Placepot Tips Today - Free Tote Placepot Tips for Every UK & Irish Meeting
Welcome to FreeBets.com's free Placepot tips, updated every morning by 10:00am with expert perms for every UK and Irish meeting.
A Placepot is a Tote pool bet where you pick a horse to finish placed in each of the first six races at a single meeting - get all six and you share the day's dividend, which averaged £466 in 2023 and topped £7,126 across Cheltenham Festival days from 2020–2024.
Our tipsters mix bankers and value picks to keep your perm cost-effective
Tote Placepot For Today - Ascot, 9 May
We head to Ascot on Saturday afternoon, where the placepot pool will be a guaranteed £100,000.
How to Bet a Tote Placepot in 5 Steps
Placing a Tote Placepot is straightforward - follow the steps below.
Step 1 - Pick a meeting
Choose any UK or Irish horse racing fixture from tote.co.uk. The biggest pools and most reliable dividends usually come from the day's most prominent meeting - and on Saturdays, the Tote runs a guaranteed pool of at least £100,000.
Step 2 - Select at least one horse to place in each of the first six races
The Placepot covers races 1 through 6 at your chosen meeting. Tap each leg in turn and pick the horse (or horses) you want to back to finish placed.
Step 3 - Set your unit stake
Choose your stake per line. The minimum is 1p per line online, with a 50p total minimum. £1 per line is the most common starting stake.
Step 4 - Add perms to cover trickier races
In any race where you can't separate two or three horses, add them all. Multiply the number of selections in each leg to find your total lines. Example: 1 × 2 × 3 × 1 × 2 × 1 = 12 lines.
Step 5 - Place your bet by the off-time of leg 1
Confirm the bet before the first race goes off (you can also bet from 4pm the day before). If a horse is a non-runner, your bet automatically transfers to the Starting Price favourite - no action needed from you.
Place Terms - How Many Places Pay in a Placepot?
The number of places that pay in each leg of a placepot depends on the field size and whether the race is a handicap.
| Field Size | Places Paid |
| 2–4 runners | 1st only |
| 5–7 runners | 1st and 2nd |
| 8+ runners (non-handicap) | 1st, 2nd and 3rd |
| 8–15 runners (handicap) | 1st, 2nd and 3rd |
| 16+ runners (handicap) | 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th |
Placepot Strategy - Bankers, Big Prices & Keeping Stakes Low
Landing the Tote Placepot is all about finding the right balance between smart coverage and keeping your stake affordable.
The best perms aren’t always the biggest - they’re the ones built around strong opinions and value plays.
Bank on the obvious in the easier races
A banker is your strongest fancy in the perm and the key to keeping costs under control. Short-priced favourites in small-field races, especially non-handicaps, are often the ideal place to go single and save lines for tougher legs later on.
Go wider in big runner fields
Big handicaps with 16+ runners are where the Placepot can really open up. Races like the Royal Hunt Cup or Stewards’ Cup are perfect for throwing in three or four runners and maximising your chances of surviving the leg.
Don’t be afraid to oppose the favourite
If a heavily-backed favourite looks vulnerable, taking them on can massively boost the dividend. Finding two or three solid alternatives in a race where most punters bank on the market leader is often the difference between a modest return and a monster payout.
Keep your perm sensible
You don’t need a huge stake to land a worthwhile Placepot. Many experienced players keep perms around the £10–£20 mark, increasing stakes only for major festival cards where bigger pools and guaranteed dividends can offer stronger value. Remember, always gamble responsibly.
Festival Placepot Tips
The biggest placepot pools of the year fall at the major festivals, when guaranteed minimums climb from £50,000 on a regular weekday to as much as £1m for Cheltenham Festival days.
Our festival placepot perms drop the morning of each meeting:
- Cheltenham Festival - March, £750k+ pools across all four days
- Grand National Festival - April, including the £150k Saturday at Aintree
- Royal Ascot - June, £400k pools each day, World Pool active
- Glorious Goodwood - late July / early August
- York Ebor Festival - August, four-day Knavesmire fixture
Placepot vs Quadpot vs Jackpot vs Scoop6
The placepot is one of four Tote pool bets you'll see at every UK fixture. Here's how they compare:
| Bet | Races Covered | How To Win | Typical Dividend | Pool Size |
| Placepot | First 6 races | Pick a placed horse in every race | £200–£800 average | £10k–£1m |
| Quadpot | Races 3–6 | Pick a placed horse in 4 races | £20–£80 average | £2k–£20k |
| Jackpot | First 6 races | Pick the WINNER of every race | £5k–£100k+ | Often rolls over |
| Scoop6 | 6 chosen races (Sat) | Pick the winner of all 6 | £100k–£3m+ | Always Saturday only |
Latest Horse Racing Tips, Stats & Trends
Check out more from the Freebets horse racing hub, including tips, stats, market movers and today’s racecards!
Placepot FAQs
What is a placepot?
How do you win a placepot?
What is the average Tote Placepot dividend?
What's the minimum stake for a placepot?
What happens if my placepot horse is a non-runner?
How is a perm placepot calculated?
What's the difference between a Placepot and a Quadpot?
Which bookies offer placepots?
What deduction does the Tote take from the placepot pool?
Can I bet the placepot online?
