Jimmy Boyd in 
Imagine you place 100 bets at $100 each with standard -110 odds.
You win 50 and lose 50 – an even split. You might expect to break even, but instead, you’re down about $500. (Find out what percentage of bets you need to win to break even here.)
What gives?
The culprit is the “vig” (short for vigorish), also known as the “juice.” Every time you place a bet, the sportsbook takes a small cut to facilitate that wager.
Over time, that cut can make the difference between winning and losing, as our unlucky bettor just discovered.
In this guide, we’ll explain what vig/juice means in sports betting, how it’s baked into the odds you see (like those -110 lines on games), how it can vary (such as reduced-juice promotions or alternate lines at -115 or -120), and how this hidden cost impacts your long-term profitability.
We’ll use real-world scenarios, storytelling, and analogies to make the concept relatable – so you can bet smarter and keep more money in your bankroll.
What Does “Vig” Mean in Sports Betting?
In sports betting, vig (or juice) is essentially the bookmaker’s commission on your wager. It’s the price you pay to place a bet, the cut the bookie takes for providing the service.
If you’ve ever heard someone say “The house always wins,” the vig is a big reason why – it virtually ensures the bookmaker profits off each bet in the long run. Think of it like a built-in fee that’s wrapped into the odds.
Story analogy: Imagine you and a friend are betting $10 on a coin flip. With a fair coin and no middleman, a winning bet would double your money – you’d win $10 when you’re right, and lose $10 when you’re wrong.
Now introduce a bookmaker into the mix. The bookie offers to handle the bet but charges a fee for it: if you lose, you must pay $11 to your friend, but if you win, you still only get $10 from the bookie.
In this scenario, the extra $1 is the bookie’s vig. Over many coin flips, that $1 cut per bet means the bookie will come out ahead even if wins and losses are split 50/50. The vig (juice) is the sportsbook’s way of “squeezing” a little profit out of every bet, no matter the outcome.
Synonyms: Vig or juice are common slang terms, but you might also hear it called the margin, cut, take, or house edge. They all mean the same thing in practice – the sportsbook’s built-in advantage or commission on bets.
Understanding this concept is crucial for bettors. It’s one of the most important lessons in betting: you’re not just trying to pick winners, you’re trying to beat the vig.
How Vig Is Baked into Standard -110 Odds
So where do you see the vig?
Look no further than the standard betting lines most sportsbooks use for point spreads and totals: -110 odds on each side. A line of -110 means you must risk $110 to win $100 (or in proportion for other bet sizes).
That extra $10 risk above the $100 potential profit is the juice. It represents roughly a 10% premium for placing the bet.
If sportsbooks offered truly fair 50/50 odds on an event, both sides would be even money (±100 in American odds, meaning win $100 on a $100 bet). But the book doesn’t give even payouts on an even matchup – it shaves the odds to -110, ensuring a built-in edge.
Real-world scenario: Let’s say an NFL game has Team A favored by 3 points and both sides are -110. If bettors wager a total of $110,000 on Team A and $110,000 on Team B, the bookie has taken in $220,000 in bets.
Now, whichever side wins, the sportsbook will pay out the winners their $100 profit per $110 bet. That equals $100,000 paid to winners, plus returning their $110,000 stake – $210,000 total out.
Meanwhile, the bookie collected $220,000 in bets. The difference is $10,000, which the bookmaker keeps.
That $10,000 is essentially the vig profit from balancing the books. Even though the bettors as a whole just traded money based on the game’s outcome, the house skimmed off its share upfront by offering odds slightly worse than even.
From a bettor’s perspective, -110 odds create an uphill battle. To simply break even over the long term at -110, you need to win 52.38% of your bets. That’s because the extra $10 on losses adds up.
Consider the earlier example of 100 bets at -110: winning 50 and losing 50 would yield $5,000 in winnings (50 x $100) but $5,500 in losses (50 x $110), netting -$500 (a loss of five units).
