Each-way Betting Explained
If you’ve been keeping up with Betting Fellow’s betting academy on full-coverage combination bets and their corresponding bet calculators, you’ve probably come across the term each-way several times. So what is Each-way betting, exactly? How does it affect combination bets?
This article will be a deep-dive into how Each-way bets work and will serve to clear up any questions you might have on the subject.
What is an Each-way Bet?
First of all, let’s get this out of the way: because of how an Each-way bet works, it can only be made on sports where a “place” bet is possible. Traditionally, this means horse racing; however, other sports where a win and a loss are not the only possible outcomes are entirely viable for each-way betting. The only issue is if your bookie of choice even offers the possibility if you’re looking for sports other than horse racing.
With that in mind, we’ll be using horse racing bets as a reference throughout this Each-way betting guide.
An each-way bet is essentially two bets on a single selection. These two bets are a Win bet, and a Place bet. Both of these are made with the same stake but are wagering on different outcomes for added security.
A Win bet, as you might expect, is successful if your selection places first.
The Place bet, on the other hand, is successful if your selection manages to place in the top few positions. Which positions count as a successful Place depends on the type of the event/race, and even on the bookmaker.
Generally speaking, however, this is one of the first three to four positions.
So, if you were to make an Each-way single with a stake of, say, £10, the stake would be split equally among these two bets. Essentially, you have a £5 Win bet, and a £5 Place bet.
Be careful, however, as betting sites usually structure the stake on a per-bet basis. This means that a £10 each-way bet costs £20 - £10 per each bet.
Now, where each-way bets start getting complicated is when you combine them with full-coverage combination bets. These can have up to 255 separate bets in their own right – and making them each-way doubles that number. This spreads your stake even further, to a point where some returns are almost guaranteed. However, the more selections you add in, the bigger your bankroll has to be to support all this stake spreading.
Furthermore, this drives the number of possible outcomes for Each-way full-coverage combination bets through the roof, making it pretty much impossible to calculate returns without a bet calculator. Check out our Bet Calculators page to find out more about combination bets and bet calculators.
Advantages of Each-way Bets
So why use an Each-way bet, you might be asking?
Each way bets drastically improve the chances of you getting a return on your stake. In a sense, this bet is much like a very short and simple combination bet (think of a Trixie or something like that.) It spreads your stake on a shorter-odds Place bet to help ensure a return, but still leaves the option of making a much better profit with the less likely Win bet.
If you’re wondering how to calculate each-way bet odds, you don’t have to be too worried. Generally speaking, the odds depend on how many places (apart from the first one) your selection can take to still be counted as a winning bet. Usually, they are a fraction of the Win bet odds. For instance, if only the first and second place come into consideration, the odds are halved. If the first 3 places are in your place bet, the odds are 1/3 of the Win odds.
For example, let’s imagine we’re making a £10 each-way bet at odds of 6.00. The Place bet could give you:
3.00 odds for a 2nd Place bet.
2.00 odds for a 3rd Place bet.
1.50 odds for a 4th Place bet.
1.20 odds for a 5th Place bet.
The most common type of Place bet takes into account either the first three or first four positions. However, some bookmakers allow for additional options, and some even allow you to customize your Place bet as you see fit. However, the odds are rarely worth it for anything below third or fourth.
Each-Way Bet Example
The above explanation should make understanding a single each-way bet easy enough, but what happens when you apply each-way concepts to a combination bet, which is a popular option?
The number of different outcomes here can end up truly staggering. Let’s use a Trixie, which is the simplest of combination bets, to illustrate. Let’s imagine we’ll place a £10 per bet stake. For a Trixie alone, this would mean 4 separate bets, making the budget £40.
Now, since each selection is essentially made twice, the bankroll is doubled again to £80. That’s already quite a pricetag.
Our next step would be to find proper selections. We’ll use relatively short odds to make the calculations easier. Also, our Place bet will be in the first three positions.
Selection 1 has Win odds of 3.00. This means that Place 1.00.
Selection 2 has Win odds of 4.00. Place odds are 1.34.
Selection 3 has Win odds of 5.00. Place odds are 1.67.
The best-case scenario here would be 3 winners, in which case you would get a total return of £1224.40. However, that’s not the reason we went for an each-way bet.
Let’s, then, look at a few Place outcomes. For example, if selections 1 and 2 win, but selection 3 gets 2nd place, our returns total up to £196.67
If all 3 selections get 2nd place, total returns would be £335.00.
