What is Buying Points in Sports Betting?

Buying points is an option provided by sportsbooks that allows you to adjust the spreads you wagered on toward a more favorable outcome, albeit for a slightly reduced payout. 

For example, if you were wagering on a 6.5 spread favoring the Miami Dolphins, but the Dolphins failed to deliver the extra point after their game-winning touchdown, you could buy an extra point or half-point to cover the spread, thereby winning your wager.

How do these points work, how viable are they, and should you buy some? Keep reading to find out via this comprehensive in-depth betting guide. 

Buying points is an option that bettors can take to have their bet pull through and cover the spread. Most sportsbooks will charge extra half-points at an extra -10 vig, so if you put -110 down initially, the vig will now be -120.

Doing this can be a useful strategy to win your bet, prevent pushes, or prevent any greater losses that might incur should your bet lose. This can be a particularly good tactic for parlay bets or parlay teaser bets, as it just takes one leg losing to compromise your entire award.

Most major online sportsbooks will offer the option to buy points. Some prominent names in the business where you can buy points include:

Currently, Washington D.C. and over 14 states offer legalized online sports betting markets in the United States. As of writing this, those states include:

Limits on how many buying points a bettor can purchase on their wager all depend on:

The sportsbook being used

The type of sporting event being wagered on

The odds format being factored into the wager

As these situations all vary on a case-by-case basis, it would be wise to review your bet, and the terms and conditions around your sportsbook of choice, very carefully. As these buying points can significantly move betting lines and outcomes of games, it would be wise to know:

What you’re getting into before placing a wager

That buying these points won’t cut into your payout too harshly

That you aren’t wagering more than you’re comfortable wagering

The third is something that should universally apply to any wager you’re considering placing, but especially one that demands you fork over extra to save your final payout. 

Buying points can be brought for a wide range of sports in the betting industry. How they aid certain bets can be summed up as follows:

NFL Live Betting: Buying points in the NFL starts as half points. Key spread movement numbers to watch out for here include 3 (the number of score points guaranteed by a field goal) and 7 (a touchdown and a field goal). 

NHL & MLB Live Betting: Because baseball and hockey are lower scoring sports than football or basketball, buying half points is usually a more expensive endeavor here. However, since points are scanter to come by in these games, they may be a worthy investment.

NBA Live Betting: High scoring points in basketball, so high point buying potential.

NCAA Basketball: There is less leeway for point scoring (and subsequently, point buying) here, as games are 8 minutes shorter than NBA games. However, college basketball will still be vastly higher scoring than other NCAA sports.

NCAA Football: As is the case with NFL football, you can choose to buy half-point increments. Lines can be set very high, however (as much as a 4-5 touchdown variance), so make sure you aren’t spending in excess to cover the spread.

Similar buying point principles apply here in collegiate sports betting, as the popularity and score point rules are fairly similar. However, they are less common in combat sports like UFC, mixed martial arts, and boxing. 

Long story short, it depends with regards to whether or not buying points is worth it. As we got at in the NFL example, it may be wiser to buy when your bet is likely contingent on hitting a certain score total. 

Likewise, it might be wise to purchase points for multi-leg wagers like parlay bets or teaser bets. As one leg failing is all it takes to topple down the entire house of cards, you should strongly consider bolstering that bet with buying points and a parlay insurance promotion, provided that neither cuts much more out of your award than desired.

It can be tougher to predict score totals with higher scoring games like football and basketball, but if you feel like you have the opportunity to capture lightning in a bottle, you probably won’t want to let it go. That said, you should also be careful that you aren’t splurging and spending more than you would be comfortable having sliced off your final award.

Remember that you’re playing to win, and playing to come out on top. If investing in points means that you lose more than you’re comfortable having lost, then it may not be worth it in the long run. At the end of the day, you need to follow your heart and make whatever decisions you’re comfortable with making. 

That doesn’t mean turning away other people’s assistance, advice, or support, however. Beyond buying points or parlay insurance, no deposit bonuses are a great way to mitigate risks with little to no financial costs out of your pocket. Many online casinos, sportsbooks, and iGaming platforms offer up these bonuses to first-time players, and we’ve sourced many of these iGaming platforms and bonuses onto one convenient, easily accessible platform.