Each way betting explained: the win part, the place part and the sums

What an each way bet is

An each way bet is two bets of the same size placed together on one selection. One is a win bet. The other is a place bet, which pays if the selection finishes in the places. The stake you state is the stake on one part, so £5 each way costs £10. The bet is most closely tied to horse racing, and it is also offered on golf and on some other outright markets where several finishers are paid.

It is a middle way between two bettors’ wishes. A win bet pays well when the horse wins and nothing otherwise. An each way bet pays something more often, because a horse can place without winning, but it pays less when the horse does win, since half of the stake went on the place part and the place part pays a fraction of the odds.

How the win part and the place part are paid

Finish first and the win part pays at the full odds. The place part is paid at a fraction of the odds if the horse finishes inside the places, and a winner has placed, so a horse that wins collects both parts. Each part returns its stake along with the profit.

The fraction and the number of places are the place terms, and the bookmaker states them for each race. The fraction is usually a quarter or a fifth of the win odds, and sometimes a third. The number of places depends on the race and the operator: a big handicap often pays more places than a small race, and some races pay only a winner. During large meetings, bookmakers sometimes advertise extra places as a promotion. Read the line beside the horse on the racecard before you place the bet, because it is the only version of the terms that counts.

Working out the place price

The place price is the win price cut by the fraction. At 8/1 with one fifth odds, the place price is eight fifths, 8/5, or 2.6 in decimals. A £5 place stake returns £13, which is £8 of profit and the stake. At 20/1 with one quarter odds, the place price is 20 quarters, 5/1 or 6.0 in decimals, and a £5 place stake returns £30.

The table shows the point of each way. On a short-priced horse the place part returns less than the whole £10 staked, so a horse that only places loses a little. From about 4/1 with a quarter, or 5/1 with a fifth, a placed horse covers both stakes. At longer prices the place part alone makes a profit, and a winner pays handsomely on top. That is why each way is mostly used on horses at 6/1 and above.

The break-even price

There is a simple way to see it. A place-only return equals the total stake when the place price is 2.0. With a quarter that happens at decimal 5.0, which is 4/1. With a fifth it is decimal 6.0, or 5/1. With a third it is decimal 4.0, or 3/1. Above those prices, a horse that places gets back more than it cost. Below them, a placed horse is a small loss, and the win part has to do the work.

This is a statement about the arithmetic of the bet and not about the horse. It does not tell you whether the horse will place, and a price that looks generous often is long because the market thinks the horse is unlikely to finish near the front. Use it to understand what each way is paying you for, and not as a reason to bet.

Reading the each way line on a racecard

A racecard or a bookmaker’s race page states the terms in a short line, often written like “¼ odds, 1-2-3” or “1/5 odds, 1-2-3-4”. The fraction is the share of the win odds paid on the place part, and the numbers are the finishing positions that count as a place. Check the line for the race you are betting on, because the same horse can be offered on different terms by different bookmakers, and the same bookmaker offers different terms on different races.

The terms are fixed when you place the bet. If a bookmaker later offers extra places on the race, check the offer’s terms to see whether it applies to a bet you have already placed.

Each way at the early price and at the starting price

You can take an each way bet at the starting price, in which case the price is set when the race starts, or at a price taken earlier. An early price has the risk that the horse starts at a shorter price. Best Odds Guaranteed, where a bookmaker offers it, is the feature that covers that risk, and it applies to each way bets at most of the bookmakers on our card. The place terms stay as advertised in either case, so the choice is about the price and not about the number of places.

Each way multiples

An each way double or accumulator takes the idea further. The win part needs every selection to win, and the place part needs every selection to place or win. The place prices of the selections are multiplied together in the same way as ordinary odds.

The double above shows how little the place part returns unless both horses place. Both placing, or one winning and the other placing, gives £22.50 from a £10 stake. Both winning gives £172.50. If one horse finishes outside the places, the whole bet returns nothing. The more selections an each way multiple has, the more likely it is that one of them lets the bet down, and the cost is doubled by the place part. Our each way calculator works out multiples of any size, and our bet types guide explains the full-cover bets built from them.

Each way full-cover bets

A Lucky 15 or a Yankee can be placed each way as well, and it doubles the number of bets. A Lucky 15 is fifteen bets, so £1 each way is thirty bets and £30. A Yankee at the same stake is twenty-two bets and £22. Each way is more costly across a full-cover bet than across a single, and the place part is a smaller share of a larger total. Work out the total before you place it. The bet calculator has an each way mode for exactly that.

Dead heats and extra places

A dead heat is a tie for a position. The part of the stake that depends on the tied position is divided by the number of horses involved. If two horses tie for first, half of the win stake is paid at the full odds and the other half is lost. The same applies to a tie for the last place. The rules depend on which places the tie falls across, so read the bookmaker’s terms for the bet if a dead heat happens.

With extra places, a bookmaker advertises payment on more finishing positions than its usual terms. They change the number of places and leave the arithmetic alone: a horse that finishes in the extra place gets the place part as usual. Promotions have conditions and often exclude certain bets, so look at the terms of the offer.

Each way with Rule 4 and Best Odds Guaranteed

A Rule 4 deduction, taken when a horse is withdrawn after you have bet, reduces the winnings of both parts of an each way bet. A horse that only places still gets a place return, a little smaller. Best Odds Guaranteed pays you the better of your price and the starting price, and on an each way bet the place part is paid at the usual fraction of that better price. See our Rule 4 guide and our Best Odds Guaranteed guide for how each one works, and the Rule 4 calculator to see them on a bet.

When each way is worth considering

It suits horses at longer prices, where the place part returns more than the whole stake and the win part is a bonus. It suits a bettor who thinks a horse will run well and is not sure it will win. It costs twice as much as a win bet for the same stake on each part, and a bettor who wants to stay inside a budget should work in the total, not in the stake per part.

It is not a better bet than a win bet. It has a different shape, with a smaller return on a win and a more regular small return when the horse is close. Neither one changes how likely the horse is to run well, and neither is a reliable way to make money.

Common mistakes with each way bets

The first is reading the stake as the total: £5 each way is £10. The second is placing the bet without looking at the terms on the racecard, because the number of places and the fraction differ between races and between bookmakers. The third is backing a short-priced favourite each way, where a place usually returns less than the stake. The fourth is forgetting that an each way multiple needs every selection to place at least. The fifth is assuming extra places are a gift: they come with conditions.

Set a deposit limit before you bet, keep to a budget you can afford to lose, and take a break if it stops being fun. Betting is for people aged 18 and over. GambleAware provides free, confidential support, and GamStop can block all licensed UK sites for a chosen period.