How to bet on Cheltenham 2025: Best in-depth expert guide

The Cheltenham Festival can be daunting to any novice punter or even the most seasoned ones looking to have a bet on “The Greatest Show on Turf”. But fear not, as we will guide you through how to bet on Cheltenham races on and off course, to the perfect betting strategy.

It all might sound a bit daunting, but as you read on, you will find that betting on the Cheltenham Festival is as easy as one, two, three.

Cheltenham Festival betting guide

Now it’s time to delve into what it takes to bet, and win at the Cheltenham Festival with our Cheltenham betting guide.

We are going to break down the various easy steps on betting with online bookmakers, in-shop, on-course at Cheltenham, and much more.

Even if you are familiar with how to bet on Cheltenham races, we will give you that extra edge on other markets that may take you closer to achieving the all important Cheltenham Festival profit with our Cheltenham betting guide.

How to bet on the Cheltenham races: Step by step

Let’s call this our Cheltenham Festival betting guide. A guide designed to give you the edge over the bookmarks, and one to make your betting experience an easy and enjoyable one.

Below you will see each section of our Cheltenham betting guide broken down into easy-to-understand sections.

1. Online betting sites
2. Placing a bet at the races 
3. Bet in a shop
4. Cheltenham Tote betting
5. Ante-post betting
6. Betting exchanges

1. Online betting sites

When it comes to choosing an online betting site for the Cheltenham Festival there is no end of options. You have popular sites such as Paddy Power, Betfair, bet365, and so on where you will find some of the best sign-up offers and Cheltenham betting offers.

By following these simple steps below, you will find how easy it is to place your first Cheltenham Festival bet.

1. Choose a reputable horse racing online bookmaker that offers horse racing betting.
2. Sign up and deposit funds into your account.
3. Navigate to the horse racing section of the website or app.
4. Selecting the “Cheltenham Festival” tab
5. Select the race you want to bet on and choose your preferred horse(s).
6. Choose the type of bet you want to place, such as win, each-way, forecast, or tricast. (options will vary depending on the market you choose)
7. Enter the stake amount and review your bet slip.
8. Confirm your bet to place it.

2. Placing a bet at the races

When at the races you will find your traditional “Rails Bookmakers” situated in the heart of the betting ring, or the Tote who are located throughout Cheltenham and all racecourses in the UK.

If you choose to place a bet at the races through a “Rails Bookmaker” then just follow the steps below.

1. Choose which horse/type of bet you are going to have. Win and each way are the most coming with rails bookmakers.
2. Decide on the amount you are going to place.
3. Choose which bookmaker you are going to place your bet on, and remember their location.
4. Simply state the number of the horse and the amount you want to wager. Eg ‘£10 win, number 7’ or ‘ £5 each way, number 7’. Each way bets means you’ll effectively be placing two bets on the same horse: £5 on it winning and £5 on it being placed. If it finishes first, you’ll be paid out on both bets, but if placed you will be paid out on the place amount stated on your betting slip.
5. You will be handed a betting slip with the name of your selection, the amount you have placed, and your potential winnings. 
6. If your selection wins, go back to your bookmaker once the result is announced and collect your winnings.  

There is no better feeling than shouting home your horse up Cheltenham Hill and going collecting your winnings with the thousands of other Cheltenham racegoers.

3. Bet in a shop

Having a bet in a shop is available on the course, but unlike betting in a shop off course you will not get the best odds guaranteed on races that are run at the track you attend. For example, if you are at Cheltenham and bet in the betting shop on the course, you will not get the best odds guaranteed on Cheltenham races, but you will on races at the other race meetings (this varies with each bookmaker so be sure to ask a staff member)

1. Pick up a blank betting slip.
2. Write the name of the race meeting and time. ‘Cheltenham 1:30′
3. Below put the name of your selected horse and odds ‘Ballyburn 5/4.’
4. Write how much you want to bet on the horse.
5. Go to the betting counter, give your slip and your £10 to a staff member.
6. Get your betting slip.
7. Watch the race.
8. Collect your winnings (hopefully).

Betting in shops is a more traditional way of betting, while online betting offers convenience and instant access.

