Juice is simply another term for the vig — the sportsbook's built-in commission on every bet. The two terms mean the same thing and are used interchangeably depending on who you're talking to.
What Juice Looks Like in Practice
A standard spread bet priced at -110 both ways illustrates juice directly:
If you bet $110 on Team A and your friend bets $110 on Team B, the sportsbook holds $220. The winner receives $210 ($110 stake + $100 profit). The book keeps $10 — that $10 is the juice, collected regardless of who wins.
Over thousands of bets across their customer base, this per-bet fee generates the sportsbook's profit.
Why Juice Changes Everything
At -110 juice, breaking even requires winning 52.38% of bets, not 50%. That 2.38% gap is the juice's cost. A bettor winning 50% of games — which feels like flipping a coin — is actually losing at a rate of roughly $4.55 per $100 wagered.
Reduced Juice Books
Some books offer reduced juice on standard spreads — often -105 instead of -110. At -105, your break-even rate drops to 51.22%. This difference seems small but compounds significantly over hundreds of bets. A bettor making 500 bets per year saves roughly $200-300 by consistently getting -105 instead of -110, with zero change in pick quality.
Look for reduced juice options when line shopping before major games.
[Find the lowest juice available on any bet with Oddible's line comparison →]
