Moneyline is a form of winning bets, where you need to determine the winner (team or player). Moneyline Betting is one of the easiest sports betting you can find. This term is mainly used in American sports, where a widespread type of bet is the scatter of points. Instead of betting on the difference, in the end you are just trying to guess which team will win the match. It may seem simple, but when you are used to maintaining a favorite, the odds seem lower compared to scatter bets.
- What is a Money Line or Straight Up Wager? Check out definitions and learn how to bet money line odds and straight up wagers at The Spread.
- In the world of sports betting, a money line bet is simply betting on which team you expect to win. It doesn’t have anything to do with a spread. You may also see a money line bet listed as “Money.
Money Line betting is the most common type of sports bet. The simple format ensures it’s a popular choice for beginner bettors. However, more advanced bettors will still turn to this market to find. What is a Single bet (Money line)? This is one of the main kinds of bookmakers bets which is very simple 'choose, bet and get'.
Money line bets are especially preferred by American bookmakers and are usually presented in US odds. These odds are either positive or negative. The favorite is represented by negative money line odds, and the outsider is represented by positive odds.
Negative numbers show how much money you need to bet to win $100. European (decimal) odds of 1.50 are indicated as -200. On the contrary, positive numbers show how much money you can win if your bet is $100. European-style odds are presented as 3.00 and correspond to +300.
How moneyline works?
The moneyline uses odds instead of handicap points (or goals) to balance the theoretical difference in strength and the chances of winning both teams. Bookmakers have lower odds for favorites and much higher for outsiders. The goal is obvious: to create the most balanced betting market by reducing the payment according to the favorite and increasing it for the outsider, given that the latter is supported by much smaller amounts. This means that a moneyline bet can be much more profitable, even if you have a decent percentage of winnings with the support of outsiders.
Moneyline vs Spread
This is a completely different type of bet, which therefore requires a different approach in order to make a profit in the long run. Moneyline bets look easier to understand and much less exciting, since all that is required is for your team to win the match, even with the slightest margin. Thus, you can stop worrying that the team you choose will win the match, but not break the scatter of points (or goals) needed to win.
If you are well versed in outsiders, then money line bets are for you. When the outsider of your choice wins, even by one point or goal, you will receive much more money compared to bets on the positive spread line. A basketball outsider with odds of 3.50 is a much better choice than the same team with a scatter of +9.5 points with odds of 1.92. Of course, you can be a little nervous in the last minutes of the match, however, it is really worth it.
Strategy selection
It’s all about finding winners. If you invest in the choice of winning teams so that your winning margin exceeds losses, moneyline bets will be beneficial for you. You can make money even by betting on extremely low odds, such as 1.15 or 1.20, if your players win 80% of your matches.
When the average odds of your winning bets are 4.00, you only need to win 26% of the bets to make a profit. With a win percentage of 30%, you can earn a lot of money. However, you should not be too optimistic. In theory, it sounds beautiful, but in fact it is difficult to get such a winning percentage when betting on money lines.
Simply put, your strategy depends on two variables: win percentage and average odds. If you choose your favorites with average odds of 1.20, you need to have 84% of the winnings in order to be profitable in the long run. This means winning five out of six bets. In contrast, with an average payout odds of 3.00, the percentage of winnings required to make a profit drops to 34%.
You just need to study the estimated probability a bit. This term is used in sports betting to convert odds to interest. This makes it easy for you to compare betting odds with your own calculated percentages based on match analysis. If your expected percentage exceeds that of bookmakers, then you have increased your chances. You have found the best bet, regardless of the odds offered.
Moneyline in the NBA
When it comes to NBA money lines or basketball in general, this is the safest bet. By betting on regular season matches, you know that each team plays a difficult series of 82 games in less than six months, which means failure is a common occurrence, even for strong favorites. You can bet on outsiders to win during the season and profit from unexpected match results.
Choose matches between teams with the same winning indicators and try to bet on the away team, which by default has higher chances (odds). Do not indulge with margin on points, as this will not only cut your profits, but will ultimately be stressful for you. Suppose your team needs to overcome a spread of 8.5 points. How would you feel if they were in the lead at 8, but decided not to even make the final throw in the remaining seconds?
Moneyline in the NFL
Money lines are also popular in football betting. Bookmakers expect major players to make big bets, especially on the Super Bowl money lines, where finalists are usually among the best teams in the United States, and the difference between them is insignificant. NFL betting lines are also popular, even if some American bookmakers avoid offering money lines for NFL matches where margins are usually below 3 points and above 10 points.
Moneyline in the NHL
Hockey is very popular in the USA and Canada, where it is considered a national sport. The number of goals is less than the points of (American) football, basketball, or even baseball, so it’s more tempting to choose money line bets rather than spread bets. In many cases, the betting lines in the NHL are almost identical to the spread odds, since the handicap assigned to the favorite is minimal (0.5 or 1.5 goals).
The money line bet is the most common and most popular method of betting across all sportsbooks. A Moneyline wager lists odds in terms of cold hard cash, based on who you are backing to win the game.
Odds can be expressed as a plus (+) or a minus (-). The number after that symbol tells you how much you need to lay down to win a hundred dollars.

So for example:
- Moneyline odds of -115 means you need to bet $115 to win $100…
- …while a positive odd such as +200 means you’ll get that amount for every hundred wagered.
Best Moneyline Betting Sites
Simply speaking, if an online sportsbook doesn’t offer Money Lines then it’s not a sportsbook. Money line wagers have dominated the online gaming industry since the beginning of time. Canucks using our selection of top sportsbooks get sharp moneylines and great prices, both designed to return some of best payouts anywhere.
You can create an account on any of the sportsbooks below and be sure that you’ll always find your moneyline market offers plus some other exciting bet types when the moneyline ones aren’t so attractive.
Rank | Sportsbook | Bonus |
---|---|---|
#1 | *EXCLUSIVE* Bonus up to $200! | GET BONUS! |
#2 | 100% up to $200 Welcome Bonus | GET BONUS! |
#3 | 100% up to C$200 match up bonus | GET BONUS! |
#4 | 100% on your 1st deposit up to $300 | GET BONUS! |
#5 | 100% Sign Up Bonus - Up to $200 | GET BONUS! |

Money Line Betting Odds and Payouts
Money Line bets are like spring weather in Halifax – all over the place. Depending upon the event and sport, a money line can be tilted in your favor, or the house could be forcing you to say “Uncle”. One of the most important things to note about Money Lines is public behavior can often alter a published line. As sportsbooks are looking to balance the action 50/50, if one side gets too much action, the prices will change to favor the lagging side.
What Is The Money Line In Betting Mean
So while you might want to back the favored Cowboys at -115 on Monday, come Thursday that might have moved to -125, meaning that you get less payout for the same wager! For this reason Money Line betting can be one of the most exciting and tantalizing betting options available to Canadian online sports betting fans.
In Betting What Is The Money Line
Visit our bet types guide for more information.
