Online Horse Betting Overview
You don't hear about horse betting as often as you hear about other gambling types but betting on horse racing is a hugely popular hobby around the world. Horse betting allows players to place bets on upcoming horse races that take place at real life tracks. Bets can be placed right at the track or from a distance at online horse betting sites or racebooks.
Best Horse Betting Sites
A little prudence goes a long ways when looking for a real money horse betting. Competition is fierce in the industry, so there are plenty of high quality programs to choose from. After looking at all the best betting sites on the internet, we have come to the conclusion that the following online horse betting sites are the best of the best:
| Rank | Online Racebook | US? | Bonus | Get Started | |
| #1 |  |
BetOnline |  |
25% up to $900 | Bet Now! |
| #2 |  |
Bovada | |
20% up to $100 | Bet Now! |
| #3 |  |
Bet365 |  |
100% up to £200 | Bet Now! |
Not only do we think these are the best horse racing sites, but so do a lot of other people. If you talk to actual online horse bettors, research the internet and look into the history behind each betting site, you can see that people have trusted these sites when horse betting for years. Altogether, the above sites have decade's worth of experience in real money gambling.
You may notice that many of the horse betting websites are
parts of larger all-in-one sports betting sites. These large
online sports betting sites are
able to offer a quality horse betting experience because they
are operated by large, successful companies that have plenty of
money to invest in their horse betting operations.
You can visit any of these top gambling sites and see that they
cover horse races at tracks around the world.
Advantages of Online Horse Betting
If you would like to learn more about how we pick the best horse betting sites, we have a page that explains everything in greater detail. Take a look at our online horse betting sites to learn more about our process of choosing the best sites or if you would like to see our full rankings.
One advantage to wagering at the best horse betting websites is that they are home to some of the best promotions in the industry. For example, the recommended sites on this page have rebate programs that pay you up to 7% of your betting action every week - win or lose. If you are a frequent horse bettor, that rebate money adds up quickly.
Additionally, the best online horse racing sites aren't afraid to give out betting tips, picks and advice. You can visit the horse betting section of any of the above online gambling websites to read strategy articles and analyses of upcoming horse races. The number of people who take the time to read those articles is dwarfed by the number of casual gamblers who place bets for fun.
How Horse Race Betting Works
Horse race betting is also called "Parimutuel" betting, which means "between ourselves." It's called that because in horse betting, you aren't betting against the house. Instead, you are betting against everyone else who is betting on the same race. The house doesn't set the odds; the number of bettors and their bets set the odds.
Horse betting sounds like a simple activity: a bunch of horses run in a circle and you bet on the winner. But there's actually a lot more to it than that. For one thing, there are tons of different bet types you can make and the strategy behind making winning bets is highly advanced.
Win Bet
The simplest bet in horse racing is just called the "Win" bet. This is the bet in which you pick a horse and bet that he'll be the first place finisher. If you're correct, you can win a nice chunk of money. If you're wrong, well, there's always next time.
Show Bet
The "Show" bet is similar to the Win bet except it's a lot easier to win. In the Show bet, you pick a horse and he just has to place in the top 3 spots for your bet to win. You won't make as much money on winning bets but you'll win them a bit more often - especially when you pick strong, fast horses.
Place Bet
The "Place" bet lies right in the middle of the Show and Win bets. This bet requires your horse to take either first or second place. It pays out more than the Show bet but less than the Win bet. If you have a very strong horse in mind but aren't 100% sure on him, the Place bet may be the bet for you.
The "Trifecta" Bet
If you want to get extra adventurous, you can place the "Trifecta" bet. In this one you have to pick the top 3 winners of the race. But that's not all - you have to pick the exact order of the winners. You can pick three horses and they can all take the top 3 places but if they do it in an order different than the one you predicted, your bet won't win. This is a very difficult bet to win but the payout is huge.
Start Horse Betting Online
Getting started in horse betting or any form of betting on sports can be intimidating to new fans, but the cool thing is that online betting sites are generally quite newbie-friendly. The best sites have sections that explain the different types of bets and horse racing rules.
Once you get the hang of horse betting, the same horse betting sites also offer betting tips, upcoming race analyses and other information for helping you get an edge over the competition. Since you're not betting against the house, the sites are more than happy to give you everything you need to make informed bets.
When you're ready to get started, you can visit any of the above top-ranked horse betting sites to create an account and start betting. Most online racebooks are arranged so that all current races are listed on the front page of the horse betting section. You can choose the races you want to wager on by clicking on any track that is listed on the website. You'll then be taken to a section that lists all upcoming races and the available wagers for each race.
If you aren't quite ready or would simply like additional information, then take a look at our horse betting tips section. Inside there, we explain how to bet on horses and how to make good picks. If you choose your horses and bets carefully, it is possible to turn a profit.