Parlay Betting Explained:What Is a Parlay?
What Is a Parlay Bet?
A parlay bet is a type of wager that aggregates two or more individual bets into one single bet. The challenge here is that every single individual bet included in the parlay must win for the overall bet to succeed. The advantage of bundling bets together is the possibility of earning a higher payout, as parlay winnings are generally significantly greater than standard bet payouts.
Let’s examine some examples that illustrate how parlays operate and what kind of payouts they may offer.
Examples of Parlay Bets

Two-Leg Parlay
The most straightforward parlay bet is a two-leg parlay, which brings together two choices into one wager. For instance, if you favor the Kansas City Chiefs to win by 5.5 points and the New York Jets as 3-point underdogs,
If the betting odds for both teams are -110, you could wager $110 to earn $100 on each team individually. Alternatively, you could place a $100 parlay bet on both Kansas City and New York, which would yield a payout of $264.46, should both teams emerge victorious at +264 odds.

Three-Leg Parlay
As you incorporate additional bets into your parlay, both the inherent risk and potential reward become augmented. Imagine when you decide to combine these three baseball selections:
- New York Yankees -135 vs Baltimore Orioles
- Colorado Rockies +125 at San Francisco Giants
- Pittsburgh Pirates versus Chicago Cubs OVER 8.5 Runs (-110)
By merging these three selections into a three-leg parlay, you could see a notable payout of +647, meaning a $100 bet would generate a profit of $647.

Are Accumulators and Parlays One and the Same?
Indeed, the terms accumulators and parlays describe the same betting concept. 'Parlay' is a terminology commonly used in the United States and Canada, while 'accumulator' is more frequently heard in the United Kingdom and other regions.
Types of Parlay Bets
There is a variety of parlay bets out there. Though they all involve the combination of bets, each type comes with unique rules regarding the events included or how they are assessed. In this segment, we will outline the most prevalent variations of sports parlays.
Multiple Event Parlays
The most frequently encountered type of parlay is the multiple event parlay, where two or more short-term events are combined into a single wager. It's important to note that multiple event parlay betting can involve different types of bets, including spreads , moneylines , totals, props and may also span across various sports. However, you cannot directly include correlated events, such as betting on the same team to win both on the moneyline and against the spread.
Certain sportsbooks enable you to mix various spread bets from different games to assemble a teaser bets and sweetheart teasers .
Same-Game Parlays
Same-game parlays (SGPs) permit you to gather results from the same game into one single bet. Often, forming an SGP with interconnected legs can be a smart approach. Let’s take an NBA scenario to depict this. proposition bets The selections in the above SGP complement each other well. For instance, a high-scoring performance from Currey works harmoniously with the total points surpassing expectations, the Warriors claiming victory, and Butler accumulating assists.
- Golden State Warriors to Win
- OVER 208 Points
- Steph Curry Over 26.5 Points
- Jimmy Butler 5+ Assists
Creating same-game parlays and reviewing their potential payouts is effortless with a prop builder like the one available at

Prop Builders
. By simply clicking or tapping on your choices, your bet slip will refresh to display the new betting odds. If you input the aforementioned parlay into the Bovada prop builder, you could place this four-leg same-game parlay at +345. Bovada Sportsbook In contrast to conventional parlays, progressive parlays offer players a cushion for mistakes by paying out at a reduced rate if one or more legs do not succeed. The payout structure and rules for progressive parlays can differ across sportsbooks, but here’s an example of how they might be structured:
Progressive Parlays
7-Leg Progressive Parlay: +4000 if all seven picks win, +100 if six win, a refund if five win, and a loss if four or fewer win.
- The number of legs included in a progressive parlay impacts the potential payouts. It also dictates how many legs can be counted as losses while still ensuring that the parlay pays out.
A round-robin parlay is a type of wager that allows bettors to create smaller parlays from three or more selections. For example, let’s say you want to create a series of parlays for today's MLB games, and you choose four top teams: the Atlanta Braves, Boston Red Sox, Texas Rangers, and Philadelphia Phillies.
Round-Robin Parlay
Organizing these four teams into a two-team round-robin would result in six different parlay combinations:
Using the Round Robin feature on your betting slip on a platform like the
- Atlanta and Boston
- Atlanta and Texas
- Atlanta and Philadelphia
- Boston and Texas
- Boston and Philadelphia
- Texas and Philadelphia

