What Is a Power Rating?

Ratings updated Oct 28, 2026

A power rating is one number that says how good a team is, in points. Here is what it means, how to read it, and how to use it next to a point spread.

Power ratings right now

Top, median and bottom team in each sport, in that sport's own scoring unit.

Sport	Unit	Top team	Median	Bottom team
NFL	points	Minnesota Vikings +5.4	+0.4	Tennessee Titans −6.0
College football	points	Notre Dame +25.3	−0.5	Sacramento State −27.1
NBA (2025-26 final)	points	Oklahoma City Thunder +10.3	+1.3	Washington Wizards −10.1
NHL	goals	Carolina Hurricanes +1.01	+0.04	Vancouver Canucks −1.09
MLB	runs	Dodgers +1.23	+0.03	Athletics −1.31

A worked example from this week. The Minnesota Vikings are rated +5.4 and the Tennessee Titans −6.0. That is a 11.4-point gap on a neutral field. Add roughly two points for the home team and you have a fair spread to compare with what the sportsbooks are posting.

What a power rating tells you

A power rating puts every team on one scale. It states how many points (or goals, or runs) better or worse a team is than an average team playing on a neutral field. A team rated +6 should beat an average team by about six points. A team rated −4 should lose to one by about four.

That makes two things easy. You can rank every team, and you can compare any two. The difference between the ratings of two teams, plus a bump for the home side, is what the game should be priced at. Compare that to the posted spread and you can see where the market and the ratings disagree.

How to read one

Sign: positive is better than average, negative is worse, zero is average.
Gap: the difference between two ratings is the expected margin on a neutral field.
Scale: NFL and college football ratings are in points, the NBA in points per game, the NHL in goals and MLB in runs. A one-goal NHL gap is huge, a one-run MLB gap is huge, a one-point NFL gap is small.
Home field: add it on top. It is worth about two points in the NFL.

Power rating or record?

A record counts wins, however they happened. A power rating looks at how a team has played. Teams that win a lot of close games look better in the standings than they are, and teams that lose close games look worse. That is why a team's rating and its record can disagree, and why we show luck (record versus expected wins) next to it. Our glossary explains both.

Where power ratings can mislead

Early in the season. A few games is a small sample. Ratings move fast in September and settle by midseason.
Injuries. A rating is an average over the games played. If the quarterback or goalie changes, the team in the next game is not the team in the rating.
Rest and travel. Ratings are neutral. Short rest, back-to-backs and long trips move a number on game day.

Frequently asked questions

What is a power rating in sports?

A power rating is a single number that shows how many points (or goals or runs) better or worse a team is than an average team on a neutral field. Zero is average and positive is better.

How do you turn a power rating into a point spread?

Subtract one team's rating from the other's to get the expected margin on a neutral field, then add the home-field advantage for the home team. Compare that number with the spread at the sportsbooks to see whether you and the market agree.

What is a good power rating?

It depends on the sport. In the NFL, a rating above +4 is a top team. In the NBA, above +6. In the NHL, above +0.5 goals is excellent, and in MLB, above +0.5 runs. The table above shows today's top team in each sport.

Why does a team's power rating differ from its record?

A record counts wins, and a power rating looks at how a team has played. Teams that win many close games or lose many close games will have a record that is better or worse than their rating suggests.