4. Cheltenham Tote betting 

Unlike racecourse bookmakers offering you odds for each race, the Tote offers a betting pool.

This simply means the following:

• Bet on a horse (minimum £2), if it wins you share the pool with others who backed it.
• The more people who back the winner, the lower the winning dividend.
• The fewer people who back the winner, the higher the winning dividend.

Various pools/types of bets are exclusive to Tote. Tote Placepot, Tote Exacta, Tote Jackpot, Tote Swingers, and their most popular pool, Tote Scoop6.

For more information on all of these betting opinions, you can follow our links.

5. Ante-post betting

Ante-post betting gives you the opportunity to back a horse weeks if not months in advance of the Cheltenham Festival in the hope of achieving value.

There are pros and cons to this. For example, if you back Ballyburn to win the Barry Bingham Novices’ Hurdle but upon declarations, he runs in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle or any other race, then you lose the money you have placed on him to win the Ballymore.

But, with the Non-Runner No Bet (NRNB) promotion that becomes widely available closer to the Cheltenham Festival, then you have the security of getting your money back if your horse does not run. You will notice that bookies that offer NRNB, their displayed odds will be shorter than bookies who do not offer NRNB.

Placing an ante-post bet is the same as placing a win or each-way bet online or in a shop.

6. Betting exchanges 

Betting exchanges can be a good way to bet at Cheltenham if you are looking to find much bigger prices. The exchanges will allow you to bet against other bettors on platforms such as the Spreadex, or Betfair exchange.

Unlike traditional bookmarks, the betting exchanges will allow you to lay a horse not to win, and if the horse does not win, then your bet will be paid out. 

Why are prices sometimes better on the betting exchanges? On betting exchanges there is no bookmakers profit margin included in the prices, so, the odds become greater.

Be aware that commission will be taken from your winnings, but this will vary on the promotion and exchange you sign up for.

Best betting strategy for Cheltenham races

As you know there are so many ways to bet at the Cheltenham Festival; win, each way, accumulators, lucky 15s, and lucky 31s being right at the top of the most popular bets.

But the best way to get a return for your money is the each-way markets, especially in the handicaps at Cheltenham, be it a single each-way bet or in your lucky 15s and lucky 31s.

When it comes to Cheltenham handicaps you will find that bookmakers will offer you extra places for the handicaps, increasing your chances of walking away with a profit.

For example, in a 16-runner race, you would normally get each way terms of up to 4 places, but at Cheltenham, you will find bookmakers offering up to 6, even 7 places.

If you are unsure, just ask a staff member for the terms of your selected race.

When does Cheltenham start?

The Cheltenham Festival takes place between Tuesday 11 – Friday 14 March 2025.

The 28 races scheduled to be run at the Cheltenham Festival are broken up over four days. Seven races each day.

• Day 1 Champion Day – Feature race, Grade 1 2m Champion Hurdle.
• Day 2 Ladies Day – Feature race, Grade 1 2m Champion Chase.
• Day 3 St Patricks Thursday – Feature race – Grade 1 3m Stayers Hurdle.
• Day 4 Gold Cup Day – Feature race – Grade 1 2m 2 ½f Cheltenham Gold Cup.

Each day the first race will go off at 1:30 pm, with the last due to go off at 5:30 pm.

Cheltenham 2025 Dates

• Tuesday 11th, March
• Wednesday, 12th March
• Thursday 13th, March
• Friday 14th, March

Cheltenham horse racing glossary

Have you ever been to a race meeting and hear sayings that you have no idea what they mean? 

If so, here I will help you understand more of the betting terminology with our Cheltenham horse racing glossary.