A Selection 1 win, selection 2 loss, and selection 3rd place is a return of £38.89
And these are just a few combinations – the list could go on and on. All in all, there is a total of 27 possible outcomes for an each-way Trixie. And remember, Trixies are the shortest of full-coverage combination bets. You can imagine how many possible outcomes a Goliath bet could have, for example.
As such, we don’t recommend trying to calculate each-way bet returns without a dedicated bet calculator.
Each-way Betting Explained FAQ
Are each-way bets worth it?
This is a long-standing question in the punting community and is not easy to answer.
The answer depends on the situation at hand. The key reason why professional punters use each-way bets is that a keen eye can spot great value in them. For example, a 21.00 odds selection would give the same returns with the 5th place as a winning 2.50. However, because Place odds are always just a fraction of Win odds, this may not necessarily reflect the actual probability of the outcome. The fact that Place leaves room for further improvement – meaning that your selection could get more than 5th place – is a bonus.
However, this can have the reverse effect of you getting shorter odds than the probability of the outcome is, resulting in a negative value. Still, there are many occasions where each-way bets are worth it, and it takes a lot of practice to identify such opportunities.
Is each-way betting profitable?
According to statistics and general betting theory, short odds, low-risk bets are the best way of making long-term profits with sports betting. Experience ha taught us that the “big score” is a myth among sports bettors and that you should instead aim for a small, but constant profit margin.
Each-way bets are made with these goals in mind. They vastly increase safety and the likelihood of you making back at least a part of your stake, and probably much more than that.
With all that in mind – yes, each-way bets can be very profitable long-term.
How are each-way bets calculated?
For a single each-way bet, the process is fairly straightforward. If your selection wins, you get a return based on the odds your bookie offered, and that’s that. As for the Place part of the each-way bet, odds are usually half the Win odds for a 2nd place, a third of the Win odds for a 3rd place, 1/4th of the Win odds for a 3rd place, and so on.
These calculations can get much more complicated if you throw in multiple selections, as is the case for combination bets. You can find more detailed information in the article above.
How do Each-way accumulators work?
Eac-way accumulators work much in the same way a single each-way bet does: it is two separate bets. This is why you have to be careful with Each-way Accas. You essentially have one To Win accumulator, and a different To Place accumulator. That means that, if even one of your selections places 2nd instead of 1st, the entire Win Acca loses and you’re only left with a Place Acca.
This can drastically impact your returns. A Place Acca has much shorter odds than a Win Acca. Some people seem to think that, for instance, an each-way accumulator’s odds are simply reduced in the case of a selection placing instead of winning, but this is not the case.
What does each-way mean in betting?
Each-way is a way of making primarily horse-racing bets, in which you split your stake over several possible outcomes of a given race. This article explores this idea at length. To avoid repeating ourselves, we recommend that you scroll up for more details.
What is Each-way Extra?
Each-way Extra is an innovative new feature top betting sites have been offering in recent years. The pioneer of this feature is Bet365, but several other bookmakers have already followed in their footsteps.
Essentially, Each-way Extra allows you to increase or decrease the number of places in a race when you are betting Each Way on selected Horse Racing. You can add more places which will generate a return, but end up taking a reduced reward. Alternatively, you can reduce the number of places which count as a successful Place bet, and increase the overall odds of your bet.
To use Each-way Extra, all you have to do is propose an each-way bet on your betting slip. After that, the option to modify your bet as an Extra feature should become available.
When to place an each-way bet?
As we’ve mentioned before, each-way bets can be a great source of value if you know how to spot opportunities. Generally speaking, bookmakers pay enough attention to horse racing events to adjust the odds properly, so this is not the case all the time. However, let’s take a look at a good Each-way opportunity so you can get a clearer picture.
Such chances can be found in races where there is a strong favourite, and a second and maybe third favourite with only a small chance of upsetting the market leaders but a very good chance of filling the places. For example, let’s say we have three favourites:
- Horse A: 1.67
- Horse B: 5.00
- Horse C: 10.00
Can Lucky 15s be each-way?
Yes, all full-coverage combination bets can be placed as each-way. In the case of a Lucky 15, that would mean you’re working with 20 separate bets. You can find more information about how combination bets, such as the Lucky 15, interact with each-way betting.
What places are each way?
How many places are taken into consideration for the Place part of an each-way bet depends on the bookmaker. Sometimes, it also varies by the type of event. Other times, some of the best betting sites allow you to chose however many places you want, which in turn affects the odds. Generally speaking, however, it’s either the first three of the first four places.
Why bet each way?
Each-way bets are a great way of making sure your bet can get at least some returns back. On the other hand, they’ are also a great way of minimising risks, adding security to your wager, and can also be great sources of betting value. You can find more information about when and why to use Each-way bets further up in this guide.