Sports Betting Q&A
Frequently asked questions about sports betting

What are some tips for managing your bankroll when betting on sports?

Last Updated: May 8, 2020
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Fact Checked By: Adam Zdroik

The most important tip when betting on sports is to limit each bet to be between one and five percent of your bankroll.

In the sports betting world, one percent of your bankroll usually signifies one unit of your bankroll. If you put more than five units on a bet, you're playing with fire. No matter how confident you are, your best bet will never be a guaranteed winner. 

For example, you could be less confident and win five, one-unit bets in a row, but then put 10 units on a more confident bet and lose it. That's how sports betting works and why you should never get overconfident when making bets because that's when bias comes into play and that's never a good thing. 

Set your bankroll

This may be the most important step because if you don't know how much money you're comfortable losing, things could get out of hand. It's usually easiest to start your bankroll with a round number like $100 or $1,000. If you quickly lose that $100 or $1,000, it may be best to take a break before jumping back in, though if you make bets based on units, your money should last a decent amount of time.

Grow your bankroll

This is where unit-based betting comes into play. As long as you bet between one and five units on every wager and you're hitting on more than 52% of your plays, you should turn a positive. 

The smart thing is to never go over that five-unit threshold because as your bankroll grows, the amount of a unit also grows. So if you make a 10-unit bet out of nowhere because you want to catch up or are really confident, that could mean even more money down the drain. Stay within your original plan and you will never run out of money, at least that's the hope.

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