1 2 Odds In Decimal
UK Fractional Odds Converter, Decimal to American Odds. Most UK and Ireland bookmakers display fractional odds, e.g 1/3, 1/2, 2/1, 10/1, 1/1 (evens) etc. With roots in horseracing fractional odds are by far the most dominant format to express prices in. High odds suggest a low probability of something happening, while low odds suggest a high probability of something happening. For example, imagine a tennis player is +200 to win an upcoming match. This would be 3.00 in decimal odds, and 2/1 in fractional odds. The implied probability for these odds. The simple formular to convert from fraction odds to decimal is to divide the numerator (top number) by the denominator (bottom number) and add 1. The 1 represents the returned stake which is included in the decimal odds but not in the fraction odds. Odds of 2/1, will be 2 divided by 1, which gives 2, then add 1 equals 3. Odds of 9/4, will be 9 divided by 4, which gives 2.25, then add 1 equals 3.25.
If you want to come out on top against the bookies it is vital that you understand the fundamentals. When it comes to sports betting there is nothing quite as fundamental as the odds that the bookies offer. Unfortunately, betting odds can prove very confusing. That’s especially true for people who are new to betting.
That’s where this article comes in. We’re going to explain exactly how betting odds work, how they are set and the differences in the ways they are displayed. After taking in all the information below, you will be much better equipped to set about making some profit.
What Do Betting Odds Represent?
At their most basic, betting odds tell you two things:
- How much you stand to make should the selection win
- The probability of the selection winning
Take this example. If you were looking through the weekend Premier League fixtures and saw a team had fractional odds of 2/1 (that’s decimal odds of 3.0) you would know that you stand to win £2 in profit from every £1 that you stake should the team win. You’d also know that the bookmaker who set the odds ranks the team’s chances of winning as one in every three times the game is played.
If you saw a team had fractional odds of 8/13, you’d know that for every £13 you stake, you will win £8 or profit and that if the game was played 21 times in total, the bookies think the team would win 13 times and fail to win eight times (what is known as the implied probability).
Working out an implied probability percentage from fractional odds is simple. You just divide the stake by the combined sum of the two numbers which make up the fractional odds. In the case of 2/1 the equation looks like this:
1 / (2+1) = 0.33 or 33%
4 1 2% In Decimal
For odds of 8/13 this is the equation:
13 / (8+13) = 0.62 or 62%
That’s how the maths works but when it comes to the actual odds that bookmakers set, it’s a little more complicated.
How Do Bookmakers Set Their Odds?
The basic business model of a sportsbook is fairly uncomplicated. Bookmakers set the odds and take bets on an event. When that event ends they pay out everyone who backed the winner and then keep the rest for themselves.
But, consider the following horse race.
Selection | Fractional Odds | Decimal Odds | Implied Probability | Profit From a £10 Bet |
---|---|---|---|---|
Horse 1 | Evens | 2.0 | 50% | £10 |
Horse 2 | 3/1 | 4.0 | 25% | £30 |
Horse 3 | 7/1 | 8.0 | 12.5% | £70 |
Horse 4 | 7/1 | 8.0 | 12.5% | £70 |
As you can see, the combined implied probability of the selections above is 100%. From a bookmaker’s perspective that is a big problem. That’s because, presuming they’ve got the same amount of liability on each selection, they’d never make any money as they’d have to collect and payout the same amount.
So, the bookmakers will build something called an overround into their odds. Here’s a real example of a match odds market from a football match:
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Selection | Fractional Odds | Decimal Odds | Implied Probability | Profit From a £10 Bet |
---|---|---|---|---|
Man Utd | 1/2 | 1.5 | 66.7% | £5 |
Draw | 18/5 | 4.6 | 21.7% | £36 |
West Ham | 13/2 | 7.5 | 13.3% | £65 |
With an total implied probability of 101.7%, the bookmaker who set those odds is guaranteed to make a profit of 1.7% assuming that they have the same amount of liability on all three selections. Of course, it rarely works out that the bookies manage to spread their liability evenly but you need to know that when you look at a betting market you’re not simply looking at a reflection of how the bookies think the event will pan out. There’s much more going on behind the scenes.
