What is a Moneyline?

A moneyline can mean one of two things:

1. A bet that only cares about the winner of the game/match
2. The odds attached to particular sports bets

Moneyline as a Bet

Let’s look a little closer at the first definition – moneyline as a type of bet. With this type of sports bet, all you have to care about is the winner of the game or match. For example, if the Boston Bruins face off against the Montreal Canadiens and you get on the Bruins, you only have to care if the Bruins win or not.

It’s pretty black and white. Either the team wins or doesn’t and therefore you either win or you don’t.

With point spread bets, you need to care about the margin of victory and with totals, you need to look at the total combined score of both teams in question. Moneyline as a bet just cares who got the W.

The exception to this rule are sports like boxing, MMA, and soccer where there’s a potential for a tie or draw. In that case, you have a third betting option – a draw.

Moneyline & the Point Spread

The payout you get from a moneyline bet is, however, dictated by the point spread. The smaller the spread the more likely the payout will be higher.

For example, picking the winner of a one-point favorite basketball game will more likely than not have higher returns for success than a game expected to be a blowout. Picking the underdogs to win, and predicting successfully, will pay even more than picking the favorite.