Horse Racing Bookmakers Australia

Online horse betting in Australia can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be.

At horse racing betting sites you can bet on 'runners' to Win or Place, you can bet on the top 2, 3 or 4 runners, and you can even create multibets by combing multiple horse bets into one for a higher payout.

Learn more about how to bet on horse racing.

There are Australian, and international races, to bet on every day of the year at betting sites for horse racing in Australia and plenty of major racing events in the calendar that garner the attention of millions of punters.

Approximately one million Australians bet on racing in a typical month

Top online betting horse racing events in Australia include the Melbourne Cup, Cox Plate, Victoria Derby, The Everest and The Championships - all of which are available at the best Australian betting sites.

When you bet on horse racing in Australia there are many things you'll want to keep in mind. These things will also help you to choose between best horse racing betting sites Australia has.

Below we have outlined the top factors we consider when looking for horse betting sites - you can use these as a guide when deciding which horse racing bookies are right for you.

Below we've listed what we reckon are the best horse racing betting sites Australia has. We've used the criteria above when creating our list but of course, depending on what you're looking for, your top online horse betting websites may be different from ours.

Best Horse Racing Betting Sites 2023

1. Neds → All Aussie races with Top Fluc and Best Tote odds
2. PlayUp → Australia's best fixed odds & quality betting app for racing
3. BetBetBet → Small bookie that won't limit winning players
4. Bet365 → Particularly good odds for underdogs, UK, & Irish race
5. Betr → Accepts Apple Pay, many extras & pro racing tips
6. PuntNow → Launched May 2023, racing promos
7. Dabble → Follow expert tipsters and chat with likeminded punters
8. MidasBet → Small, Aussie-owned horse racing betting website

With BoB odds for every Australian meet, and the ability to request your own bets like head to heads, VicBet is also worth a mention. So are other on-course bookmakers that are also online like DaveBet, LynchBet, and Woodcock Racing who despite having a much more limited range of options have very competitive fixed odds prices for Australian racing.

Alright we know we've already given you two lists of the best Australian betting sites for horse racing but here's a little more in-depth information about our 4 favourite horse racing bookies. Hopefully, it helps you decide which online horse betting site is best for you.

At most horse racing betting websites you'll get an overview of the races that are next to start in the 'Next to Go' section. Otherwise, you can filter between Thoroughbreds, Harness racing and Greyhound racing.

The first thing you'll need to do before you can start betting on the races is to choose a horse racing betting website and sign up. This takes approximately 2 minutes.

When you enter a horse racing betting market you'll be able to filter through the days races at the top of the screen. Below this, you'll get an overview of the race, track, weather and perhaps some expert picks.

The main section of a given online horse racing market is taken up by each horse, their odds for Win and Place bets as well as their flucs (price fluctuations) and form.

If you're looking for more specific information about online horse betting sites and their types of bets and odds jump to the section below.

Okay so you've got the gist of betting sites for horse racing in Australia and maybe you even know which horse racing bookie you want to use but maybe you're still unsure of what types of odds to use and what types of bet to place.

If you're here to do some Melbourne Cup betting then check out our full guide or go to our 5-step article explaining how to bet on the Melbourne Cup.

Horse Betting Sites Bet Types

• Win - You bet on the winning horse
• Top 2 - You bet on a horse to come 1st or 2nd
• Place - You bet on a horse to come 1st, 2nd or 3rd (in smaller races only 2 horses place)
• Top 4 - You bet on a horse to come 1st, 2nd, 3rd or 4th
• Quinella - You bet on the first two horses to finish (in any order)
• Exacta - You bet on the first two horses to finish (in the correct order)
• Trifecta - You bet on the first three horses to finish (in the correct order)
• First 4 - You bet on the first four horses to finish (in the correct order)
• Quadrella - You bet on the winning horses from four different races
• Boxed Exotics - The bets above (excluding Win and Place bets) are known as exotics. You can 'box' an exotic meaning you cover all combinations of the horse finishing order.

