The prospect of a well-placed bet often heightens the excitement of any sports game. While sports betting entertains, for some, it also presents a unique opportunity to make some money.
Some people bet for the joy of supporting their teams, while others bet to make money from their sports knowledge.
If you fall into the latter category and are just beginning your journey into sports betting, you might have heard of a strategy called arbitrage sports betting.
What is Arbitrage Betting?
Arbitrage betting is a strategic approach where you place bets with different online betting platforms to cover all potential outcomes of a sporting event, ensuring a guaranteed profit.
This technique takes advantage of differing odds offered by various sportsbooks, which reflect their unique perspectives on the event’s probabilities.
That’s right, sportsbooks don’t have the same odds on their bets and this is because they use different systems to set odds and want to stay competitive for bettors.
When you identify a situation where sportsbooks significantly disagree on the odds of bets, you can secure a profit no matter what the game outcomes are.
Why Is It Called Arbitrage Betting?
It is called arbitrage betting because it involves taking advantage of loopholes in the odds different sportsbooks offer.
It helps to guarantee a profit despite what the outcome is on a bet.
In essence, it creates an “arbitrage opportunity” where you can place bets on all possible outcomes of an event in such a way that the combined odds guarantee you a profit.
This profit is often referred to as an “arbitrage profit.” The term “arbitrage” is borrowed from the world of finance.
This is where you take advantage of price loopholes in different markets to make a risk-free profit.
What you have to know is that arbitrage betting allows you to exploit variations in odds across different bookmakers, creating a guaranteed win regardless of the event’s outcome.
What Other Names Does Arbitrage Betting Go By?
You can also refer to arbitrage betting as arbing, arbs betting, surebets, miraclebets, and surewins.
How Does Arbitrage Betting Work?
In arbitrage, you place two bets on the same sporting event to ensure a profit, regardless of the outcome.
To do this, you need to find favorable betting odds on both sides of the same event, which usually requires betting on one sportsbook and then another.
It’s rare for a single sportsbook to offer an in-house arbitrage opportunity because that would lead to guaranteed losses for the sportsbook.
Sportsbooks can quickly identify arbitrage bettors who take advantage of these opportunities within one sportsbook.
You may face limitations or even be banned by the sportsbook if you are spotted engaging in arbitrage betting.
I suggest that you play your cards right to avoid unnecessary suspensions from the sportsbooks.
What Is the Formula for Arbitrage Betting?
Calculate the odds for each outcome
I’m going to give you a simple yet effective way to calculate the formula for arbitrage betting. You can use the formula P = 1 / odds. First, you need to convert the odds to decimal format.
Here’s an example using two sportsbooks:
Example for Team A at Sportsbook X:
- Odds: -125
- Decimal odds: 1.8
- Probability (P) = 1 / 1.8 = 0.556 (55.6%)
Example for Team B at Sportsbook Y:
- Odds: +130
- Decimal odds: 2.3
- Probability (P) = 1 / 2.3 = 0.435 (43.5%)
So, according to Sportsbook X, Team A has a 55.6% chance of winning, while Sportsbook Y gives Team B a 43.5% chance of winning.
Determining Arbitrage Opportunity
The next step is to determine if there is an arbitrage opportunity, which involves using the arbitrage formula: A = Odds Team A + Odds Team B.
This formula helps calculate the combined odds for Team A and Team B in the given betting scenario.
How to Make a Profit
To know what you need to wager to make a profit, We’ll use the formula:
S = Total Bet x OddsP, where S represents the stake (the amount to bet on each outcome), and the total bet is the amount you want to wager.
For this example, let’s try to wager a total of $100.
Using the formula for team A, you calculate S = 55.6/0.991 = $56.10. Therefore, we need to wager $56.10 on team A.
Now, let’s apply the same formula to team B: S = 43.5/0.991 = $43.90. To secure a sure bet, we must wager $43.90 on team B.
In this case, if team A wins, we receive $100.98 back after betting $56.10.
Similarly, if team B wins, you also get $100.98 back, having wagered $43.90.
Regardless of the outcome, we will win the same amount, resulting in a $100.98 return for our $100 investment, which translates to a $0.98 profit.
This is a lot of calculations and when I make arbitrage bets I don’t manually calculate these, instead I use a free arbitrage betting calculator from OddsJam to help me do this.
What Are Some Examples of Arbitrage Bets?
