Should Canadian bettors use American or decimal odds?

It comes down to preference, since most licensed Canadian sportsbooks let you toggle between the two in your account settings. Decimal is the default for many Canadian and European audiences because payouts are a single multiplication (stake x odds = total return). American odds are handy if you follow U.S. broadcasts and want to quickly see who's favoured. Both express the exact same price, so pick whichever you find easier to read.

How do I convert American odds to decimal?

For positive American odds, divide by 100 and add 1: +130 becomes (130 / 100) + 1 = 2.30. For negative American odds, divide 100 by the absolute value and add 1: -150 becomes (100 / 150) + 1 = 1.67. To go the other way, subtract 1 from the decimal price, then multiply by 100 for underdogs or take the negative of 100 divided by that figure for favourites.

What is the vig, and how does it affect my bets?

The vig (also called juice or margin) is the sportsbook's built-in commission. When you add up the implied probabilities of all outcomes in a market, they total more than 100 percent, and that overround is the book's edge. It's why a two-way market isn't priced at true even money on both sides. Line shopping across several Canadian sportsbooks is the simplest way to reduce the impact of the vig and get better prices.

Is single-game sports betting legal across Canada?

Yes. Single-game betting has been legal nationwide since August 2021 under Bill C-218, but regulation is provincial. Ontario runs a regulated open market through the AGCO and iGaming Ontario, where only registered operators may legally offer bets. Elsewhere, betting is typically available through the provincial lottery corporation. Most provinces require you to be 19 or older, with 18+ in Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec.

How Betting Odds Work in Canada (American & Decimal)

Odds are simply a sportsbook’s way of expressing two things at once: how much a wager pays and how likely the outcome is judged to be. Whether you’re staking a few dollars on a Maple Leafs game or shopping lines for the CFL playoffs, understanding how odds translate into payouts — and into probability — is the single most useful skill a Canadian bettor can build. This guide walks through American and decimal formats, implied probability, the vig, and how to convert between everything, using clear CAD examples.

The Two Odds Formats You’ll See in Canada

Most licensed Canadian sportsbooks let you display prices in either format, and you can usually toggle between them in your account settings. Decimal tends to be the default for Canadian and European audiences, while American odds are familiar to anyone who watches U.S. broadcasts. Fractional odds (like 6/4) still appear in horse racing, but they’re rarely the default at Canadian sports books.

American (Moneyline) Odds

American odds are built around a $100 unit and always carry a + or − sign.

Negative odds (e.g., −150): the amount you must stake to profit $100. A −150 price means you risk $150 to win $100.
Positive odds (e.g., +130): the profit you earn on a $100 stake. A +130 price means you risk $100 to win $130.

The sign also tells you at a glance who’s favoured. A minus number is the favourite; a plus number is the underdog.

CAD example: Say the Toronto Blue Jays are −140 at home and the visitors are +120.

A $70 bet on the Jays at −140 returns $50 profit (70 ÷ 140 × 100), for a total payout of $120.
A $50 bet on the underdogs at +120 returns $60 profit, for a total payout of $110.

Decimal Odds

Decimal odds are a single number — like 2.50 — that represents your total return per $1 staked, stake included.

Payout = stake × decimal odds.
A $10 bet at 2.50 returns $25 total: $15 profit plus your $10 stake back.

Because the math is one multiplication, decimals make it easy to compare bets and calculate payouts fast. Anything above 2.00 is an underdog; anything below 2.00 is a favourite; exactly 2.00 is even money.

CAD example: An NHL puck-line price of 1.80 on the Edmonton Oilers.

A $50 bet returns $90 total (50 × 1.80) = $40 profit.

Favourites vs. Underdogs

The relationship is the same in both formats — only the presentation changes:

Favourites pay less than even money. In American odds they’re negative (−150); in decimal they’re below 2.00 (1.67).
Underdogs pay more than even money. In American they’re positive (+130); in decimal they’re above 2.00 (2.30).

You risk more to win less on a favourite because the book judges it more likely to happen — and vice versa for underdogs.

Implied Probability: What the Odds Are Really Saying

Every price contains an implied probability — the percentage chance the book is pricing into that outcome. Learning to read this is how you spot value: if you think an outcome is more likely than the implied probability suggests, the bet may be worth taking.

From decimal odds:

Implied probability = 1 ÷ decimal odds
Example: 2.50 → 1 ÷ 2.50 = 40%

From American odds:

Minus odds: |odds| ÷ (|odds| + 100) → −150 = 150 ÷ 250 = 60%
Plus odds: 100 ÷ (odds + 100) → +130 = 100 ÷ 230 = ~43.5%

So a −150 favourite is priced as a 60% chance, while a +130 underdog is priced at roughly 43.5%. Notice those two numbers add up to more than 100% — which brings us to the vig.

The Vig (a.k.a. Juice or Hold)

The vig is the built-in commission a sportsbook charges. It’s the reason the implied probabilities of all outcomes add up to more than 100% — that extra slice is called the overround.

Classic example — a “pick’em” priced −110 / −110:

Each side’s implied probability: 110 ÷ 210 = ~52.4%
Total: 52.4% + 52.4% = ~104.8%
The ~4.8% overround is the vig.

To find the true (no-vig) probability, divide each side’s implied probability by the total:

52.4 ÷ 104.8 = 50% — a genuine coin-flip once the margin is stripped out.

The takeaway: lower vig means better long-term value. A book charging a slimmer margin returns more to bettors over time, which is why line-shopping across multiple operators matters. Small differences in juice compound over hundreds of bets. See our betting guides hub for more on finding value.

Converting Between Formats

You don’t need to memorize much — just a couple of rules.

American → Decimal:

Plus odds: (odds ÷ 100) + 1 → +130 = 2.30
Minus odds: (100 ÷ |odds|) + 1 → −150 = 1.67

Decimal → American:

If decimal ≥ 2.00: (decimal − 1) × 100 → 2.30 = +130
If decimal < 2.00: −100 ÷ (decimal − 1) → 1.67 = −150

Handy reference points:

2.00 = +100 (even money)
+130 = 2.30
−150 = 1.67

Odds in the Canadian Legal Landscape

Legal single-game betting has been available across Canada since August 2021 under Bill C-218. Regulation is provincial: Ontario runs a regulated open market overseen by AGCO and iGaming Ontario (live since April 2022), where only registered operators may legally offer bets, while most other provinces operate through their provincial lottery corporations. The odds math is identical everywhere — what changes is which betting sites are legally available to you. Ontario bettors can find registered options on our Ontario page.

When you fund an account, Interac e-Transfer is the default across most Canadian books; you can compare options on our payment methods guide.

Practical Tips for Canadian Bettors

Pick one format and stick with it so payouts become second nature.
Check the total implied probability across all outcomes before betting — it reveals the vig you’re paying.
Line-shop across multiple registered Canadian books; even a few cents of decimal difference adds up.
Compare welcome offers at betting bonuses, but always read the odds and terms rather than the headline number.

Master these fundamentals and every price — from an NHL moneyline to a World Cup 2026 outright — becomes readable at a glance.