Malaysian Odds

Malaysian odds, or Malay odds, are one way to correspond the relationship between your stake and your potential profit on a given bet. These odds depend on local customs and are similar to a local language in a way. If you show up in one country speaking a different language, people may not understand you. The same is true with bookmakers.

If you are trying to bet using American odds in a Malaysian book, they may not understand what you are trying to do. Luckily, we’re to help.

Malaysian odds

How Malaysian Odds Work

Here are a few examples that help to illustrate the conversion from American odds into Malaysian odds and back again. Malaysian odds are expressed in decimals, either positive or negative.

If the odds are 0, then it is an exact 50/50 bet and will pay out 1/1. This bet might come into play with a total or two closely matched clubs.

Let’s take a look at some examples.

Example 1: Brazil to beat Germany

Our first example deals with a soccer match between Brazil and Germany. We’re backing Brazil to win at Malay odds of 0.4.

Payout: Stake x (1 + Malay odds)

$200 x (1 + .4) = $280

Winnings: Stake x (Malay odds)

$200 x .4 = $80

This shows that you will win $80 for every $200 wagered on Brazil. Using an online odds calculator, this equals American odds of -250.

Example 2: Germany to beat Brazil

Our second example is from the same game, but this time we’re betting in-play and backing Germany to come from two goals down and win for a bigger payout.

Payout: Stake x (1 – 1 / Malay odds)

$200 x (1 + 1 / -.25) = $1000

Winnings: Stake x (1 / Malay odds)

$200 x (1 / .25) = $800

Notice that the decimal always is positive for any winning bet calculations.

Example 3: Brazil vs Germany (Over 2.5 Goals)

This time we are betting on the total in the Brazil vs Germany soccer match, and you want to take the over 2.5 goals.

This bet has Malay odds of 0. As we stated earlier, this bet will pay out 1/1.

So for every $100 bet, you win $100 – as long as there are three or more goals.

Malaysian Sports Betting

Malaysian sports betting is centered around soccer. Estimates run as high as 90% of all wagers placed in the country are bets on soccer matches. Although there are laws in place to try and curb this gambling, the underground gambling economy has truly flourished.

Betting exchanges are very popular as well in countries such as Malaysia, allowing punters to back teams against each other and the house takes it’s cut from the winner.

Football fans in stadium

Final Thoughts on Malay Odds

Malay odds are pretty simple to figure out once you get the hang of it. There are lots of online tools that can be used to convert to and from American and Malay odds, so if you use a sportsbook that lists the odds in Malay odds format, you can easily go back and forth.

Hopefully this article helped explain the thought process behind the Malay odds format and was helpful in figuring out how much you can win for each unit risked, so that you can make the best use out of the best sports betting sites.



Frequently Asked Questions


  • Also known as Malay odds, Malaysian odds are one of many odds formats. Odds are expressed in decimal format using plus (+) and minus (-) signs to indicate the favourite and underdog. If the odds are 0, then this means it’s a 50/50 bet and will pay out at even money.


  • Positive Malay odds are represented by a ‘+’ symbol or no symbol at all. The bigger the number, the more you win. For instance, let’s say you bet on over 2.5 goals in a football match between Manchester United and Chelsea at Malay odds of 0. You stand to win $100 for every $100 you put down.


  • It’s easy to convert Malay odds to decimal. To convert positive Malay odds to decimal, simply add 1. So Malay odds of 1.5 will be 2.5 in decimal. Converting negative Malay odds to decimal requires you to divide 1 by the Malay odds and add 1. The formula for Malay odds of -1.5 is (1 / 1.5 = 0.67) + 1 = 1.67.


  • Malay odds and Indonesian odds follow a similar pattern, but they aren’t the same. While both formats use 1.00 as a base and are presented as positive or negative numbers, there’s a big difference. Positive odds in Indo odds will be negative in Malay odds and negative odds in Indo are positive in Malay odds.