Cheltenham Betting Guide 2027: Each Way Terms, Ante-Post and Multiples
By the MyHorseBets team · Updated · 11 min read
On this page
- How Cheltenham Each Way Terms Work
- Extra Places at the Festival
- Best Odds Guaranteed (BOG) at Cheltenham
- Non-Runner No Bet and Ante-Post Betting
- Multiples Across the Festival: Lucky 15s, Yankees and Accas
- Dutching a Big Cheltenham Handicap
- Betting On Course at Cheltenham or Online
- Free Bets and Festival Offers
- Staying in Control During Festival Week
Cheltenham betting is ordinary horse race betting with three things turned up: bigger fields, more bookmaker concessions and a lot more bets in a short week. This guide explains how each way terms work across the Festival’s different races, what extra places, best odds guaranteed and non-runner no bet actually change, how ante-post betting works, and how to work out what a Lucky 15 or a dutched bet pays before you place it.
We don’t give tips or name horses. Everything below applies to any horse in any of the 28 races at the Cheltenham Festival 2027, which runs from Tuesday 16 to Friday 19 March 2027. The day-by-day race list is on our Cheltenham Festival 2027 page.
How Cheltenham Each Way Terms Work
An each way bet is two bets: one on the horse to win and one on it to place. The place part pays a fraction of the odds, and how many places count depends on the number of runners and whether the race is a handicap. These are the standard UK terms:
| Race type | Runners | Places paid | Fraction of the odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Any race | 2 to 4 | Win only | None |
| Any race | 5 to 7 | 2 | 1/4 |
| Non-handicap | 8 or more | 3 | 1/5 |
| Handicap | 8 to 11 | 3 | 1/5 |
| Handicap | 12 to 15 | 3 | 1/4 |
| Handicap | 16 or more | 4 | 1/4 |
Our full guide to what an each way bet is covers the basics. What matters at Cheltenham is that the Festival mixes very different races, so the same each way stake can buy very different cover from one race to the next.
Big-field handicaps: where each way earns its keep
The Festival handicaps, such as the Ultima, the Plate, the Grand Annual, the Pertemps Final and the County Hurdle, often attract big fields. With 16 or more runners, the standard terms pay four places at 1/4 of the odds, and at longer prices the place part alone can cover the whole stake.
Example: £5 each way at 12/1 in a 20-runner handicap, 1/4 odds, four places. The bet costs £10. The place odds are 12/1 x 1/4 = 3/1.
| Result | Win part | Place part | Total return |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wins | £65 | £20 | £85 |
| Finishes 2nd, 3rd or 4th | £0 | £20 | £20 |
| Unplaced | £0 | £0 | £0 |
A placed finish returns £20 for a £10 outlay, so the bet makes a profit without winning. Type your own price and terms into the each way calculator to see the same table for any bet.
Championship races: small fields change the maths
The Grade 1 races are a different story. A championship chase can attract a small field, and if only five to seven horses run, each way pays just two places at 1/4 of the odds. With four or fewer runners, each way bets are settled as win only, so the place half becomes a second win bet. Before backing each way in a Grade 1, count the declared runners, not the entries.
Novice races and the 1/5 trap
Non-handicaps with eight or more runners pay three places at 1/5 of the odds. On a short-priced horse, that place part can pay less than the stake. A £5 each way bet on a 3/1 shot at 1/5 odds returns £8 from the place part if the horse finishes second: you have staked £10, so you lose £2 even though your horse placed.
Extra Places at the Festival
Extra places are a concession: a bookmaker pays one or more places beyond the standard terms. On Festival handicaps, several bookmakers usually offer five, six or even more places on some races. The extra place is paid at the same fraction as the standard places.
How an extra place changes the result
Take the £5 each way bet at 12/1 above. If your horse finishes fifth and your bookmaker is paying five places, the place part pays £20, exactly as it would for second. Under standard terms, fifth pays nothing. That’s why extra places matter more in big handicaps, where the gap between fourth and seventh is often a length or two.
