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Horse racing betting sites
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Horse racing betting sites
The best horse racing betting
sites in the UK July 2025
At FIRST, we look at sports betting from a variety of different angles, including different types of sports betting sites. On this page, we’re looking at the best horse racing betting sites in the UK.
By Bradley Gibbs, Casino & Sports Betting Expert
The best horse racing betting
sites in the UK July 2025
At FIRST, we look at sports betting from a variety of different angles, including different types of sports betting sites. On this page, we’re looking at the best horse racing betting sites in the UK.
By Bradley Gibbs, Casino & Sports Betting Expert
Horse racing calendar
- Cinque Torri
- Hadouken
- Nerano
- Spooky Spirit
- Carthusian
- Game Point
- Rogue Lightning
- Twilight Calls
- Utmost Respect
- Wonderful Friend
- Saint Terry
- Swiss Lightning
- North Star
- Queen Of Thieves
- Spanish Hustle
- Tafsir
- Cougar
- Redondo
The top horse racing
betting sites
The top horse racing
betting sites
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Mr.Play ReviewMr.Play Review Mr.Play ReviewMr.PlayMr.Play Review
- Strong online sports betting offer
- Esports well-catered for
- Helpful range of stats
Bet £10 Get £10 18+. New customers only and is available once per household. Max. FreeBet amount: £10 Minimum Deposit and wagering on sport to activate the Free Bet is: £10 Void/cancelled or cashed out bets do not count towards wagering to activate the free bet. Offer valid only to customers making a first deposit of £10 or more. Offer only applies to players who are residents of United Kingdom and Irland. Full Terms and Conditions Apply. Begambleaware.org.
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BlueFox Casino ReviewBlueFox Casino Review BlueFox Casino ReviewBlueFox CasinoBlueFox Casino Review
- The Blue Fox Casino welcome bonus is decent
- The amount of sports and markets available is solid
- Good American sports coverage
New Players Only. Free bet - one-time stake of £30, min odds 1.5, stake not returned. 1X wager the winnings. Wager from real balance first. Wager calculated on bonus bets only. Max conversion: £200. Valid for 7 Days from receipt or from free spins: £20. Limited to 1 sport & 5 casino brand/s within the network. Withdrawal requests void all active/pending bonuses. Excluded Skrill and Neteller deposits. Full T&C apply
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Betway ReviewBetway Review Betway ReviewBetwayBetway Review
- Account set up and verification
- £5 min deposit
- Free bet club
New customers only. This offer is valid for 7 days from your new account being registered. Min Deposit: £10. Free Bet awarded: £10. 1 x £10 must be wagered at odds of 1.75+ to unlock Free Bet. Debit Card deposits only (exclusions apply). Free bet will expire 7 days after the 1st deposit. 18+. GambleAware.org. Bet The Responsible Way. Full Terms apply Full T&C apply
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Spreadex ReviewSpreadex Review Spreadex ReviewSpreadexSpreadex Review
- Excellent coverage of all the mainstream sports
- Decent selection of offers and bonuses
- Integrated live-streaming on sports
Bet £10 get £60. Spread betting losses can exceed deposit. 18+ www.gambleaware.org. Place a £10 fixed odds single or £10 each-way bet at minimum odds of 1/2 and get 3 x £10 free fixed odds bets, 3 x £5 Total Goals football spread bets and 3 x £5 Winning Favourites spread bets and a £1 racing Race Index spread bet. Full T&C apply
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Matchbook ReviewMatchbook Review Matchbook ReviewMatchbookMatchbook Review
- Excellent odds available on exchange
- Well-designed website
- Matchbook Zero offers fixed-odds betting with zero margin
New customers Only. New customer must place and settle £50 in bets on Matchbook markets only. The user must bet on at least 4 different events to qualify. The user must place and settle bets at odds of 2.0 or more. Bets can be placed on singles, multiples and Bet Builders. The user must place and settle bets before the closing date of the promotion to qualify. . T's and C's Apply. Be Gamble Aware. 18+
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- Competitive odds
- Exclusive betting bonuses
