How to Bet on the Melbourne Cup Online (In 5 Easy Steps)

Updated: October 31st, 2022

Below, our experts have listed their 10 best Melbourne Cup betting sites and explained how to place various different Melbourne Cup bets ('Win', 'Place', and different types of 'Exotics').

Not sure where to bet on the Melbourne Cup? We have a separate article that reviews Australia's 20+ best Melbourne Cup bookies. Or go here for our beginner's guide to Melbourne Cup betting.

To see all of the different types of bets that you place on the Melbourne Cup you will need to navigate to the 'Racing' section of your chosen bookmaker and then select 'Melbourne Cup'.

There are many different bets that you can place bets on the Melbourne Cup from classic 'Win' and 'Place' bets to more complicated 'Each Way' bets, 'Quaddies', 'Same Race Multis' or even 'Mystery Bets'.

Learn more about what these different Melbourne Cup bet types are, and how to place them, by using the links below to jump to a section:

Ways to Place a Bet on the Melbourne Cup

• Win - A bet on one horse to finish first
• Place - A bet on one horse to finish first, second or third
• Each Way - Two bets on one horse to both win and place
• Quinella - A bet on two or more horses to finish first and second, in any order
• Exacta - A bet on two or more horses to finish first and second, in the correct order
• Trifecta - A bet on three or more horses to finish first, second and third, in the correct order
• First 4 - A bet on four or more horses to finish first, second, third and fourth, in the correct order
• Quaddie/Quadrella - A bet on four or more horses to finish first, in four different nominated races
• Treble - A bet on three or more horses to finish first, in three different nominated races
• Double - A bet on two or more horses to finish first, in two different nominated races
• Same Race Multi - A bet on two or more horses to finish in the top 1, 2, 3 or 4 positions
• Special Bets - May include mystery bets, favourite vs field, or odd vs even bets

A 'Win' bet is a bet on which horse will win the race.

To place a Melbourne Cup 'Win' bet, simply pick the horse that you think will win and then select if you want the Fixed Odds price, Best Tote price, Top Fluctuation price, or the Starting Price. Then enter your bet stake and confirm the bet.

Your winnings = Bet stake x 'Win' odds

A 'Place' bet is a bet on a horse to come first, second or third.

To place a Melbourne Cup 'Place' bet, simply pick the horse that you think will place and then select if you want the Fixed Odds price or the Middle Tote price. Then enter your bet stake and confirm the bet.

Your winnings = Bet stake x 'Place' odds

An 'Each Way' bet is actually two bets of equal amounts on a horse to both Win and Place.

To place a Melbourne Cup 'Each Way' bet, simply pick the horse that you think will win or place and then select if you want the Fixed Odds prices or the Tote prices.

After selecting either Win or Place for that horse, select the 'Each Way' box in your betslip. Then enter your bet stake (for each leg of your bet) and confirm the bet.

If your horse finishes first, your winnings = Bet stake x 'Win' odds + Bet stake x 'Place' odds

If your horse finishes second or third, your winnings = Bet stake x 'Place' odds

A 'Quinella' is a bet on two or more horses to come 1st and 2nd in any order.

To place a Melbourne Cup Quinella simply select the 'Quinella' tab and then select at least two horses.

In your bet slip, enter how much money you want to stake on all legs of your Quinella, which Tote pool you would like your Quinella payout to be based on and then confirm your bet.

The odds that you get will be determined after the race by dividing the Tote's pool of money evenly among all the bettors who correctly picked the winning horses.

The payout that you receive is based on your bet stake, the final odds of the winning Quinella and the number of legs in your Quinella.

Your winnings = Your Bet Stake / The Number of Quinella Legs x The Quinella Odds (determined after the race)

You can choose two or more horses when you place a Quinella. Each horse that you add will give you an extra chance to win but will add extra legs to your Quinella and therefore decrease the amount of money staked on each leg of your Quinella, reducing your winnings.

When you add horses to your Quinella remember that at least one of your selections must finish first, and a different selection must finish second for your bet to win.

An 'Exacta' is a bet on two or more horses to come 1st and 2nd in the correct order. It works just like a Quinella except that you also have to select the exact finishing position for each horse that you bet on.

To place a Melbourne Cup Exacta simply select the 'Exacta' tab and then select as many horses as you would like, and which positions you think they will finish (1st and/or second).

In your bet slip, enter how much money you want to stake on all legs of your Exacta, which Tote pool you would like your Exacta payout to be based on and then confirm your bet.

The odds that you get will be determined after the race by dividing the Tote's pool of money evenly among all the bettors who correctly picked the winning horses.

The payout that you receive is based on your bet stake, the final odds of the winning Exacta and the number of legs in your Exacta.

Your winnings = Your Bet Stake / The Number of Exacta Legs x The Exacta Odds (determined after the race)

A 'Trifecta' is a bet on three or more horses to come 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the correct order. A Trifecta is just like an Exacta but you also have to pick the 3rd place horse.

