How a moneyline works
A moneyline is just two numbers, one per team. The team with the minus sign is the favorite. The team with the plus sign is the underdog. Example from a Patriots–Jets game at Sportsbook RI:
- New England Patriots −180 — bet $180 to win $100
- New York Jets +160 — bet $100 to win $160
The favorite costs more because the sportsbook expects them to win. The underdog pays more because they probably won’t.
American odds — the rules
- A negative number tells you how much you must bet to win $100.
- A positive number tells you how much you win on a $100 bet.
- You don’t have to bet $100 — those numbers are just a reference unit. The Sportsbook RI app auto-calculates payouts for any stake.
When moneyline beats the spread
Moneylines shine in three scenarios:
- Low-scoring sports. NHL and MLB use moneylines as the primary market because spreads are tight (1.5 goals/runs).
- Big underdogs you actually like. If you think the Jets will upset the Patriots, +160 pays more than just covering a +4.5 spread.
- Close games where the spread is risky. If the Celtics are −3 vs Cleveland and you’re worried about a 2-point win, take the −150 moneyline instead and avoid the push.
Watch out for heavy favorites
Betting a −400 favorite (where you risk $400 to win $100) means a single upset wipes out four wins. Long-term, you must hit roughly 80% of −400 plays to break even. Most bettors bleed money betting big favorites every week, which is why the books happily price them.
Implied probability
Convert any moneyline to a win-percentage estimate:
- Negative odds:
(-odds) / (-odds + 100). Example: −180 → 180/280 = 64.3% - Positive odds:
100 / (odds + 100). Example: +160 → 100/260 = 38.5%
Note the implied probabilities add up to more than 100% — that’s the sportsbook’s vig (or "juice") built in.
Pushes and ties
If a regulation game ends in a tie, the moneyline is generally graded as a push in sports without overtime (some soccer markets). In NFL/NBA/NHL/MLB, overtime decides the moneyline.