The dawn of the world wide web has allowed sports fans and punters to access betting on a whole new level.

Nowadays, anyone at the right age can bet on thousands of markets. You can choose from the sport you fancy such as various horse race cups, the National Football League, Australian Football League, English Premier League, the NBA or the Olympics.

If there is a major sporting event in any part of the globe, you can bet that bookmaker online are actively participating in the frenzy. And there are over hundreds of these websites that offer betting services and even online casinos and gaming.

Compared to the traditional means of betting, when you bet online, you can bet on one game or ten if you want to. Sites have bet calculators built-in to assist you in working out your wagers.

The Online Sportsbook/Bookmaker

Odds are made available in different ways. Since there are many online punters, Different sites use different means to display odds for a particular market. In online betting, it is imperative that you how odds work and how to work them in your favor before betting on any sport.

UK-focused sites often display fractional odds, while American sites calculate odds their own way.

Sportsbook and Bookmakers are the most used terms in online betting. If you are wondering what they mean or what their differences are, the former is an American term and the latter is often used by British or European gamblers. Both offer odds on a wide range of market or sports. Some of the more established sportsbooks and bookmakers even offer online casino games and poker rooms. UK or European versions will add bingo sections as well.

Sportsbooks however do not cover racing while bookmakers do. Odds for this type of event are included in bookmakers and racebooks. Bookmakers and sportsbooks have similar ways of setting up websites. Both are now offering Live or In-Play betting that allows punters to make wagers before as well as race.

Choosing Betmakers Based on Free Bets Offered

Your goal shouldn’t be choosing the best between bookmakers or sportsbooks. Instead, your goal should be finding the right betting venue for you specifically.

But you will choose from hundred of betmakers available online. You can either open an account with just one or with several different bookmakers. This will allow you to enjoy all the perks of the best firms.

And by perks we mean the free bets offers.

Almost all betting firms offer Free Bets to entice new members. They can come in the form of a sign-up bonus, first deposit bonus, no lose first bet and so on. The mechanics of how they offer these free bets gives you a general impression as to how a certain bookmaker works.

Not only do you get to know who you are betting with, but the idea of getting something for nothing is quite attractive and there are free bets amounting to $100 and more.

Online Sports Odds Calculator

Assuming that you already know live betting, let’s talk about the sportsbook and the odds. The online sportsbook allows you to bet on any international sporting event taking place.

Since we are talking about betting on a global scale, some sportsbook present odds in an unfamiliar way for UK punters.

Your bet’s chance of winning is presented through betting odds. You can make use of odds converter to understand the odds in the format you are comfortable with, depending on where you are in the world.

Sport betting odds are often displayed as:

  • UK Betting Odds – are basically Fractional Odds which is the traditional format of displaying odds. This type of format is most used in the United Kingdom, making British betters or punters more familiar with it. It is also used for horse racing odds.

 This type of odds display quotes the total amount paid out for a winning bet, depending on the amount place at stake.

 

  • American Betting Odds – in this type of odds display, the amount risked in order to win $100 by betting on a favourite is quoted or should you come across a figure such as +240, it means that you have to bet $100 to win $240.

 In some instances, however, you will see the letters PK alongside the odds offered on a game. This means that there is no favourite and you should “PICK” the winner of the game without any points spread.

 

  • European Betting Odds – are also known as Decimal Odds. This is used in the European region, popular among countries such as Australia and Canada. Compared to the American or UK Odds, the Decimal is the easiest to understand.

Decimals are the equivalent value of fractional odds plus one (+1). For example, if the decimal odds are 2.00 and you bet $100 and your bet wins, you will receive a $200 in total using this simple formula – (2.00 x $100).

In most cases, online sportsbooks will allow you to choose or change display from UK, to American or European Odds.  If the particular site you visited doesn’t offer this feature, you can use the odds calculator instead to convert the odds to a format you understand.  has no option to Alternatively, you can use our odds converter calculator to convert sports betting odds to your favourite format.

The bet calculator is important especially if you are betting on multiple sports. If you check an odds comparison site that offers the best all-round odds, say four good odds and one lousy odds – you can utilize the any bet or odds calculator to help you make the best decision.