Armed with this knowledge of how the bookmakers set their odds, you can concentrate on finding value. That is, finding a bet where you believe the odds (and therefore the implied probability) is too big. If the bookies think that a side has a 50% chance of winning but you think they’ve got a better chance than that, that’s value.
The Difference Between Decimal and Fractional Odds
You will have seen above that we’ve spoken about both fractional and decimal odds. They are just different ways of conveying the same information but they do add another layer of complexity.
All the major online bookmakers will shows their odds as both fractions and decimals so it’s important that you understand just what they are showing and how to switch between the two. Thankfully, it only requires simple maths.
To go from a fraction to a decimal is as easy as dividing out the fraction and adding one. Here’s how that looks for odds of 2/1:
(2/1) + 1 = 3.o
And using our second example from above, 8/13, it looks like this:
(8/13) + 1 = 1.62
If you want to go from decimal odds to fractional odds is similarly simple. You just minus one from the decimal odds, turn that number into a fraction and reduce it down to it’s simplest form.
4 1 2% As Decimal
Let’s take decimal odds of 4.5, this is the equation:
4.5 – 1 = 3.5
35/10 -> 7/2
If the decimal price is 1.25, you convert it into fractional odds like this:
1.25 – 1 = 0.25
25/100 -> 1/4
Here’s a list of some of the most common fractional odds and their decimal equivalents (for a more in-depth list click here).
Fractional Odds | Decimal Odds | Implied Probability |
---|---|---|
1/10 | 1.10 | 90.9% |
1/5 | 1.2 | 83.33% |
2/5 | 1.4 | 71.43% |
1/2 | 1.5 | 66.67% |
1/1 (evens) | 2.0 | 50% |
3/2 | 2.5 | 40% |
2/1 | 3.0 | 33.33% |
4/1 | 5.0 | 20% |
9/1 | 10.0 | 10% |
100/1 | 101.0 | 0.99% |
Key Terminology
When reading betting advice or searching for a value bet on the bookies’ websites you’ll come across some key terms relating to betting odds. To round up our article on betting odds, we’ve covered the most widely used terms to ensure you don’t get confused in your search for winners.
Stake – The amount of money that you place (or wager) on a specific bet.
Price – The price of a bet is simply another way of referring to the odds. You can either say that a football team can be backed at odds of 2/1or that their price is 2/1.
Odds On & Odds Against – Two of the key terms that you’ll hear when it comes to betting odds are ‘odds on’ and ‘odds against’. These terms refer to whether a price is greater or lower than evens. Any price above evens is known as odds against, while anything below evens is odds on.
Short and Long Odds – If something is described as being short odds it means the price is low. A long odds shot will provide you with a bigger win but is much less likely to win.
Implied probability is basically the conversion of odds into a percentage. That percentage then shows the likelihood of an outcome happening based on the size of the odds. High odds suggest a low probability of something happening, while low odds suggest a high probability of something happening.
For example, imagine a tennis player is +200 to win an upcoming match. This would be 3.00 in decimal odds, and 2/1 in fractional odds. The implied probability for these odds is 33.33%. In this example, the odds suggest that the player has a 33.33% chance of winning the match.
In sports, the probability of something happening is usually subjective. There are several factors to take into account and there’s always a chance of the unexpected. No one can state definitively the exact probability of a player or team winning a game they’re taking part in. There’s an element of personal opinion involved.
Calculating the implied probability is useful though. It helps us decide whether or not we think a bet offers any positive value. We should always look for positive value when betting, and it exists when our estimated probability of an outcome happening is greater than the implied probability that the odds on that outcome suggest.
1 2 Odds In Decimal
Confused? Don’t worry! It’s not as complicated as it may seem. To make this easier to understand, let’s continue with the example of the tennis player at +200 to win his match. As we’ve said, the implied probability here is 33.33%. So if we think that the player has a GREATER than 33.33% of winning, then it makes perfect sense to bet on him. If we think his chances are less than 33.33%, it’s wise not to bet on him.
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If you’d like a more complete explanation on this subject, there’s an article in our sports betting guide that explains value and implied probability in further detail.