Use the Arbitrage Calculator here
Enter Odds & Stake
Stake
Stake Bet 1
$0.00
Stake Bet 2
$0.00
Payout
Payout Bet 1
$0.00
Payout Bet 2
$0.00
- Total Payout: $0.00
- Total Profit: $0.00
- ROI: 0.00
What is an Arbitrage Bet?
An arbitrage (or arb for short) also known as 'surebets', 'surewins' and 'miraclebets' are bet types whereby a bettor wagers on a series of events that guarantees a profit no matter the outcome of an event, or at worst, guarantees that no money can be lost but a profit can still be made depending on the result of that event.
Arbitrage bets work by taking advantage of discrepancies in prices of the same event between different Sportsbooks in a way that can ensure the bettor can't lose money no matter the outcome of the event.
What is a sports arbitrage betting example?
Arbitrage opportunities can pop up in betting markets for a variety of reasons, most commonly being a disagreement in Sportsbook opinions on a certain event.
For example, say an NBA game was being played between the Houston Rockets and the Cleveland Cavaliers. 'Sportsbook A' may open up their market at:
Houston Rockets $1.50 (e.g -200)
Cleveland Cavaliers $2.50 (e.g +150)
And 'Sportsbook B' may open up their market at:
Houston Rockets $1.80 (e.g -125)
Cleveland Cavaliers $2.20 (e.g +120)
You can see here that there is a discrepancy in the odds, or a disagreement between the sportsbooks over the winning chances of each team. In this scenario, the bettor could place $55.55 on the Houston Rockets with Sportsbook B, to receive a payout of $100 if Houston wins and the bettor can place $40.00 on the Cleveland Cavaliers with Sportsbook A, to also receive a payout of $100 if Cleveland wins.
In this scenario, no matter who wins the game, the bettor has outlaid $95.55, but will receive back $100 regardless of the outcome. This is a sports betting arbitrage, an opportunity to guarantee yourself a profit no matter the result (e.g + to your bankroll!)
Arbitrage Betting Strategies
There are many different strategies and methods to bet on Arbitrage Bets. This example will take you through two of the main strategies of betting on arbitrage.
Example: You have $100 and the New York Knicks are playing against the Boston Celtics. On Sportsbook Z the Knicks are paying -125 to win, while on Sportsbook Y the Celtics are paying +150 to win.
Strategy A - How to make a profit regardless of the result?
If the bettor was to place $41.86 on the Boston Celtics, and also place a bet of $58.14 on the New York Knicks on the moneyline market on the two respective sportsbooks, they can ensure profit no matter the outcome. The bettor has placed a total of $100 in bets on both the Celtics and Knicks, but as shown in the table below, they will be returned $104.65 no matter which team wins. Although this doesn't seem like a lot of profit, this can be scaled to suit your bankroll and will earn the bettor a 4.65% return on investment.
| Sportsbook Z | Odds | Stake | Return |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Celtics | +150 | $41.86 | $104.65 |
| Sportsbook Y | |||
| New York Knicks | -125 | $58.14 | $104.65 |
| Total Stake $100 | Profit $4.65 |
This strategy is the safer option and can be used to win free money from your bets (see Risk of Arbitrage betting at the end).
Strategy B - How to increase your profit if you have a strong lean towards one outcome?
This strategy is used if the bettor believes they have an edge and thinks they know who is going to win the game/market in their arbitrage bet. This strategy increases your potential profit on your arbitrage bet, however, instead of walking away with free money there is a chance you will break even and not win anything (or make a small loss).