What to check before you take an extra place offer
- Which races it covers. Extra place offers are usually race by race, not the whole Festival.
- The fraction. Some offers add places but cut the fraction from 1/4 to 1/5. Five places at 1/5 isn’t always better than four at 1/4; the calculator settles it.
- Whether best odds guaranteed still applies. Some enhanced terms exclude other concessions.
Best Odds Guaranteed (BOG) at Cheltenham
Best odds guaranteed means that if you take a price and the starting price is bigger, you’re paid at the bigger price. If you back a horse at 8/1 in the morning and it goes off at 10/1, a BOG bookmaker settles your bet at 10/1. If it shortens to 6/1, you keep your 8/1.
Many bookmakers offer BOG on UK and Irish racing, including the Festival, but each one sets its own start time, qualifying markets and maximum payout. It is the most useful concession for anyone betting on the day, because it removes the guesswork of whether to take a price or wait for the SP. Our guide to what SP means in horse racing explains how the starting price is set and what BOG usually excludes.
Non-Runner No Bet and Ante-Post Betting
Ante-post betting means placing a bet before the final declarations, often weeks or months ahead. At Cheltenham, the ante-post markets for the championship races are open most of the season.
How ante-post betting works
The attraction is price: a horse that is 10/1 in December can be 3/1 on the day if its season goes to plan. The catch is that standard ante-post rules don’t refund your stake if the horse doesn’t run. It might be injured, aimed at a different race (novices especially are often entered in two or three Festival races), or simply not declared. In each case, the bet is a loser.
Non-runner no bet (NRNB)
NRNB is a bookmaker concession that refunds your stake if your horse doesn’t run. In the weeks before the Festival, many bookmakers price the big races on NRNB terms, usually at slightly shorter odds than the straight ante-post price. That trade-off is the whole decision:
- Straight ante-post: the biggest price, but you lose if the horse doesn’t line up.
- NRNB: a smaller price, but your stake comes back if it doesn’t run.
- On the day: the smallest risk and usually the shortest price, with BOG if your bookmaker offers it.
NRNB only covers horses that don’t run. It doesn’t protect you if your horse runs in a different race at the Festival to the one you backed it for, so check which race your bet is on.
Rule 4 after the declarations
Once the fields are declared, bets placed at a fixed price are subject to Rule 4 if a horse is withdrawn late. The deduction depends on the withdrawn horse’s price. If you have £10 to win at 8/1 and a 3/1 shot is withdrawn, the deduction is 25p in the pound from your winnings: £80 becomes £60, so you collect £70 instead of £90. The Rule 4 calculator works out any deduction, including when more than one horse is withdrawn. Ante-post bets struck before the final declarations are generally not subject to Rule 4, which is part of the ante-post trade-off; check your bookmaker’s rules.
Multiples Across the Festival: Lucky 15s, Yankees and Accas
The Festival’s seven-race cards make multiples popular: four selections from one day’s races fit a Lucky 15 or a Yankee. Every selection must be in a different race.
What a Festival multiple costs
| Bet | Bets in it | £1 win only | £1 each way |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trixie (3 selections) | 4 | £4 | £8 |
| Yankee (4 selections) | 11 | £11 | £22 |
| Lucky 15 (4 selections) | 15 | £15 | £30 |
| Lucky 31 (5 selections) | 31 | £31 | £62 |
Each way doubles the number of bets, so a 50p each way Lucky 15 costs £15 and a £1 each way Lucky 15 costs £30. Many bookmakers add bonuses to a Lucky 15, such as double or treble odds on a single winner, but the terms are theirs; our Lucky 15 calculator lets you switch them on.
A worked each way double
Each way multiples settle the win bets and the place bets separately. Example: a £2 each way double (£4 staked), 1/4 odds. Horse A wins at 6/1; horse B finishes second at 10/1.
- Win double: horse B didn’t win, so it loses.
