What Is A Prop Bet?

It isn’t difficult to find a sportsbook that offers prop bets. Most retail and online shops—including FanDuel, DraftKings and BetMGM—have robust prop bet menus. Options might vary depending on where you live, but if you’re in a legal sports betting state, chances are some form of prop betting is allowed.

All sportsbooks are different, but when betting online, the easiest way to locate props is to log in to the app, click on the desired game or event, and locate the tab for prop bets. 

Obviously, every sportsbook app has a different interface with different terminology. For example, FanDuel sometimes lists a variety of props under a “Popular” section if a certain game is attracting a sizable number of bettors. 

That said, most betting apps are user-friendly, so once you become familiar with the navigation functions, you shouldn’t have a problem finding where prop bets are housed.

Almost anything can be offered as a prop, which opens the door for some intriguing and occasionally bizarre bets. Here are four common types of prop bets:

Player Props

A player prop is as simple as it sounds. It’s based on how a certain player will perform. It can be anything from how many touchdowns an NFL quarterback will throw in a game (or entire season) to the number of assists a starting point guard will finish with in an NBA contest. 

More often than not, player props incorporate a total with an “Over” and “Under.”

Example: Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry is facing the Phoenix Suns. A sportsbook might offer a prop on the total points Curry will score in the game. Let’s say oddsmakers set that total at 31.5. Bettors can wager if Curry will tally more than 31.5 points (Over) or fewer than 31.5 points (Under).

All props have odds (or “juice”) attached to the number. So using the above example involving Curry, Over 31.5 points might have -105 odds, while Under 31.5 points has -115 odds. Here’s what that means in real-money terms: 

If you think Curry will score at least 32 points against Phoenix, you would wager $105 to win $100 (or, say, $10.50 to win $10) on the Over. If you believe Curry will finish with 31 points or fewer, you would wager $115 to win $100 (or $11.50 to win $10) on the Under.

Of course, this is just one of countless examples of player props offered at sportsbooks. Simply put, if a prop can be applied to a player’s performance, chances are oddsmakers will post it on their betting board.

Game Props

While player props focus solely on individual performance, game props—again, as the name suggests—are tied to team-based outcomes. 

A game prop is something as simple as choosing which MLB team will score the first run of a game or whether the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles will go Over or Under a certain number of combined passing yards. 

Much like player props, game props usually involve betting on an Over or an Under. But they can also include “Yes/No” situations, such as picking if either goaltender will post a shutout in an NHL game.

Team Props

Team props are similar to game props, except for one key distinction: You’re betting on the performance of just one team instead of both. 

There are several reasons why bettors would opt to wager on a team prop instead of a game prop. Perhaps their research turns up more conclusive data on one specific team and/or situation. For instance, Team A leads the NFL in sacks and is facing Team B, whose offensive line ranks near the bottom in sacks allowed. It would make more sense to bet on Team A going Over 2.5 sacks than both teams going Over 4.5 sacks. 

Another reason to side with a team prop instead of a game prop: You simply want to bet on your team to do something positive and not have to cheer for the opposition to do the same to help your wager cash. 

Let’s say you’re a Chicago Cubs fan, and the Cubs are facing their bitter rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals. Instead of betting on the Cubs and Cardinals Over 8.5 runs (game prop), you could bet on Chicago to score Over 4.5 runs by themselves (team prop).

Other examples of team props include betting the Milwaukee Bucks to go Over their number of team rebounds or picking the team that will lead at halftime of the Super Bowl.

Novelty Props

This is where prop betting gets interesting. Novelty props often show up ahead of big sporting events, such as the Super Bowl. They typically have nothing to do with the game itself and focus more on unique markets, including coin tosses, halftime performances and everything in between. 

Examples of popular Super Bowl novelty props include: predicting the color of Gatorade that will be dumped on the winning coach; predicting which coach will be the first to call a timeout; and wagering on how long it takes the National Anthem performer to finish the song.

One of the more bizarre Super Bowl-related novelty props that pops up annually at  unregulated overseas sportsbooks has to do with whether or not a streaker will run onto the field. (Yes, people really do bet on this.)

One important note regarding novelty props: Sportsbooks typically offer lower limits—that is, the amount of money they’ll allow a customer to wager—compared with other props.

Now that you know the types of props offered in most North American betting markets, let’s discuss how to bet props across various sports. 

NFL

An example of an NFL player prop bet: Total rushing yards for Baltimore running back Derrick Henry versus the Jacksonville Jaguars. You might see this prop listed at 79.5 yards, with -120 odds on the Over and +100 odds on the Under. 

Henry is one of the league’s best running backs, so your initial instinct might be to bet the Over (despite the elevated odds of -120). But before doing so, you would be wise to do some quick, easy research.

For instance, how many times this season has Henry rushed for at least 80 yards? How good were the defenses he faced when he did so? How good is Jacksonville’s defense when it comes to stopping the run? And how has Henry performed historically against the Jaguars?

The answers to those questions might affirm your decision to bet Over 79.5 yards—or convince you that the Under is the stronger play.

MLB

One of the more popular MLB props asks bettors to answer a question: Will Player X hit a home run in a game? Sportsbooks offer a menu featuring multiple players for every game, and each player will carry plus-money odds (i.e., +300, +550, +750, etc.).

