Horse Racing Bet Types Explained: Win, Place, Show, Exacta, Trifecta and More
Horse racing bet types fall into three groups. Straight bets (win, place, show) involve one horse. Exotic bets (exacta, quinella, trifecta, superfecta) need two to four horses in one race. Multi-race bets (daily double, Pick 3 through Pick 6) need the winners of consecutive races.
Every horse racing bet type at a glance
| Bet | What you need | Typical minimum |
|---|---|---|
| Win | Your horse finishes first | $2 ($1 at some tracks) |
| Place | First or second | $2 |
| Show | First, second or third | $2 |
| Across the board | Win, place and show on one horse | $6 for a $2 bet |
| Exacta | First and second in exact order | $1 |
| Quinella | First and second in either order | $2 |
| Trifecta | First, second and third in exact order | 50 cents |
| Superfecta | First four in exact order | 10 cents |
| Daily double | Winners of two straight races | $1 |
| Pick 3 | Winners of three straight races | 50 cents or $1 |
| Pick 4 | Winners of four straight races | 50 cents |
| Pick 5 | Winners of five straight races | 50 cents |
| Pick 6 | Winners of six straight races | 20 cents to $2 |
Straight bets: win, place and show
A win bet pays only if your horse finishes first. Place pays for first or second, and show pays for first, second or third. Across the board is all three on one horse, so a $2 across the board ticket costs $6.
Straight bets carry the lowest track takeout. Keeneland takes 16% from win and place pools, and Lone Star Park takes 18%. New bettors should start here, as our guide on how to bet on horses explains.
Exotic bets: exacta, quinella, trifecta and superfecta
Exacta
Pick the first two finishers in exact order. A $1 exacta on 4 over 7 wins only if number 4 is first and number 7 is second. Boxing the two horses covers both orders for $2.
Quinella
Pick the first two finishers in either order on one ticket. It is offered at fewer tracks than the exacta. A $2 quinella costs the same as a $1 exacta box and covers the same two results.
Trifecta
Pick the first three finishers in exact order. Most tracks take 50-cent trifectas, so a three-horse box, which covers all six orders, costs $3.
Superfecta
Pick the first four finishers in exact order. Keeneland and Lone Star Park both offer 10-cent superfectas, which is why this bet is usually played as a box or a key. A four-horse box has 24 combinations and costs $2.40.
Boxes and keys change the price quickly. Our guide to exacta and trifecta boxes and keys has cost tables for every size.
Multi-race bets: daily double and the Pick 3, 4, 5 and 6
A daily double needs the winners of two consecutive races. The Pick 3, Pick 4, Pick 5 and Pick 6 stretch that to three, four, five and six races. You can use more than one horse in each race.
The cost is the number of horses in each race multiplied together, times the base bet. A 50-cent Pick 4 using 2, 2, 3 and 3 horses is 36 combinations and costs $18.
| Ticket | Combinations | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| $1 daily double, 2 x 3 horses | 6 | $6 |
| 50-cent Pick 3, 2 x 2 x 2 | 8 | $4 |
| 50-cent Pick 4, 2 x 2 x 3 x 3 | 36 | $18 |
| 50-cent Pick 5, 2 x 2 x 2 x 3 x 3 | 72 | $36 |
When nobody hits a Pick 6, part of the pool usually carries over to the next race day. Carryovers are why Pick 6 pools sometimes grow very large.
Which horse racing bet has the best odds of winning?
Show is the easiest bet to cash and pays the least. Win is the best value among simple bets because its takeout is low and the price is easy to read. Exotics pay more because they are much harder, and their takeout is higher: Lone Star Park takes 25% from trifecta and superfecta pools.
Takeout matters over time. America's Best Racing puts the usual range at 15 to 22% depending on the track and bet. Compare that with the roughly 4.5% hold on a standard sports bet, covered in our guide to the vig.