- Place double: A’s place odds are 6/1 x 1/4 = 6/4 (2.5 in decimal); B’s are 10/1 x 1/4 = 10/4 (3.5). £2 x 2.5 x 3.5 = £17.50.
The bet returns £17.50 from a £4 stake, even though only one horse won. The Yankee calculator, acca calculator and each way calculator work out every line of a bigger bet the same way.
Non-runners in a multiple
If a selection in a multiple doesn’t run, that leg is usually settled as void: it counts at odds of 1.0 in decimal, so the stake simply rolls on to the other legs. A double becomes a single on the other horse and a Lucky 15 keeps working with three selections. Mark the leg as Void in any of our calculators to see the effect.
Dutching a Big Cheltenham Handicap
Dutching means backing two or more horses in the same race and splitting the stake so each one returns the same amount. It suits big handicaps where you like more than one horse.
Example: £20 dutched across two horses at 8/1 and 10/1. The stakes are £11 on the 8/1 shot and £9 on the 10/1 shot. Either winner returns £99, a profit of £79 on the £20 staked. If neither wins, you lose £20. The dutching calculator splits the stake for up to a full field and shows the break-even point.
Betting On Course at Cheltenham or Online
If you’re at the course, the Jockey Club’s Cheltenham Festival betting guide says around 200 on-course bookmakers trade in the betting rings. They usually take single bets on each race, so you can’t place a Lucky 15 or an accumulator with them, and the Jockey Club advises bringing cash for them. There are also self-service betting terminals around the course and Tote pool betting, on course and online.
Online and in betting apps you get the full range of bets, the bookmakers’ extra place and BOG terms, and an account record of every bet. The trade-off is convenience: it is easier to bet more than you meant to from a phone.
Free Bets and Festival Offers
Bookmakers compete hard for new customers during Festival week, with sign-up offers and free bets. We don’t list bookmaker offers at the moment. If you’re comparing offers elsewhere, check three things before you sign up:
- The qualifying bet. The stake and minimum odds you must place first.
- How the free bets are paid. Often as several smaller tokens, sometimes restricted to certain markets or bet types.
- Whether the free bet stake is returned. Usually it isn’t: a £10 free bet at 4/1 returns £40, not £50.
Some people use free bets for matched betting, backing and laying the same selection to lock in part of the free bet’s value. Our matched betting calculator and guide to lay betting explain how that works.
Staying in Control During Festival Week
Four days, 28 races and constant advertising make it easy to bet more than you planned. Set one budget for the whole week before Tuesday, decide your stakes in advance, and use the deposit limits and time-outs in your bookmaker account. If betting stops being fun, BeGambleAware and our responsible gambling page list free, confidential support.
No staking plan or concession turns Festival betting into a sure thing. Bet only what you can afford to lose and treat any return as a bonus. Gambling responsibly.
Frequently asked questions
£10. A £5 each way bet is two £5 bets, one on the horse to win and one on it to place. Each way multiples double in the same way: a £1 each way Lucky 15 is 30 bets and costs £30.
With a win bet, no. With an each way bet, the place part pays if second is within the place terms, which it always is when there are five or more runners. The win part loses, so whether you make a profit depends on the price and the place fraction.
They can be, if the qualifying conditions are reasonable, but they are a marketing cost for the bookmaker, not free money. Free bet stakes are usually not returned with winnings, and some come with odds or market restrictions. Read the terms before you deposit.
Yes. A winning free bet pays out like any other bet, except that the free bet stake is normally kept by the bookmaker. A £10 free bet at 4/1 usually returns £40 rather than £50. Check whether winnings carry any wagering requirement.
Under standard ante-post rules you lose your stake. The exception is a bet placed on non-runner no bet terms, which refunds the stake if the horse doesn't run. Bookmakers usually offer NRNB on the big Festival races in the weeks before the meeting.
Ante-post gives you a bigger price but carries the risk that your horse runs elsewhere or not at all. On the day you know the field and can use best odds guaranteed, but the price is usually shorter. Non-runner no bet sits between the two.