For those of you interested in online betting, understanding betting odds can be a daunting task. However, this needn't be the case, as a basic understanding of how odds are calculated should allow even the beginner to understand and implement them in their betting activities.

What are Odds?

In essence, odds are a reflection of the likelihood of a certain outcome taking place in a specific event.

"What on earth does that mean?", you might ask.

In every event where there is betting involved, all outcomes have a certain chance of taking place. Odds are simply an interpretation of those chances, and the odds presented by bookmakers merely reflect such chances to the best of the bookmaker's abilities, minus the bookmaker's edge. Most online bookmakers offer up to three different choices on how you want to view your betting odds: Decimal, Fractional or American.

Decimal Odds

Decimal odds are commonly used in Europe and are therefore sometimes referred to as European odds.

To convert a chance into decimal odds just put the probability as a percentage and divide it into 100.

100/%Chance = decimal odds

So, if you believe that something has a 50% chance of winning, then:

100/50 = 2 or odds of 2.0.

Say then that you want to place a bet on a selection that has decimal odds of 2.0. If you PG , for every dollar that you stake you will receive 2 dollars back. Stake $100 and you will receive back $200. This amount received back includes your original stake in the odds.

Fractional Odds

The more traditional fractional odds are often still used in the UK, and can therefore also be referred to as British odds, UK odds or traditional odds. These odds quote the net total that will be paid out to the bettor should he win, relative to his initial stake. Using the 50% chance example listed above again, the fractional odds equivalent of 2.0 are 1/1 which is also knows as evens or even money.