By
Eric Pauly
Feb 2, 2026
7 min read
Why Every Bettor Needs to Understand the Vig
If you've ever wondered why a standard point spread bet pays -110 instead of even money, you've already encountered the vig. The vig (short for vigorish, also called juice) is the fee sportsbooks charge on every wager. It's how they guarantee a profit regardless of the outcome, and it's the single biggest obstacle between you and long-term profitability. Every dollar you pay in vig is a dollar that comes directly out of your potential returns.
Understanding the vig isn't optional if you want to bet seriously. It affects how much edge you need to break even, which sportsbooks offer better value, and whether specific bets are worth taking in the first place. In this guide, you'll learn exactly how the vig works, how to calculate it on any bet, and practical strategies to reduce the juice you pay, including line shopping tools that make finding lower vig significantly easier.
article Summary
The vig (or juice) is the built-in fee sportsbooks charge on every bet, and it's the biggest obstacle to long-term profitability. Understanding how to calculate it and minimize it through line shopping is essential for any serious bettor.
What Is the Vig and How Does It Work?
The Sportsbook's Built-In Edge
The vig is a commission embedded in the odds that sportsbooks set. In a perfectly fair market, a 50/50 bet would pay even money (+100 on both sides). But sportsbooks don't offer fair odds. They shade the lines in their favor. On a standard NFL point spread, you'll see both sides priced at -110 instead of +100. That difference is the vig. You're risking $110 to win $100, which means the sportsbook collects $10 in juice on every losing bet.
Why the Vig Exists
Sportsbooks are businesses, and the vig is their primary revenue model. By pricing both sides of a bet at -110 (or similar), the book ensures it collects more from losers than it pays to winners. If equal money comes in on both sides, the sportsbook profits regardless of the outcome. On a game where $110,000 is wagered on each side, the book pays out $100,000 to the winners and keeps $10,000 in vig. That's a guaranteed 4.55% margin.
Common Vig Levels
The standard vig on a point spread or total is -110/-110, which represents about 4.5% juice. But vig varies widely depending on the sportsbook and market. Player props often carry much higher vig (sometimes 8-10%), while alternate lines and futures can have even more juice baked in. Some sportsbooks run reduced juice promotions, offering -105 or even -102 lines on certain markets. That difference adds up fast. A bettor placing 500 bets a year at -105 instead of -110 saves thousands of dollars in vig alone.
How to Calculate the Vig on Any Bet
Step 1: Convert Odds to Implied Probability
To calculate vig, you first need to convert the odds on both sides of a bet into implied probabilities. For negative American odds, the formula is: Implied Probability = |Odds| / (|Odds| + 100). For positive American odds: Implied Probability = 100 / (Odds + 100). So -110 converts to 110/210 = 52.38%, and +100 converts to 100/200 = 50.00%.
Step 2: Add Both Sides Together
Once you have the implied probability for each side, add them together. In a fair market, the two probabilities should equal exactly 100%. Anything above 100% is the vig. A standard -110/-110 line adds up to 104.76%, so the vig is 4.76%. A lopsided line like -150/+130 works the same way: 60.00% + 43.48% = 103.48%, meaning 3.48% vig.
Step 3: Understand What the Vig Costs You
The vig determines your break-even win rate. At -110 odds, you need to win 52.38% of your bets just to break even, not 50%. That 2.38% gap between break-even and a coin flip is entirely the vig working against you. On higher-vig markets like player props at -115/-115, your break-even rate jumps to 53.49%. Understanding this math is fundamental to expected value betting, because your edge must exceed the vig before you can profit.
How to Reduce the Vig You Pay
Line Shop Across Multiple Sportsbooks
The most effective way to reduce vig is line shopping, comparing odds across multiple sportsbooks and placing your bet wherever you get the best price. If one book has a team at -110 and another has the same team at -105, that half-point difference in juice saves you money on every single bet. Over a full season of wagering, line shopping can be the difference between a losing year and a profitable one. This is why sharp bettors maintain accounts at 5-10+ sportsbooks.