Bet Slip
simplifies the process of creating these selections into their respective parlays. BetOnline Sportsbook BetOnline’s betting interface showcasing a round-robin parlay bet.
Live Parlays
. For example, during halftime of an NBA game, a live parlay would enable you to combine your choices for the total points in the third quarter and the eventual winner of the game. Such parlays are typically found in the live betting sections of events where sportsbooks allow them. live betting Making a parlay bet online is a relatively simple process that we will guide you through step-by-step in the following parlay betting tutorial.
How to Place a Parlay Bet
First, find the sport you wish to bet on in your chosen online sportsbook.
Placing a Parlay Bet Online
Add your selected bets to your betting slip by clicking or tapping on them.
On your bet slip, you have the option to place your bets individually or group them into a parlay by using the 'Parlay' or 'Multi' button.
This function will consolidate your selections into one parlay bet, displaying the odds of that parlay. Enter the amount you wish to wager in the designated area.
Double-check that the amounts for risk and potential winnings appear accurate, and then click the 'Place Your Bet' button to finalize your parlay wager.
If you choose to place a parlay bet at a physical sportsbook using a kiosk, the procedure will be identical to the online steps mentioned above. To place a parlay wager with a live ticket writer, simply inform them that you want to place a parlay and share your bets. They will input it for you and provide you with the odds before confirming the bet and printing your ticket.
Placing a Parlay Bet in Person
Enhance Your Parlays with Tips from The Sports Geek
The Sports Geek offers free daily sports picks featuring the top bets curated by our AI gambling expert, the Geek. Discover picks against the spread, moneylines, and over/under for every contest.
See All AI PicksHow to Calculate Parlay Bet Payouts
To exemplify how to compute parlays, let’s consider this NHL parlay where these three moneylines are all set at +100 (betting $100 to win $100).
Bet 1: $100 to win $100 on Los Angeles = $200 total if the Kings score a win, which then rolls into the next bet.
- Bet 2: $200 to win $200 on Chicago = $400 total if the Blackhawks emerge victorious, which rolls over.
- Bet 3: $400 to win $400 on Colorado = $800 total if the Avalanche are successful.
- When parlaying three +100 selections together, you achieve a +700 parlay, meaning a $100 bet could yield a profit of $700, culminating in the $800 total outlined previously.
Now that you understand the mechanics of calculating parlay bets, let's explore the advantages and disadvantages of this betting style.
Parlay bets do not inherently lean towards good or bad. If executed properly, they can serve as a profitable and valuable betting tactic. Let's highlight some benefits associated with parlay betting.
Pros of Parlay Betting
One of the most attractive aspects of parlays is their capacity for substantial payouts. Imagine having a perfect betting day on a Sunday: scoring a flawless 10-0 against the spread on ten choices. If you placed a total of $100, wagering $10 to win $9.09 on each game at -110 odds, you would gain a profit of $90.90. Conversely, that same $100 on a successful 10-team parlay would net you an astonishing payout of $64,208.

Opportunity for Bigger Wins
Orange bonus icon representing a present wrapped in gift paper. NFL betting Online sportsbooks are well aware of the attraction that parlay bets hold for sports bettors. Many online betting platforms offer promotions related to parlays

Parlay Promotions
These promotional offers enhance the value of your parlay bets, with benefits such as enhanced odds and free entries for winning prizes. betting promotions Here are a few illustrations of the parlay promotions currently offered on various sites:
Odds Boosts: The 'Odds Boost' page on platforms like BetUS and BetOnline refreshes daily with new offerings of boosted odds, including parlays. For instance, they might present a same-game parlay for the Houston Astros winning along with Kyle Tucker hitting a home run—regularly priced at +385, but boosted up to +440, adding extra value to your bet.
Parlay Booster: Bovada’s parlay boosters function similarly to the above-mentioned odds boosts, but they cover a broader array of bets that include single sport, cross-sport, and same-game parlays, all at improved pricing. top recommended sports betting sites :
BetUS Sportsbook and BetOnline Sportsbook Parlay Free Bet Promotions: Everygame provides various parlay promotions throughout the year, often centered around earning free bets. For example, if you lose a parlay with four or more selections, only losing one leg may get you entered into a draw for a $50 free bet. Additionally, the month’s top winner from a parlay will receive an extra $1,000 bonus. Promotions like these allow you to earn free bet credits while engaging in parlay wagers.
Bovada Sportsbook Orange icon displaying a percentage sign.
Everygame Sportsbook Expected Value, or 'EV', quantifies the potential positive or negative outcome to be expected when betting on a specific event. You can think of it like a coin toss where both outcomes pay +100. If you wager $100 on heads repeatedly for 100 flips, you would predictably win half the time and lose half the time, resulting in a 0 EV situation, or a fair bet:
Positive EV Explained

How Value Works
Grasping Value in Sports Betting
Orange icon illustrating a dollar sign with an arrow indicating value.

