Betfair is slightly different than traditional bookies, it offers separate WIN BETS and PLACE BETS. The confusion arises because Betfair split these two bets into different markets. To get your each way bet on with Betfair you need to look for the ‘TO BE PLACED’ link, this is usually directly under the main market (see example image).

The advantage of the Betfair ‘PLACE’ bet is you are not forced into making two bets like a traditional bookmaker would require. A traditional bookies ‘Each Way‘ bet is actually two bets, that’s why it costs double, a £5 each way bet will costs you £10 (£5 win, £5 place) as you can’t win both bets you’ll always lose a portion of your stake. This doesn’t happen with Betfair ‘PLACE’ bets, but you should also be aware that Betfair PLACE odds maybe shorter than traditional bookies to reflect this ~ but it could still be more profitable than a traditional each way bet.

You can read more about betting each way with Betfair Bookmakers at the Punters Lounge, if you’d like to join Betfair Click Here.

The ideal situation for an Each Way bet is when you fancy a horse to run well, but your not sure it’ll win. The Each Way bet covers your horse to win, put also pays out if your horse finishes 2nd or 3rd (and sometimes even 4th place if the race has 16+ horses running).

The Each Way bet is really two bets in one, the first part of the bet covers your horse for winning the race, the second part of the bet covers your horse if it fails to win but manages to finish in 2nd, 3rd or 4th place. Because the each way bet has two parts the stake is doubled, so a £5 each way bet actually costs you £10. You can’t bet on a horse each way if the race has less than 5 runners and a race with 5 ~ 7 runners will only pay out on a 2nd place.

It’s also worth noting that you will only get 1/4 or 1/5 of the quoted odds if you horse finishes in 2nd, 3rd or 4th place. Which means you shouldn’t back a horse each way unless it’s odds are over 4/1, because you could never win enough to cover your original stake.

Writing out a betting slip for an each way bet is quite simple, I’ve added a picture of a correctly filled in betting slip for you. Click on the image to see a bigger version. You can also view the video below which shows you in detail how to bet each way. A great bookmaker for each way betting is Paddy Power bookmakers, they offer competitive odds, free bets for new customers and sometimes they even pay out on 5th places for big races like the Grand National.