Bankroll and risk
Bankroll
The money set aside specifically for betting, separate from everything else you own.
A bankroll is a ring-fenced amount you have decided you can lose. Keeping it separate is what makes every other discipline possible: unit sizing, drawdown tolerance and honest record-keeping all require a fixed denominator.
The right size is whatever you would be genuinely untroubled to lose in full, because a losing run long enough to threaten it is not unusual — it is expected. If a downswing would change how you bet, the bankroll is too large relative to your comfort, not too small.
Want the full version? Read the in-depth guide, with worked examples and the math.
See also
- Unit — A standard bet size expressed as a fixed percentage of bankroll, usually 1%.
- Kelly criterion — A staking formula that sizes each bet to the size of its edge, maximising long-run bankroll growth.
- Variance — The spread of outcomes around your expected result — why good bettors have terrible months.
- Flat betting — Staking the same amount on every bet regardless of how good it looks.