Final Jeopardy! Wager Calculator: Cover Bet, Lock Check and Every Right/Wrong Outcome
Quick answer — Type the three scores going into Final Jeopardy! and the calculator tells you whether the leader has a lock, what the leader's cover bet is (twice second place's score, plus $1, minus the leader's score), the largest wager second place can make and still finish first whenever the leader (having made the cover bet) misses, even if second place misses too, and who wins in every right/wrong combination. The arithmetic is plain whole-dollar math you can redo on paper; the formulas are spelled out below.
Enter the scores
Use the dollar totals after Double Jeopardy!, in any order. A score of $0 or less is left out (a player with no money has nothing to wager).
Try wagers and see every outcome
The boxes start at the numbers above. Change them to test a different bet. A wager cannot be below $0 or above the player's own score.
How the numbers are worked out
Call the scores A (leader), B (second place) and C (third place). The leader's numbers follow the show's own framing: the leader bets to win should second place bet everything and be correct. The second-place numbers assume the leader makes that cover bet.
- Cover bet. The leader needs A + wager to beat 2B, so the smallest wager that wins on a correct response even if second place bets everything and is right is 2B − A + $1. The show's 2019 example is exactly this: Emma Boettcher led $26,600 to $23,400, needed $20,201, bet $20,201 and finished on $46,801.
- Lock. If A is more than 2B, second place can't catch the leader with a doubled score. The leader stays safe with any wager up to A − 2B − $1 (the extra dollar avoids a tie). J! Archive says that overwagering in a lock violates Clavin's Rule.
- Exactly half. If A equals 2B, a $0 wager guarantees at least a tie for the lead. A $1 wager wins outright if the leader is right but loses to a correct all-in bet from second place if the leader misses.
- Second place, if the leader makes the cover bet. A leader who misses ends on 2A − 2B − $1. Second place stays ahead of that, right or wrong, with any wager up to 3B − 2A, and stays ahead of third place's doubled score with any wager up to B − 2C − $1. The calculator shows the smaller of the two.
- Second place below two-thirds of the lead. The first limit above goes negative, so a wrong answer can't win. Second place needs a correct response and a wager that passes the leader's fallen score (at least 2A − 3B) and, if third place is close, third place's doubled score (at least 2C − B + $1). J! Archive's “Crush” entry says second place should bet it all in this zone.
- Ties and blank boards. If two or three players finish tied for first, one more clue from a new category decides it and the first correct response wins. If all three bet everything and miss, there is no returning champion.
Three worked examples
| Game | Scores (1st / 2nd / 3rd) | Leader's number | Second place's number |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 Boettcher–Holzhauer (a real game, from the show's own article) | $26,600 / $23,400 / $11,000 | Cover bet $20,201 (Boettcher bet $20,201) | At most $1,399: the smaller of $17,000 and $1,399 (Holzhauer bet $1,399) |
| Lock example (The Jeopardy! Fan primer) | $13,000 / $6,000 / $4,600 | Any wager from $0 to $999 | At least $3,201 to cover third place's double |
| Two-thirds example (The Jeopardy! Fan primer) | $16,000 / $11,400 / $5,000 | Cover bet $6,801 (leader falls to $9,199 if wrong) | At most $1,399: the smaller of $2,200 and $1,399 |
The first is a real game; the other two are example games from a strategy primer. All three are test cases for the code on this page, and it matches every figure the sources print ($17,000 and $2,200 are derived from the same formulas).
What the calculator doesn't know
- It can't see the category or your confidence. A sound wager also depends on how likely each player is to know the clue. The table lists every right/wrong combination (eight rows with three players); the rows aren't equally likely.
- It assumes the leader makes the cover bet when working out second place's limits. A leader who bets differently changes those limits, which is why the wager boxes let you test any bet.
- Sources differ on edge cases. For a leader sitting on exactly half, J! Archive says bet $0; The Jeopardy! Fan says $0 or $1 is a choice since tied games now go to a tiebreaker clue. For second place below two-thirds of the lead, J! Archive says bet everything, while The Jeopardy! Fan says bet as much as you can and gives a minimum of the gap to the leader plus $1; the calculator's minimum assumes the leader makes the cover bet.
- It doesn't flag every exception. J! Archive notes one exception to the cover-bet rule of thumb (the “Faith Love” scenario, where the leader's score equals twice the gap between second and third place). The calculator points it out when it applies.
- It leaves out players on $0 or less. J! Archive says players with $0 or less at the end of Double Jeopardy! do not play Final Jeopardy!. For the case where all three are at $0 or below, the show's 2016 “Four Rare Scenarios” article quotes the rule book (no Final Jeopardy! round would be played) and adds that it had not yet happened.
The rules this page relies on
- The minimum Final Jeopardy! wager is $0 (Jeopardy.com, 5 Jeopardy! Rules Every Contestant Should Know, Oct. 7, 2016).
- A contestant can bet up to their whole score: in the 2019 game third place “COULD have bet up to $11,000”, his entire score (Jeopardy.com, Final Jeopardy! Wagering Strategy, June 5, 2019).
- The leader bets to win should second place bet everything and be correct (same Jeopardy.com article; J! Archive calls this Boyd's Rule).
- A tie for first sends the game to a tiebreaker clue, and if all three players bet everything and miss there is no returning champion (Jeopardy.com, Breaking Down Four Rare Jeopardy! Scenarios, Feb. 16, 2016; the first regular-game tiebreaker is described in Jeopardy! First: A Tiebreaker, Mar. 1, 2018).
- Lock, exactly-half, crush and two-thirds scenarios and their formulas: J! Archive glossary entries “Lock”, “Lock-tie”, “Crush” and “Two-thirds”, and the worked examples in The Jeopardy! Fan's primer.
- Players with $0 or less after Double Jeopardy! do not play Final Jeopardy! (J! Archive, “Final Jeopardy! Round” entry).
More on the reasoning is in our Final Jeopardy! wagering strategy guide; Daily Double betting is in the Daily Double rules guide, and last night's real wagers are on Jeopardy! Tonight.
Sources
- Jeopardy.com: Final Jeopardy! Wagering Strategy (official, June 5, 2019)
- Jeopardy.com: 5 Jeopardy! Rules Every Contestant Should Know (official, Oct. 7, 2016)
- Jeopardy.com: Breaking Down Four Rare Jeopardy! Scenarios (official, Feb. 16, 2016)
- Jeopardy.com: Jeopardy! First: A Tiebreaker (official, Mar. 1, 2018)
- J! Archive: glossary (Boyd's Rule, Clavin's Rule, Crush, Faith Love, Final Jeopardy! Round, Lock, Lock-tie, Two-thirds)
- The Jeopardy! Fan: Final Jeopardy betting primer
Sources read Oct. 20, 2026 (ET). The calculator runs entirely in your browser; the scores you type are not sent anywhere.