RizonHow do sportsbooks make money? The vig, the hold, and being on that side
US sportsbooks kept 10.16% of the money they took in 2025. Where that comes from, why parlays pay them most, and what collecting the spread looks like.
Short answer: A sportsbook charges a built-in fee called the vig. At -110 on both sides it takes in $220, pays the winner $210 and keeps $10, about 4.5% of what it takes in if the two sides balance. In practice US sportsbooks kept more: $16.96 billion on $166.94 billion in 2025, or 10.16%. Most of the gap is parlays. On an order book the same job is open to anyone: you quote both sides and collect the spread, and you take the risk the sportsbook takes.
The vig
Say a game's total is 46.5, at -110 on the over and -110 on the under.
| Over | Under | Sportsbook | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Takes in ($) | 110 | 110 | 220 |
| Winner gets back ($) | 210 | 210 | |
| Keeps ($) | 10 |
That $10 on $220 is 4.5%, and it doesn't matter who wins. It's why the break-even win rate is 52.4% rather than 50%. If the money doesn't balance, the book is exposed to the result, so it moves the line or the price, or holds the risk because it thinks it knows better.
What they actually keep
The share a book keeps is called its hold. Real hold runs well above 4.5%, and the difference is in what people buy.
| Where | On | Hold (%) |
|---|---|---|
| All US commercial sportsbooks, 2025 | Everything | 10.16 |
| New Jersey, 2025 | Everything except parlays | 4.9 |
| New Jersey, 2025 | Parlays | 19.2 |
| Illinois, 2025 | Parlays | 18.3 |
| Nevada, 2025 | Paper parlay cards | 32.59 |
New Jersey's figures are unaudited. A parlay multiplies the vig on each leg, which is why it's the most profitable thing a sportsbook sells.
The part that isn't the vig
A sportsbook doesn't have to take every customer. Massachusetts regulators heard in 2025 that players who consistently beat the closing line are likely to "have their limit lowered", and its minutes record patrons being limited without notification. So a book can cut off the customers who are winning. That's a real advantage on top of the price, and one an exchange doesn't have.
Being on that side
If you've looked at a sportsbook's numbers and wondered how to collect instead of pay, the honest route is an order book. Anyone can rest a bid and an ask, and the person who crosses them pays the spread.
| Sportsbook | Market maker on an order book | |
|---|---|---|
| Earns | The vig | The spread, plus any maker rebates |
| Who takes the other side | Whoever it accepts | Whoever hits your quote |
| Worst risk | Sharp customers | Being picked off when you're slow or wrong |
| Can turn away winners | Yes | No |
| Sets the line by | Traders and models | Your own quotes |
The research on prediction markets points the same way: on Polymarket, one study of 588 million trades found "successful traders provide liquidity using limit orders ... while unsuccessful traders take liquidity using market orders". It isn't free money. Here's how the sums work, including how makers lose.
You can try it with nothing at risk on Thanksgiving's NFL games: rest your own total or spread in the book with practice money, and see who takes it.
FAQ
How much do sportsbooks make?
US commercial sportsbooks made $16.96 billion in revenue in 2025 on $166.94 billion taken in, according to the American Gaming Association. That's before taxes and costs, and leaves out tribal sportsbooks.
What is hold?
The share of the money taken in that the book keeps after paying winners. At -110 on balanced action it's about 4.5%. Across the US in 2025 it was 10.16%.
Do sportsbooks want you to lose?
They want the vig, and they're happiest with lots of customers paying it. A customer who consistently beats the line costs them money, which is why books limit winners.
Why do sportsbooks push parlays?
Because they hold far more: 19.2% in New Jersey in 2025, against 4.9% on everything else.
Can you be your own sportsbook?
Running one legally takes a licence. Quoting prices on an order book doesn't, on venues that allow it, and that's the same job done from the other side. Kalshi and others have maker programs, and it's free to practice on Rizon.