How to Choose a Horse Racing Betting Site

Selecting the best horse racing betting site for your preferences is fundamental to maximising your enjoyment. Bookmakers can vary across various characteristics, including betting markets, bonuses, mobile apps, payment methods, and more. Learning how to choose a horse racing betting site requires an in-depth understanding of each factor weighted against your personal taste. 

Our HorseRacing.net experts have pulled out all the stops to create a comprehensive guide featuring the main traits to consider when choosing a horse racing betting site. This page will cover vital information, from the importance of UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) licensing to comparing the different welcome bonuses and ongoing promotions available at leading bookies. 

Keep reading for the lowdown. Afterwards, press the “Free Bets” button in the top right-hand corner of our site to compare bookies and their respective welcome bonuses. You’ll have all the tools required to make the optimal decision and enjoy your betting experience to the max.  

Check for a UKGC Gambling Licence

The most important factor when choosing a horse racing betting site is looking for verifiable UKGC licensing. The regulatory body plays a vital role in keeping punters safe, consistently auditing platforms under its umbrella to ensure they operate fairly and safely. 

While a UKGC licence can never guarantee an operator will play by the rules, they face heavy fines for stepping out of line. Bookies must satisfy various aspects, like site security, betting fairness, and responsible gambling, to gain a licence. As a result, betting on a UKGC-certified platform is the best way to ensure your safety. All licensed betting operators can be found in the UKGC’s public register.

Browse the Horse Racing Betting Markets

After confirming whether a bookie has licensing and can be trusted, you can examine the betting markets and general horse racing odds coverage. Ensuring your preferred options are available before registering and depositing is crucial to avoiding any disappointment on those fronts. 

Check the horse racing betting homepage to confirm there is a solid spread. Most sites cater for the most common types, but not everywhere has the same depth when it comes to bet builders, accas, and other complex bets. You can find some of the most popular horse racing betting wagers below: 

• Single: A single is the simplest horse racing wager, allowing punters to predict the winning horse during a race;
• Acca: An acca is one of the most exciting horse racing bets. While singles, doubles, and trebles cover up to three scenarios, an acca can spread across several races. The multiplied odds can generate higher payouts, although you must correctly predict all legs of the acca to win; 
• Each-Way: An each-way bet consists of two wagers: a win and a place bet. If your horse finishes first, you’ll receive a payout from both. Many punters like each-way bets because they can still win a smaller payout if their horse finishes in the top few places without winning;  
• Forecast: A forecast bet involves choosing the first and second horses at the end of a race in the right order. Alternatively, you can place a reverse forecast covering the first two horses regardless of the finishing order; 
• Place: A place bet requires punters to predict whether a horse will finish in the top positions, usually the first two or three. In landmark races or ones with a larger field, this can stretch to more positions;
• Yankee: A Yankee bet involves six doubles, four trebles, and a four-leg acca. It’s one of a few specialist multiple bets covering numerous scenarios and races during a meet. Other examples include Lucky 15s and Lucky 31s. 

Punters will generally use one of the bet types above when wagering. Be sure to check the available options before signing up at a horse racing betting site, as platforms can differ. Additionally, industry leaders can offer interesting spins on popular options. For example, bookies like William Hill offer each-way accas and significant odds boosts. 

Examining the bet types isn’t the only important step. Punters must also ensure that a prospective bookmaker covers as many events and meetings as possible. Ideally, a platform will offer odds on all UK and Irish races. At the very minimum, they should cover the following high-profile events in comprehensive detail: 

• Royal Ascot;
• Grand National;
• Cheltenham Festival;
• Epsom Derby;
• Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.

Not being able to bet on your preferred options after signing up and depositing can be extremely frustrating, so keep this in mind.

Compare Bonuses and Promotions

Horse racing betting sites offer various bonuses, and shopping around for the best offers can pay serious dividends. New customers can enjoy a welcome bonus at all leading bookies, but this is just the start. Platforms also run several regular promotions for horse racing, allowing you to score free bets, enhanced odds, and other incentives. Some of the most common examples include: 

