Hold Calculator
Measure the sportsbook’s margin on any market — how much edge is baked into the price, and how much the book keeps per $100.
e.g. +150 or -110
Total implied
104.76%
Margin (overround)
4.76%
Hold
4.55%
On balanced action the book keeps about $4.55 of every $100 wagered on this market.
Lower hold = better prices. Omenizer devigs the sharpest markets and flags where a book’s number beats fair.
See live value bets →Typical holds by market
| Market | Typical hold |
|---|---|
| Sharp two-way (−110/−110) | ~4.5% |
| Mainline spreads & totals | 4–5% |
| Moneylines | 4–6% |
| Soccer 1X2 (3-way) | 5–7% |
| Player props | 6–10% |
| Same-game parlays | 15–30%+ |
How it works
total_implied = Σ (1 / decimal_odds_i) overround = total_implied − 100% hold = 1 − (1 / total_implied)
FAQ
- What is the hold in sports betting?
- The hold (or margin / vig / juice) is the sportsbook’s built-in edge on a market. Add the implied probabilities of every outcome; the amount over 100% is the market’s overround, and the share the book keeps on balanced action is the hold.
- What’s a typical hold?
- On a sharp two-way market it’s around 4–5% (a standard −110/−110). Softer books, player props, and same-game parlays can run 6–10%+. The lower the hold, the better the price for you.
- Overround vs. hold — what’s the difference?
- Overround is how far the implied probabilities exceed 100% (e.g. 104.8% → 4.8% overround). Hold is the fraction of stakes the book keeps on balanced action (1 − 1/overround), which is slightly lower (~4.6%).
- Why should I care about the hold?
- It’s the cost of doing business at that book. Lower-hold books leave more value on the table, so line-shopping to the lowest hold directly improves your long-run results.
- How do I lower the hold I pay?
- Line-shop across books and bet the market with the lowest total margin, and prefer sharp, low-vig books or exchanges over high-hold props and parlays.
- Does a lower hold mean a +EV bet?
- Not on its own — a low hold just means a fair market. You get +EV when a specific price beats the no-vig fair line. Use our No-Vig and Positive EV calculators for that.
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Built by the team behind Omenizer’s real-time fair-odds engine — the same devigging and closing-line-value math that powers our live value-bet feed. Last updated July 2026.
Educational tool only. Typical-hold ranges are illustrative and vary by book, sport and market.