Want to know how to bet on horses in a few simple steps?

It’s as simple as that!

That’s the short answer. In this guide, we’ll go into a lot more detail and provide you with all the information you need to get started. We’ll discuss the various bets that you can make, the best places to bet safely, and how to do it – step-by-step. We’ll even give you some tips to help you increase your chances of winning.

Why Bet on Horse Racing?

Horse racing is one of the most popular sports for betting in the UK. Every year there are thousands of races being run (around 10,000 per year, according to official BHA statistics). And there are multiple betting markets available for each one. That gives those who bet on horses a plethora of opportunities to land a winning wager.

Another reason why betting on horses is so popular is that it can be as easy or challenging as you want it to be. At the easy end of the scale, you can concentrate on picking horses to win or get a place. Or, if you want a much stiffer challenge, you can try and pick the winner of every race at a particular meeting, or predict which horses will occupy the first three places, and in what order.

And then there’s convenience. When you know how to place a bet on a horse race online, you can enjoy the hobby without ever setting foot in a betting shop. Instead, you can do it from the comfort of your own home, and many people do. In fact, wagering on horse racing online is fast becoming one of the most common ways to bet these days.

How to Bet on Horses Online

Having explained the appeal of betting on horse races in the UK, it’s time to discuss how to bet on horses in detail. The process of signing up with a bookmaker and making a bet is actually quite simple. Here’s our step-by-step guide to get you started:

1. Choose a Horse Racing Betting Site

The first thing you need to do is choose a bookmaker to bet with. Visit our best horse racing betting sites page, and you’ll find plenty of information about the safest, most reliable, and most feature-packed sites available. For now, choose one that you’d like to get started with. You can always join additional sites later if you want to.

2. Sign Up for an Account

Next, visit your chosen betting site and look for a button labelled Sign Up, Join or something similar. For example, at Paddy Power, you’ll see a Join Now button in the top right corner of the screen.

 

Tap that button, and it will open a simple registration form. Enter the details requested, which will include your name, email address, date of birth, and so on, and submit the application.

 

Assuming that you are old enough to bet in the UK (which means 18 or older) an account will be set up for you on the spot.

3. Make a Deposit

The next step is to make a deposit so that you have some cash to bet with. Log in to your new betting site account and head to the banking area. There you’ll be able to choose a payment method that suits you (debit cards are most commonly accepted).

Enter your payment details and the amount that you want to deposit, and in most cases, the transaction will be completed in a matter of seconds.

4. Explore the Horse Racing Betting Markets

You can now visit the Horse Racing section of your betting site and explore the races and markets available. Even on the quietest of days, you’ll usually have at least a dozen races to choose from, and often a lot more.

 

Click on any race, and a new page will open to show you all of the markets that are available to bet on.

5. Pick a Horse and Place Your Bet

When you find a horse that you want to bet on, simply click on it, and it will be added to a virtual betting slip. This will normally appear on the right-hand side of the screen, but it can also appear as a smaller pop-up window.

 

Enter the amount that you want to stake, check the details to make sure they’re all as you want them to be, and then submit the bet. Your stake will then be deducted from your account. Winnings will be added to your account automatically after the race if your bet succeeds.

Common Ways to Bet on Horses

Although horse racing is a very straightforward sport, the best online bookmakers still manage to give us an impressive variety of ways to bet on it. Here are some of the most common horse race betting markets and what they involve.

Horse Racing Betting Tips for Beginners

You’ve learned how to bet on horses, but that’s not quite the same as knowing how to bet on horses and win. For that reason, we’ll now give you some tips that will help you to improve your chances of picking a few winners. They don’t guarantee success, of course, but they will definitely put you on the right track.

✅Focus on Easier Races

Horse racing is a varied sport, and the most important thing to learn is that some races are easier than others – at least as far as picking winners is concerned. Non-handicaps are easier than handicaps, and the fewer runners there are, the more likely you are to pick the one that wins. That being the case, our first tip is to focus on non-handicap races with 12 runners or less.

This is just a rule of thumb, of course. We should also say that races which offer particularly high amounts of prize money to the trainers of the winning horses will usually be more competitive than those with lesser prizes. Bear this in mind and focus on day-to-day races at smaller meetings rather than high-profile races. You can always tackle races at big meetings like the Cheltenham Festival when you have a few winners under your belt.

