Over/under betting explained: totals, pushes & overtime rules

By Barry Healy EditorPublished: 29 October 2026, 14:19 EDT7 min read

Last reviewed 29 Oct 2026 · Editorial policy

An empty football pitch at dusk, floodlights glowing softly over freshly mown grass, with a single brass scale balanced on a dark wooden table in the foreground.

How a sportsbook’s total works, what happens when the score lands exactly on the number, & when overtime or extra time counts, drawn from published house rules & betting explainers.

What an over/under bet is

According to Wikipedia, an over/under is a wager in which “a sportsbook will predict a number for a statistic in a given game” & bettors wager that the actual figure will be higher or lower. The combined score of the two teams is one of the most common statistics used, so “the wager is also known as the total”.

Fox Sports describes it as “a wager on the combined number of points, runs, or goals scored in a game”. The sportsbook, a business that accepts bets on sporting events, posts a line, & bettors choose whether the final score will go over or under it.

CBS Sports gives an example of a 46.5 total at DraftKings Sportsbook for the opening game of the 2026 NFL season between the Seattle Seahawks & New England Patriots. Those who bet the Over “would hope for 47 or more points”, while those on the Under hope for the opposite.

The statistic does not have to be the final score. A DraftKings betting guide published by Foxwoods says over/unders can be offered on categories “including the final score, individual team score, or any player stats”.

How sportsbooks set totals

Fox Sports says: “Oddsmakers set a total by projecting the combined score of both teams in a game, factoring in offensive and defensive strength, pace of play, and recent form.” Oddsmakers are the people who set a sportsbook’s lines.

CBS Sports says totals are “largely determined by an algorithm” but are influenced by which teams are playing, “weather conditions, and injury information”. Its example: if Seattle ruled quarterback Sam Darnold out for Week 1, or there was a high chance of rain, the total would be affected.

Fox Sports lists factors particular to each sport. For baseball they include “starting pitcher matchups”, bullpen fatigue, ballpark dimensions & wind; for hockey, “goalie matchups”, recent scoring form & power play statistics; for football, weather, line matchups & quarterback play.

The point spread, a handicap on the margin between two teams, is linked to the total. CBS Sports says “The projections for point spreads and totals are derived from the same algorithm”, so if oddsmakers adjust one because of weather or injury news, the other is likely to move as well.

Typical totals by sport

CBS Sports says that in the NFL & college football “totals are usually in the 40s and 50s”, though some stretch into the 60s & 70s when two strong offences meet. “NBA totals are usually in the 220s”, while college basketball totals typically sit in “the 130s and 140s” & can reach the 150s & 160s.

In baseball & hockey, according to CBS Sports, “Most totals sit between six and seven”, though some push into double digits. Soccer has the lowest totals, usually “2.5 or 3.5 goals”.

Sports without traditional scoring also carry totals. CBS Sports notes that tennis over/unders are offered on total games played & total sets played.

Half points, whole numbers & pushes

A total ending in .5 always produces a winner because no team can score half a point. CBS Sports puts it plainly: “There will be no push bets when wagering on a total with a 0.5 involved.”

Fox Sports gives the arithmetic: on an NFL total of 47.5, choosing the Over means “you need 48+ combined points to win”, & 47 or fewer loses.

A whole-number total can land exactly on the line. Fox Sports says that when this happens “the result is called a push, and all wagers are refunded.” CBS Sports says such bets “are usually graded as a push” & that some platforms show them as “void”, with stakes returned either way.

House rules describe the same outcome in their own terms. Gila River’s soccer rules say that if a spread or total outcome “is exactly equal to the betting line, then bets will be cancelled”, & its football rules treat a straight wager that ties as “no action”, with parlays (bets combining several selections) reducing to the next lowest number of teams.

A total of 46.0 can still pay out when the result misses by a point. Wikipedia records that in Super Bowl XXXIX most Las Vegas casinos set the total “for the score of the game at 46.0”, & “Since the combined score of that game was 45”, Under bettors won.

Does overtime count?

Usually it does, but the rule belongs to each sportsbook. Fox Sports says: “Overtime counts toward the total unless otherwise stated.”