Let’s say you bet $100 on the Cubs to win against the Cardinals. You get odds of +110 on FanDuel.
If the Cubs win, you’d make $110 in profit. At the same time, BetMGM offers odds of -105 for both the Cubs and the Cardinals.
You could bet $105 on the Cardinals to win $100, ensuring you won’t lose money, and you might even make $5.
These opportunities to make guaranteed profits are more common when you bet on games as soon as the odds are released, but they only last for a while.
For example, in August 2020, a game was between the Baltimore Orioles and the Tampa Bay Rays.
The Orioles had odds of +1.5 (-120), and the Rays had odds of 1.5 (+128).
As you can see, betting on the Rays, could make you 8 cents in profit for every dollar you bet, thanks to their favorable +128 odds, while betting against the Orioles with -120 odds.
Is Arbitrage Betting Legal?
You won’t be on the bad side of the law if you engage in arbitrage betting. However, sportsbooks do their best to prevent it.
They can’t take away the money you’ve earned, but they often take steps to restrict accounts and cancel bets to stop arbitrage bettors.
So, even if you’re a small-scale or profitable arbitrage bettor, there’s still some risk involved, which you might see through the sportsbook limiting the amount of money you can place on a bet.
It’s like a game of hide-and-seek with the bookmakers to avoid getting caught. Arbitrage betting is not illegal, but you need to play smart so that the sportsbooks don’t recognize it.
Can You Get Banned for Arbitrage?
You can indeed be banned from sportsbooks for doing arbitrage betting.
Sportsbooks love to make money and it doesn’t help the sportsbooks make money, so they don’t like it.
However, if you are careful about your arbitrage betting, you can make some profit without getting banned.
How Does a Sportsbook Know You Are Arbing?
Sportsbooks have ways to spot people who are arbing. They keep a close eye on betting patterns and any unusual activity.
Sportsbooks also check their odds against each other to ensure they’re not giving much better odds for the same bet.
Betting operators’ security departments are responsible for identifying arbitrage betting, and they employ special algorithms that consider the following factors:
- Frequent withdrawals
- High bet amounts, typically approaching the maximum limit
- Repeated bets
- Unusual stake amounts, like $27.18
- Selection of events, often favoring unlikely or obscure ones.
These companies can also use Anti Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) solutions, like liveness checks, to effectively identify arbitrage bettors.
Liveness checks rely on biometric data to verify account ownership and help prevent users from creating multiple accounts, a practice known as Gnoming or Multi-accounting.
How Successful Is Arbitrage Betting?
Arbitrage betting involves dealing with quite a bit of money, but most arbitrage opportunities only provide very small profits, usually less than 2.5%.
These profits are often tiny, typically around 2.5% at most. To make any real money from this, you’d have to invest a significant amount and make a lot of bets over time.
What Is the Secret of Arbitrage Betting?
Timing and Vigilance
Arbitrage opportunities are often short-lived, and the odds can change rapidly.
The most important secret to successful arbitrage betting is timing. You need to monitor odds across multiple sportsbooks continuously.
A dedicated arbitrage bet finder can help you find and track these bets automatically in real-time so that you can take opportunity of them before they disappear.
Bankroll Management
Proper bankroll management is very important when arbitrage betting. Allocate your bankroll wisely and ensure you have enough funds to cover all bets.
Since arbitrage betting involves multiple bets, it can tie up a significant portion of your bankroll temporarily.
Be prepared to have funds available in multiple sportsbook accounts so you’re able to take advantage of arbitrage opportunities as soon as you find them.
Account Management
Sportsbooks don’t like arbitrage bettors and may limit or close accounts when they detect this activity.
To avoid this, diversify your betting by placing other bets or opting for “soft” sportsbooks that are less likely to restrict accounts.
Keep a low profile and avoid drawing unnecessary attention to your arbitrage betting activities to maintain access to your betting accounts.
Understand the Rules and Terms
Different sportsbooks have different rules, terms, and policies. Try to understand them before you start arbitrage betting.
Pay attention to withdrawal limits, processing times, and bonus conditions.
Ensure you comply with each sportsbook’s rules to avoid unexpected issues when withdrawing your winnings.
Calculate and Verify
Precise calculation is at the heart of successful arbitrage betting so make sure you calculate your bets accurately, considering the odds and bet amounts to guarantee a profit.
Double-check your calculations to avoid errors that could lead to losses.
