What is the difference between odds and probability?
In: Mathematics
They’re the same concept expressed in two different ways.
The odds that you will roll a 6 on a 6-sided die are 1 in 6, or 6 to 1.
The probability that you will roll a 6 is 16.66%, or 0.1666.
Same thing, two different ways to state it.
“Odds” can also mean the payout when gambling. In this case, the odds will usually closely approximate the probability of the thing you’re betting on happening, but the bookmakers who set those odds will adjust it to entice people to bet. This is really a completely different concept from “odds” as used above.
Probability is just a way of quantifying (i.e. expressing with numbers) the likelihood of some event happening.
“Odds” are one way to describe probability, usually used in gambling. Odds are expressed usually as a ratio of the event happening vs. not happening. E.g. the probability of rolling a six with an ordinary die is 1 in 6, so the odds would be described as either “1 to 5 in favor” or “5 to 1 against.” In gambling, odds are usually used to describe the possible payout of winning a given bet.
Again, odds are mostly only used in gambling. In mathematics and statistics, probabilities are usually described either as fractions (e.g. 1/6), percentages (16.6%), or real numbers between zero and one (0.166).
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