The house rules of the Gila River Sports Book show how one operator writes this down. Its football rules define total points as “A wager on whether the total number of points scored in a game is over or under a specified number” & state that “Overtime periods are counted in the final score.”

Its basketball rules say the same for total points, with one exception: unless a market is “specified as ‘Regular Time'”, overtime periods count. For proposition bets in both sports, the rules say “unless stated otherwise, overtime does count for settlement of wagers.”

A separate football rule covers games that are cut short rather than extended. Unless individual rules say otherwise, Gila River says “Pro and College Football results are official after 55 minutes of play” for wagering purposes.

Soccer totals: 90 minutes plus stoppage time

Soccer is settled differently. CBS Sports says “most soccer bets offered at sportsbooks are for regular time only, called the 90-minute line.”

Gila River’s soccer rules say results “are official after 90 minutes of play plus injury time”. Its 90-minute market is “determined based on the score at the end of 90 minutes of play PLUS any time the referee adds to compensate for injuries and other stoppages.”

The same rules state that “90-Minute wagers do not include periods of extra time or penalty shootouts.” Gila River describes extra time as a scheduled period, normally two halves of 15 minutes, between the end of regular play & the end of the game.

Not every soccer market stops at 90 minutes. Gila River’s spread & total wagers are “settled on outcome of the period the markets relate to”, while its “To Advance” bets are decided whether the match ends in regular time, extra time or a penalty shootout.

First-half, quarter & team totals

Totals are also offered on parts of a game. Gila River’s football & basketball rules both say “Wagers on the first half will be decided by the score at the end of the first half”, & first-half bets are cancelled if that half is not completed.

Second-half bets are decided on points scored after half-time, & under both sets of rules “Overtime periods are counted in the Second Half score.” Quarter bets count only that quarter, & “Fourth quarter wagers do not include overtime periods unless otherwise stated.”

Team totals & player props work the same way on a narrower number. CBS Sports says sportsbooks “offer team totals and player props, which are graded similarly with an Over and Under”, applying the line to one team’s score or a player’s statistics.

Why totals move & what -110 costs

Fox Sports lists four common reasons totals move: injury news, weather updates, public betting trends & sharp money, meaning large wagers from respected bettors. Its example: “an NBA total might open at 228.5, but if a star scorer is scratched before tip-off, the line could drop to 224.5.”

Totals also change during play. Fox Sports describes an NBA game that opened at 212.5, with the live total jumping to 224.5 after a fast first quarter.

Prices on totals, CBS Sports says, “are usually -110 on both sides”, with occasional variations such as -120 & +100. The DraftKings guide explains that at -110 “you would need to bet $110 to profit $100.”

Fox Sports calls the vig, short for vigorish, “the bookmaker’s built-in commission”. At -110 on both sides each side implies a 52.38% probability, the two add to 104.76%, & the difference is a “4.76% vig”, which Fox notes varies by sportsbook, sport & timing.

Fox Sports’ disclaimer says only people aged 21 & over may gamble in the markets it covers, that gambling is subject to local state regulation & illegal in some states, & that anyone with a gambling problem can “call 1-800-GAMBLER”.

Questions

What does over/under mean in betting?

It is a bet on whether a statistic, most often the combined score of both teams, finishes above or below a number the sportsbook sets. Fox Sports calls it “a wager on the combined number of points, runs, or goals scored in a game.”

Does overtime count in an over/under bet?

Usually. Fox Sports says overtime counts “unless otherwise stated”, & Gila River’s house rules count overtime in football & basketball total points, except basketball markets marked “Regular Time”.

What happens if the total lands exactly on the number?

The bet is normally a push & stakes are refunded, according to Fox Sports & CBS Sports. Some platforms show it as “void”, & a total ending in .5 cannot push.

Does extra time count in soccer totals?

Not on 90-minute markets. Gila River’s rules say “90-Minute wagers do not include periods of extra time or penalty shootouts”, though they do include time the referee adds for stoppages.

What is a team total?

It applies the same Over & Under to one team’s score rather than the combined score. CBS Sports says team totals & player props are “graded similarly with an Over and Under”.

Sources

Sources checked 29 October 2026. Information only. 18+.

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