Only by winning at least 52.4% of the time do your wins outweigh the juice on your losses.
In other words, at -110 odds the house edge is about 4.5% (the vigorish). This is analogous to the house edge in a casino game – a small percentage that ensures the house makes money.
It may not sound like much, but it’s enough to turn a 50/50 bettor into a net loser over time.
Reduced Juice and Alternate Lines: When the Vig Varies
Not all bets carry the same standard -110 juice. Sometimes you’ll encounter reduced-juice promotions or alternate lines with different odds, which means the vig has changed.
Reduced juice means the book is charging a smaller commission than usual, giving the bettor a better deal.
For example, a sportsbook might offer -105 odds instead of -110 on certain games (common in promotions or with some high-volume bookmakers). At -105, you only risk $105 to win $100, which cuts the vigorish roughly in half. This might not seem like a huge difference, but it lowers the break-even win rate to about 51.2% instead of 52.4%.
Over a large number of bets, that 1.2% edge can be the difference between profit and loss. In our 100-bet scenario, if all bets were at -105 and you went 50-50, you’d lose only about $250 instead of $500 – a significantly smaller hit.
Some newer sportsbooks and betting exchanges even tout no-vig platforms, letting bettors trade odds directly with each other; by eliminating that typical 52.4% break-even hurdle, profit margins can improve by several percentage points. The appeal of reduced juice is obvious: less commission = more of your winnings stay in your pocket.
Looking for a reduced juice sportsbook? Read our Bet105 Review and sign up today!
On the flip side, you’ll also see cases where the odds are worse than -110, meaning a higher vig on that bet. One common instance is alternate lines or when you “buy” points on a spread.
For example, maybe you like a team at -6.5 but the main line is -7; the book might offer -6.5 at -120 odds. That -120 means you must risk $120 to win $100 – the book is charging extra juice because you’re getting a more favorable point spread.
Another scenario: certain props or less popular markets might be dealt at -115 on both sides, or a moneyline favorite might be -120 while the underdog is +100. These situations indicate a vig higher than standard. The sportsbook might do this to protect against uncertainty or low liquidity in those markets by taking a bigger cut.
Real-world example: Suppose an NBA total is set at 210 points. The sportsbook could offer Over 210 at -115 and Under 210 at -105, depending on how people are betting. In this case, one side is pricier (higher vig) than the other. If you take Over 210 at -115, you’re paying more juice. If you take Under 210 at -105, you’re getting a bit of a discount.
Sportsbooks adjust these prices (the juice) dynamically to balance action or entice bets on the side they need. Major events or very competitive markets tend to have lower juice (even close to -110 or better) because books know bettors are price-sensitive and there’s lots of competition.
Niche or live betting lines might carry a heavier vig (like -120/-120 on each side) because the book is taking on more risk or there’s less competition on pricing.
The key point is: the vig isn’t always a fixed 10%, it can vary, and savvy bettors notice those differences.
The Vig’s Impact on Your Long-Term Profitability
The juice can make or break a sports bettor’s profitability over the long haul. Since vig is essentially a tax on each bet, it eats into your winnings and exacerbates your losses.
This means your winning percentage has to clear a certain bar to stay profitable. We’ve already noted that at -110 odds you must win 52.4% of bets to break even. At different odds, the bar shifts:
- Even money (±100, no vig): 50% win rate to break even (a truly fair coin flip).
- Standard -110: 52.4% win rate needed to break even.
- Reduced juice -105: 51.2% win rate to break even.
- Higher juice -120: 54.5% win rate needed to break even.
Over thousands of bets, that difference is huge.
Hitting 53% winners might make you a small winner at -110, but the same 53% at -120 odds would be a losing proposition.
This is why serious bettors obsess over getting the best line – a few cents of difference in odds can swing your long-term results from red to black.
Many professional sports handicappers target win rates in the mid-50s (55-60%). They know that once you consistently win above the break-even threshold, the profits start compounding.
