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Overview

The Odds-API.io provides several endpoints for fetching odds data from multiple bookmakers. This guide covers best practices and common patterns for working with odds data.
For an up-to-date list of all supported bookmakers, visit odds-api.io/sportsbooks.

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Basic Workflow

  1. Get available sports - Fetch the list of supported sports
  2. Get leagues - Retrieve leagues for your chosen sport
  3. Get events - Find upcoming or live events
  4. Get odds - Fetch odds from selected bookmakers

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Fetching Odds for a Single Event

Use the /v3/odds endpoint to get odds for a specific event: 
const apiKey = process.env.ODDS_API_KEY;
const eventId = 123456;
const bookmakers = ['Bet365', 'Unibet', 'Pinnacle'].join(',');

const response = await fetch(
  `https://api.odds-api.io/v3/odds?apiKey=${apiKey}&eventId=${eventId}&bookmakers=${bookmakers}`
);

const data = await response.json();
console.log(data);

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Fetching Odds for Multiple Events

For better efficiency, use the /v3/odds/multi endpoint to fetch odds for up to 10 events in a single request: 
const apiKey = process.env.ODDS_API_KEY;
const eventIds = [123456, 123457, 123458].join(',');
const bookmakers = ['Bet365', 'Unibet'].join(',');

const response = await fetch(
  `https://api.odds-api.io/v3/odds/multi?apiKey=${apiKey}&eventIds=${eventIds}&bookmakers=${bookmakers}`
);

const data = await response.json();
// Returns an array of event odds
console.log(data);
The multi-odds endpoint counts as only 1 API request regardless of how many events you fetch (up to 10).

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Understanding the Odds Response

The odds response includes multiple markets for each bookmaker: 
{
  "id": 123456,
  "home": "Manchester United",
  "away": "Liverpool",
  "date": "2025-10-15T15:00:00Z",
  "status": "pending",
  "bookmakers": {
    "Bet365": [
      {
        "name": "ML",
        "odds": [
          {
            "home": "2.10",
            "draw": "3.40",
            "away": "3.20"
          }
        ],
        "updatedAt": "2025-10-04T10:30:00Z"
      },
      {
        "name": "Asian Handicap",
        "odds": [
          {
            "hdp": -0.5,
            "home": "1.95",
            "away": "1.85"
          }
        ]
      },
      {
        "name": "Over/Under",
        "odds": [
          {
            "max": 2.5,
            "over": "1.90",
            "under": "1.90"
          }
        ]
      }
    ]
  }
}

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Market Types

  • ML - Match result (Home, Draw, Away)
  • Spread - Handicap betting with fractional lines
  • Totals - Total goals/points over or under a line
  • Both Teams to Score - Yes/No markets
  • Correct Score - Exact score predictions
  • And many more…

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Finding the Best Odds

Here’s an example of comparing odds across bookmakers to find the best value: 
function findBestOdds(oddsData) {
  const market = 'ML';
  const bestOdds = {
    home: { bookmaker: null, odds: 0, link: null },
    draw: { bookmaker: null, odds: 0, link: null },
    away: { bookmaker: null, odds: 0, link: null }
  };

  for (const [bookmaker, markets] of Object.entries(oddsData.bookmakers)) {
    const marketML = markets.find(m => m.name === market);
    if (!marketML?.odds[0]) continue;

    const odds = marketML.odds[0];

    if (parseFloat(odds.home) > bestOdds.home.odds) {
      bestOdds.home = {
        bookmaker,
        odds: parseFloat(odds.home)
      };
    }

    if (odds.draw && parseFloat(odds.draw) > bestOdds.draw.odds) {
      bestOdds.draw = {
        bookmaker,
        odds: parseFloat(odds.draw)
      };
    }

    if (parseFloat(odds.away) > bestOdds.away.odds) {
      bestOdds.away = {
        bookmaker,
        odds: parseFloat(odds.away)
      };
    }
  }

  return bestOdds;
}

// Usage
const bestOdds = findBestOdds(oddsData);
console.log('Best home odds:', bestOdds.home.odds, 'at', bestOdds.home.bookmaker);

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Getting Updated Odds

For real-time applications, use the /v3/odds/updated endpoint to fetch only odds that have changed: 
const apiKey = process.env.ODDS_API_KEY;
const since = Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000) - 60; // Last 60 seconds
const bookmaker = 'Bet365';
const sport = 'Football';

const response = await fetch(
  `https://api.odds-api.io/v3/odds/updated?apiKey=${apiKey}&since=${since}&bookmaker=${bookmaker}&sport=${sport}`
);

const updatedOdds = await response.json();
The since parameter must be a UNIX timestamp no older than 1 minute.

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Caching Strategies

To optimize performance and reduce API calls:
  1. Cache event lists for 5-10 minutes
  2. Cache pre-match odds for 30-60 seconds
  3. Cache live odds for 5-10 seconds
  4. Use updated odds endpoint for incremental updates
// Example caching with Node.js
const cache = new Map();
const CACHE_TTL = 60000; // 60 seconds

async function getCachedOdds(eventId) {
  const cacheKey = `odds:${eventId}`;
  const cached = cache.get(cacheKey);

  if (cached && Date.now() - cached.timestamp < CACHE_TTL) {
    return cached.data;
  }

  const data = await fetchOdds(eventId);
  cache.set(cacheKey, { data, timestamp: Date.now() });

  return data;
}

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Best Practices

Select only the most relevant bookmakers for your users. See the full list of supported bookmakers.
Batch requests using /v3/odds/multi to reduce API calls and stay within rate limits.
Cache odds data appropriately based on match status (pre-match vs live).
Not all bookmakers offer all markets. Always check if data exists before accessing it.

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Next Steps

Value Bets

Learn how to identify profitable betting opportunities

WebSockets

Get real-time odds updates via WebSocket connections
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