Your bankroll is the total amount of money you\'ve set aside specifically for sports betting—funds that are completely separate from your rent, bills, groceries, and other living expenses. It should always be money you can afford to lose without impacting your daily life. Proper bankroll management means betting consistent, appropriate percentages of this total on each wager, which protects you from the inevitable losing streaks that every bettor faces. Without disciplined bankroll management, even bettors with a genuine long-term edge can go broke due to variance before their advantage has time to produce results.
Example
You deposit $5,000 as your dedicated betting bankroll. Using 1-2% unit sizing, your standard bet is $50-$100 per wager. During a rough week where you lose eight out of ten bets, you\'ve only lost $400-$800 instead of a catastrophic amount. Your bankroll survives intact enough for your edge to play out over the following weeks. Compare this to a bettor who wagers 10-20% per game—that same losing streak could wipe out half their bankroll or more, leaving them unable to recover even if they have a legitimate statistical advantage.
Common Questions
How much bankroll do I need to start?
How much bankroll do I need to start?
You should have enough to withstand natural variance—typically 50-100 units minimum. With a $1,000 bankroll, your standard bet would be $10-20 per game. Smaller bankrolls can absolutely work but require discipline with lower stakes and patience as you build. The key consideration is that your bankroll must be large enough relative to your bet size that a losing streak of 10-15 bets in a row, which is statistically normal, won't wipe you out or tempt you to chase losses.
What percentage of bankroll should I bet?
What percentage of bankroll should I bet?
1-3% per bet is the standard recommendation for most sports bettors. The Kelly Criterion can mathematically optimize your sizing based on your estimated edge, but most experienced bettors use fractional Kelly at 25-50% of the full recommendation to reduce variance and account for imperfect probability estimates. As a hard rule, never bet more than 5% of your bankroll on a single game. Risking more than that dramatically increases your risk of ruin even when you have an edge.
Should I adjust my unit size as my bankroll changes?
Should I adjust my unit size as my bankroll changes?
Yes, recalculating your unit size periodically is a smart practice. If your bankroll grows from $5,000 to $7,500, increasing your unit size proportionally allows you to capitalize on your success. Conversely, if your bankroll drops to $3,500, reducing your unit size protects you from further decline. Many bettors recalculate weekly or after every 50-100 bets, rather than adjusting after every single wager, which keeps the process simple and avoids overreacting to short-term results.