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A sportsbook's margin is the built-in profit that is added to betting odds, which guarantees a profit for the bookmaker regardless of the outcome. This means that the odds displayed do not quite reflect the true probability of each eventuality. If you’ve ever stopped to ask yourself the question ‘how do sportsbooks make money?’, then this is the answer in a nutshell.
The margin built into these markets is known as the ‘House Edge’. This assures the operator makes a gain on every fixture. If you added up the true probability of the odds (Team A, Draw, Team B), it would exceed 100% (e.g 105.6%). The additional 5.6% is known as ‘Overround’. Some Crypto bookmakers see this as a charge or ‘Vig’ for using their sportsbook.
It is not profitable for bettors to cover all potential outcomes with level stakes. As a result of the built-in margin, the bookmaker still makes a profit, and you would make a small loss. It is a form of risk management and one of the many reasons why Crypto betting sites can remain profitable.
The simple rules to remember are:
Bookmaker margins aren’t uniform and vary significantly between operators. Crypto sports betting sites have significantly lower overheads and fewer regulatory costs due to the absence of Fiat banking methods. This allows them to lower margins, resulting in far more competitive odds for their users.
Sportsbooks do not advertise their margins, so keep reading to find out how to do the calculations, which will enable you to find the best value Crypto sportsbooks and how to swerve high-margin betting markets.
"It is worth noting that the margins for live betting markets tend to be higher than pre-match margins. This protects the house edge of a crypto sportsbook from the dangers of fast-paced, unpredictable and volatile in-play markets. If you are on the lookout for superior odds, I’d advise sticking to pre-match markets as you’re far more likely to find greater value in this section of the crypto sportsbook."
As we’ve explained, all sportsbooks and crypto betting sites add a margin to their odds to ensure that they make a profit.
If the odds reflected the true probability of an outcome, crypto sportsbooks would not make a profit. It would also mean that if you placed a bet at level stakes on each outcome, you would simply break even every time. Bookmakers add the edge, and this skews the odds so that they no longer reflect the true probability.
Here is a fairly rudimentary example from the world of international cricket:
Odds may change as the operator aims to balance its liabilities. If there is a surge of interest in one particular outcome, then we can expect to see these odds shorten. If one set of odds is shortened by a crypto sportsbook, then the opposite set is likely to inflate. This allows the bookmaker to balance its books and avoid potential losses.
This is the reason why we may see the odds change or adjust in real time when browsing the markets of a crypto sportsbook. The overround is a safety blanket for the operators; however, they still need to alter their pricing if large quantities of money are being placed on one of the outcomes.
In some circumstances, bookmakers may limit the stakes on an outcome if they are worried about their liabilities. This is very rare for crypto operators and is one of the major advantages of using crypto sportsbooks. They aren’t as risk-averse as standard Fiat-accepting platforms.
Crypto betting sites do not publish their margins on their sportsbook. Nevertheless, bettors can use the odds to accurately calculate the margin. Different calculations must be used for two-way and three-way markets
In a simple two-way market, such as a tennis match result or an NBA spread, you can use this formula to calculate the bookmaker's margin
Let's put that into practice.
🎾 Crypto sportsbook Betplay is offering odds of 1.63 on Karen Khachanov to beat Alex Michelsen, who is 2.28.
Let's add these together - 0.613496 + 0.438596 = 1.052092
1.052092 x 100 = 105.2092
Betplay’s margin is 5.2092%. This is what is left when you deduct the total probability of all outcomes, which is 100%.
In a three-way market, such as a football match result or a European handicap, the formula is slightly different. You must use this calculation.
That’s a lot of numbers. But if we break it down into its constituent parts, it is a fairly straightforward calculation.
⚽️ Using odds from Bet Panda, we’re going to work out the margin for an upcoming Serie A fixture between Lazio and Como. The hosts are available at 2.92 with the visitors priced up at 2.76. The draw is 2.86. This suggests that the bookmakers are unsure of the outcome of this particular match and are not taking any unnecessary risks.