- All-around sportsbook
New Players Only. Min £20 qualifying bets, stake not returned. Free bet - one-time stake of £30, min odds 1.5, stake not returned. 1X wager the winnings. Wager from real balance first. Wager calculated on bonus bets only. Max conversion: £200. Valid for 7 Days from receipt. Limited to 1 sport & 5 casino brand/s within the network. Withdrawal requests void all active/pending bonuses. Full Terms Apply. Full T&C apply
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- Has a wide range of betting markets
- Multiple payment methods
- Live support
New Players Only. Free bet - one-time stake of £10, min odds 1.5, stake not returned. 1X wager the winnings. Wager from real balance first. Wager calculated on bonus bets only. Max conversion: £200. Valid for 7 Days from receipt. Limited to 1 sport & 5 casino brand/s within the NETWORK. Withdrawal requests void all active/pending bonuses. Excluded Skrill and Neteller deposits.FULL TERMS APPLY. Full T&C apply
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Ladbrokes ReviewLadbrokes Review Ladbrokes ReviewLadbrokesLadbrokes Review
- Offers esports
- Excellent welcome offer
- Two acca boosts and two acca insurances per day
18+ New UK+ROI Customers only. Certain deposit methods & bet types excl. Min first £5 bet within 14 days of account reg at min odds 1/2 to get 4x £5 free bets. Free bets available to use on selected sportsbook markets only. Free bets valid for 7 days, stake not returned. Restrictions + T&Cs apply. Full T&C apply
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Coral ReviewCoral Review Coral ReviewCoralCoral Review
- Solid bookmaker with a decent reputation
- Great welcome offer
- Enticing promotions
18+ New Customers only. Certain deposit methods & bet types excl. Min first £5 bet within 14 days of account reg at min odds 1/2 to get 4 x £5 free bets. Free bet available to use on selected sportsbook markets only. Free bets valid for 7 days, stake not returned. Restrictions + T&Cs apply. Full T&C apply
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Betrino ReviewBetrino Review Betrino ReviewBetrinoBetrino Review
- Competitive odds
- Vast range of sports and markets
- Recommended VIP scheme
18+. New Players Only. Free bet - one-time stake of £10, min odds 1.5, stake not returned. 1X wager the winnings. Wager from real balance first. Wager calculated on bonus bets only. Max conversion: £200. Valid for 7 Days from receipt. Limited to 1 sport & 5 casino brand/s within the network. Withdrawal requests void all active/pending bonuses. Excluded Skrill and Neteller deposits. Full Terms apply. Full T&C apply
How to choose a horse racing
betting site
As we journey deeper and deeper into the age of online betting, there’s more choice than ever before in terms of horse racing betting sites. Users really are spoilt for choice, which means that it can be a bit of a task selecting which online sportsbook to use.
Whether you're betting on Cheltenham Festival, the Grand National or any of the daily races up and down the UK. Get to grips with your horse racing betting with our expert guide.
Explore more-
Step 1
The first thing to address here is that there’s no reason to limit yourself to one horse racing betting site. It’s good to have options, so don’t fixate on choosing just one, which is tough.
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Step 2
OK, so let’s say you choose a handful, how do you choose that handful? Well, firstly, you should think about what’s important to you as a bettor. Are you looking for the best odds? If so, you’ll need to do some research on which sportsbooks are known for consistently offering competitive odds and choose them.
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Step 3
If site design and usability is high on your list of priorities, then you’ll want to have a look around at several different sites before landing on the one that most aligns with your preference from a design and usability point of view.
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Step 4
It’s also a good idea to check out the user reviews of several horse racing betting sites when making your decision. If other bettors have lots of positive things to say about a site, then there’s likely a reason for that. The same can be said for sites that have several negative reviews.
