Calculating the Breakeven Point in Sports Betting

The following post explores calculating the breakeven point in sports betting.

What is breakeven? This point represents the winning percentage needed to balance losses and gains, factoring in the standard juice applied by sportsbooks – typically set at -110.

Read: Pitfalls of Buying Sports Betting Picks

Related: How to Use Flat Betting For Wagering Success

Understanding your breakeven point is one of the keys to achieving profitability.

Here’s what you need to know.

Understanding Juice

Essentially, the juice represents the price of placing a bet. When odds are -110, a bettor must risk $110 to win $100. The additional $10 represents the juice, ensuring profitability regardless of the bet’s outcome.

Documenting Your Wagers

Keeping detailed records of your wagers is key for calculating your breakeven point. Tracking the odds you paid week-over-week is the requisite data for understanding your cumulative breakeven point.

Calculating Breakeven

To calculate your breakeven point, consider the following formula:

• Breakeven Percentage = Risk ÷ Total Payout x 100

In the case of -110 odds, where the risk is $110 and the total payout (including the initial stake and profit) is $210, the breakeven percentage is:

• Breakeven Percentage = 110 ÷ 210 × 100 ≈ 52.38%

This means that, to break even in the long run, a bettor needs to have a winning percentage exceeding 52.38%. Anything below this threshold would result in an overall loss due to the vig.

In Conclusion

Knowing your breakeven point is key for approaching sports betting with a disciplined mindset and maintaining your profitability. Hopefully, now you know your breakeven point!