Horse Betting Sites Odds

• Fixed Win/Place - The price you take is the price you get
• Starting Price (SP) - You get the price a horse is paying when the racing market closes
  
• Best Tote - You get the best price from all 3 major Australian TABs
  
• Middle Tote - You get the middle price from all 3 major Australian TABs
  
• Top Fluc - You get the highest price a horse is paying in the time between when the market opens and when it closes
• Best Tote + SP - You get the best price from all 3 major Australian TABs and the Starting Price
• Best of the Best - You get the best price from all 3 major Australian TABs, the Starting Price, and the Top Fluctuation

Most of the things you'll want from horse racing betting sites in Australia are the same things that you'll want from horse betting apps. This includes good odds, lots of markets, live streaming and plenty of form information and racing previews.

However, the best horse betting apps offer more than this.

The best horse betting apps are simple to navigate, load fast and make betting on the races easy

All the best betting sites for horse racing in Australia have iPhone and Android apps. iPhone apps can be downloaded from the App Store but android horse racing betting apps must be downloaded directly from the bookmaker's mobile website.

When choosing horse betting apps you may not to check out our betting apps page or download a couple to see if you like them. You'll want to pay special attention to their odds, how well laid out their racing markets are and how easy it is to access from guides and racing previews.

Before downloading horse betting apps we recommend signing up with your chosen online horse betting site first.

New horse racing betting sites are attractive for many Aussie punters because they often bring new features and better odds to the table.

New racing betting sites are not always better than more established bookies but they can be.

Australia's newest horse racing bookmakers are MidasBet and Swiftbet which launched in 2022, along with BetBetBet, Dabble, Moneyball, Booki, BoomBet, and GetSetBet which all launched in 2021.

Old betting sites for horse racing generally beat new betting sites for horse racing when it comes to things like live streaming and range of markets but for new betting experiences and great odds new horse racing bookies are often the way to go.

Live streaming is one of the most sought-after features of online horse racing betting sites in Australia.

That's probably because there's nothing quite like cheering on your horse and when you can't be at the races the next best thing is to be following the action live.

At most online horse racing betting websites you'll need to have money in your account to access live streaming

Not all horse racing betting websites offer live streaming but the few that do like Bet365, Unibet, Sportsbet, Neds and Ladbrokes are some of the biggest online racing betting sites in the country.

Many racing betting sites have similar tote and SP odds but not all horse racing bookies offer top fluc odds, best of the best odds, and high fixed price odds.

We like the horse racing betting websites that have high fixed odds and that consistently offer Top Fluc, Best Tote +SP or Best of the Best odds.

When you choose the odds you want to take it's important to understand where the value is.

The starting price will generally be better when the horse is not favoured in the moments before the race whereas the fixed odds price might be the best option if a horse is likely to be backed just before the jump. Top fluc odds are often good if you're not betting early because you secure the highest price offered in the moments leading up to the race's start but best of the best odds are always the highest (unless you secure a great fixed price).

If you're not lucky enough to be at Flemington for the Melbourne Cup, or if you want to skip the queues, then using one of Australia's Melbourne Cup betting sites or apps is your best option.

All horse racing betting sites in Australia have Melbourne cup odds which are all pretty much the same, so no single horse racing bookie really stands above the best.

Neds is a top Melbourne Cup bookie because of the extra features available

Neds is great for the Melbourne Cup, and other big Australian races like the Cox Plate, Victoria Derby, The Everest, and The Championships because they have tons of features and offer odds months in advance.

This means that you can get a great price if you want to bet early, but it also means that if you're doing your Melbourne Cup betting in the weeks or days leading up to the race you'll have tons of options like Best Tote odds, exotics, special bets, mystery bets, same race multis as well as full form guides, runner comments, speedmaps, previews, and Melbourne Cup predictions.