Understanding Betting Systems: A Beginner's Overview
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- 25 wins at $341 each = +$8,525
- 75 losses at $100 each = -$7,500
- Parlay betting offers a thrilling and engaging way to place wagers on sports. It enables you to merge several bets into a single wager, which can lead to larger payouts compared to betting on each event separately. In this guide to parlay betting, we'll explore the concept of a parlay bet, the different types available, strategies for effective parlay betting, and all essential details you need to get started.
- A parlay bet is essentially a wager that merges two or more single bets into one. The key aspect here is that all the separate bets included in the parlay must win for the entire bet to be considered successful. The potential for greater rewards comes with the risk of combining these bets. Payouts from parlays can be significantly more profitable than those from standard single bets.
Let’s examine a few scenarios to better understand how parlays work and how their payouts are determined.
The most basic form of a parlay bet is known as a two-leg parlay, which integrates two picks into one betting slip. For instance, let's assume you favor the Kansas City Chiefs, who are 5.5-point favorites, and you believe the New York Jets will do well as 3-point underdogs.

Negative Value is Multiplied
If both teams are priced at -110 odds, you could wager $110 to win $100 on each bet separately. Alternatively, you might choose to place a $100 bet on a parlay involving both Kansas City and New York, which could yield a payout of $264.46 if both teams triumph at odds of +264.
- 50 wins at $100 each = +$5,000
- 50 losses at $110 each = -$5,500
- As you increase the number of selections in your parlay, the associated risk and potential payout both increase. For example, imagine you want to combine these three baseball bets:
Pittsburgh Pirates at Chicago Cubs OVER 8.5 Runs (-110)
- 25 wins at $264.46 each = +$6,611.50
- 75 losses at $100 each = -$7,500
- By consolidating these three bets into a three-leg parlay, you could see a substantial payout of +647, meaning a $100 stake could result in $647 in profit.

