What fractional and decimal odds mean, how to convert between them, what evens is, and how implied probability reveals the bookmaker’s margin.
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First, check whether the odds are shown as fractions or decimals, because the same price can look very different. Then, convert them to decimal so you can compare bookmakers easily.
For example, 5/1 and 6.0 are exactly the same price. However, a bookmaker offering 6.2 on the same selection gives you a better return. In addition, the implied probability tells you how likely the price says something is.
Finally, remember that every bookmaker builds in a margin, so shopping around for the best price really does add up over time.
Betting Odds Explained is a short narrated video guide from Casino Compare. What fractional and decimal odds mean, how to convert between them, what evens is, and how implied probability reveals the bookmaker’s margin.
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Betting odds tell you two things: how likely the bookmaker thinks something is, and how much you'll win if it happens.
In the UK, you'll see odds as fractions or decimals. Five to one, and six point oh, mean exactly the same thing.
Fractional odds show profit against stake. At five to one, a one pound bet wins five pounds, and you get your pound back too: six pounds in total.
Decimal odds show the total return for each pound, stake included. One pound at six point oh returns six pounds. To convert, divide the fraction, and add one.
Evens, or one to one, is two point oh in decimal. It doubles your money.
The shorter the odds, the more likely the outcome, and the smaller the return. Longer odds are less likely, but pay more.
Odds also give you an implied probability: one divided by the decimal odds. Two point oh implies a fifty percent chance.
Add up the implied probabilities of every outcome in a market, and you'll get more than a hundred percent. The extra is the bookmaker's margin. The lower the margin, the better the value.
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▶ 2:06How matched betting turns a bookmaker free bet into cash whatever the result, with a real example: backing Arsenal to beat Chelsea at William Hill and laying it on Betfair.
▶ 1:36How an each-way bet works as two bets in one, the standard UK place terms, and a worked example at 10/1 showing what you get back if your horse wins, places or loses.
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▶ 1:01A narrated walkthrough of the matched betting calculator: choosing the bet type, entering back and lay odds and commission, and reading the lay stake, liability and profit.
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