly scarce to find a bookie that is so open about their internal procedures but it is not impossible. Here at CaptainGambling we have put together a comprehensive odds article discussing just how they are calculated and what they represent. Our information is also updated to keep you informed with the latest developments of the online gambling scene. Head to our page to find out more.

🤷 What are the different types of betting odds?

If you have been active on the sports betting scene for a while now, you would have been exposed to different formats of betting odds. There are a couple of standardised odds formats that you will encounter and we discuss each of them in detail here at CaptainGambling. Our team of experts have gone through all the relevant information to bring you a page that is informative and easy to understand. Head to our website now to find out all you will need to know.

⚽ Do all matches have the same betting odds?

When you are betting on a certain sporting fixture, you might wonder if there are better offers out there or if every bookmaker tries to keep the offer on par. We have taken a look at just about every bookmaker on the scene to determine if you are likely to encounter different odds at different service providers. You can head to our page now to find out just how betting odds are calculated and how likely they are to be different with other online operators. Our service is provided free of charge and it is available for anyone to use!

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