- Maths reviewed by Josh Miller
- Tested by Diana Westfield
£5 each way on a 33/1 shot is £10 down on the counter, and the Grand National bet calculator above shows what it’s worth after the race: £208 if it wins, £38 if it only places. It’s set up for the National: each way at 1/5 odds, a single by default, and room for Rule 4 when a horse is pulled out on the morning. Change the price, the stake or the bet type and the free CasinoCalcs calculator settles it straight away.
Grand National bet calculator: win and each way returns
An each way bet is two equal bets: one to win and one to place. At 1/5 odds the place part pays a fifth of the win odds. So the 33/1 example breaks down like this:
| Result | Win part (£5) | Place part (£5) | Total back |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wins | £170 | £38 | £208 |
| Places 2nd to 5th (or extra places) | £0 | £38 | £38 |
| Unplaced | £0 | £0 | £0 |
Placing at 33/1 still makes £28 profit on the £10 stake. At 10/1, though, a place only returns £15, so each way on a short price mostly buys insurance.
Extra places on the Grand National
With up to 34 runners, bookmakers usually pay five places at 1/5 odds. On the day, plenty of bookmakers pay six, seven or even eight. The terms don’t change, it’s still 1/5 the odds, but the 6th to 8th home now count as placed. If your horse finishes 7th and your bookie paid eight places, mark it placed in the calculator. The extra place calculator shows how much those extra spots are worth over a whole card.
Non-runners and Rule 4
The National attracts ante-post money for weeks. If your horse doesn’t make the final field, an ante-post bet is normally lost. On the day it’s different: a late withdrawal gets your stake back, and if the market had a big price for it, Rule 4 knocks a few pence in the pound off everyone else’s winnings. A 10p deduction turns that £170 win part into £153.50 (£165 × 0.9 + the £5 stake), so open the extras on the selection and set the deduction. The Rule 4 calculator has the full deduction table.
Sweepstake or a bet?
Most people’s only bet of the year is a Grand National pick, often split three ways in the office. If you’d rather draw horses out of a hat, the sweepstake generator does the draw. For a few horses in one bet, set the type to double or treble here, or go to the bet calculator for a Yankee or Lucky 15.
Running the office sweep as well? The Grand National sweepstake kit draws the horses and prints the sheet.
The National is a 30-plus runner lottery over 30 fences. Bet what you’d spend on a day out. BeGambleAware.org is free and confidential if it stops being fun.