✅Follow the Favourites

Bookmakers set their odds – at least initially – according to how they assess the chances of each horse winning a particular race. And they aren’t fools. If a bookie offers huge odds of 66/1 about a horse, it’s because they don’t have any faith in its ability to win (see Betting Odds Explained for more information). That’s why we recommend focusing your attention on the horses at the opposite end of the market.

If you were to bet on market favourites blindly, you would win around 30 to 35% of the time. You can increase that strike rate further by also focusing on easier races (as discussed a moment ago) and by following our next tip. We aren’t saying that you should only bet on the clear favourite, of course. But you’d do well to concentrate on the first four or five horses in the betting.

✅Assess the Form

As we’ve just said, bookies base their odds on their own study of the horses involved in a race. Now you must make your own assessment. Look at how the horses performed in their previous races. If one has won its last two races by a country mile and the others haven’t finished better than sixth place, the habitual winner would obviously be a better bet.

Of course, things are rarely that straightforward, but you get the idea. Focus on horses that have a proven ability to win or go close rather than hoping that those with poor form will suddenly raise their game. Past performance is no guarantee of the future, as the saying goes, but it’s still the best guide that we have.

✅Grab the Best Odds

Getting the best odds when you make your wagers is essential if you want to learn how to bet on horse racing effectively. The bigger the odds you can get for your selection, the more you will win if the bet succeeds. It really is that straightforward.

One of the easiest ways of getting the best odds is by signing up with several different betting sites. That will let you see what prices are being offered for each race you consider. You can then bet with the most generous bookie in each case.

The most serious bettors make grabbing the best odds the cornerstone of their hobby. In fact, it can be one of the most effective horse racing betting strategies around. You can find out more in our Value Betting guide.

Mistakes to Avoid When Betting on Horses

Now that we’ve shared our tips on the best way to bet on horses, it makes sense for us to also highlight three of the most common mistakes that are made by beginners. Being aware of these at the outset will help you to avoid accidentally making the same mistakes yourself.

❌Staking Without a Plan

Many beginners start betting with no clear idea of how much they should bet on their selections. Instead, they stake according to however they happen to feel at the time. They might bet £5 on one race, £20 on the next, £8 on the next, and so on. That isn’t an approach that leads to success.

To avoid this mistake, set aside a fixed sum of money for betting on horse racing. Then bet only a predetermined part of that bankroll on each race. For example, you could set aside £100 and bet £2 or £5 per race so that the bankroll would fund at least 50 or 20 bets, respectively.

❌Betting On Every Race

Betting on horse racing can be a lot of fun. We get it. But there’s rarely a good reason for betting on every single race, every day of the week. You might be lucky and catch one or two extra winners, but you’ll also catch way more losers. Make this mistake, and you’ll tear through your bankroll in no time.

❌Being Overambitious

There are lots of beginners who place ambitious bets such as forecasts, tricast and multiples, right from the start. That’s usually because they are seduced by the big potential payouts that those types of bets offer. But those types of bets are also the easiest to lose with.

In the beginning, avoid being overambitious. Focus on simple win-only or each-way bets, and you’re much more likely to enjoy your first taste of success.

Where to Bet On Horses Online

You know how to place a bet on horse racing, but where should you bet? While most online bookmakers in the UK offer horse racing markets, it’s important that you use a reputable and reliable company. Good examples are Bet365, Betfair, Paddy Power, and BetVictor.

FAQ

What is the best way to bet on horses?

The best way to bet on horses is by betting online. This will enable you to bet with a variety of bookmakers from the comfort of your own home or workplace. You can even bet online via your mobile phone.

What is the best horse bet for a beginner?

An each-way bet will give you the best chance of getting a return from your bookmaker. If you make this type of bet and the horse wins, you’ll certainly make a profit. If your horse doesn’t win but it gets a place, you’ll still receive a return and get at least part of your money back.

How do I place a bet on a horse?

As discussed in this horse racing betting guide, you simply need to choose a horse betting UK bookmaker, sign up for an account and make a deposit. You can then explore the races, select a horse and add it to your bet slip. Enter your stake and then submit the bet.

How do you pick a winning horse?

Horse racing gambling fans around the world have pondered the same question for decades. There is no guaranteed way, but we would advise you to focus on easier races, concentrate on the first five in the betting and assess the form of the runners involved. Also, be sure to learn all you can from our horse betting guides.