Arbitrage betting can be complex, especially when making multiple bets, I use OddsJam to assist me in my calculations but I never bet cents. I always bet whole dollars.
My calculations might say that I should bet $23.78 on a bet and instead of betting that amount, I would round it off to $24.
How Much Can You Make Arbitrage Betting?
It takes work to pinpoint the amount you can earn from arbitrage betting because it varies due to many factors.
Some arbitrage bettors aim for steady, modest profits, while others go for bigger earnings by betting more on riskier opportunities.
In arbitrage betting, the focus is on making several small profit bets rather than trying to hit a huge jackpot like most sports bettors do.
You can place multiple bets in a day, but your profit depends on your starting money, the number of bets you make, the size of the arbitrage opportunities, and more.
As a general guideline, if you begin with at least $500 or $1000 in your betting account, you should make a few hundred dollars in profit each month.
However, this can vary. It’s a good idea to have accounts with many different sportsbooks because you won’t use the same one repeatedly in a single day.
How to Start Arbitrage Betting?
Use an Odds Comparison Site
Utilizing an odds comparison site like OddsJam is a convenient way to start arbitrage betting.
These websites aggregate and display odds from multiple sportsbooks for a given event, making it easier for you to identify discrepancies in odds so you can see the exact bets you should make.
Sign up for Multiple Sportsbooks
To engage in arbitrage betting effectively, you’ll need accounts with multiple sportsbooks or bookmakers.
This step ensures access to a diverse range of odds, increasing your chances of finding profitable discrepancies.
Calculate Whether the Odds Represent an Arbitrage Betting Opportunity
Once you’ve identified differing odds for the same event across various bookmakers, you must calculate whether these disparities create an arbitrage opportunity.
An arbitrage opportunity exists when the combined odds for all possible outcomes of an event are less than 100%.
This means you’re guaranteed a profit, regardless of the event’s result. If you’re already using an arbitrage betting tool for this, then everything is just plug-and-play.
You pick an arbitrage bet, place the bet and that’s it.
Calculate the Individual Stakes You Need to Bet With at Each Bookmaker
After identifying an arbitrage opportunity, you need to calculate the precise bet amount to place on each outcome with each sportsbook.
The goal is to distribute your bets so that you cover all scenarios and still make some money.
Find the Highest Odds Available for Each Outcome
In arbitrage betting, your goal is to secure the highest possible odds for each outcome of an event.
This practice helps maximize your percentage return and overall profit.
How Do You Find Arbitrage Betting Opportunities?
To find arbitrage betting opportunities, you need to use an arbitrage betting tool.
There are many arbitrage bet finders available online, but one of the most reliable ones I have found to work for me is OddsJam.
For anyone serious about doing arbitrage betting it’s what I would recommend.
This is a premium arbitrage betting tool that has a monthly subscription but you can try it free for 7-days.
OddsJam has everything that I need for arbitrage betting and it’s one of the tools used by the majority of arbitrage sports bettors.
There isn’t a better tool on the market, in my opinion.
Tools for Arbitrage Betting
Arbitrage Bet Finder (OddsJam)
Arbitrage Bet Finder tools, such as OddsJam, are an invaluable asset if you need profitable arbitrage opportunities.
I use OddsJam to automatically scan multiple sportsbooks and sports events to identify potential arbitrage bets.
It saves me time and helps spot opportunities where the combined odds for all outcomes are less than 100%.
This tool ensures I’m always aware of the latest opportunities and can act swiftly to secure profitable arbitrage bets.
It’s a reliable and efficient solution that I use and highly recommend.
Arbitrage Betting Calculators
OddsJam does a great job of telling you how much money to put on each of your arbitrage bets.
But what if you want to put your amount of money, but you want to check how much money to bet?
You need an arbitrage bet calculator to help you do this.
When calculating the precise bet sizes needed to guarantee a profit in arbitrage betting, using arbitrage betting calculators is an absolute must.
I particularly favor the calculators provided by OddsJam. These calculators are user-friendly and very accurate.
They can help you determine the exact amounts to bet on each outcome so that you don’t lose any money.
OddsJam’s calculators simplify the complex mathematics involved in arbitrage betting, which makes it easier for me to execute profitable bets with confidence.
This is a lot to take in. I hope you find it helpful and have gained some understanding of what it takes to arbitrage bet, as well as why and how you can do it.
Remember to always track your bets and bet responsibly.