Key things to consider when choosing
a horse racing betting site
Essentially, there are lots of things to take into account. Here’s a breakdown of the key things to consider when choosing a horse racing betting site:
How does it compare to what’s on offer elsewhere?
Does the site look good? Is it easy to use?
Is there a range of methods? Is your preferred method one of them?
How competitive are the horse racing odds?
Is there good market variety?
Does the site go above and beyond in terms of customer service options?
Is there a mobile app? Is it easy to use? Has it been favourably reviewed?
Are regular players rewarded for their loyalty?
Does the site have positive user reviews? What are people saying?
The best horse racing betting sites,
reviewed
Below we go over five of the best horse racing betting sites, considering all elements of the horse racing betting product offered by each of these sites, such as today’s horse racing betting odds.
Betway offers UK bettors a comprehensive horse racing betting package.
Firstly, the layout of the horse race betting section, which is easily accessible via the list of sports at the top of the main page, is simplistic and easy to understand, with races listed via four different tabs: ‘Next Off’, ‘Today’, ‘Tomorrow’, and ‘Future’. This makes it quick and easy to find the race that you’re looking for.
If you click on a race, the race card is displayed in a way that is easy to digest. I particularly like the use of the Timeform verdict and predicted 1-2-3 at the top of the racecard.
From a horse racing betting odds perspective, Betway keeps things competitive, typically offering odds that are in line with the industry best price. Using the Timeform slider, users can also choose whether the information for each individual horse appears on the race card or not, which is another nice touch.
The guys at Betway also provide customers with some great offers specific to racing, such as their ‘Countdown to Cheltenham’ offer, which allows racing punters to get their hands on up to £100 in free bets.
For more information on Betway in general, you can read our full Betway bookmaker review.
Bet442 offers a simplistic approach to horse racing betting. The horse racing section at Bet442 is easy to find and easy to use, making it great for beginners and those intimated by more involved, complicated platforms.
The race cards lack detail and could certainly be improved, but the odds layout is clear, which makes for simple betting. The forecast and tricast markets are nicely laid out too, again making it very simple for users to place forecast and tricast bets.
The welcome offer at Bet442 is not too bad either, with new customers getting £20 in free bets when they register and bet £20. The free bets can be used to place horse racing bets.
For more information about this bookmaker in general, read our full Bet442 review.
Featuring a slick, white and green design, the Luckster site is easy on the eye, while it’s also great from an ease-of-use point-of-view too.
The horse racing section is clear and concise, while the format of the race cards is minimalistic, which is certainly beginner friendly.
New players at Luckster get £10 in free bets to be used on the latest horse racing betting when they register, deposit and bet £10.
Luckster also allows users to enable the one-click betting feature in the betslip area, which for those looking to be speedy, makes the process of placing bets much quicker and smoother.
Check out our full Luckster review to find out more about this bookmaker.
Mr Play is perhaps better known for its online casino offering, though there’s a decent sportsbook available too, part of which is dedicated to providing the latest horse racing odds today. All of these are easy to access via the horse racing section, which has a prominent placing at the top of the main page.
The odds at Mr Play are typically competitive, while the racing section is very easy to digest, and the live streaming is good too.
What’s more, not only does Mr Play offer betting on all UK & Irish racing, but they cover some international meetings too, many of which come complete with live streams.
There’s also the Mr Play online magazine, which features lots of helpful horse racing content, such as a variety of guides and interesting horse racing articles.
If you want to learn more about Mr Play, then check out our full Mr Play bookmaker review.
A relatively new addition to the internet’s ever-growing catalogue of sportsbooks, Zetbet offers horse racing bettors a product that is simplistic yet effective.
At Zetbet, you get something that cuts through a lot of the excess. The horse racing section is super easy to understand and far from clunky, making it very easy for those looking for something quite basic to get their bets on.
The horse racing section is easy to locate using the sports menu on the left hand side of the main page, while the day’s races are clearly listed in time order from there. Click on any race and you get a clean and simplistic view of the available odds.