• Amateur jockey – Jockeys who are not classed as professional jockeys. At the Cheltenham Festival amateur riders have two races that only they can ride in, the National Hunt Chase on Tuesday, and the Kim Muir Challenge Cup on Thursday.
• Bumper – A National Hunt race over 2 miles with no jumping involved. The Champion Bumper is held on the Wednesday of the Festival.
• Cheltenham roar – The noise the crowd makes as the horses are sent on their way at the start of the first race each day.
• Drifter – A horse whose odds are getting bigger than when the betting opened.
• Fences – Large obstacles jumped during steeplechase races. There are different types of fences, a ditch, an open-ditch, a water jump, and a plain fence.
• Festival banker – The horse who is considered a certainty to win at Cheltenham.
• Going – The state of the ground, i.e. how good, soft, or heavy the ground is.
• Grade 1 – Races where you will have the best horse over their selected distance and discipline compete against each other.
• Graded penalty – Extra weight a horse has to carry after winning a Graded race (Grade 1 penalty if dropped back class into Grade 2) e.g Brighterdaysahead & Jade De Grugy will be carrying a penalty in the Mare Novices Hurdle as they have won a Graded race this season.
• Hurdle- Small obstacles jumped during a race.
• NAP – The most likely horse to win on the day of racing.

How to read the Cheltenham racecards

To anyone new to racing, a racecard can look daunting and confusing. But, you will come to find that with our help, we will make reading a racecard at Cheltenham as easy as picking your next winning bet.

• The numbers 1-9 indicate the position the horse finished in the race.
• The number 0 indicates that the horse finished outside the first 9.
• The symbol “–” separates racing seasons. Numbers before the “–” are for last season.
• The symbol “/” indicates a longer gap, for example, if the horse missed an entire racing season due to injury or any other reason.
• P or PU indicates that the horse was pulled up by the jockey and did not complete the race.
• F indicates the horse fell.
• R indicates a horse refused.
• BD indicates the horse was brought down by another runner.
• U or UR indicates that the horse unseated its jockey.
• C indicates a horse has won on that course before.
• D indicates a horse has won over that distance before.
• CD indicates a horse has won over course and distance.
• BF stands for beaten favourite and indicates a horse was favourite for a race, but did not win.
• OR/Official Rating – indicated the rating given to the horse based on his previous runs. The higher the rating, the more talented the horse.
• T indicated the trainer of the horse.
• J indicated the jockey who will ride the horse.
• Silks – The colours the jockey will wear.
• Weight – The amount of weight the horse will have to carry (includes the weight of the jockey).
• Verdict – Who the racecard tipster thinks will win the race.

Finding the best betting tips for Cheltenham

Now that you are wiser on how to bet on Cheltenham Festival races, you will want to know who is going to win the 28 races at the Cheltenham Festival, and we are here to help.

We have called upon some of the brightest minds in horse racing to give you the best betting tips for each day of the Cheltenham Festival.

By clicking on each day below, you will find our best bets for each day of the 2025 Cheltenham Festival.

FAQ

1. Is there a deadline for placing bets on Cheltenham?

Yes, you have until the horse lets down his flag, and the start tap is released. Any bets placed after will be considered a void bet.

2. Do they accept only cash at Cheltenham?

If you are having a bet at Cheltenham then bookmakers on the rails and in shops accept both cash and card. But, food and drink vendors only accept cards at Cheltenham.

3. Is there a minimum bet?

Yes, but it varies with each bookmaker and will be displayed on their pitch. If you are unsure, simply ask the bookmaker.

4. What is the most popular bet type?

Each way bets account for approximately 25% of all bets placed at Cheltenham. Each way bet gives you a higher percent chance of collecting winnings as you have two bets in one; win and place. If your horse wins then you get the win and place part of the bet, but if your horse places you will collect the place part of the bet.

5. What is the average payout on Cheltenham races?

On average bookmakers paid out £450 per winning bet at the Cheltenham Festival. This just shows you how much money is wagered throughout the four days of the Cheltenham Festival. Something to keep in mind is to check each shop bookmaker’s max payout at the Cheltenham Festival, as bookmakers may limit your payout.

6. Do Cheltenham races attract many visitors?

Yes. In 2022, 280,627 racegoers ascended on the Cheltenham Festival over four days. This resulted in Cheltenham (Jockey Club) restricting crowds down to 68,500 per day.

About the author

Andrew Halligan

My name is Andrew Halligan, horse racing pundit and founder of YouTube’s The Finishing Line Podcast. Horse racing is a thrilling spectacle that captivates audiences around the world with its blend of drama and excitement. Whether you’re a jumps or flat fan, I will use my experience of working within the horse racing industry to bring the best of what this sport has to offer.

You can follow Andrew on X (@Halligan88).

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