• Free Bets: Many top-rated bookies offer new customers a free bet package, usually after placing a minimum £10 stake. This unlocks a current average of £30 in free bets, although it’s worth shopping around as some operators like BetVictor offer £40. Punters can also access regular free bet promos on significant events like Royal Ascot or the Grand National;
• Bet Refunds: Bet refunds allow punters to place a prediction and receive their stake back if it fails. These are generally ongoing promotions, but some bookmakers also use the concept in their welcome bonuses. Ensure you read the terms and conditions before taking advantage, as bet refunds typically require a wager with minimum odds and stake requirements;
• Cashback: Cashback promotions are similar to bet refunds, allowing you to place a bet and receive a percentage of any losses back as bonus funds. This is generally calculated over a few days or a week, and any losses are offset against your overall winnings. The cashback percentage isn’t usually over 10%, but every little helps; 
• Loyalty Schemes: Many top bookmakers offer a loyalty scheme where their customers can earn points for placing bets and receive various types of rewards. We recommend closely scrutinising the terms and loyalty levels. Some are relatively pointless, but others can deliver attractive incentives, including cashback, exclusive free bets, and more; 
• Best Odds Guaranteed: Best Odds Guaranteed (often abbreviated to BOG) is a common horse racing-specific betting offer. This allows punters to place a bet, usually from 8am or 9am on race day, and receive the best possible price if the prediction is successful. As odds fluctuate significantly before the Starting Price, this promotion can be particularly advantageous;
• Extra Places: Top bookies offer extra places on regular horse racing events, especially prestigious meets like the Cheltenham Festival with large racing fields. As a result, you can place each-way or place bets covering more than just the first three horses, often going up to four or five;
• 2nd to SP Favourite: BoyleSports was one of the first operators to adopt a 2nd to Starting Price (SP) favourite promotions, but others have followed since. If your horse finishes second behind the starting price favourite, you can receive a free bet equal to your initial stake. 

Check the promotions page when inspecting a potential bookmaker, as this is usually the best indicator of what’s on offer.

Review Available Payment Methods

Reviewing the banking options is another crucial step when choosing a horse racing betting site. Each payment method has its own advantages and disadvantages. We’ve summarised the most widespread below: 

• Debit Cards: The most familiar and widely available horse racing betting banking options, debit cards offer a convenient deposit and withdrawal method. Disadvantages include sensitive data sharing, trickier budgeting, and slightly slower transaction speeds;
• e-Wallets: PayPal, Skrill, Neteller, and other e-wallets deliver a speedy service separate from your actual bank account. You only need a username and password to pay, safeguarding personal banking details. One of the only problems is that e-wallets are regularly excluded from deposit bonuses; 
• Prepaid Cards: Prepaid cards like Paysafecard are great for budgeting, as you can only deposit the amount on your voucher. It also doesn’t require any sensitive data sharing, but punters can run into trouble when withdrawing or claiming bonuses;
• Trustly: Trustly is an innovative Open Banking service enabling punters to make deposits via their online banking accounts without disclosing any data to bookmakers. Unfortunately, Trustly still isn’t among the most commonly available options, so be sure to check out our rankings for the best Trustly betting sites.

Consider Your Priorities and Preferences

Learning how to choose a horse racing betting site ultimately comes down to your own personal preferences. Finding operators with the factors listed in the previous sections is mainly non-negotiable. Additional areas to tick off when reviewing platforms include: 

Player-Friendly Promos

Don’t just examine the promotions page at a prospective bookmaker. We highly recommend scanning the individual terms and conditions to ensure the operator also offers player-friendly promos. For example, there shouldn’t be any wagering requirements on UK horse racing betting promotions, and the minimum bet or odds should be favourable. 

Fast Withdrawals

Leading horse racing betting sites like bet365 offer near-instant withdrawals via Visa Fast Funds, processing and paying withdrawals within two hours — the new gold standard across the industry. If you value speedy payouts, consider the processing speed and withdrawal options before choosing a bookies. We’re compiled and rank the best fast withdrawal betting sites, too.

In-Play Betting and Early Cash-Out

Additional horse racing betting features can have a significant impact on your enjoyment. For example, in-play betting can unlock exciting live horse racing wagers, especially during longer races like the Grand National or Cheltenham Gold Cup. Early cash-out is also a great feature that can help punters cash in on a prediction before it changes for the worse. 

Live Streaming

Your chosen operator should ideally have horse racing live streaming in this day and age. The best platforms offer daily opportunities to watch live horse racing, which can be particularly fruitful combined with live betting. bet365 even provides archived horse racing videos, allowing its customers to get deep with pre-race horse research. 

Online Casino Games

You never know when you might want to take a break from horse racing betting and enjoy slots or live dealer casino games. While this is a smaller factor in choosing a bookies, it’s still worth checking the casino section to see what’s on offer.

Choosing a Betting Site – Quick Guide

Here is a quick step-by-step round-up of how to choose the optimal horse racing betting site: 

1. Browse Our Offers - Head to our free bets page or, for a broader overview, our horse racing betting offers page to find the best deals around. 
2. Check Features - Check the features available at a betting site and read reviews to get a flavour of the overall experience. 
3. Review Welcome Bonus - Examine the welcome bonus, paying close attention to specific terms and conditions to get the best deal. 
4. Sign Up - Once you’ve chosen a bookie, create an account by clicking the link to head to the respective site’s sign up page.

Browse Horse Racing Betting Sites and Sign Up

Finding the best horse racing betting site for your preferences is crucial. Fortunately, HorseRacing.net has given you all the tools on this page. Use the steps and considerations above to find the top bookmaker for you — no matter your preferences, HorseRacing.net has you covered.