Each way betting is a popular form of betting, commonly used in horse racing. It is made up of two parts: a win bet and a place bet. The win bet is placed on the horse to finish first, while the place bet is made on the horse to finish in one of the specified positions. This is usually the top 4 or 5 places, depending on the size of race and individual bookmaker.
An each way bet increases your chance of a return, in the case of your horse not winning. If your horse places, the payout won’t be the amount that a win would have brought, but it’s still a return. In order to calculate any potential returns, an each way calculator could be utilised.
The total stake for an each-way bet is double the amount of the individual bet. This means that when you bet £10 each way, you need £20. £10 ‘each way’ means that you bet £10 on one outcome and £10 on another outcome.
The odds for the place part of the bet are calculated as a fraction of the winning selection odds. OddsMonkey Premium members can use our dedicated tools and betting calculators to work everything out.
Which Sports Does Each Way Betting Work On?
Each way betting is usually found in horse racing. But it can also be done for other sports with racing fields in excess of four runners. This can include tournament-based competitions such as the FIFA World Cup (football), the Masters (golf), Formula 1 (motor racing), greyhound racing and cycling. All of these events provide fantastic each way betting opportunities and some even have their own dedicated sports betting guides on site. In fact, any sporting event with multiple competitors will provide clearly defined ‘places’ for each way betting. However, individual football, boxing, rugby, tennis, snooker and darts matches only provide a winner and a loser and therefore aren’t suitable for each way betting.
Both the number of specified places and the fractional odds applied by the bookmakers depend on the type of race and how many runners there are in the field. Let’s take a look at what that means:
- Less than 5 runners: WIN ONLY
- 5-7 runners: 1st & 2nd place @ 1/4 odds
- 8+ runners: 1st, 2nd & 3rd place @ 1/5 odds.
- Handicaps 12-15 runners: 1st, 2nd & 3rd place @ 1/4 odds
- Handicaps 15+ runners: 1st, 2nd, 3rd & 4th place @ 1/4 odds
- Big horse races, such as the Grand National, usually see a lot of novice punters betting each way.
Please note that the terms available differ depending on the bookmaker, sport, competition and market. Always check the T&Cs before placing your each way bet!
How To Place An Each Way Bet
The process of placing an each way bet will differ from bookie to bookie but here’s a general overview.
- Make a selection and decide how much you want to bet each way.
- Place a ‘win’ bet on the horse to finish first.
- Make a ‘place’ bet on the same horse to either win the event OR finish in one of the specified places. This depends on the bookmaker but will probably be 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th.
- Remember: each bet MUST be an equivalent stake. For example, a £10 each way bet means your total stake is £20.
- The odds on the ‘place’ part of the bet are calculated as a fraction of the winning selection odds: 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, 1/5.
- The number of specified places and associated fractional odds are dependent on the bookmaker, sport and event. Always make sure you check the T&Cs.
- If your selection finishes 1st, both the win and place parts of the bet will return a profit.
- If your selection fails to come 1st, the win part of your bet loses….
- However, if it finishes in one of the specified places, the PLACE part of the bet will give you a return.
Unfortunately, if your horse fails to finish in one of the specified places, you won’t receive any returns.
What If My Each Way Bet Is A Non Runner?
If you are unfamiliar you may be asking yourself “what is a non runner”? Essentially, a non-runner is a horse which is withdrawn from a race prior to the Off.
It is important to note that each way bets can be affected by the withdrawal of other horses from a race. If a runner withdraws from the race the chances are that the terms of your bet will alter. For example, in a field of 8 runners, the fractional odds are 1/5 for 1st, 2nd & 3rd place. If a runner was withdrawn from running, the field would be reduced to just 7 runners. Therefore the fractional odds would reduce to 1/4 for 1st & 2nd places only.
In a field of 5 runners, the fractional odds are 1/4 for 1st & 2nd place. If a horse became a non-runner, the field would be reduced to just 4 runners. Therefore, your each-way bet would turn into a single ‘win only’ bet.
How To Calculate An Each Way Bet
Let’s take a look at this race at Newmarket as an example:
The selection (Glistened) is a horse priced at 13.0 in a race of 8 runners (1st, 2nd & 3rd place @ 1/5 odds). A £10 each-way bet would be calculated as follows:
Stake: £10 to WIN @13.0 + £10 to PLACE @3.4 (1/5 of 13.0)
Total stake: £20 (£10 + £10)
Outcome 1
Glistened wins the race.
Both Win and Place bets win resulting in £144 profit.
Outcome 2
Glistened finishes the race in 2nd or 3rd place.
The Win bet would lose but the Place bet would win resulting in a profit of £14. (This takes into account the lost win bet even though the place bet itself gained a profit of £24)
Outcome 3
Glistened finishes the race in 4th – 8th place.
Sadly both bets would lose in this instance.
However, there is a way to minimise the losses associated with traditional betting. You can apply the matched betting strategy when placing your each way bets. When you do each way betting in this way, your qualifying loss is all that is at risk, not the full stake as matched betting covers all possible eventualities.
Calculating Place Odds When Using Odds In Decimal Format
Decimal odds are pretty straightforward once you get the hang of them. For standard back bets, simply multiply your stake by the decimal odds to calculate your total return (including your stake). Your profit is then your total return – your stake.
Trying to calculate place odds for each way bets requires a little more understanding. For example: if we back a horse at 11.0 (10/1 fractional) for £10 each way and the place terms are ¼ we do not simply divide the decimal odds by 4 to calculate the place odds. We need to deduct 1 from the decimal odds (this is our stake), then divide this by the place terms (4 for ¼, 5 for 1/5) and then finally add back our stake (+1)
For the example above, a horse priced at 11.0 and place terms ¼ would result in the following:
- Deduct your stake = 11.0 – 1 = 10.0
- Divide by place terms = 10 / 4 = 2.5
- Add back your stake = 2.5 + 1 = 3.5
The place odds for your each way bet would be 3.5. This is the manual way of doing things, however, all of this can be negated via the odds converter tool we also have on site.
But before you get lost in the maths, remember that OddsMonkey Premium members can access our full range of tools and calculators. We have everything you need to maximise your profits when each way betting on horse racing. If you need some more insight into horse racing as a whole, you could potentially take a look at the comprehensive horse racing betting guide on site.
