Home / Guides / Every Type of Sports Bet
Every type of sports bet, explained with examples
Nearly everything you'll ever bet is a variation on three building blocks. Here's each one, plus the combinations built from them.
On this page
Moneyline
The simplest bet type: pick which team or player wins the game outright, no point handicap involved. If the Cowboys are -180 to beat the Giants, a $180 bet wins $100 in profit if Dallas wins by any margin at all. If the Giants are +150, a $100 bet on them wins $150 in profit if they win outright, even by a single point. Moneyline odds directly reflect each side's implied win probability, which is why heavy favorites carry steep minus numbers - you're being asked to risk a lot to win a little, precisely because that outcome is expected to happen often.
Point spread
The spread applies a handicap to bring a mismatched game closer to an even, roughly 50/50 proposition, typically priced around -110 on both sides. If Dallas is favored by 7 (shown as -7), a bet on Dallas only wins if they win by 8 points or more; a bet on the Giants at +7 wins if the Giants win outright or lose by 6 points or fewer. A final margin of exactly 7 is a "push" - most books refund the stake on a push. Spreads let you bet on a heavy favorite without accepting the poor payout of a -300 moneyline, since the handicap resets the price closer to even odds either way.
Total (over/under)
A bet on the combined score of both teams relative to a number set by the sportsbook, independent of who wins. If the total is set at 47.5, betting the "over" wins if the combined final score is 48 or higher; betting the "under" wins if it's 47 or lower. Totals are typically priced near -110 on both sides, same as spreads, and are popular specifically because they don't require picking a winner at all - just an opinion on the game's overall pace and scoring environment.
Parlay
A parlay combines two or more individual bets (legs) into a single wager that pays out only if every leg wins, with the individual odds multiplying together into a larger combined payout. A two-leg parlay of two bets each at -110 pays roughly 2.6 to 1 instead of the roughly 1.9 to 1 either bet pays alone - but it also only wins if both legs hit, which is mathematically less likely than either leg winning on its own. Our parlay strategy guide and dedicated parlay guide go deeper on the math and when they make sense.
Teaser
A teaser lets you adjust the point spread or total in your favor by a fixed number of points (commonly 6, 6.5, or 7 in NFL teasers) across two or more legs, in exchange for reduced payout odds compared to a standard parlay. For example, a 6-point NFL teaser might move a -7 favorite down to -1, making the bet easier to win, but the combined payout for a multi-leg teaser is priced lower than an equivalent standard parlay to account for that easier win condition. Teasers are a specialized tool, most commonly used around specific NFL scoring-margin patterns (like the frequency of games decided by 3 or 7 points), and are generally not a beginner's first bet type.
Player and team props
Proposition ("prop") bets wager on a specific occurrence within a game rather than the final outcome - a player's passing yards, a team's total rebounds, whether a specific event happens at all. Player props (e.g., "will this quarterback throw for over or under 250.5 yards") have become one of the fastest-growing bet types at every major sportsbook, offered in large volume for NFL and NBA games especially. Props are priced individually and can be combined into parlays, including same-game parlays that combine multiple props from a single game - a bet type worth understanding the correlation implications of, covered in our parlay strategy guide.
Futures
A futures bet wagers on an outcome that won't be determined until well in the future - a team to win a championship, a player to win an MVP award, a team's regular-season win total over or under a set number. Futures odds are posted well ahead of the season and shift continuously as the season unfolds, generally getting shorter (more favorite-like) for teams performing well and longer for teams struggling. Betting futures early in a season, before results shift the market, is how some bettors try to find better value than betting the same futures market later once the outcome looks more certain.
Live/in-play bets
Live betting lets you wager on a game already in progress, with odds updating continuously as the game state changes - a team down 14 points in the first half might see their live moneyline lengthen significantly compared to their pre-game price. Nearly every bet type above (moneyline, spread, total, props) has a live equivalent. Our live betting guide covers the specific mechanics, latency considerations, and how to think about live odds versus pre-game lines.
FAQ
What's the difference between a spread bet and a moneyline bet on the same game?
The moneyline pays based on who wins outright with no handicap, so favorites pay less and underdogs pay more; the spread applies a point handicap to bring both sides closer to even odds, typically priced near -110 either way regardless of which team is favored.
Are prop bets riskier than standard bets?
Not inherently riskier in terms of odds structure, but they're often based on statistics that can be affected by factors like garbage time, injuries, or unpredictable game flow, which some bettors find harder to project accurately than a final score or outright winner.
Should a beginner start with parlays?
Most experienced bettors would suggest starting with straight bets (moneyline, spread, total) to build a feel for pricing and probability before adding the extra complexity and lower win rate of multi-leg parlays.