How to Read Fractional Odds

Fractional odds are read as (how much you win)/(how much you bet)

Example:

Odds = 3/2
Stake = 100
Winnings = (100 x (3/2)) = 150

Fractional odds are the oldest way which bookmakers have displayed prices. They are harder to read than decimal odds, but are quite common and thusly worth learning. To decipher fractional odds, lets look at a tennis matchup between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal:

Nadal – 4/6
Djokovic – 6/5

The easiest way to read fractional odds is to think of the price as:

The Amount You Win
The Amount You Bet

That means that if the number on top (the numerator) is bigger than the one on the bottom (denominator), then the market is an underdog, the side viewed as less likely to win the matchup. If the denominator is bigger than the numerator, you are looking at a favourite, the side viewed as more likely to win.

Of course, you are not always going to bet the denominator on a market, so how do you figure out the payout using fractional odds? To see how much you are set to win with fractional odds simply multiply the stake by the fraction. Using the example above, if we were to bet 100 on Djokovic we would see that we win 120, add back in your stake and you get a total payout of 220.

To convert any odds formats check out Pinnacle’s odds converter.