Tote Betting in Ireland: How It Works, Bet Types, and Payouts Explained
If you have spent time at Irish racecourses or watched racing on TV, you will have seen the word Tote everywhere. Tote betting is the pool betting system that sits alongside the normal bookmakers at the track and online.
Instead of taking a fixed price from a bookmaker, you and every other punter betting with the Tote put your stakes into a shared pool. After the race, the operator takes a set commission, then the rest of the pool is divided between the winners. That is why the final dividend is only known after the race finishes.
In Ireland, Tote Ireland, a subsidiary of Horse Racing Ireland, runs tote betting on Irish racing. When you bet with the tote in Ireland, you are using this parimutuel system rather than fixed odds.
In this guide we will cover:
How tote betting works in simple terms
Where you can place tote bets in Ireland
How tote differs from fixed odds bookmakers
The main tote bet types like Win, Place, Each Way, Exacta, Trifecta, Swinger and Placepot
Pros, cons and responsible gambling tips
By the end you should understand tote betting well enough to read a pool screen, pick your bet type, and know roughly what to expect from the returns.
At its core, tote betting is pool betting.
All bets of a specific type on a race go into one pool
For example, all Win bets on the 3.15 at Leopardstown
Tote Ireland takes a fixed percentage from that pool as its commission
The remaining money is shared between all winning tickets
The payout per euro is the dividend that you see on the screens
A simplified example:
Total Win pool on a race: €10,000
Commission (operator takeout): say 16 percent
Money left to pay winners: €8,400
Total stake on the winning horse: €1,200
Dividend per €1 is:
€8,400 divided by €1,200 = €7.00
So a €5 Win tote bet would pay €35 return, including your stake.
Because the dividend depends on how much money is staked on each horse, tote betting rewards you more when you find horses that the crowd has underestimated, not just long shots.
Key points:
You do not lock in a fixed price at the time of the bet
The return can be better or worse than the starting price with a bookmaker
Large pools, such as big festival meetings, often give more stable dividends
If you want to use tote betting in Ireland, you have several options.
At the racecourse
Dedicated Tote windows and kiosks at Irish tracks
Self service terminals at some venues
Staff are trained to take bets verbally, so you do not have to fill in a slip if you are unsure
Online
Official Tote Ireland online and mobile channels for Irish meetings
Pool betting on Irish races is also available through linked UK tote platforms, but always check that the service is licensed and legal for your location
Off course partners
Some betting shops and digital partners offer access to tote pools on Irish racing alongside their own fixed odds markets. These still feed into the same core pools when clearly labelled as Tote.
Wherever you play, the basic tote rules for that pool should be the same, because they are set by Tote Ireland or the relevant tote operator.
It helps to understand how tote betting compares to a normal bookmaker.
Fixed odds betting
You take a price, for example 5.0 or 4/1, at the time of the bet
Your return is based on that price, regardless of what happens to the odds later
The bookmaker carries the risk if you and many others back a winner at big odds
Tote betting
You join a pool instead of taking a fixed price
Your return depends on how much money ends up on each horse in that pool
The operator does not risk a big loss on one horse, because it just takes a percentage of the total pool
Practical differences:
Sometimes the tote dividend on a popular favourite is lower than the fixed odds, because so many people backed it in the pool
Sometimes the tote dividend on a less fancied runner beats the bookmaker price, because the crowd did not back it heavily
Tote often feels more “social”, as you and everyone else are literally in the same pool
Neither system is “better”. They suit different preferences. If you want certainty, fixed odds help. If you are happy with a bit more variability and like the idea of value when the crowd misprices a horse, tote betting can be interesting.
Tote Ireland and related tote operators offer a range of single race and multi race bets.
Below are the core options most Irish racegoers will see.
A Win bet is the simplest tote bet.
You pick one horse
It must finish first
If it wins, you get the Win dividend for that race
This is the cleanest way to experience tote betting. The dividend might be close to the starting price, bigger, or occasionally smaller, depending on how the pool is staked.
Example
You stake €10 Win on Horse A
The published Win dividend after the race is €4.50
Your return is €10 x 4.50 = €45
A Place bet pays out if your horse finishes in the places, not just first. The number of places paid depends on field size and race type, following Tote Ireland rules.
Typical structure (may vary with promotions and special races):
5 to 7 runners: 1st and 2nd
8 to 15 runners: 1st, 2nd and 3rd
Handicaps with 16 or more runners: 1st to 4th
Because it is easier to qualify, Place dividends are smaller than Win dividends.
Example
You stake €10 Place on a horse in a 12 runner handicap
It finishes 3rd
The Place dividend is €1.80
Return is €10 x 1.80 = €18
An Each Way tote bet is really two bets in one:
One Win bet
One Place bet
So a “€5 each way” stake costs €10 in total.
If the horse wins, you collect both the Win and Place dividends. If it only places, you collect the Place part.
Example
€5 each way on a horse
Total stake €10
Horse wins
Win dividend: 6.00, Place dividend: 2.10
Returns:
Win part: €5 x 6.00 = €30
Place part: €5 x 2.10 = €10.50
Total return: €40.50
If the horse was second or third, you would just receive the Place part.
An Exacta is a pool where you must pick the first two horses home, in the correct order.
Straight Exacta: you choose Horse A to win and Horse B to come second
Both must finish in that exact order
A Reverse Exacta covers both possible orders. You pick two horses and they can finish 1st and 2nd in any order.
Because a Reverse Exacta is effectively two bets, your stake is doubled. For example, a €1 Reverse Exacta costs €2 in total.
Exacta pools can produce attractive dividends, especially in competitive handicaps where the crowd money is spread out.
A Trifecta takes the idea further.
You must select the first three finishers in the correct order
The pool is usually smaller than Win or Place, but the difficulty means dividends can be high
A Reverse Trifecta lets your three horses finish in any order in the first three, but covers all the exact combinations, so the stake will be higher.
Tote Ireland introduced Trifecta to replace older “Trio” style bets and align more closely with international tote standards.
Because Trifectas are hard to hit, only stake what you are comfortable losing, and avoid chasing previous near misses.
The Swinger is a more forgiving “exotic” tote bet.
You select two horses in a race
Both must finish in the places
They can finish in any order
For example, if the race pays three places:
Your two horses could finish 1st and 2nd, 1st and 3rd, or 2nd and 3rd
This gives more ways to win than an Exacta, so dividends are often lower, but still better than a standard Place bet when you are right about a pair of runners.
The Placepot is one of the most popular multi race tote bets in Britain and Ireland.
You pick at least one horse in each of a set of consecutive races, often races 1 to 6 or 2 to 7 on the card
Your horses must place in every leg under the usual tote place rules
The pool is shared between all tickets that survive through all legs
Because many tickets are knocked out early, Placepot dividends can be surprisingly big, even on days where most favourites run well.
Simple Placepot example
€1 unit stake, one selection per race in six races
Total stake €6
All six selections place
Final Placepot dividend is €85 to a €1 stake
You collect €85
You can include more than one horse in a leg, but that multiplies the total stake. For example, if you have two horses in one leg, your total lines double.
Responsible Tote Betting: Key Tips
Since tote betting involves real money and can be fast moving, especially online, keep these basics in mind:
Set a clear betting budget per day, week or meeting and stick to it
Treat tote bets as paid entertainment, not a way to solve money problems
Use deposit and loss limits where available, and consider blocking tools if you struggle to stop
Avoid chasing losses by jumping from simple Win bets to complex Trifectas with bigger stakes
Regulators and industry bodies in Ireland, the UK and internationally all stress that betting should never impact your ability to pay essential bills or damage your mental health.
