Dutching Calculator
This dutching calculator splits one naira stake across two to eight selections so that whichever of them wins, you get the same return, and shows the profit and combined book percentage.
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The dutching calculator answers a simple question: if you want to back several outcomes in the same event, how should you split your money so any winner pays the same? Enter the total stake and the odds of each selection, and the tool shows the stake on each one, the return, the profit, and the combined book percentage.
What dutching means
Dutching is backing more than one outcome of the same event so that every one of them returns the same amount. It is used when you think the winner will come from a small group but you cannot separate them: two or three correct scores, a pair of goalscorers, or two of the three 1X2 results.
The maths is the same stake-splitting rule used in arbitrage. The difference is that dutching leaves some outcomes uncovered, so it carries real risk.
How to use the dutching calculator
- Enter the total stake. The full amount you want spread across the selections, such as ₦3,000.
- Add your selections. Between two and eight, each with its decimal, fractional or American odds (the odds converter shows how the formats match).
- Read the stakes. Each selection gets a share in proportion to 1 ÷ its odds.
- Check the book % and profit. If the combined book is above 100%, the profit turns negative even when you win.
The dutching formula
- Combined book % = (1 ÷ odds 1 + 1 ÷ odds 2 + …) × 100.
- Stake on each selection = total × (1 ÷ its odds) ÷ the sum of 1 ÷ odds.
- Return if any selection wins = total ÷ the sum of 1 ÷ odds.
- Profit = return − total stake.
The return also gives you the “effective odds” of the whole group: total return ÷ total stake. That number lets you compare a dutch with a single bet that covers the same outcomes.
Dutching correct score: a worked example
Correct score is where dutching is most popular, because single scores carry long odds and the likely scores cluster together.
Example ₦3,000 on 1–0 at 7.00, 1–1 at 6.50 and 2–1 at 9.00. Combined book = 14.29% + 15.38% + 11.11% = 40.8%. Stakes: about ₦1,051 on 1–0, ₦1,132 on 1–1 and ₦817 on 2–1 (rounded). If any of the three lands, the return is about ₦7,356 (₦1,051 × 7.00 = ₦7,357; ₦1,132 × 6.50 = ₦7,358; ₦817 × 9.00 = ₦7,353), a profit of about ₦4,356. Any other score loses the full ₦3,000.
The 40.8% figure is also the chance the bookmaker’s prices give the group, with its margin still included. If you think the three scores together land more often than about 41% of the time, the dutch has value; if not, it does not. Our Poisson football calculator gives a probability for every score, and our daily correct score picks show which scores we favour for each match.
Dutching vs a double chance bet
Dutching two of the three 1X2 outcomes builds your own double chance. Say the home win is 2.50 and the draw is 3.40, with ₦5,000 to stake:
Example Book = 40.00% + 29.41% = 69.4%. Stakes: ₦2,881 on the home win and ₦2,119 on the draw. Return about ₦7,203 either way, a profit of about ₦2,203. Effective odds: 7,203 ÷ 5,000 = 1.44.
Now compare with the bookmaker’s own 1X price. If the double chance market offers 1.40, dutching the two prices pays more; if it offers 1.48, take the double chance. Using the best price at different bookmakers for each leg often improves a dutch further.
When the dutch loses money even on a win
If the selections cover too much of the market, the combined book rises above 100% and the profit becomes negative. Backing both outcomes of an over/under 1.5 market at 1.50 and 2.60 gives a book of 105.1%: ₦4,000 split as ₦2,537 and ₦1,463 returns only about ₦3,805, a guaranteed ₦195 loss. That is simply paying the margin twice.
Adding more selections raises the chance of a win but lowers the profit, and eventually guarantees a loss. Each extra score in a correct-score dutch should be one you genuinely rate, not one added to feel safer.
Dutching mistakes to avoid
- Treating a dutch as a sure thing. Only an all-outcome book under 100% is an arbitrage; for that case use the arbitrage calculator.
- Placing legs at different times. Odds move, so place all legs together and re-enter any changed price. If a price has already moved after you bet, the hedge calculator is the better tool.
- Mixing markets. Dutch only outcomes that cannot both win, such as different correct scores of one match.
- Forgetting the stake check. The profit figure only means something if your probability for the group beats the book %. Test it with the value bet calculator, using the effective odds and your combined probability.
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Frequently asked questions
Most punters use two to four. Each extra score lifts the chance of a win but cuts the return, and the profit falls fast once the combined book passes about 50% to 60%. Pick scores you genuinely rate, then check whether the group's chance beats the book percentage.
The calculator will still split the stake, but true dutching assumes only one selection can win. With different matches, two or more could win together, or all could lose, so the equal-return logic breaks down. Use it for outcomes within one event.
It is several single bets, but with stakes chosen so every winner returns the same amount. Equal stakes on each selection would give a bigger return on the longest price and a smaller one on the shortest. Dutching evens that out.
It means you are covering so much of the market that the bookmaker's margin outweighs your coverage. Even if one of your selections wins, the return is less than the total stake. Remove the weakest selections until the book falls well below 100%.