Of course, it depends on what you’re looking for. If extra features and super-detailed race cards are your thing, then Zetbet won’t be for you, but if you like something that gets straight to the point in an easily digestible way, then you’ll be pleased with what Zetbet has to offer.
Read our full Zetbet review for a more in-depth look at this particular bookmaker.
The best horse racing sites, compared
| Betting site | Welcome offer | Mobile/app compatibility | Features | Horse racing offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Betway
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£30 free bet | Mobile app available on Android & iOS (4.8 ratings on App Store) | All-round horse racing product | £100 free bets ‘Countdown to Cheltenham’ offer. |
Zetbet
|
Bet £10 get £10 | Mobile browser only | Simplistic horse racing product | N/A |
Bet442
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Bet £20 get £20 | Mobile app available on Android & iOS | Great for forecast/tricast betting | N/A |
Luckster
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N/A | Mobile browser only | Ideal for beginners | N/A |
Mr
Play
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Bet £10 get £10 | Mobile app available on Android & iOS | An online magazine featuring horse racing content | N/A |
What horse racing bonuses can you
claim in the UK?
Several different types of horse racing bonuses can be claimed in the UK, such as:
What to watch out for when using
horse racing betting bonuses
Of course, it’s important to be vigilant when using horse racing betting bonuses. The key is to not get drawn in by the claims of a bonus.
Sure, some bonuses are great and are absolutely worth taking advantage of, but we advise our readers to always check the small print. In other words, you need to ensure that you’ve read and understand the terms and conditions of a bonus offer before diving in head first.
There are a few basic things to check before claiming a horse racing betting bonus. These are:
Who is the bonus for? Are you eligible?
How much do you need to deposit?
How much do you need to stake to claim the offer? How many bets do you need to place?
Is the bonus paid as one amount or is it split into separate free bet tokens?
Can you use the bonus/free bets to bet on anything or must they be used in a certain way?
Can you withdraw any bonus-generated winnings straight away?
Keep across latest horse racing
updates
FIRST will keep you in pole position with the latest legislation news, racing updates and
changing odds in the world of horse racing.
Most popular horse racing events to bet on
Horse racing is the sport that very rarely sleeps, with action on almost every day of the year, barring the odd public holiday and a few days lost to poor weather conditions.
Therefore, there’s always something to bet on, but there are a few meetings that are in a league of their own in terms of both prestige and betting turnover.
Here are the biggest horse racing events to bet on:
Popular horse racing markets to bet on
Looking to start horse racing betting today? See the table below for the most popular markets.
This market involves betting on a horse to win the race.
Each-way betting involves two bets rolled into one, one on the horse to win the race, the other on the horse to place, which typically means to finish second or third, but can also include fourth, fifth and even sixth depending on the number of runners.
Betting on a ‘horse to place’ only means that you’re betting on it to fill one of the places as opposed to betting on to win or betting each way. This means that whether the horse wins or places, you only get paid out at the place odds.
Ante-post betting, also known as futures betting, involves betting on horse races that are due to happen in the future. An example would be betting on the winner of the Grand National months before the event is due to happen. You might do this to get a bigger price, but by betting so far in advance, you run the risk of the horse not being declared to run in the race nearer the time.
In horse racing betting, placing a forecast means that you’re selecting the winner and the runner-up. A regular forecast means to bet on the two horses in a certain order, while a reverse forecast means that they can finish in any order as long as they’re first and second.
Tricasts are the same as forecasts in nature, but instead of the first two horses, you’re betting on the first three horses.
Match bets involve betting on the winner between two specific horses. For example, horse one to beat horse two. Horse one simply needs to finish the race in front of horse two for your bet to win.
This involves betting for a horse to win by more than a certain number of lengths, such as ‘XXX to win by more than three lengths’.
