What Does -110 Mean in Betting? Odds Explained Simply
The -110 line is the single most common number in sports betting. Here is what it actually means for your wallet.
By
Eric Pauly
Feb 15, 2026
5 min read
The Most Common Number in Sports Betting
If you have looked at a sportsbook for more than five seconds, you have seen -110. It shows up on point spreads, totals, and plenty of other markets. It is the default price for most bets, and understanding what it means is genuinely foundational to making informed betting decisions. Yet a surprising number of bettors place wagers at -110 without fully grasping what the number represents or how it affects their bottom line.
In my first year of tracking bets, I did not pay close attention to the difference between -110 and -105 on the same spread. It seemed trivial. After running the numbers across 500+ bets, I realized that small difference in price cost me hundreds of dollars over the course of a single football season. This guide breaks down exactly what -110 means, how the vig works, and why finding better prices is one of the simplest ways to improve your results. For a broader overview of how odds formats work, check out our how to read betting odds guide.
article Summary
A -110 line means you risk 10 to win 00. The extra 0 is the sportsbook commission, called the vig or juice. On a standard -110/-110 market, the sportsbook takes roughly 4.5% off the top. Finding lines at -108 or -105 instead of -110 saves real money over time. Line shopping across multiple sportsbooks is the simplest way to reduce the vig you pay.
Breaking Down the -110 Line
What the Minus Sign Means
The minus sign in front of 110 indicates the bet is on the favorite side of the equation (or more precisely, that you are laying a price). The number tells you how much you need to risk to win 00. At -110, you wager 10 to win 00. If your bet wins, you get back 10 total (10 stake + 00 profit). If it loses, you lose the 10.
The Implied Probability
Every set of odds corresponds to an implied probability. At -110, the implied probability is 52.38%. The math: 110 / (110 + 100) = 0.5238. This means the sportsbook is pricing the outcome as having roughly a 52.4% chance of occurring. To be profitable betting at -110, you need to win more than 52.38% of the time. That is the breakeven threshold.
Why Not Even Money?
If the sportsbook thought both sides of a spread had exactly a 50% chance, they could price it at +100/+100 (even money). But that leaves them with no margin. By pricing both sides at -110, they build in a profit margin on every bet regardless of the outcome. That margin is the vig.
The Vig: What -110 Really Costs You
How the Vig Adds Up
On a single bet, the vig at -110 seems small. You are paying an extra 0 on a 10 wager. But over hundreds of bets, it compounds significantly. If you place 500 bets at -110 over a season and win exactly 50% of them, you lose ,500. That is purely the cost of the vig. In my experience tracking over 2,000 bets across two full seasons, the vig is the single biggest silent killer of bankrolls for bettors who do not actively work to reduce it.
Reduced Juice Lines
Some sportsbooks offer reduced juice, pricing standard markets at -108 or -105 instead of -110. That might look like a tiny difference, but the math is clear. At -105, you only need to win 51.22% of the time to break even instead of 52.38%. Over 500 bets at 10 each, the savings from -105 vs -110 add up to roughly ,250. Tools like OddsJam make it easy to find which books offer the best price on every bet.
Why Line Shopping Matters
Different sportsbooks price the same bet differently. One book might have the Chiefs -3 at -110, while another offers it at -108, and a third at -105. Taking the -105 every time is free money in the long run. Pick The Odds lets you compare lines across dozens of books in seconds, which is far more efficient than checking each app manually. Our vig explained guide goes deeper into how the juice works across different bet types.
How to Win More Betting at -110
Find Better Prices
The simplest way to improve results at -110 is to stop betting at -110. Use multiple sportsbook accounts and always take the best available line. If two books have the same spread but one is -108 and the other is -110, the choice is obvious. This requires no additional handicapping skill. It is purely a discipline and process improvement.
Understand Your Breakeven Rate
At -110, you need a 52.38% win rate to break even. At -105, it drops to 51.22%. At even money (+100), it is 50%. Know what win rate you are working against before placing a bet. If your long-term win rate on spread bets is 53%, the difference between paying -110 and -105 is the difference between a modest profit and a strong one. Our odds calculation guide walks through the math for any odds format.
Track Your Actual Vig Paid
Most bettors have no idea how much they are paying in vig annually. Start tracking the price you get on every bet. After a month, calculate what you would have saved if you had consistently found lines 3-5 cents better. That number is usually eye-opening and provides serious motivation to line shop on every single bet. Closing line value tracking takes this concept further by measuring whether you are consistently getting better prices than the market settles at.
Final Thoughts
The -110 line is sports betting at its most fundamental. It means you risk 10 to win 00, and the extra 0 is the price of doing business with the sportsbook. Understanding this number, and more importantly understanding how to reduce it, is one of the simplest and most impactful things a bettor can do. You do not need a sophisticated model or insider information. You just need accounts at multiple sportsbooks and the discipline to take the best available price every time.
Reducing your average vig from -110 to -107 or -105 will not feel dramatic on any single bet. But over a full season of betting, it can be the difference between losing money and making a profit. Start with our betting tools to find the right line shopping platform, and let the math work in your favor.
-110 Betting Odds FAQ
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