Reading the positive EV table
A column-by-column guide to the Positive EV table — expected value, fair odds, width, the live game status, and the filters that control which bets appear.
The columns
Every row in the Positive EV table is one bet at one book. The columns:
- EV % — expected value as a percentage of stake. A 3% EV bet has a modelled expected return of about three cents per dollar staked over a large sample — a statistical expectation, not a prediction; results vary and any bet can lose. This is the primary sort key.
- Book odds — the price the listed sportsbook is currently offering.
- Fair odds — SmartStake's no-vig estimate of the true price. Book odds longer than fair odds are what produce positive EV.
- Width — how far apart the sharpest books are on this market. Wider markets mean a noisier fair price and a less certain edge.
- Books — how many independent books fed the fair price. More books means more confidence.
Filters
The filters narrow the feed to the bets you can actually use:
- Sportsbooks — restrict to the books where you hold accounts. There is no point seeing edges at a book you can't bet.
- Minimum EV — hide bets below an EV threshold so only meaningful edges show.
- Markets and sports — focus on the leagues and bet types you understand.
- Minimum books — require more independent books before a bet qualifies, trading volume for confidence.
Live game status
When a bet's game is already under way, SmartStake replaces the date and start time with a live game status — the current score and game state, refreshed alongside the odds. On a row or card you see the compact version: the period or inning and the running score (shown away–home, matching the matchup label). Open the bet — expand the card, or tap into its detail view — for the live game details for that sport.
The details shown are tailored to each sport:
- Baseball — the current count and outs, runners on base, the batter at the plate, and hits and errors.
- Basketball — timeouts remaining and team fouls for the bonus.
- Football — the current down and distance.
- Soccer — the latest match event with its minute, extra time, and penalty-shootout goals when a shootout is under way.
- Tennis — who is serving, with the current game's points in the running score.
Hockey carries only the period and running score.
The live status is most useful in live (in-play) mode, where it tells you at a glance whether a game is actively running or stopped — between innings, at a timeout, during a review — which is exactly when books widen or pull their lines.
Live status follows the game feed
The score and game state come from a separate live game feed, not from the odds. A brief lag or a missing field on an obscure game is normal and does not affect the bet's price or EV.
A note on stale lines
Odds move quickly. A large EV that looks too good to be true often means the book has not yet moved a line the rest of the market already has — and the book may move or void it before you bet. Treat outsized EVs with the same scrutiny as outsized anything: confirm the price is still live at the book before you commit.
Next: back to Finding positive EV bets for how the fair price is built.
- Odds, prices, expected value, conversion rates, and profit figures shown are estimates based on the last data we retrieved. They can change at any time — confirm the current price at the book before you bet, as odds may move and entry errors can occur.
- Using a “sharp” book as a fair-value reference is a modeling choice, not a statement of accuracy. Review a book’s record yourself and anchor on the books you trust.