Tote is synonymous with horse racing betting in the UK, and the brand has put together one of the widest ranges of Cheltenham offers among UK betting sites for the 2026 edition of the festival.
Tote are offering money back on every race at Cheltenham this year, while new customers can grab £40 in Tote Cheltenham free bets when opening an account with the pools betting originators.
We’ve compiled a guide to these offers, including details on the Tote Cheltenham placepot, to help punters maximise their Cheltenham bets.
Tote Cheltenham offers & features
Tote has one of the best Cheltenham betting offers on the market for this year’s festival, with free bet refunds available on every race.
Tote is offering to refund losing bets if your horse finishes second in any of the races being staged at Cheltenham.
The Tote Cheltenham offer applies to single bets only and has a maximum value of £10 per bet.
This is not the only Cheltenham offer available at Tote though, with others including:
Money-back if 2nd, 3rd or 4th on day one: Tote are living up to their billing as one of the top horse racing betting sites with their expanded money-back offer on the Cheltenham Festival, with bettors receiving up to £10 back as Tote credit if their horse places but doesn’t win in a race.
Tote Guarantee: Punters will get at least the starting price (SP) or better on all Cheltenham winners, with Tote paying out more on winning bets if the Tote dividend is greater than the odds you backed your selection at.
Stayers Club: Join the Stayers Club on Tote to unlock exclusive offers. Get £2, £5 or £10 in free bets during Cheltenham and every other week of the year by placing the required number of qualifying bets.
Placepot insurance: Get your money back as a free bet if you go out in the first leg of your Tote Cheltenham Placepot as a member of the Stayers Club.
Free Placepot: Stayers Club members get a 50p free daily Placepot for each day of the Cheltenham Festival.
Exclusive tips: Get exclusive tips from Andrew Mount straight to your inbox as a member of the Stayers Club.
Live Streaming: Stream every race at Cheltenham free of charge with Tote, as long as you have a funded account.
Tote Cheltenham sign up offer
The Tote sign up offer is a bet £10 get £40 scheme. The Tote welcome bonus of £30 in free bets, split into £20 in Tote credit for racing bets, a £10 free sports bet, and 2x £5 free football acca bets. Punters looking to claim this bonus simply need to follow these steps:
Step 1: Navigate to the Tote website via one of the links in this article. There’s no need for a Tote promo code when using our links.
Step 2: Sign up and deposit a minimum of £10 using a qualifying payment method.
Step 3: Place a qualifying bet of £10 or more at odds of evens or greater on any racing or sports market within seven days of registration.
Step 4: Bettors will have seven days to use their free bets once they are allocated.
How does a Tote placepot for Cheltenham work?
A Tote Cheltenham placepot works with the Tote pool betting system. A bettor can choose one or more selections in each race, which are known as lines.
If you add multiple lines to each race, also known as perm betting, the chance of selecting a horse that goes on to place increases. However, the total stake is determined by line, and the more lines you have, the greater the stake.
It is a simple bet that doesn’t need a horse to win, just finish within the places of a race. Here’s how they work out how many places they’ll be paying out on:
|
Number of runners |
Places in placepot |
|---|---|
|
Four or less runners |
1st |
|
Five to seven runners |
1st & 2nd |
|
Eight to 15 runners |
1st, 2nd & 3rd |
|
16 runners or more (non-handicap) |
1st, 2nd & 3rd |
|
16 or more runners (handicap) |
1st, 2nd, 3rd & 4th |
The stakes are collected into a pool that is shared among the winning tickets.
The Tote, who run the placepot, take 27 per cent of the total pool, with the other 73 per cent making up the prize fund, which can reach £1m during Cheltenham.
Responsible Gambling
Bettors should always gamble responsibly, especially during the Cheltenham Festival, given the number of offers widely available. You should always stick to a budget and never exceed it.
Anyone can lose a bet, even if they know a lot about horse racing. Never chase your losses. Always remain in control of your time and budget.
Bettors should use responsible gambling tools provided by gambling sites, such as deposit limits, loss limits and self-exclusion, among others.
In the UK, there are a number of gambling addiction charities ready and prepared to help you with counselling, support groups and practical advice on how to help you recover if you do lose control:
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