How does a betting exchange work?

[quantumleap]

I've been betting for a long time now but I have to admit that I don't know how a betting exchange works. What do the terms "back" or "lay" mean?

I'm not one to let others do the work for me. If I can get a few ideas of how they work I will be happy to do some research and fill in some details. I would also be happy to research the different betting exchange web sites.

 

[ensign_lee]

Ok. Here's how they work.

Let's take today's HOU at DEN game as an examle.

I want to bet HOU Moneyline at +200. So therefore I "offer" it at that price.

You want to bet DEN Moneyline at -215. You see me offering it at -200, so you're like "sweet!", and take my offer at +200. You "take" my offer.

Whoever wins, the exchange takes a set percentage of the winning side.

Voila: exchanges in a nutshell.