To place a Melbourne Cup Trifecta simply select the 'Trifecta' tab and then select as many horses as you would like, and which positions (1st, 2nd and 3rd) you think they will finish.

In your bet slip, enter how much money you want to stake on all legs of your Trifecta, which Tote pool you would like your Trifecta payout to be based on and then confirm your bet.

The odds that you get will be determined after the race by dividing the Tote's pool of money evenly among all the bettors who correctly picked the winning horses.

The payout that you receive is based on your bet stake, the final odds of the winning Trifecta and the number of legs in your Trifecta.

Your winnings = Your Bet Stake / The Number of Trifecta Legs x The Trifecta Odds (determined after the race)

You can choose three or more horses when you place a Trifecta.

When you add horses to your Trifecta remember that at least one of your first place selections must finish first, a different second-place selection must finish second and a different third place selection must finish third for your bet to win.

A 'First 4' is a bet on four or more horses to come 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th in the correct order. Once again, First 4 bets are just like Trifecta bets except you have to also pick the fourth place horse.

To place a Melbourne Cup First 4 bet simply select the 'First 4' tab and then select as many horses as you would like, and which positions (1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th) you think they will finish.

In your bet slip, enter how much money you want to stake on all legs of your First 4 bet and which Tote pool you would like your First 4 payout to be based on and then confirm your bet.

The odds that you get will be determined after the race by dividing the Tote's pool of money evenly among all the bettors who correctly picked the winning horses.

The payout that you receive is based on your bet stake, the final odds of the winning First 4 and the number of legs in your First 4.

Your winnings = Your Bet Stake / The Number of Trifecta Legs x The Trifecta Odds (determined after the race)

A 'Quaddie' or Quadrella is a bet on which four horses will win four nominated races. Clearly then, the Melbourne Cup Quaddie is a bet on which horse will win the Melbourne Cup, along with 3 other nominated races from the day.

To place a Melbourne Cup Quaddie simply select the 'Quaddie' tab. Then, for each of the four nominated Quadrella races, pick one or more horses that you think will win each race.

Finally, in your bet slip, select which Tote pool you want your bet to be placed in, then enter your total bet stake and confirm your bet.

The odds that you get will be determined after the race by dividing the Tote's pool of money evenly among all the bettors who correctly picked the winning horses.

A 'Treble' is a bet on which three horses will win three nominated races. As with the Quaddie, the Melbourne Cup Treble is a bet on which horse will win the Melbourne Cup, along with 2 other nominated races from the day.

To place a Melbourne Cup Treble simply select the 'Treble' tab. Then, for each of the three nominated Treble races, pick one or more horses that you think will win each race.

Finally, in your bet slip, select which Tote pool you want your bet to be placed in, then enter your total bet stake and confirm your bet.

Your odds and payout will be calculated in the same fashion as a Quaddie.

A 'Double' is a bet on which two horses will win two nominated races. Generally, you have a 'Daily Double' which is the featured 'Double' of a given race day, as well as the 'Running Double' which refers to selecting the winners of any given two successive races.

The Melbourne Cup Double refers to a bet where you pick both the winner of the Melbourne Cup and a successive race.

To place a Melbourne Cup Double simply select the 'Double' tab. Then, for the two nominated Double races, pick one or more horses that you think will win each race.

Finally, in your bet slip, select which Tote pool you want your bet to be placed in, then enter your total bet stake and confirm your bet.

Your odds and payout will be calculated in the same fashion as a Quaddie.

A 'Same Race Multi' is a single bet on one race, made up of several smaller bets from that same race. Each of these smaller bets must be successful for the overall bet to be a winner. Like exotics and quaddies, Same Race Multis can have quite large payouts because the odds for each leg of the bet are multiplied to calculate the total payout.

A Melbourne Cup Same Race Multi is just multiple smaller bets on the Melbourne Cup, combined into a larger overall bet.

To place a Melbourne Cup Same Race Multi simply select the 'Same Race Multi' tab. Then, select at least two horses, and where you think they will finish (Win, Top 2, Top 3, or Top 4).

Finally, in your bet slip, enter your bet stake and confirm your bet.

Same Race Multi prices come from fixed odds set by that bookmaker.

Your winnings = Bet stake x Same Race Multi odds

There are a number of special bets available at different bookmakers for the Melbourne Cup. These may include:

• Favourite vs Field (bet on either the favourite or all of the other horses to win the race)
• Odds vs Evens (bet on the odd-numbered horses to win or the even-numbered horses)
• Head 2 Head (bet on a specific horse to beat another specific horse)
• Mystery Bet (bet on one or more horses at random)

To place a special bet on the Melbourne Cup, find the tab or section of the betting site that offers the special bets you want to make. Select what you want to bet on, enter your bet stake, and then confirm your bet!

Your winnings = Bet stake x Special Bet odds