Horse Racing Bet Types (2026)

Types of bets that exist for horse racing

The methods of choosing a bet in horse racing has evolved over time and is advancing to more specific and complex wagering opportunities in the digital age.

The win bet is as basic a bet type as you can find, since players are purely betting which horse will win a race. A bettor could also explore a Superfecta or a Pick 6 to create various multi-faceted racing stakes, and often the payout is more lucrative due the increased complexity to correctly arrange and hit.

Then we have both authoritative expert picks where handicappers create a race sequence, or there are also algorithm based tickets that leverage a variety of bet types to offer easy to use bet slip entry.

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Basic Bets

WIN BET

Choose only one horse to win the race, and if your selection wins the race - you win! Click here for more details on a Win bet

PLACE BET

On a Place Bet you choose one horse and your horse needs to finish first OR second to claim some winnings! Click here for more details on a Place bet

SHOW BET

On a Show Bet you choose one horse and your horse needs to finish first OR second OR third to claim some winnings! Click here for more details on a Show bet

Single-Race Exotic Bets

EXACTA BET

On an Exacta Bet you need to choose the horses that will finish first AND second in the correct order to claim your winnings! Click here for more details on an Exacta bet

QUINELLA BET

pick the first 2 finishers (they can come in either order) to win! Click here for more details on a Quinella bet

TRIFECTA BET

pick the first 3 finishers to claim your winnings! Click here for more details on a Trifecta bet

SUPERFECTA BET

pick the first 4 finishers to be a winner! Click here for more details on a Superfecta bet

SUPER HI-5 BET

pick the first 5 finishers and you're a winner! Click here for more details on a Super Hi-5 bet

Multi-Race Exotic Bets

DAILY DOUBLE BET

pick the winners of 2 consecutive races and you can collect your winnings! Click here for more details on a Daily Double bet

PICK 3 BET

pick the winners of 3 consecutive races and you win! Click here for more details on a Pick 3 bet

PICK 4 BET

pick the winners of 4 consecutive races and your winnings are waiting for you at the window! Click here for more details on a Pick 4 bet

PICK 5 BET

pick the winners of 5 consecutive races and claim your winnings! Click here for more details on a Pick 5 bet

PICK 6 BET

pick the winners of 6 consecutive races to be a winner! Click here for more details on a Pick 6 bet

Tips & Tricks

Making a Win-Place-Show bet pays out if your horse runs first, second and/or third.
Box exotic wagers so you increase your chances of winning.
You can “use more horses” than the title of a wager suggests.
You can also use multiple horses in each leg of a multi-race exotic.
Save money putting a ticket together and Key a horse in a particular position.

Click the image below for a visual guide to the basic types of horse racing bets:

Betting 101 Articles for Horse Racing

Betting Distances

Betting Pace

Betting Tracks

Betting by Bet Types

Advanced Betting Strategy

FAQ and Bet Type Concepts

Straight exacta bet type payouts, using $2 as an example wager

Basic $2 exacta bet type is a two horse combination such as #3 & #7 for a ticket that resembles ‘2 with 6’ totaling $2.

Exacta wheel and part wheel bet type payouts, using $2 as an example wager

The basic exacta wheel, or part wheel, holds two horses to finish in first and second positions. Unlike boxing the player is stating which horses could finish in either specific position. Such as exacta wheel with a single first place selection, then the full field could finish second (ten horses in this example) would be $18 total.

Pick 6 multi-race bet type payouts, using $2 as an example wager

The math would be an equation of horses selected to win in each leg of the sequence. If you select 2 horses in each leg of your bet type, then 6 races with 2 horses selected would resemble 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 = 64 possible combinations and thus a $1 Pick 6 is $64, and multiply the total by 2 for the $2 to arrive at a cost of $128 for $2 for this pick six wager type.

Payouts are decided on several factors

Pari-Mutuel pool size, where everyone’s wagers are collected into a single pot for that bet type. Example a pool for an exacta will payout for exactas or a win pool will exist for win bets. This applies to Pick ‘N’ wagers as well. The odds of the horse will determine value for who is picked, meaning as a horse is favored more by the public as they increase the amount of money put on the horse, within the bet type pool, the more people are to be paid, thus the less a player may earn. Longshots are attractive for good reason!

Types of information to obtain for creating bet tickets

Trainer, Jockey and Trainer/Jockey combo winning percentages, A horse’s speed figures and brisnet rankings, track surface changes and bias trends