Those odds will fluctuate based on a player’s propensity for hitting home runs. So, for instance, Toronto Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and New York Yankees big man Aaron Judge might be +320 to hit a homer. Conversely, a contact hitter who rarely hits the ball out of the ballpark might have +800 odds.

Using this example, the same $100 prop wager has two different potential payouts: $320 for Guerrero and Judge, and $600 for the contact hitter.

NBA

A prop market that’s become increasingly popular among NBA bettors is “first basket” betting. Similar to home run props in baseball (and touchdown props in football), bettors can choose a player on either team to score the first basket of a game. Called “index props,” these wagers feature odds that vary based on the player’s scoring abilities.

Bettors can get even more specific by choosing the method of the first basket (three-pointer, dunk, etc.).

These index props are almost always offered at plus-money odds. The reason: They’re very difficult to hit.

NHL

Two examples of popular NHL prop bets include choosing if a player will score a goal (Yes/No) and wagering on the total number of points a player will score in a game (Over/Under).  

The goal-scoring prop gives bettors the chance to wager “Yes” (at plus odds) or “No” (at minus odds). The better the goal scorer, the shorter the odds, and vice versa. Example: Edmonton Oilers goal-scoring machine Connor McDavid might have Yes/No odds of +180/-220, while a random defenseman who rarely puts the puck in the net might have Yes/No odds of +400/-600.

As for the points prop, bettors can choose to bet on a player to go Over or Under the total number of points (combined goals and assists). That number is almost always 1.5. Once again, plus/minus odds are involved with his particular prop, but the gap is much narrower than the goal-scoring prop. (For instance, Over 1.5 points might be -115 and Under 1.5 points could be -105. Or it could be Over 1.5 points +105/Under 1.5 points -125).

Other Sports

Below are examples of prop bets you can find in other popular sports: 

• Golf: Will any golfer make a hole-in-one during a four-day tournament (Yes/No)? How many major titles will Scottie Scheffler win in 2024 (Over/Under)?
• NASCAR: How many wins will Kyle Busch have during the 2022 NASCAR season (Over/Under)? Which car manufacturer will win the Daytona 500? Which driver will lead the most laps in a race?
• UFC: Which method of victory (KO/TKO, submission, decision) will Conor McGregor use to defeat Michael Chandler? Will a given fight go the distance (Yes/No)?
• Tennis: How many sets will it take Rafael Nadal to defeat Roger Federer (Over/Under? Will Coco Gauff win a set against Iga Swiatek (Yes/No)?

In general, prop bets are no easier to win than a moneyline bet.

So why would a sports bettor elect to wager on props instead of the traditional full game/event? For starters, stress management.

If you bet on the outcome of a full game, you often have to sweat things out until the bitter end. But if you wager on just one element of the contest—say, a specific player’s or team’s performance—you might know if your bet is a winner or loser very early on.

Let’s return to the home run example: If Aaron Judge goes deep in his first at-bat against the Boston Red Sox, you know you’ve got yourself a winner. But if you bet on the Yankees to beat Boston, you have to sit through nine innings (and sometimes more) before you know the result.  

Another advantage of prop bets: more options. There are only so many games/events in a given day or week. But within those games/events, there are dozens of props. More options mean more opportunities for astute bettors to exploit what they perceive to be bad numbers and/or odds.

Long-term success in sports betting comes down to value. And most of the time, it’s easier to find value on props than traditional moneyline bets (who will win the game) or totals wagers (will the game go Over or Under a number).

Also, as mentioned earlier, many sportsbooks allow customers to include props in parlays (including props from the same game).  Yes, it’s tougher to hit a multi-leg parlay than a straight bet, but they can be fun (and quite lucrative). Plus, if you’re on a budget, parlays allow you to risk less money to potentially win more.

Finally, prop bets can create (and maintain) interest in a game that’s destined to be a blowout. For example, if the best and worst NFL teams are playing against each other, what’s more fun (and less stressful)—laying 14.5 points with the favorite and waiting to see if they can win by at least 15 points or taking your chances with a player or team-based performance prop?

Betting on the Super Bowl is fun, but you can increase that enjoyment when you’re doing it with friends, family or even co-workers. Enter the Super Bowl prop sheet. 

This is a collection of props collected from various sources, such as online sportsbooks. Most of the props should have 50/50 odds or simple “Yes/No” options. 

Every guest at your Super Bowl party can fill out the sheet prior to the game, with each correct answer earning one point. Whoever has the most points when the game ends wins. 

Some people enjoy wagering money when doing these, while others participate just for fun. Either way, Super Bowl prop sheets level the playing field—in fact, it’s not uncommon for someone who has never placed a sports bet to defeat a roomful of so-called experts.

One common thing some new bettors ask is, “What is a +750 prop bet?” They might have seen that number advertised somewhere.

A +750 prop bet refers to the amount of money that you can win if you wager $100 on a given prop bet. An example of this would be if Giannis Antetokounmpo had +750 odds to score the first basket in an NBA game. 

If Antetokounmpo is successful and you wager $100, you’d win $750. The same rules apply to any prop bet, whether it’s +300, +640 or even +10000. If you’re betting $100, replace the “+” with a “$” and that’s how much you could win. 

That rule does not apply to odds with negative signs. Instead, those refer to how much money you must wager to win $100. For example, -150 odds on Novak Djokovic to win Wimbledon means that you need to bet $150 to win $100.