Spread betting explained

The most foundational bets in sports betting are point spreads and moneylines. This guide explains the basics of point spread betting, including key terms and how to read odds.

A point spread (commonly just called “the spread”) describes the expected margin of victory by the favored team in a given game. The “favorite” is the team that sportsbooks expect to win the game, while the “underdog” (sometimes just called the “dog”) is the team that is expected to lose. 

If a sportsbook expects the favorite in a basketball game to win by 5 points, then next to that team’s name the point spread will be written as “-5.” So if the Philadelphia 76ers are playing the Boston Celtics, and the 76ers are the favorite, then the point spread will be listed as “Philadelphia 76ers -5” and “Boston Celtics +5.”

When reading a point spread, the minus sign (-) means that the team is the favorite, while the plus sign (+) means that the team is the underdog.

One way to remember that is if you subtract those points from the favorite team’s points at the end of the game, and they still have more points than their opponent, then a spread bet on the favorite would be a winning bet. Similarly, if you add those points to the underdog’s points at the end of the game, and they have more points than their opponent, then a spread bet on the underdog would be a winning bet.

In the above example, you may also hear a bettor say “The 76ers are giving (or laying) 5 points” or “The Celtics are getting 5 points.” The favorite in the game is said to be “giving” or “laying” the points because it is like the underdog started the game with 5 points (in our example). In that scenario, the favorite would need to win by more than those 5 points to win the game (and for bettors to win their spread bets).

Since one team in a given matchup is usually expected to win the game, oddsmakers use the point spread as a way to level the playing field and provide bettors with a way to bet on either team. In the above example, a bettor could bet on “Celtics +5,” and if the Celtics lose the game by 3 points, the bettor would still win their bet. On the other hand, if the 76ers win by 6 points, then the 76ers would “cover the spread” (explained further below) and bettors who bet on “76ers -5” would win their bets. 

When you bet on a point spread, you are betting on the margin of victory, not on who will win the game. 

A moneyline bet is a bet on which team will win the game, regardless of the margin of victory. 

Continuing the above example, when you look at the odds for a game between the 76ers and Celtics, you will usually see both the point spread and the moneyline (along with odds for other betting markets, such as the over/under, which we cover in a separate betting guide). It might look something like this:

Moneyline odds describe the payout for a winning bet. American sportsbooks display odds based on a $100 wager with a plus (+) or minus (-) to denote whether the payout will be at better than even money (for a +) or less than even money (for a -).

When odds are listed with a minus (-) sign, such as -130 above, this means you would need to wager $130 to win $100. If you placed a $130 moneyline bet on the 76ers at -130 odds, and the 76ers won the game, your payout would be $230 ($100 profit on a $130 bet). These odds are less than even money because your profit ($100) is less than your wager ($130).

On the other hand, if you placed a $100 moneyline bet on the Celtics at +110 odds, and the Celtics won the game, your payout would be $210 ($110 profit on a $100 bet). These odds are better than even money because your profit ($110) is greater than your wager ($100).

Generally, the team that is favored to win the game is going to have negative moneyline odds, while the underdog is going to have positive moneyline odds. The variance between the odds is based on the probability of either team winning the game. 

If oddsmakers calculate that there is a very high probability for the favorite to win, then the favorite’s moneyline odds could be more like -200 or even -1000 in extreme cases. In other cases, if the two teams are very evenly matched, both teams might have negative odds like -110. 

Note in the example above that odds are also listed next to the point spread. Just like with moneyline odds, these odds describe the payout for a winning spread bet. The difference is that one team needs to “cover the spread” to win the bet, rather than just winning the game. 

Let’s look at a few more examples of spread bets in different sports.

Here were the spread odds for the Super Bowl game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles back in 2023.

The Eagles needed to win by 2 points for Eagles -1.5 bets to win. The Chiefs won 38-35, so bets on the Chiefs +1.5 were winning bets. 

Because the most common scoring plays in football are field goals (worth 3 points) and touchdowns (worth 7 points including the extra point), the spread on football games often revolves around either 3 or 7. It is common to see a spread of -2.5, -3.5, -6.5, and -7.5. 

In the first example above, the spread was 76ers -5. Let’s look at another NBA basketball spread example.

In this example, bets on Temple +9.5 would win under two scenarios. First, if the Owls win the game outright, then those bets would win. But if the Wildcats won the game by 9 points or fewer, then Temple bettors would still win their spread bets, because Villanova did not win by more than 9.5 points. 

The point spread in baseball is often called the “run line” because runs are the units of scoring. The run line is usually set at 1.5, meaning the favorite needs to win by two runs or more.

Here is an example: 

If the Pirates win the game or lose by 1 run, then bets on Pirates +1.5 would be paid out. In this case, a $192 bet would win $100 for a total payout of $292.

Don’t get confused by the negative odds on the Pirates in this example. In baseball run lines, the odds for betting on the underdog are usually negative (less than even money) because sportsbooks believe it is more likely for the underdog to win the game or lose by 1 run than it is for the favorite to win by 2 runs or more.

