Live arbitrage betting requires speed and efficiency. To be successful, you have to place specific wagers on both sides of a bet. If you place your bet on the first side, but are slow to place the bet on the other side, then the arb opportunity may disappear, and you will be left open to taking a significant loss. To help you avoid this situation, I’ve put together some tips and best practices for successfully arbing.
Always have multiple screens
Using multiple screens is crucial for live arbitrage betting. The reason is because you need a full screen to view the DoubleDownOdds board, which provides the arbing opportunities, and another screen with your selected sportsbooks. I personally like to use a PC for betting, so I have a dual monitor setup. Some people like to solely use phones and switch between apps, while others prefer a mixture of web browser and phone apps. It’s up to your own preference, but I would recommend at least using a PC monitor to view the DoubleDownOdds board of games.
Arbitrage betting opportunities don’t last long
Staying alert and ready is critical. Depending on the specific sport or night, you may only have a handful of live arbing opportunities. For example, if I can successfully get 8 MLB arbs in the span of 6 hours, I’m typically pretty happy. I like to have something mindless in the background like a baseball game or YouTube video, but I always have the DoubleDownOdds board in my peripheral. Arbs can be rare and typically only last on the board for 5-8 seconds. They almost never stay up for more than 20 seconds, so precision and quick action are key. Attacking an arb right when you see it is very important to your success. Like I mentioned, the last thing you want is to place one side of the wager, only to have the opportunity go away before making the other bet.
Use the “Live Tab” on sportsbooks
The “Live Tab” on sportsbooks was a game changer for me. It puts up every game that’s currently live with the mainlines, and it gives you easy access to any live arb opportunity. When live arbing, always have this section up, and make sure to click on and off a bet every couple of minutes to stay logged in.
Keep a notebook
As mentioned in another tutorial, using a notebook to keep track of your arbs is vital to account health and understanding your own profits. I like to hand write each bet I place to know what I have going on at each sportsbook and to keep track of how much I will make after each bet. My notes also help me remember who I bet on, so I am not betting against myself with a different wager.
For example, if I track in my notebook that I bet the Syracuse Orange ML on DraftKings and the Pittsburgh Panthers ML on FanDuel, and a arbitrage betting opportunity comes up for Syracuse Orange ML on FanDuel, I will know not to bet it immediately, because my notebook indicates not to, so I don’t bet against myself on FanDuel and risk a limit.
EXAMPLE
Practice makes perfect for live arbitrage betting
As many have mentioned, it’s wise to start out small to get the hang of how to arb. The reason for that is so you’re not risking a bunch of money on something you’re not familiar with. I would suggest starting out by wagering $1-$5 per bet, even if you have a large bankroll, until you feel like you are getting the hang of it. It’s better to be sure what you’re doing before risking too much of your hard earned cash.
Recognize patterns
You’ll start to notice patterns with each book, whether it’s which lines shift quicker, which books are more square, or which books make it easier to hit successful arbs. Over time and with experience you will see these patterns, and you can make inferences on which team is most wise to bet first, based on that pattern.
For example, currently with baseball I’ve noticed that FanDuel shifts their lines before Caesars has a chance to. Because of that, I always try to bet on FanDuel first, and if I’m successful, I normally don’t have any issue with getting my Caesars bet down.
Hunt for low percentages
The DoubleDownOdds software has a tab where it says the profit gain or loss based on each arb opportunity. I like to focus on games with arb opportunities between -1.5%-0.0%. The reason for closely watching these games is because they may present a greater opportunity for an arb, because they are already close to being at a profitable percentage.
For example if the percentage is already sub -1.5% profit, and a team gets a single in an MLB game, that may be enough for a book to send the game into a profitable margin based on which side shifts their line first. By monitoring these games you have a better opportunity to strike before the odds shift to being unprofitable again.
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