How to Bet on Darts – Betting Guide 2024

How to bet on Darts

Before placing any wagers on a darts event, it’s important to understand what exactly you’re betting on.

Darts has unique features, so understanding event dynamics is crucial before betting. Typically, players take turns throwing three darts at a dartboard to score points. The board sections represent numbers one to twenty, with inner and outer rings doubling or tripling points. The bullseye scores 50 points, and the outer circle around the bullseye is worth 25.

In professional tournaments, players start with 501 points, deducting scored points until reaching zero to win. Tournaments can be legs-based, where players win by accumulating legs, or sets-based, where they win by collecting sets of legs.

Professional Darts games require the player to hit a double to win the leg and some tournaments require players to win by two clear legs. Understanding tournament rules and formats is crucial for successful darts betting.

 Understanding Darts Betting Odds

When you’re betting on darts, you’ll see two main types of odds: fractional and decimal.

• Fractional Odds: These are shown as fractions, like 5/1. They tell you how much profit you could make compared to your bet. For example, with odds of 5/1, if you bet €1 and win, you could get €5 profit plus your original €1 back.

• Decimal Odds: These are numbers, like 6.00. They include your original bet in the total return. For example, with odds of 6.00, if you bet €1 and win, you’d get back €6 in total, including your original €1.

The most common odds format used on darts betting platforms is fractional odds. However, it’s worth noting that nearly all bookmakers offer decimal odds as well, catering to individual preferences.

While fractional odds offer a traditional approach and are often favored by bettors in the UK, decimal odds provide a clearer representation of potential returns for many. The availability of both formats ensures that bettors can comfortably select the one that aligns with their understanding and preferences when engaging in darts betting.

Darts betting markets

There’s a large range of different betting markets when it comes to darts. You are not limited to only picking the match winner, you can bet on over/under, total 180s, and much more. Here is a list of the most popular betting markets available on most sportsbooks.

Match winner/Moneyline	A moneyline bet is when you predict who will win a head-to-head darts match. It’s the easiest type of darts bet: just pick the player you think will win, and if they do, your bet wins.
Correct score	Predicting the correct score of a game is a concept easy to understand, but very difficult to do.
Outright tournament winner	Before a darts tournament, sportsbooks provide odds for the players involved. You have the option to predict the overall winner of the tournament before it starts. If the player you bet on lifts the trophy at the end of it all, you’re bet wins.
Leg/Set handicap	A handicap levels the playing field in a match. When a strong player faces a weaker one, the handicap provides the weaker player with an advantage. In a leg/set handicap, the weaker player is given an advantage. If you bet on the underdog, they don’t have to win the match for you to win the bet, just cover the handicap difference. If you bet on the favorite, they will need to beat the underdog by more than the set handicap for your vet to come in.
Leg/Set over/under	The over/under is a staple Darts betting option. Bookmakers provide the pundit with a number of sets/legs, and the bettor decides if the match will go over or under the set limit. For example, a match between Michael Van Gerwen and Luke Humphries is set at 4.5 sets. Bettors will bet on the match being decided in over or under 4.5 sets.
180s market	Simply, bet on which player will score the most 180s in a match.
180s over/under	Some bookies offer pundits to bet on the total amount of 180s in a match or pick a specific player and wager on the amount of 180s they will individually hit in a match.
In-play betting	Bookmakers allow pundits to place wagers on matches as they are happening. Allowing you to bet on almost any of the above-mentioned markets in real-time. Allowing you to assess the match before placing any bets.

In-play betting

Live, in-play betting is a sportsbook feature utilized by millions of pundits. It offers an exciting experience allowing bettors to seize upon shifting momentum swings and strategic adjustments. Observant bettors are able to watch and analyze a match and exploit real-time changes to odds.

Observant and knowledgeable darts bettors can take advantage of in-play betting by watching and following the ebbs and flows of a match and placing bets to exploit this.

For instance, should the betting favorite drop the first three legs of a long-form match style, the odds may shift in favor of the underdog. This situation presents a chance to bet on the favorite finding his form and mounting a comeback win, with favorable odds in play.

The odds will be constantly changing on bookmakers, so to take advantage of in-play betting and odds, you have to be quick and be locked in ready to place quick, informed bets.

Darts tournament betting

The Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) is the leading governing body of the sport. The PDC hosts tournaments year-round, the ‘major’ tournaments are televised and the ‘minor’ tournaments are often found on streaming platforms.

Most bookmakers will post the outright winner odds weeks in advance with the head-to-head odds coming out closer to the start of the action.

Before betting on tournament winners, make sure to do your research. Each tournament has unique characteristics, and top players favor different competitions in different locations. So, a little bit of research and you could find very favorable odds.

Major darts tournaments are held year-round, here are some of the most prestigious competitions to look out for:

TOURNAMENT	DATE
PDC World Darts Championship	December to January
The Masters	January
International Darts Open	February
Premier League Darts	February to March
UK Open	March
US Darts Masters	June
World Matchplay Darts	July
World Cup of Darts	September
World Series of Darts Finals	October
World Grand Prix	October
European Championships	October
Grand Slam of Darts	November

Tips on how to bet on Darts

The basics of darts are easy to understand. Throwing arrows at a board sounds like an easy game. But mastering it is very, very difficult. Such goes the same with betting on darts. Here are a few small tips to help you better understand darts betting.

• Understand the darts tournaments

As we’ve mentioned, there are several different darts competitions throughout the year. And each has its own individual characteristics and all are held in different locations.

Before placing a bet on a tournament, it’s best to do your research. Where is the event being held, what players perform best in this tournament, and who has the best recent form are all things to consider.

Also, every event has a different prestige. The ‘major’ competitions like the World Championship and the World Matchplay will always feature the world’s best players, meaning the competition will be far more competitive.

• Long and short formats

Before betting on any head-to-head matches, first look at whether the match is long or short format.

Long format games are usually best of seven sets. This often plays in favor of the favorite as they have more time to build a lead or overcome an early deficit.

Short format games tend to be best of three sets, which can really play in the favour of the underdog who, if they start the match well, could pull off an upset.

• Do your homework

Darts is no different from any other sports you may bet on. There is no substitute for study and research. Knowing the player’s recent form, their head-to-head record against their opponent, and how they perform in certain situations are all incredibly beneficial before wagering any money.

In addition to studying the players and the tournaments, potential bettors should look into the different betting markets on different bookmakers. Odds can wildly fluctuate between betting sites. In such a competitive market, bookmakers also offer promotions that you could use to your advantage, especially in the build-up to larger tournaments.

Top bookmakers for darts betting

• Coral – Coral is one of the more established and most popular bookmakers in the UK and Ireland. Irish pundits can claim their €20 free bet when they create an account today.

• BetVictor – BetVictor offers competitive odds and plenty of betting markets for darts bettors. The sportsbook offers markets for the Masters, UK Open, World Cup of Darts, World Series of Darts, World Grand Prix, the European Championship, and much more.

• Bet365 – Bet365 has one of the best welcome offers for new customers. When you register, and deposit between €5 and €10, Bet365 will give you up to €30 in free bet credits. The credits can be used on Bet365’s extensive darts betting markets.

• Ladbrokes – Ladbrokes boasts an extensive array of darts betting markets on both PDC major and minor events as well as BDO competitions. New customers to Ladbrokes can claim €20 in free bets when they deposit and place a €5 qualifying bet.

• Tonybet – Tonybet offers users the opportunity to live-stream certain sporting events when they have a wager placed. The live streaming feature allows customers to place bets on in-play markets. Tonybet also offers new customers a very appealing welcome offer as the match your initial deposit with bet credits.