How to Read Betting Odds: American, Decimal & Fractional

American odds are displayed as positive or negative numbers. Here's how to read them:

**Negative Odds (Favorites)** - Example: -150 - This means you need to bet $150 to win $100 - The team/player is favored to win

**Positive Odds (Underdogs)** - Example: +200 - This means a $100 bet wins you $200 - The team/player is the underdog

The larger the negative number, the bigger the favorite. The larger the positive number, the bigger the underdog.

Decimal odds are popular in Europe and are arguably the easiest to understand:

**How to calculate payouts:** Simply multiply your stake by the decimal odds.

Example: $50 bet at 2.50 odds = $50 × 2.50 = $125 total return ($75 profit + $50 stake)

**Converting to probability:** Implied probability = 1 / decimal odds × 100 Example: 2.50 odds = 1/2.50 × 100 = 40% implied probability

Fractional odds (common in UK) show profit relative to stake:

**How to read them:** - 5/1 (five-to-one): Win $5 for every $1 staked - 1/5 (one-to-five): Win $1 for every $5 staked

**The first number is your profit, the second is your stake.**

Examples: - 3/1: Bet $10, profit $30 (total return $40) - 1/2: Bet $10, profit $5 (total return $15)

**American to Decimal:** - Positive: (American odds / 100) + 1 - Negative: (100 / |American odds|) + 1

**Decimal to American:** - If decimal ≥ 2.00: (decimal - 1) × 100 = positive American - If decimal < 2.00: -100 / (decimal - 1) = negative American

**Pro tip:** Use our free odds converter tool to instantly convert between any format!