Conversely, if you’re hovering around 50%, the vig will slowly bleed your bankroll. It’s like running a marathon with a slight headwind: you might not notice it at first, but over the long run it can really wear you down.
Story scenario: Meet Sarah, a recreational bettor who doesn’t pay much attention to odds. She places 200 bets a year at $50 each, mostly on NFL and NBA games at -110. Sarah is pretty good at picking games – she wins about 50% of her bets each year.
However, at the end of the year, she’s puzzled to find her bankroll is a few hundred dollars lighter. That’s the vig at work.
Even though she won as often as she lost, the book’s commission on her losses outstripped the profits on her wins.
Now imagine if Sarah could improve her win rate to 55% (110 wins, 90 losses). On 200 bets, she’d roughly win $5,500 (110 x $50) and lose $4,950 (90 x $55, since losing $50 at -110 means a $55 loss including stake).
She’d net around +$550, a nice profit.
That illustrates how clearing the break-even point turns the tables. It also shows why going 50-50 isn’t enough – you need an edge to overcome the juice.
Long-term bettors must account for vig in their strategy. If you ignore it, you might think you’re doing fine (“I’m winning about half my bets, I should be even”), only to see losses pile up due to that silent siphon on each bet.
Over hundreds of wagers, the cumulative vig can be substantial. This is why concepts like “closing line value” and line shopping matter (hint: use an odds screen)– getting a better price (lower juice or better odds) on every bet is like reducing that headwind.
Even a 1-2% reduction in the house edge can dramatically improve your bottom line over time.
Tips to Beat the Vig (or At Least Minimize Its Bite)
While the vig is always going to be there in traditional sports betting, smart bettors take steps to lessen its impact:
- Line Shopping: Don’t settle for the first odds you see. Different sportsbooks charge different vig on the same game. For example, one book might have a spread at -115 while another has -108. Over the long run, consistently betting into lower juice lines will save you a lot of money. Always compare odds across books for the best price on your bet.
- Reduced Juice Sportsbooks: Some sportsbooks advertise reduced juice lines (like -105 standard instead of -110, or special -107 promos ). If you have access to these, take advantage. Paying less vig means the hurdle for profitability is lower. Be aware of promotions like “no juice weekends” or sports-specific deals (for instance, a book offering -105 on NFL Sundays or -107 during playoffs to attract action). These can tilt the long-term odds slightly in your favor.
- Selective Betting / Value Focus: Because the vig makes the margin for error thin, it’s crucial to pick your spots. Rather than betting every game for action, focus on games where you believe the odds are off (your predicted outcome has a higher probability than implied by the odds after accounting for vig). This is often called finding “value”. Essentially, you need to find bets where your true chance of winning is greater than the break-even percentage. This might mean specializing in a certain sport or market to gain an edge. By being selective and only betting when you have an edge, you improve your chances of beating the vig in the long run.
- Bankroll Management: Even with an edge, the vig can lead to swings in your bankroll. Good bankroll management ensures that the juice won’t knock you out of the game during a rough patch. This means sizing your bets appropriately (often a small percentage of your bankroll per bet) so that you can withstand the natural ups and downs of sports betting. Managing your roll doesn’t reduce the vig, but it helps you survive it and continue making those +EV (positive expected value) bets that overcome the vig over time.
Bottom line: The vig is the sportsbook’s built-in advantage – a small commission on each bet that adds up to a big deal for your betting results. It’s baked into lines like -110, subtly tilting odds against you.
However, by understanding how juice works and making conscious choices (like shopping for better odds and being selective with your wagers), you can minimize the vig’s impact. Every percentage point of juice you save is money back in your pocket and a step closer to profitability.
So the next time you place a bet, remember to account for the vig. It’s the price of admission to the sports betting world – and knowing how to navigate it is what separates the savvy bettors from the ones who slowly go broke.
Keep an eye on that juice, bet smart, and you’ll give yourself a much better chance to come out ahead in the long run.
