Draw No Bet does what the name promises: back a team, and if the match is drawn you get your stake back. Defeat still loses, but the most annoying result in football — the draw that beats both sets of fans — becomes a non-event. It is honest insurance, but like all insurance it has a premium, and the interesting question is whether you can buy the same cover cheaper. Often you can, and the tools are just the 1X2 prices and a calculator.
How DNB settles
Three results, three outcomes: your team wins, you are paid at the DNB price; draw, stake refunded in full; your team loses, stake lost. It is identical to the Asian handicap 0 line — same bet, different label — and on many sites the 0 line is quoted alongside or instead of DNB, sometimes at a slightly different price. If both exist, take the bigger number; they settle identically.
What the insurance costs
The refund is paid for with shorter odds. A team at 2.50 on the 1X2 might be 1.80 DNB. The gap between those two prices is the premium, and it is driven by the draw’s probability: the likelier the draw, the more the refund is worth and the shorter the DNB price. Nothing is free — you are selling your potential draw-loss back to the bookmaker at their price. The honest question is whether their price for that insurance is fair, and that you can check.
Build your own DNB: the stake split
A DIY draw no bet is two bets on the 1X2: your team to win, plus the draw as insurance sized so that a draw returns exactly your total stake. The formula: with total stake S and draw odds d (decimal), put S/d on the draw and the rest on the win. Example with €100, win at 2.50, draw at 3.40: stake €29.41 on the draw (100 ÷ 3.40) and €70.59 on the win. Draw: the draw bet returns 29.41 × 3.40 = €100 — your money back, a perfect DNB. Win: 70.59 × 2.50 = €176.48, an effective DNB price of about 1.76. Now compare: if the book’s listed DNB is 1.80, the listed price wins; if it is 1.72, your DIY version is better. The answer differs match by match and book by book — the point is that you can check in thirty seconds instead of trusting the label.
DNB vs double chance
Double chance 1X turns the draw into a win rather than a refund, so it is more cover at an even shorter price. The ladder runs: straight win (biggest price, no cover), DNB (draw refunds), 1X (draw wins, shortest price). Where you stand on that ladder should follow your actual opinion of the draw — if you think the draw is live, 1X or no bet at all; if you think the draw is unlikely but want catastrophe cover, DNB; if you are confident, the straight win pays you for the courage.
The honest summary
DNB is a fair product with a visible premium. The stake-split version built from the 1X2 settles identically and is sometimes priced better — run the thirty-second comparison before you pay the listed price, and let the draw’s real probability, not comfort, pick your spot on the insurance ladder.
18+. Gamble responsibly. If betting stops being fun, talk to the Gambling Awareness Trust on 1800 753 753 or visit gamblingcare.ie.
Frequently Asked Questions
Your full stake comes back. DNB has three outcomes: win pays at the quoted odds, draw refunds the stake in full, defeat loses it. It settles identically to the Asian handicap 0 line — if both are quoted, take whichever price is bigger.
Split the stake across two 1X2 bets: put S ÷ d on the draw (S = total stake, d = decimal draw odds) and the rest on the win. A draw returns exactly S — your money back. With €100, win 2.50, draw 3.40: €29.41 draw / €70.59 win gives an effective DNB price of about 1.76. Compare that with the listed DNB and take the better.
Neither is universally better — they buy different amounts of cover. DNB refunds on the draw; 1X double chance wins on the draw but at a shorter price. Think of a ladder — straight win, DNB, 1X — and pick the rung that matches your honest view of the draw, not the one that feels cosiest.