The Grand National is one of the greatest days in the betting calendar. Grand National betting is phenomenally popular with regular punters, as well as those who like a once-a-year flutter. With so many people looking for a bet, bookmakers like to make the race even more exciting with offers for existing customers.
The Grand National has proved itself to be unlike any other horse race. With a huge field racing over unique fences in the UK’s longest race, this is a matchless spectacle.
As one of the biggest betting events of the year, bookmakers are keen to encourage you to wager with them, and there are plenty of methods they use to help their existing customers to get involved.
For almost as long as racing and betting have existed, one of the most exciting challenges has always been betting ante-post.
Bookmakers have always tempted their customers with the chance to place bets on a big race weeks, and even months, before the off.
By betting well in advance, you could get better odds than you would on the day. However, the risk was that if your selection pulled out, you lost your money.
There are few feelings worse in the context of sports betting than knowing you have backed a loser long before the runners even set out from their stables.
However, increasing numbers of bookmakers have removed that element of risk by offering Non-Runner No Bet (NRNB) on ante-post wagers before big races.
Several big-name sportsbooks are currently offering NRNB in advance of the 2021 Grand National. They include Ladbrokes, Coral, Betfred, Betfair, Paddy Power, William Hill, Betway, BetVictor, Sportingbet, Grosvenor, NetBet, 32 Red, Betiton, Bet Regal, bwin, Karamba, Bet 365, Mansion Bet, Unibet, 10 Bet and Mr Play.
This feature means you can take advantage of generous Grand National betting odds safe in the knowledge that if your horse does pull out, you’ll get your money back.
One way in which bookmakers encourage existing customers to wager on a big race or prestigious festival is to offer a reload bonus.
This is an opportunity to replenish the funds in your betting account - with a little extra thrown in by the bookmaker.
In return for your loyal custom, the bookmaker may invite you to put up to £50 or £100 in your account, then match your deposit to effectively double it.
Best Odds Guaranteed (BOG) is an extremely popular promotion with regular punters. It takes away the fear of not getting the best price on a horse - and the frustration when that happens.
It’s usually offered only on the day of a race, but some bookmakers introduce BOG the night before as one of their Grand National bet offers to attract custom.
Let’s say you want to back Burrows Saint for the Grand National on the morning of the race at 10-1. BOG means that if the horse is backed in to 6-1 and wins, you will be paid out at your original price of 10-1.
However, if the Willie Mullins horse is friendless in the market and wins after drifting out to a starting price 14-1, you will be paid out at that price. Bookmakers doing BOG so far for this year’s big race are Betfred, Ladbrokes and Bet 365.
Stay alert in the countdown to the Grand National. Some bookmakers will enhance the price of a particular horse for a short time to attract customers.
If you spot one of these promotions and take advantage of it, you may find yourself with a much longer price - and a bigger winning payout - than you expected.
Unless you are backing a very short-priced horse, it’s always wise to bet each-way in the Grand National. That means if your horse doesn’t win but finishes in the places, you will get a return.
Bookmakers know this is one of the most popular types of bets at the Grand National and will offer extra places to give their customers more value.
Handicaps with more than 16 runners usually generate an each-way return for the first four horses past the post.
But a host of bookmakers are now offering even more places. Currently, Betfair, Bet 365, Paddy Power, Betway and William Hill are offering each-way the first five places, while Ladbrokes, Betfred, BetVictor, Sportingbet and bwin will pay out on the first six.
It’s disappointing if your horse falls, unseats its jockey or is brought down by another faller. However, some bookmakers will offer faller insurance.
That means if your horse does not complete the Grand National course for one of those three reasons - which happened to seven in the 2019 field - you get your money back as cash or a free bet.
Full disclosure: To help us keep horseracing.co.uk running as a free service some sportsbooks pay us a commission for referring customers.
If you’re an existing customer, there are various ways to get extra value when you place a bet on the Grand National. Take a look around and you might find the sportsbook where you place your bet makes the difference between getting a return and losing your money.
Each-way is one of the most popular types of bets on the Grand National, so the number of places covered by place betting really matters. Most bookmakers now offer each-way betting on the first five rather than the traditional four; many go as far as offering six places - and in 2019, Unibet paid out on seventh place.
Look out for this special Grand National betting promotion that’s a close relative of each-way punting. A bookmaker may decide to refund your bet - as cash rather than a free bet - if your horse finishes in a particular position. This may be sixth if the firm is offering five places for each-way betting.
Thanks to the modified fences and a slightly shorter distance, more horses tend to complete the Grand National these days than in previous years. Some bookmakers will offer faller insurance; if your horse falls, unseats its jockey or is brought down, you get your money back as cash or a free bet.
One way of qualifying for Grand National bet offers is to be a member of a bookmaker’s free bet or VIP club. This is a facility opened up to regular punters to make them feel valued and special - and membership can lead to bonus offers and extra bets around the time of big races like this.
We all feel disappointed when our Grand National pick fails to win, but some losers are more painful than others. Bookmakers occasionally offer justice payouts and return stakes when a horse has been particularly unlucky - falling at the last fence when in the lead, or losing by a short-head, for instance.
With so many horses and so many types of bets that you can place, Grand National betting can be confusing, even for the experienced punter. However, a little bit of patient study can pay dividends if you find the right offer to suit the sort of bets you want to place.
For instance, Non-Runner No Bet is perfect for when you want to get your money on your fancied horse as soon as possible. Similarly, Best Odds Guaranteed is great when you need to be sure you’re getting the best value for money with a bet early on Grand National day.
If you’re backing a long shot, you’ll definitely want to bet with a sportsbook offering as many places as possible. You’ll feel awful if you back a horse each-way at 100-1 and it finishes sixth but you needed it in the first five...
What is each way bet on Grand National?
When you bet each way, you bet on a horse both to win and to finish in the places - hence, each way. You’ll need to split or double your stake, but if you back a horse at decent Grand National betting odds and it finishes in the places, you will get a good return for your stake.
Do Betfred pay out for 5th place in Grand National?
It would be a huge surprise if Betfred did not pay out on fifth place. In 2018 and 2019, Betfred was one of several bookmakers who paid out each-way punters on the first six places, making it one of the best sites to place a bet on the Grand National.
What are Coral paying out on Grand National?
Check out how many places each bookmaker is covering for each-way bets on the Grand National in the days before the race. Coral was one of several bookmakers who paid out on the first six home in 2019, so it would be a shock if they didn’t match that offer this time round.
What time can you bet on the Grand National until?
The Grand National starts at 5.15pm, and betting continues right up until that point - and beyond. Grand National betting odds can be updated instantly thanks to modern digital technology, so some bookmakers - especially exchanges like Betfair - offer in-play betting while the race goes on.
While we always attempt to provide the most up-to-date and correct free bet offers from the bookmakers listed on horseracing.co.uk, from time to time the bookmakers may change their offers and there may be a gap between these changes being updated across our site.
We would like to advise all our readers that it is their responsibility to check the free bet on offer by any bookmaker on the relevant home page or promotions section of the bookmaker site or app.
The free bets offered on this site are only a guide and when you click through from horseracing.co.uk, they will bring you to the relevant bookmaker site or landing page. Please make sure that you check the free bet and/or offer thoroughly before opening an account.
