Even Money
A bet where your profit matches your stake — decimal 2.00, fractional 1/1, American +100.
Even money describes odds where the profit on offer is exactly equal to what you put down. Bet $100 at even money and win, and you pocket $100 in profit plus your original $100 stake — a $200 total return. In decimal terms, even money reads 2.00. In fractional terms, it’s 1/1 (also called “evens”). In American terms, it’s +100.
Even-money odds carry an implied probability of exactly 50%, signaling that the book sees both outcomes as a coin flip. In reality, true even-money lines are fairly rare, because the sportsbook’s margin (vig) usually nudges each side just below evens. A coin-flip proposition, for instance, might be priced at -105 on both sides instead of +100, letting the book skim a small cut no matter which way it lands.
When bettors call a wager “even money,” they’re sometimes speaking loosely — describing a roughly 50/50 proposition even when the actual price isn’t precisely +100.
Example
A sportsbook posts a tennis match between two closely ranked players. Player A sits at +100 (even money) and Player B at -120. Put $50 on Player A at +100 and Player A wins, and you collect $50 in profit plus your $50 stake back — a $100 total payout.
Notice the other side of the market is -120, not +100. That asymmetry is the book’s margin at work. In a perfectly fair market with no vig, if one side is truly +100, the other would be +100 too. The -120 on Player B reflects the combined cost of the vig and a slightly higher implied probability for Player B.
Key Points
- Profit equals stake: At even money, whatever you risk is exactly what you stand to win. It’s one of the cleanest payouts to grasp and calculate.
- Implies a 50% probability: Even money frames the event as a coin flip in the market’s eyes. Any move off +100 means one side is favored.
- Rare at standard vig levels: Because books bake their commission into the price, true +100 lines on both sides are uncommon. Expect to see -110 / -110 or similar pricing instead.
- Useful as a benchmark: Even money is a reference point. Odds shorter than evens (below 2.00 or a negative American number) flag a favorite; odds longer than evens (above 2.00 or a positive American number) flag an underdog.
- Common in proposition bets: Even-money odds turn up most often in simple yes/no props — like whether a specific event will happen during a game.