Now it's time to add these three numbers together to calculate the overall margin.
34.246 + 36.2318 + 34.965 = 105.4428.
Bet Panda has added a margin of 5.4% to this market.
"Calculating sportsbook margins can be a time-consuming business. If you’re short of time, you can find several margin calculator tools online which will do the totting up for you once you have input the odds. I’d advise using these if you want to quicken the process."
Sportsbook margins are vitally important to Crypto bettors as they will make a significant difference to overall profitability. If you opt for a sportsbook with higher margins, you will have to work harder and increase the percentage of winning bets to simply stay in the black.
Bettors should avoid placing bets on high-margin lines, as these will not lead to long-term profitability. The bookies will almost always come out on top if you do not shop around and find low-margin operators.
ROI (return on investment) is an essential component of successful betting. Finding low-margin sportsbooks will give you a far better chance of avoiding those dreaded minus numbers.
The good news is that most of our recommended crypto sportsbooks offer competitive odds and lower margins across most major leagues and competitions. They can offer reduced margins and lower the house edge compared to traditional Fiat-based sports betting sites.
Higher limits also tend to be available, allowing bettors to place bigger stakes at superior odds. With fewer overheads and no processing fees for each transaction, this is a luxury that most crypto operators can afford.
Even if you placed six bets per week and only three were winners, you’d have a far greater chance of ending that seven-day period with a positive ROI using one of our recommended best odds crypto sportsbooks. Those small percentages can make a notable difference to your overall profitability.
Now that the bookmaker margin has been explained, it’s worth focusing on the different types of markets. Most crypto sportsbooks tend to be fairly consistent with their pre-match margins, although fluctuations may occur between different competitions and leagues.
It is a completely different set of circumstances for live betting markets. Bookmakers need to protect themselves from unexpected outcomes or changes in volatility. Things can change in the blink of an eye and the bookmakers need to ensure that they are ready for this. Quite a few live betting markets also use automated models, so their margins are raised to account for fast-acting bettors who are able to spot discrepancies in the pricing.
Most Crypto betting sites will have contrasting odds, and therefore, the margins may slightly differ between operators.
Some Crypto sportsbooks use low margins and competitive odds as their unique selling point (USP). These sites tend to have fewer promotions and gimmicky features as they target professional and serious punters. Other sportsbooks will build in higher margins, but they compensate with frequent giveaways and bonuses for regular players. These tend to appeal to newer players or those who are searching for quirky features.
Many Crypto sites may not fall into either camp, and that’s why it is important to analyse the margins, using the calculation, to compare their odds to other operators.
We’ve focused on an upcoming Champions League match and an NBA regular-season contest to compare the odds and margins available with various Crypto betting sites. Lower margins are far more beneficial for bettors as there is more ‘juice’ to be found in these markets.
| Crypto Sportsbook | Events | Odds | Margin | Ranking |
| BetPlay | ⚽️ Sporting vs PSG |
16/5 3/1 77/100 | 5.31% | 🥈 2nd |
| BC.Game | ⚽️ Sporting vs PSG |
16/5 59/20 3/4 | 6.27% | 🥉3rd |
| Dexsport | ⚽️ Sporting vs PSG |
31/10 3/1 3/4 | 5.89% | 🏅4th |
| WinCasino | ⚽️ Sporting vs PSG |
10/3 13/4 3/4 | 3.99% | 🥇1st |
There is a fair amount of variance between these operators. Win. Casino’s margins of 3.99% are favourable for bettors as they offer better value for Champions League punters. Although they have identical odds for PSG as two other betting sites, when all three selections are taken into account, they are taking a smaller percentage of profit from the 1X2 market than the other bookmakers.
