How Parlays Are Priced

Why parlay odds multiply, what a push does to a parlay, and why the sportsbook's margin compounds on every leg.

A parlay combines several bets into one ticket that only pays if every leg wins. The sportsbook prices it by multiplying the decimal odds of each leg.

The pricing formula

parlay decimal = decimal₁ × decimal₂ × … × decimalₙ
payout = stake × parlay decimal
profit = payout − stake

Worked example: three -110 legs

Each -110 leg is 1.9091 in decimal. Multiply three of them to get 6.9579, or about +596. A $100 stake returns $695.79, a $595.79 profit. Another classic: legs at -300, -200, and -150 multiply to 3.333, which is +233.

Why the house edge gets bigger

If each leg were a true 50/50, three legs would all win 12.5% of the time, so a fair price is 8.00 decimal (+700). The book pays 6.9579 instead — a 13.0% hold, roughly three times the 4.55% on a single -110 bet. Vig compounds on every leg you add.

What happens on a push

A pushed leg (a tie against the number) is dropped, which is the same as multiplying by 1.00. The ticket is graded on the remaining legs at lower odds. If every leg pushes, the ticket is void and your stake is refunded.

• More legs means a bigger potential payout and a smaller chance of cashing.
• Correlated legs may be restricted or priced differently by some sportsbooks.