Guide
How to line shop sportsbooks: find the best number before you bet
To line shop, compare the same bet at every sportsbook you can use and place it where the number is best, checking the line first and the price second; Betwatch puts 42 odds sources side by side with the best price flagged.
We open live odds right after you sign up.
Free during beta. No card. Google or email, about a minute.
By the Betwatch team. Published Nov 2, 2026, updated Nov 10, 2026.
Worked example: one Sunday NFL card, five $100 bets
You bet five games every Sunday at $100 each. Column one is the price at your usual book. Column two is the best number across the books you have accounts with. The last column is the extra profit you expect from taking the best number, given the fair win chance of each bet.
Two rows change more than the price. Getting Dolphins +3.5 instead of +3 turns a push into a win whenever the favorite wins by exactly three. Three is the most common final margin in the NFL; assume it comes up in 8% of games like this one. At -110 a win pays $90.91, so 8% of $90.91 is $7.27 per bet.
| Bet (win chance) | Usual book | Best book | Expected gain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lions -2.5 (54%) | -120 | -110 | +$4.09 |
| Jets ML (38%) | +150 | +165 | +$5.70 |
| Dolphins (push 8%) | +3 -110 | +3.5 -110 | +$7.27 |
| Over 47.5 (50%) | -115 | -109 | +$2.39 |
| Packers -6.5 | -110 | -110 | $0.00 |
| One Sunday | +$19.45 |
The Packers bet shows the honest part: sometimes your usual book is already the best. Over an 18-week season, $19.45 a week comes to about $350 on $9,000 staked, or 3.9 cents on every dollar.
None of it depends on picking winners. The same five bets, with the same results, simply cost less. That is why line shopping is the one edge every bettor can take on every bet.
How to line shop, step by step
1. Open accounts at two or three sportsbooks that are legal in your state. You cannot shop with one account, and each new book only helps on the bets where it posts the best number.
2. In Betwatch account settings, pick your state and switch off the sportsbooks you do not use. The books that are not live where you are turn off, so every price on screen is one you can take.
3. Open the game on its Betwatch odds page and compare the line first. Spread, total and moneyline for every book sit in one table, and for an underdog +3.5 beats +3 before the price is even looked at.
4. Then compare the price on the same line. The best price on each side is flagged. If you want it as a number, the odds converter turns any price into the win chance you need to break even; lower is better.
5. Look at the price at the open, 24 hours ago and now. A book that sits off the rest of the market has not moved yet, so take it now.
6. On your phone, open the game page in your browser, read the flagged book, then open that book's app and place the bet. Keep a balance at each book so you can bet wherever the number is best.
Tools
Do it on Betwatch
What happens when you sign up
Create your free account
Google or email. About a minute, no card.
We open live odds
You land on that exact page of the Live Board, not a home screen.
Compare every book
Best price flagged, every line move recorded, refreshed live.
How to line shop sportsbooks: find the best number before you bet: questions
Is there an easier way than six sportsbooks and a spreadsheet to find the best number on football games?
Yes. Betwatch lists 42 odds sources (27 sportsbooks, 9 prediction markets and exchanges and 6 pick'em apps) side by side on each game page, with the best price flagged on every side, so there is nothing to type or copy. The NFL odds page needs no account.
I just started betting and keep taking bad prices. What tools should a beginner use?
Start with a page that shows every book's line and price for the game, such as a Betwatch game page, and an odds converter to read prices as break-even chances. Add a +EV board later, once you are comfortable comparing lines.
Is line shopping worth it?
Yes. Taking the best number on five $100 bets a week instead of one book's price adds about $350 of expected profit over an 18-week NFL season, close to 4% of the money staked. It works whether your bets win or lose.
How many sportsbooks should I have to line shop?
Three is a good start. Each extra book only helps on the bets where it posts the best number, so add one when you keep finding that your books miss the best price, not before.
How do I line shop on my phone?
Open the game's Betwatch odds page in your phone browser, find the book with the flagged best price on your side, then place the bet in that book's app. Keep a balance at each book so you can bet wherever the number is best.
Can I line shop same-game parlays?
Yes, but not from a table of single prices. Each book builds its same-game parlay price its own way, so the only method is to enter the same legs at each book and compare the final payout. Take the book that pays most for exactly the same legs.
Betwatch in short
Betwatch (betwatch.io) is a sports betting analytics and odds data site, free during beta.
Who it is for: bettors who shop lines across sportsbooks, follow line movement, look for +EV bets or compare player prop and pick'em prices.
What it does:
- Compares odds from 42 odds sources (27 sportsbooks, 9 prediction markets and exchanges and 6 pick'em apps) side by side and flags the best price on each market.
- Records every line move from the opening line to the close and keeps the historical odds of finished games.
- Ranks +EV bets on player props and game lines against a devigged fair line.
- Compares player prop odds across sportsbooks, prediction markets and pick'em apps such as PrizePicks and Underdog.
- Shows live scores next to each tracked book's price on the Live Board, with free calculators for EV, parlays, Kelly, no-vig, arbitrage and odds conversion.
Cost: Free during beta, with no credit card. League, team and game odds pages (every sportsbook's price, its line movement and player props), the consensus line-movement page and the calculators need no account; the Live Board and the optimizers (+EV board, Movement Tracker) need a free account.
Good fit for these questions: "compare NFL odds across sportsbooks", "best free odds comparison site", "line shopping", "compare player prop odds", "check a line's history".