In this example, the bettor believes that the Boston Celtics are going to win the game against the New York Knicks and therefore is willing to earn minimal profit or break even at a chance to ensure a slightly higher return on investment. By placing a $44.44 moneyline bet on the Celtics and a $55.56 moneyline bet on the Knicks they have created their arbitrage opportunity. If the favoured Boston Celtics win the matchup their bet will return them $111.10 securing the bettor a $11.10 profit (11.1% ROI), however if the New York Knicks win, the bettor will only return $100 therefore breaking even and not winning or losing any money.
| Sportsbook Z | Odds | Stake | Return | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Celtics | +150 | $44.44 | $111.10 | Celtics Win = $11.10 Profit |
| Sportsbook Y | ||||
| New York Knicks | -125 | $55.56 | $100 | Knick Win = $0 Profit (Break Even) |
This strategy is a riskier version of an arbitrage bet, however, if used successfully it does ensure a greater profit for the bettor. To take this a step further, the bettor could use a Weighted Arbitrage Bet where they place more money on the team they believe is going to win. While in this scenario there is a chance you do lose some money, the purpose of the Weighted Arbitrage is to maximise the return if you believe you have a better than decent chance of picking the winning team or market. If you do feel like this is something you want to do, simply use the Arbitrage Calculator above normally, then, assign a dollar amount on top you want to place on the team/market you believe will win. This being, your money is weighted to one outcome.
How to Find Arbitrage Bets Opportunities
As sports betting and sportsbooks are becoming more mainstream and popular it has become harder to find Arbitrage Bet opportunities. However, arbitrage betting isn't dead and there are still opportunities waiting for you, here are some ways to help you find them:
Manually
It sounds simple, but it is possible to find arbitrage betting opportunities by manually comparing sportsbooks odds against each other. Although this may be time-consuming, there are various tools on the internet that can help you. For example, there are many different odds comparison sites and tools that make it easier and faster to compare the odds on the same markets from different sportsbooks. Manually comparing and viewing different odds is also a good way to get comfortable and gain a better understanding of sports betting markets and sportsbooks.
Software
There is software available on the internet that automatically scans and detects arbitrage betting opportunities. These can be helpful as they remove the manual work from finding arbitrage bets. A good system/program has the potential to be a possible source of passive income. However, it would be wise to identify proven and successful software, and beware of scams and software programs that ask you to enter private/credit card information as there are possibly some fake programs out there. We are working on some free tools that show potential arbitrage opportunities which we will release soon.
Sportsbooks Promotions
An underrated method of finding arbitrage betting opportunities is taking advantage of sportsbooks promotional offers. Often sportsbooks may offer promotions on various events that boost/increase the odds of certain outcomes. When this happens there is often a maximum stake (amount of money you can place on the promotion) that you can place on this event, however there is still usually free money to be made. By being aware of the different sportsbooks that more commonly offer these promotions you can maximise your chances to make a quick profit. However, beware that it is not uncommon for sportsbooks to 'promo ban' customers who take advantage of their promotions (make it so that certain sports bettors can't bet on their promotions). There are some ways to avoid this occurring such as always using a different sportsbook to arbitrage your promo bet against, and by placing lots of small bets (such as 1c, 2c if they accept those amounts) on heaps of different sports or races. Please check out our Bonus Bet Calculator to learn how to maximize your return on Bonus Bets.
Risk of Arbitrage Betting
Although Arbitrage betting may seem entirely risk-free, there are still sometimes some risks associated with Arbitrage bets. This is because sometimes sportsbooks make mistakes or there may be errors in the odds they release.
For example, all sportsbooks might be listing something at $1.05, except this one sportsbook which has the odds for this outcome listed at $51 which is an obvious outlier. So by arbitraging this heavy favorite at $51 with the correctly priced underdog at $10 you seem to be on track for a massive pay day. However, sportsbooks are able to void your bet on the error odds at $51 (remove your bet and refund you your stake) which leaves you stuck heavily backing a $10 underdog on the other side of your arbitrage bet.
With this in mind when it comes to arbitrage betting it is best to stick to non-error opportunities where there is usually a 1-5% guaranteed return. As often if the odds seem too good to be true they are and it is an error with a high potential to be voided. With this being said it may still be worthwhile placing single bets on favorites with error odds as if the sportsbooks void you get your money back but if it isn't voided you have backed a heavy favorite at underdog odds and have a good chance to make a decent profit.
