About
The Odds API is a comprehensive sports betting odds data platform designed for developers, analysts, and sports betting enthusiasts who need accurate, up-to-date odds from bookmakers around the world. Since 2017, the service has aggregated odds data from over 40 major bookmakers across the US, UK, EU, and Australia — including DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, William Hill, Pinnacle, and more. The API covers over 70 sports, spanning American football (NFL, NCAA), soccer (EPL, La Liga, Champions League), basketball (NBA, NCAA), baseball (MLB), ice hockey (NHL), cricket, rugby, golf, tennis, and even political betting markets. For each sport, it offers multiple betting market types including head-to-head (moneyline), point spreads, totals (over/under), futures (outrights), and player props for select sports and bookmakers. Data is delivered in JSON format and supports both decimal and American odds formats. Developers can integrate directly via the REST API, while non-technical users can leverage dedicated add-ons for Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel. The service offers a free starter plan with 500 monthly credits, making it accessible for small projects and testing, with scalable paid tiers for production-grade applications. The Odds API is particularly well-suited for building odds comparison sites, sports analytics tools, automated betting trackers, and data-driven fantasy sports platforms.
Key Features
- Global Bookmaker Coverage: Aggregates odds from 40+ bookmakers across the US, UK, EU, and Australia including DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, William Hill, Pinnacle, and Betfair.
- 70+ Sports Covered: Provides odds for a wide range of sports including NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, soccer leagues worldwide, golf majors, tennis Grand Slams, cricket, rugby, and political markets.
- Multiple Betting Markets: Supports head-to-head (moneyline), point spreads, totals (over/under), outrights (futures), player props, and alternate lines for select sports and bookmakers.
- Flexible Data Access: Delivers data in JSON format via REST API with support for decimal and American odds formats, plus dedicated add-ons for Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel for non-developers.
- Historical Odds Data: All paid plans include access to historical odds data, enabling backtesting, trend analysis, and sports betting research.
Use Cases
- Building sports odds comparison websites that aggregate lines from multiple bookmakers in real time.
- Developing automated betting alert systems that notify users when odds shift beyond a specified threshold.
- Conducting historical odds analysis and backtesting betting strategies using archived bookmaker data.
- Integrating live sports odds into fantasy sports platforms, dashboards, or analytics applications.
- Creating Excel or Google Sheets-based models for personal sports betting research without writing code.
Pros
- Extensive Coverage: With 70+ sports and 40+ bookmakers, it offers one of the broadest odds datasets available through a single API endpoint.
- Easy Integration: Well-documented API with code samples allows developers to integrate quickly, while Excel and Google Sheets add-ons make it accessible to non-technical users.
- Free Tier Available: A free starter plan with 500 monthly credits allows developers and analysts to test the service and build small projects at no cost.
- Established and Reliable: Operating since 2017, The Odds API has a proven track record with continuous expansion of sports, bookmakers, and betting markets.
Cons
- Credit-Based Billing Can Be Unpredictable: Usage is measured in credits rather than simple API calls, which can make it harder to estimate monthly costs for high-frequency or complex queries.
- Free Plan Is Very Limited: The free tier offers only 500 credits per month, which is insufficient for production applications or comprehensive data collection.
- Higher Tiers Can Be Costly: For high-volume use cases requiring millions of credits, plans range up to $249/month or more, which may be prohibitive for individual developers or small projects.
Frequently Asked Questions
What sports does The Odds API cover?
The Odds API covers 70+ sports including NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, NCAA football and basketball, soccer (EPL, La Liga, Bundesliga, Champions League, and more), golf, tennis, cricket, rugby, and even political betting markets.
Is there a free plan available?
Yes. The Starter plan is free and includes 500 credits per month, access to most sports and bookmakers, and all betting markets including historical odds. It's ideal for testing and small personal projects.
How does the credit system work?
Each API request consumes a certain number of credits depending on the type of query and the number of bookmakers requested. Paid plans range from 20,000 credits/month ($30) to 15 million credits/month ($249), with higher enterprise tiers available.
Can I use The Odds API without coding?
Yes. The Odds API offers add-ons for Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel, allowing non-developers to pull live sports odds data directly into their spreadsheets without writing any code.
What betting markets and formats are supported?
The API supports head-to-head (moneyline), point spreads, totals (over/under), outrights/futures, and player props for select sports. Data is available in both decimal and American odds formats via JSON.