Use Odds Comparison Tools
Checking odds manually across dozens of sportsbooks is time-consuming. OddsJam and Outlier are two of the strongest EV and odds comparison tools available. They pull real-time odds from 50+ sportsbooks and highlight where you're getting the best price. Instead of manually comparing lines, you see the lowest-vig option instantly. After testing both platforms extensively, the time savings alone makes them worth it, and the vig reduction compounds into real dollars over hundreds of bets.
Target Reduced Juice Sportsbooks
Some sportsbooks consistently offer lower vig than others. Books like Circa and Pinnacle are known for tighter lines and lower juice, especially on major markets. Even mainstream books periodically run reduced juice promotions (-105 lines on NFL spreads, for example). Betting at lower-vig books whenever possible is one of the simplest, most reliable ways to improve your long-term results. It won't turn a losing strategy into a winning one, but it gives you more margin to work with.
Why the Vig Matters More Than You Think
The Long-Term Impact on Your Bankroll
The vig doesn't just affect individual bets. It compounds over time. A bettor placing $100 bets at -110 odds loses $4.55 per bet in expected vig cost. Over 500 bets in a year, that's $2,275 in juice alone, before factoring in whether their picks are actually profitable. If that same bettor averages -105 odds through line shopping, their annual vig cost drops to $2,381... actually, let's be precise: at -105, the vig cost per bet is roughly $2.44 on a $100 bet, totaling about $1,220 over 500 bets. That's over $1,000 saved just by getting a half-point better price on average.
Vig and Positive EV Betting
If you're pursuing positive expected value betting, the vig is your primary opponent. A bet is only +EV if your true win probability exceeds the break-even point set by the odds, and the odds include vig. Lower vig means a lower break-even threshold, which means more bets qualify as +EV. This is why the best EV bettors are also the most aggressive line shoppers. They're not just looking for good picks, they're minimizing the vig on every wager to maximize their edge.
Comparing Vig Across Markets
Not all betting markets carry the same vig. Main market spreads and totals on major sports (NFL, NBA, MLB) typically have the tightest lines and lowest juice. Player props, team props, and alternate lines tend to carry significantly more vig because books price these markets less efficiently and with wider margins. If you're betting heavy-vig markets, your picks need to be even sharper to overcome the higher house edge. Understanding where the vig is highest helps you focus your bets on markets where the math works in your favor.
Tools That Help You Beat the Vig
You don't have to fight the vig alone. Several sports betting tools are specifically designed to help you find the lowest juice available. OddsJam pulls odds from 50+ sportsbooks and shows you exactly where you're getting the best line on any market. Outlier takes a similar approach with a focus on identifying +EV opportunities where the vig is already working in your favor.
For bettors who want to understand what the "true" odds should be without any vig at all, no-vig calculators strip the juice out of a line to reveal the fair probability underneath. This is the foundation of devigging, a technique sharp bettors use to evaluate whether a price has value. Tools like these give you the data to make informed decisions rather than guessing which sportsbook has better odds.
If you're looking for a comprehensive overview of what's available, check out our guide to the best sports betting tools. Pairing line shopping tools with solid bet tracking lets you measure exactly how much vig you're paying over time, and whether your strategy is profitable after accounting for it.
Final Thoughts
The vig is the single most important concept that separates casual bettors from serious ones. Every sportsbook builds juice into their odds, and that juice directly reduces your returns. You can't eliminate the vig entirely, but you can minimize it through line shopping, using odds comparison tools, and targeting lower-vig sportsbooks and markets. Those savings compound over hundreds and thousands of bets into meaningful dollars.
Understanding vig also changes how you evaluate bets. Once you know your break-even win rate at any given price, you can make smarter decisions about which bets have actual value and which ones are just paying the sportsbook's bills. That awareness is the foundation of profitable betting.
Vig Betting FAQ
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