Minimum Odds Requirement: what is it, why, and strategies

Many sportsbooks will have a minimum odds requirement on promotional bets. It’s important to understand exactly what they mean, or you can end up failing to get the promotional offer (and many times the sportsbook won’t let you know that you didn’t meet the requirements for the bonus).

What does ‘minimum odds’ mean?

Minimum odds mean that you have to place a bet with the odds listed or a riskier but higher payout bet. It sets the minimum number of odds that qualifies your bet, which means your betting odds have to be a higher number (or less negative number) than the odds listed.

I’ll cover a few examples below to make sure we get it right.

What about ‘longer odds’?

Longer odds means the same thing as minimum odds. It means that the odds have to be risker than what is listed. In example, if you need ‘-300 or longer odds,’ you’d have to choose a bet that is -300 or more positive: -250 would work, +100 would also work, but -350 wouldn’t qualify.

Example of minimum odds bets

You might get a promotional offer from a sportsbook like this one:

What does ‘+100 minimum odds’ mean?

This means that you will get the free bet if you make a (parlay in this case) bet with +100 odds or higher. Examples of bets that qualify +110 odds, +200 odds, or +500 odds. Examples of bets that would not qualify you for the bonus would be even odds -100 odds, -300 odds, etc.

Let’s try another example.

What does ‘-200 minimum odds’ mean?

This means that you will qualify for the promotion if you place a bet with -200 odds or higher. Examples of bets that qualify are -190 odds, -100 odds, +100 odds, +200 odds. Examples of bets that would not qualify would be -210 odds, -400 odds, -500 odds, etc.

Why do sportsbooks have minimum odds on promotions?

Sportsbooks have minimum odds, so they can avoid people getting the bonus with too little risk. In the example pictured above, PointsBet is offering a $20 free bet, but they want you to risk $50 in a parlay to get it.

Charlie Hustle the sports bettor might look at that and say, “Great! I’ll bet all the biggest favorites of the day to win their game straight up.” So he picks Alabama, Ohio State, and Oklahoma all to win against non-major conference schools. The parlay isn’t risky, so it has -800 odds, which means Charlie Hustle profits $6.50 on his $50 bet. But he’s happy with that because he now gets a free $20 bet. Unfortunately for Charlie, PointsBet won’t offer him the $20 free bet because the -800 odds was less than the +100 minimum.

Sportsbooks are good at blocking some “hustles,” but there are still strategies you can use to your advantage

This is a good example of sportsbooks blocking ways for you to get easy money. There are still multiple ways you can increase your odds to squeeze out some profits sports betting. Checking our guide on sports betting strategies.