How Much Is a Guinea in Horse Racing?

A guinea is worth £1.05 — originally 21 shillings. To convert any guineas figure to pounds, multiply by 1.05 (so 100 guineas = £105). The gold guinea coin was first introduced in 1663 during the reign of King Charles II although the coin itself stopped being minted in the early 1800s.

In bloodstock sales, guineas are the unit of measurement often used as this includes the auctioneer commission of 5 percent that is included in all sales, making the term a true Sport of Kings tradition.

Guineas to Pounds: The Conversion

The simple table below shows how the guinea, often shortened to a GNS abbreviation in racing, is included in sales prices.

The buyer pays £1.05 per guinea; the seller receives £1 per guinea; the 5p difference is the auctioneer's commission — effectively a tidy 5% on top of the hammer price.

Why Bloodstock Is Still Sold in Guineas

At Tattersalls in Newmarket — Europe's largest bloodstock auctioneer — horses are still knocked down in guineas (abbreviated gns). The guineas term is part of racing's heritage and preserved as such, but the value of a guinea compared to a pound also allows the auctioneer's 5 percent commission to be built neatly into every bid received.

Turnover is still reported in guineas at major sales, such as the yearling sales in Newmarket, with Tattersalls sales having surpassed 400 million guineas in a year.

The Races That Carry the Name

The Guineas term is also attached to two of Britain's treasured Classic races, the five contests reserved annually for the best three-year-old fillies and colts to contest and they remain key contests in the thoroughbred industry.

The 2000 Guineas (established in 1809 for colts and fillies) and the 1000 Guineas (established in 1814 for fillies only) are both run over a mile on Newmarket's Rowley Mile course and were named after their original prize funds in guineas — a 2,000-guinea purse and a 1,000-guinea purse.

Their names endure today despite prize money running into several hundred thousand pounds. 

Similarly, the Irish 1000/2000 Guineas are run at the Curragh and there are equivalent races in mainland Europe as well as in Australia at Flemington racecourse.

A Short History of the Guinea

The guinea was a British gold coin minted from 1663 to 1813, named after the Guinea region of West Africa that supplied much of the gold. 

Its value floated with gold before being fixed at 21 shillings; it was effectively replaced by the pound in the Great Recoinage of 1816, but lingered as a unit of account for professional fees and luxury goods — and never left the racecourse and sales ring.

The guineas term is a true tradition in British racing and a tidy way of expressing commission that keeps guineas alive at Tattersalls.