No vig calculator
Enter both sides of a two way market and this removes the sportsbook's margin from the price, leaving what the book actually thinks is going to happen.
No vig odds and hold
A book prices both sides so the numbers add up to more than 100%. The extra is its cut. Put both sides in and this strips the cut out, leaving what the book really thinks the chances are.
The juice is split evenly across the sides here, which is the standard method and is right for two way markets. On a long field with a heavy longshot it is not, so do not read this as a fair price on a 20 runner futures board.
Why a price is never the book's real opinion
Take a market priced -110 on both sides. Each side implies a 52.38% chance, and the two add up to 104.76%. That extra 4.76% does not exist in the world. It is the sportsbook's margin, and it is charged on every market whether or not anyone notices.
Removing it means scaling both implied chances back down so they sum to 100%. At -110 and -110 that lands on 50% each, which is the honest answer a coin flip deserves. On a lopsided market it lands somewhere else, and the gap between the two sides is what the book genuinely believes.
The hold is the same number viewed from the book's side of the counter: the share of total money staked that it keeps regardless of the result. It is the single most useful figure for comparing two sportsbooks, because a book with a consistently lower hold is charging you less to place the same bet.
This matters for promotions specifically. Covering both outcomes is only profitable if the price you cover at is good enough, and the hold is what tells you whether it is. A market with a punitive hold can turn a promotion that looks worth a hundred dollars into one worth considerably less.
Questions people ask about this one
What is a normal hold?
Around 4% to 5% on a standard two way market at a major sportsbook. Exchanges are usually well under that, and player props are often well over it, sometimes into double figures.
Does a lower hold mean better odds?
On that market, yes, and that is the whole use of the number. It is a like for like comparison that raw odds do not give you, because two books can offer different prices on different sides of the same game.
Can I use this on a three way market?
This one handles two sides. A three way market such as a soccer result needs all three prices scaled together, which is the same idea with one more term.
The other calculators
Expected value, parlay odds, Kelly staking, prediction market prices and the bonus bet converter are all on the main calculators page, free and with no account. How these numbers feed the rest of the product is set out in the methodology.