Point spreads in soccer are very similar to baseball. They are usually set at 1.5 goals, with negative odds on the favorite covering the spread. 

Here is an example:

In this example, the Galaxy needs to win by at least 2 goals for spread bets on the Galaxy to win. Those bets would win $140 on a $100 bet. 

If the Union had won the game, or if the Galaxy had only won by 1 goal, then bets on Union +1.5 would win. A $170 spread bet on the Union would win $100. 

In conversations about sports betting, you may hear someone say that a team “covered the spread” (or sometimes just “covered”). 

When a team covers the spread, that means bettors who placed spread bets on that team won their bet.

In our first example above (76ers -5), if the 76ers won the game by 6 points or more, that means they covered the spread. If they won the game by 4 points or fewer, that means the Celtics covered the spread, even though they didn’t win the game.

If the spread is a whole number, it is also possible for spread bets to “push”. A push means that the favorite won the game by a margin equal to the spread. In that case, the sportsbook returns a bettor’s stake with no winnings or losses. In our example, if the 76ers won by exactly 5 points, then all spread bets on that game would push. 

Online Sportsbooks often include 0.5 on the spread line to prevent a push from happening. Since scoring in major sports does not include half-points, it is impossible for a spread bet to push when the line includes a half-point. This 0.5 is called the “hook.” 

In our example, if the spread was 76ers -5.5 (instead of just -5), and the 76ers won by exactly 5 points, that means the Celtics covered the spread. 

A moneyline bet is a bet on the outright winner of the game. A point spread bet is a bet on the margin of victory. 

One reason to bet on the point spread instead of the moneyline is to get better odds for betting on the favorite. Let’s continue with the same example from above. 

If you wanted to bet on the 76ers to win the game (a moneyline bet), you would need to wager $130 to win $100. However, if you were confident that the 76ers not only would win the game, but would also cover the spread (win by more than 5 points), then you would only need to risk $110 to win $100.

One of the main benefits of betting on the point spread is that the odds are usually pretty close to even money (e.g. -110). This means that you have to risk less money to win the same amount as placing a bet with longer odds (e.g. -150).

Betting on the point spread also means that watching a game can remain interesting even when the final outcome is no longer in doubt. If the Eagles are -13.5 favorites in a game, and they are up by 20 points late in the fourth quarter, it is unlikely they are going to lose the game. However, you remain interested in what happens because if the other team scores a late touchdown to bring the margin down to 13, suddenly the Eagles are no longer covering the spread, even though they still have a big lead and are likely to win the game.

That is an example of how spread betting can lead to frustrating end-of-game situations. Imagine you placed a spread bet on Eagles -3.5. The game is tied with 1 minute left and the Eagles are driving down the field. If you’re an Eagles fan, you are rooting for them to win the game, but you also want to win your bet. They get down to the goal line but time is running out, and instead of trying to score the touchdown you need to win your bet, they kick a field goal to win the game by 3. Now you are left with a bittersweet feeling where your team won but your bet lost. 

In sports betting, a parlay is when you make a combination of bets that all need to win in order for the parlay bet to win. If any leg of the parlay does not win, then the whole parlay loses.

The benefit of a parlay is that you can get much better payouts if you win your bet. The odds on most point spread bets are -110. If you combine two spread bets at -110 odds into a two-leg parlay, you will usually get close to +300 odds on the parlay. For every leg you add after that, your odds will essentially double. 

As an example, if you bet $11 on two individual spread bets at -110 odds, and both bets win, you would win $20. However, if you took the $22 from those two bets and instead bet on a two-team parlay, you would win closer to $60. 

That may sound appealing, but parlay bets are very difficult to hit, which is why the odds are so high. In that example, if one leg loses, then you lose the whole $22, but if you placed the two $11 bets separately, you would break roughly even. 

We said above that a point spread describes the expected margin of victory by the favored team in a given game. While this is true, it’s not exactly the most accurate answer. 
The real answer is that sportsbooks set the number for the point spread based on what number they expect will lead to equal action (i.e. bets/money) on both sides. So it is more like a measure of public expectations rather than what will actually happen. 
Sportsbooks ideally want to have equal action on both sides of a bet. If the bets are too heavily weighted towards one side, that increases liability for the sportsbook if that side of the bet ends up winning.
Of course, setting a point spread is an inexact science, and sportsbooks often do not get equal action on both sides of a point spread. When this happens, the sportsbook will adjust the line to make it more appealing to place bets on the side getting less action. This creates a better balance between bets on each team. 
Other factors such as injury updates or roster changes can also impact betting lines. Betting markets are like any other market: prices fluctuate. As the market gains more information (like betting trends), prices change based on that information.
When reading betting odds at a sportsbook, you may see the “opening odds” and the current odds. The “Open” is the odds when the sportsbook first introduced odds for that particular game into the market. Comparing that to the current odds shows what direction the market is moving. Once the game begins, sportsbooks will close the betting market, and the odds at that time are called the “closing odds” or “closing line.”