High Variance
Are Parlays and Accumulators Identical?
Indeed, parlays and accumulators refer to the same betting concept. The term 'parlay' is frequently used in the United States and Canada, while 'accumulator' is more commonly found in the UK and other regions.
Parlay Bet Strategy
Numerous variations of parlay bets exist. Although they all entail the combination of multiple wagers, each type may have unique rules regarding the events included or how they are evaluated. This section lists the most well-known variations of sports parlays. Multiple event parlays are the most prevalent form, involving two or more short-term events in a single wager. Note that these parlays can incorporate various bet types such as and they may feature events from disparate sports. However, you cannot incorporate directly correlated occurrences, such as betting on the same team to win both on the moneyline and against the spread.
1.Some betting platforms allow you to merge different spread bets from various games into
Let’s say you are handicapping an NBA game Same-game parlays (SGPs) enable you to fuse outcomes and
from the same event into a single bet. Often, constructing an SGP with related bets is a savvy approach. Let's use an example from the NBA to elaborate.
2.Build Around Key Selections
The four selections of the above SGP complement each other well. For instance, Curry racking up points aligns nicely with a high game total, the victory of the Warriors, and Butler accumulating assists.
Creating same-game parlays and evaluating their potential payouts is straightforward with a prop builder, like the one on
. Just select your choices, and your betting slip will automatically adjust with the new pricing. Using the previous parlay on the Bovada prop builder, you can place a four-leg same-game parlay at +345.
3.Stick to Smaller Parlays
In contrast to standard parlays, progressive parlays offer players some leeway by providing reduced payouts if one or more selections do not win. The payouts and rules for progressive parlays can differ across sportsbooks. Here’s a hypothetical payout structure:
7-Leg Progressive Parlay: +4000 if all seven selections win, +100 if six win, money refunded if five win, a loss if four or fewer win.
Should You Place Parlay Bets?
The number of selections in a progressive parlay directly influences potential payouts, as it determines how many legs can be counted as losses while still allowing for a payout. sports betting strategy A round-robin parlay allows you to split three or more selections into smaller parlay combinations. For instance, suppose you want to craft multiple parlays for today’s MLB matches. Let’s say you pick your top four teams: the Atlanta Braves, Boston Red Sox, Texas Rangers, and Philadelphia Phillies.
Organizing these four selections into a two-team parlay round-robin would create six unique parlays: Bovada Sportsbook Utilizing the Round Robin functionality on your betting slip from a platform such as
makes it easy to distribute these selections into individual parlays.
Online Sportsbooks A betting slip from BetOnline showcasing a round-robin parlay.
Sports Betting Strategy Live parlays function similarly to standard and same-game parlays, but the choices are made based on events happening in real-time through
Betting Apps . For example, at halftime of an NBA match, a live parlay would allow you to merge predictions regarding the third-quarter total and the overall game winner. These betting options are usually available in the live betting segments of events that sportsbooks facilitate.
Sportsbook Bonuses Placing a parlay bet online is quite simple, and we’ll guide you through the process step-by-step in the parlay betting tutorial below.
Legality of Sports Betting Browse to the sport you wish to place bets on in your chosen online sportsbook.
Understanding Odds Add your selections to your betting slip by clicking or tapping them.
Sports Betting Math On your betting slip, you can choose to place individual bets on your selections or group them into a parlay by utilizing the \"Parlay\" or \"Multi\" button.
Sports Betting Units This button consolidates all your selections into a single parlay bet and displays the corresponding odds. Enter the amount you plan to wager in the designated box.
Sports Betting Systems Verify that your risk and potential winnings are accurate, then click the 'Place Your Bet' button to confirm your parlay stake.
Hedge Betting If you’re placing a parlay bet at a physical sportsbook kiosk, the process mirrors the steps outlined for online betting. To bet with a live ticket writer, just indicate to them that you wish to make a parlay and provide your selections. They will enter it for you and inform you of the odds on your parlay before finalizing the bet and printing your ticket.
Esports Betting Sites Elevate Your Parlays with The Sports Geek’s Recommendations
Betting Calculator The Sports Geek’s complimentary sports picks include daily top bets generated by our AI betting expert, the Geek. Discover picks across various formats including spreads, moneylines, and over/under for every game.
Parlay Betting FAQs
To demonstrate how to calculate a parlay, consider this NHL example where all three moneylines are set at +100 (bet $100 to win $100).
Bet 2: Wager $200 to win $200 on Chicago = $400 total if the Blackhawks prevail, rolling over again.
Bet 3: Wager $400 to win $400 on Colorado = $800 total if the Avalanche wins.
- Baltimore and Los Angeles
- Baltimore and Houston
- Los Angeles and Houston
Combining three +100 picks results in a +700 parlay, meaning a $100 wager could return $700, culminating in the total of $800 as shown.Now that you're familiar with how to calculate parlay bets, let's explore the advantages and disadvantages of parlay betting.
- Parlay bets are not inherently advantageous or disadvantageous. When executed correctly, they can be a profitable and appealing betting strategy. Let's discuss some of the benefits associated with parlay betting.
- The most evident allure of parlays is their capacity for massive wins. Imagine experiencing the perfect
Some sportsbooks, such as Bovada Sportsbook Sunday: an impeccable 10-0 against the spread with your ten selections. If you had engaged $100 and placed flat bets of $10 aiming to win $9.09 at -110 odds on all ten games, you would have seen a profit of $90.90. However, that same $100 bet on a winning 10-team parlay could potentially bring in a staggering payout of $64,208.
Online sportsbooks are well aware of the popularity of parlays among bettors. As a result, many online sports betting platforms promote parlay
to encourage gamblers to choose their service over competing sites.
- These promotions offer players additional value for their parlay bets through enhancements like increased odds and opportunities to win prizes.
- Here are a few examples of parlay promotions currently available at some of our
Odds Boosts: The \"Odds Boost\" section on sites like BetUS and BetOnline presents daily events with enhanced odds, including parlays. For instance, they might offer a same-game parlay for the Houston Astros to win alongside Kyle Tucker hitting a home run, which usually pays +385, with boosted odds rising to +440, giving you additional returns on your wager.
Parlay Booster: Bovada’s parlay boosters function similarly to the aforementioned odds boosts but feature a broader selection that encompasses single-sport, multi-sport, and same-game parlays at improved rates.
In most cases, you can parlay prop bets Parlay Free Bet Promotions: Everygame frequently runs various parlay promotions throughout the year, primarily centered around earning free bets. For example, losing a parlay that contains four or more legs with only one selection losing can enter you into a drawing for a $50 free bet. Meanwhile, monthly, the player who profits the most from a parlay will receive an extra $1,000 bonus. Promotions like these allow you to accumulate free bet credits while engaging in your parlay picks.
An orange icon portraying a percentage symbol. three-way moneylines in soccer .
Expected value, or \"EV,\" quantifies the anticipated positive or negative return you can expect from placing a bet on a specific event. Think of it like flipping a coin, where both sides pay +100. If you wager $100 on heads 100 times, you'd statistically win about 50 times and lose 50 times, resulting in a 0 EV, which is an even-money scenario:
Grasping Value in Sports Betting
Amplifying Value in Positive EV Bets with Parlays