Specials markets can be on anything horse racing related, but they typically tend to be on things such as the winning trainer at big meetings. Another example would be a bet between more winners going to Irish trainers or British trainers at the Cheltenham Festival.
Basic tips and strategies
for horse racing betting
As the saying goes, there are many ways to skin a cat. There are also many ways to bet on horse racing. Over the years, numerous betting strategies and plans have been devised by horse racing punters, some good, some not so good.
Realistically, there’s no single method. In fact, there are very few methods that work in the long run. It’s important to understand that horse racing betting is very tough, or rather it’s very tough to make money betting on horses, though there are a few basics that can be followed to give bettors an improved chance of relative success. These are:
Types of horse racing
These are flat racing and jumps racing, otherwise known as National Hunt racing. Historically, the flat season lasted from around April until October, while the jumps season typically ran from October to April.
However, nowadays, both codes go on year round, with a few minor jumps meetings taking place during the summer, while on a handful of all-weather tracks, such as Wolverhampton, Lingfield and Southwell, there is regular flat racing during the winter too.
There are many different types of races within each of the two main codes in the UK, such as handicap races, claiming races, hurdle races and steeplechases.
Worldwide, there are other types of horse racing, such as harness racing, which is more common in countries such as the US and France as opposed to Great Britain.
Step-by-step guide for signing up
to a horse racing betting site
Signing up to a horse racing betting site can be fairly intimidating if you’ve never done it before, but it’s really quite simple. To easily sign up, follow our step-by-step guide:
01
Click on the link to any of the horse racing betting sites mentioned in this article and you’ll be redirected to the registration page of your chosen bookmaker.
02
From the sign-up page, simply follow the steps and input the information required, such as name, address, date of birth and email address.
03
Create a username and select a memorable password, plus choose a security question and answer that is unique to you.
04
Once you’ve registered, deposit your chosen amount (make sure it’s the minimum amount required to unlock any welcome bonus on offer).
05
Following your deposit, it’s time to start betting, though again, if you’re attempting to claim a welcome offer, be sure to check the betting requirements of that offer before placing any bets.
Popular payment and withdrawal methods
In an increasingly digital world, there are many different types of popular payment and withdrawal methods, such as:
The most common payment method. Visa, Mastercard and Maestro are usually available.
Accepted by most bookmakers. Benefits include speed and security of transactions. Paypal ensures payments are encrypted and fraud monitored.
Neteller is another e-wallet option available. It’s safe as it’s regulated. You may have to shop around though as not too many bookmakers offer Neteller as a payment option.
A lot of people have their card linked up to Apple Pay/Google Pay so it’s one of the most convenient payment methods.
You may have to shop around with bookmakers as not every site will accept Paysafecard, which is an e-wallet. One of the main perks is that you don’t need to share your bank details.
Cryptocurrencies have become more prominent in recent years and some bookmakers, although it’s usually casino sites, will accept them as payment methods. Transactions are quick and safe.
Is one of the most well-known e-wallets. Like Paysafecard, you aren’t required to share your card details.
How do we rate horse racing betting sites?
Naturally, there are lots of things to consider when reviewing and rating a betting site. We believe in being transparent about our rating methods, so here’s an example of what we look at:
For a more detailed look at how we rate sports betting sites, please visit our how-we-rate page.
Visit here-
Welcome bonus
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Deposits & withdrawal methods
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Competitions and markets available for betting
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Competitiveness of odds
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Site design and usability
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Security and fairness
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Customer loyalty
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Customer support
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Licensing
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Responsible gambling
in the UK
As things stand, it is legal for anyone aged 18 and above to engage in gambling and sports betting with a licensed operator, such as those featured in this article. For operators to be legally allowed to operate in the UK, they need to be licensed by the United Kingdom Gambling Commission.
We take responsible gambling very seriously. Of course, we provide bookmaker reviews and betting tips, though we do not promote reckless or irresponsible gambling. You should only bet with money that you can afford to lose.
For more information, visit our responsible gambling page.
