What does line shopping mean in sports betting?

What is line shopping in sports betting? Comparing odds at multiple sportsbooks to get the best number. In plain terms: it works like price-comparing before you buy. Different books post different numbers on the same game. “Since we're so overexposed on minus 8 in the Texans game, let's start line shopping for any better number we can find.” Let's use this example. At the same observation time and on the same Kansas City spread market, Book A posts minus 6.5 and Book B posts minus 7. For a Kansas City backer, minus 6.5 is the easier number; availability can change. That is the entire skill: hold accounts at more than one book and take the best number every time. Because if you only have one book, you do not have a number — you have Slow-Pay Donnie's number, and captive customers pay whatever the house feels like charging. Lines move and books differ. Nothing here is a guarantee or a command to bet — it's how the number works.