| Crypto Sportsbook | Event | Odds | Margin | Ranking |
| BetPlay | 🏀 Philadelphia @ Phoenix |
83/100 93/100 | 6.46% | 🥉 3rd |
| BC.Game | 🏀 Philadelphia @ Phoenix |
83/100 93/100 | 6.46% | 🥉 3rd |
| Dexsport | 🏀 Philadelphia @ Phoenix |
83/100 1/1 | 5.15% | 🥈 2nd |
| WinCasino | 🏀 Philadelphia @ Phoenix |
3/4 6/7 | 5.05% | 🥇 1st |
Once again, the odds are similar between operators with BetPlay and BC.Game displaying identical pricing. It is handy to know that players will not be losing value by signing up for either of these crypto betting sites. Win. Casino offers the best value at 5.05%, which is 1.41% better than the two other sportsbooks. If you bet regularly on the NBA, wagering with these lower margin platforms will make a huge difference to your ROI.
Of the five Crypto sports betting sites highlighted in our example, Win.Casino proved to have the superior odds, however, each operator is likely to specialise in different areas. If you are a football fan, you will find lower margins with BetPlay, yet their NBA odds were inferior to other platforms. DexSports had lower margins for US Sports, so fans of basketball, baseball, ice hockey and the NFL would be better suited using this sportsbook.
"It is worth remembering that many Crypto sportsbooks will deliberately lower their margins for high-profile fixtures, as it is important to stay competitive for these high-turnover events. You can expect to find better odds and lower margins for these types of events, so if you’re hoping to grab the value, sticking to televised fixtures featuring the big teams could be the best option."
Crypto betting sites and crypto betting exchanges differ in their transparency of betting odds and margins. Sportsbooks build in their margins to guarantee a profit regardless of the outcome. Betting exchanges have better odds and significantly lower margins, but users will be charged commission (typically 2-5%) on each successful transaction.
Many bettors will compare sportsbook margins vs odds, yet, when it comes to betting exchanges, you rarely need to worry about either of these things, as you’ll be able to take advantage of more competitive pricing across the board.
In the long run, a small amount of commission will cost punters far less than losing a 5-10% margin per bet. That is one of the many reasons for the popularity of betting exchanges.
The odds displayed by online sportsbooks do not display the true probability of an outcome, whereas Crypto betting exchanges are much closer to the ‘actual odds’.
On-Chain bookmakers are also likely to reduce their margins, as there are very few transactional costs involved in the day-to-day running of these sportsbooks. With every deposit, wager and payout recorded on a ledger, alongside the lack of KYC checks, these sites have very few overheads, and this is reflected in their low odds.
Using low-margin sportsbooks is the best way to improve your chances of profitable betting. Shopping around is essential, and being able to calculate margins or use a margin calculator tool is a handy way to avoid falling for inferior odds.
It’s important to note that odds will fluctuate and margins between sports. Tennis margins tend to be higher than those of football and basketball, whereas horse racing bettors can expect to find significantly higher margins.
Using betting exchanges will allow you to take advantage of lower margins, although you will be required to pay commission on any winnings. Your long-term betting will benefit from lower margins and higher odds. This will result in the bookmaker taking a far lower percentage for every wager that you place.
To ensure that you can take advantage of low-margin sportsbooks, there are numerous ways to compare odds and avoid inferior prices. First of all, shopping around is essential. You can use odds comparison tools to help you find the best odds for your preferred leagues and competitions.
Secondly, keep an eye on fluctuations and odds movement. This will enable you to track how each crypto sportsbook reacts to a market shift. You may notice that some bookmakers do not cut their odds unless it’s necessary.
You should use decimal odds where possible to compare odds, as this will save you time and they are far less likely to require conversion.
Now that bookmaker margin has been explained, it’s time to take a look at our list of recommended low margin betting sites. These best odds crypto sportsbooks rank favourably in our reviews, and once you have signed up for an account, you will be able to take advantage of their favourable odds and low margins every time you place a bet.
100% deposit match up to $500 + $100 as free bets
Our Rating
8.8/10
15% + 20% + 25% in free bets on first three deposits up to $300
Our Rating
9.1/10
100% deposit match up to $4,500 (Casino)
Our Rating
8.3/10
Up to $2,500 in cashback and air drops
Our Rating
7.9/10
