Tote Free Bets & Betting Review

Tote betting explained

Tote betting may seem intimidating to someone used to fixed-odds betting, but it is a simpler concept to explain. The Tote is a pools betting operator, which differs from traditional fixed-odds betting in that the odds are not set by a bookmaker who is aiming to maximise their profit on a race. Tote is short for ‘totaliser’, which is the name given to the board that shows the current state of the betting pool- i.e. the live odds. 

In a pool bet, the total of all stakes are collected and the operator takes out a small portion of the stakes. After the race, the rest of the pool is split among those who placed a bet on the winning selection, proportional to their stake. Returns are expressed as ‘dividends’, which is in almost all cases just the return for every £1 staked on the winner.

As an example: you place a £10 win bet on a horse in a pool that, after the Tote’s take-out, contains £1000. If your horse wins and £100 of the pool was riding on it, the dividend would be 10.00 (£1000/£100) and you would receive £100. If £500 of the pool was on your horse, the dividend would be 2.00 (£1000/£500) and your returns would be £20.

The same method applies to all pool bets, including multi-leg bets like the Placepot and Scoop6, as well as place betting. Note that each-way bets on the Tote are treated as two separate win and place bets. This is because each race has a win pool and a place pool, which are entirely independent of each other. This differs from traditional each-way bets where a horse’s place odds are calculated using their win odds.

Because of the nature of pool betting it is not possible to know what your returns will be until after all bets have been placed, which will be when the race or event starts. Like traditional odds, ‘live’ prices are displayed until the race goes off and offer a good guide.

How to use your Tote free bets

Once you have been credited with your free Tote Credit, placing those bets is simple on the Tote website and mobile app. 

Using your Tote Credits:

• Select your Tote market (remember that one £10 Tote Credit is only for use in Placepot pools)
• Click the selection you wish to take which adds the selection to your bet slip
• Enter your stake (using the free Tote Credits)
• Select Place Your Bet (remember: winnings from this bet do not include the free bet credit)

Don’t forget to tick the box in your betslip that says ‘use Tote Credits’ otherwise the stake for your bet will use your cash balance instead. Winnings from bets placed using Tote Credits will exclude the original free bet stake. 

How to sign up with Tote

New to Tote? Signing up for an account is straightforward and there are some brilliant new customer offers to get you up and running with money in the wallet. The Tote sign-up process has three simple steps:

• Sign up for a Tote account and claim £20 in the process
• Complete the sign-up for by entering your details, address and contact details
• Sign in to your account by using your username and password

The Tote login create account process is straightforward and takes less than five minutes. You will be able to bet, deposit and withdraw straight away. However, limits will be imposed on your account until you have confirmed your identity and completed the initial verification checks, which are standard to all betting operators in the UK.

 

Verification, depositing & withdrawing

You need to complete the initial verification checks with Tote to confirm you are who you say you are. These checks require you to verify your full name and date of birth in the first step and then your residential address in the second. If you have signed up for an online verification service previously, Tote may be able to verify you through this service, but if not, you can submit documents to complete this initial verification. This is a straightforward process which can be done through the online chat facility on the Tote’s website.

How to deposit into your Tote account:

• You can log in to your new Tote account as soon as you have verified your email address, although deposits will be limited until you have completed the initial verification checks
• To make a deposit in your new Tote account, click on the “Deposit” link shown in the top right corner of the home page
• Select which payment method you wish to use and enter the required details for that payment method in the space below, including the amount you wish to deposit into your account. Deposit at least £5 (the minimum deposit) so you have the funds to claim your welcome offer

You are now ready to bet with Tote and to claim your welcome offer. To do this, you need to place a £5 pools bet as your first bet with the site. Once your bet settles, then win or lose, you will receive a bonus of £20 in Tote credits which you can use on the site.

You are now a fully-fledged Tote customer, ready to make your sports betting experience the best possible with Britain and Ireland’s leading pools firm.

How to withdraw from your Tote account

• Log in to your Tote account on the website or app, and head to the ‘Account’ section and click ‘Withdraw’ under the ‘Wallet’ section
• Select the bank account or payment method of your choice, enter the amount you wish to withdraw and hit enter

It usually takes between 3-5 working days for funds to hit your account, so be sure to give enough time before contacting customer support.

The minimum amount you can withdraw is £10 and there are no charges for withdrawing money from Tote.

It’s also important to note that when withdrawing to a Debit Card, you will need to select the same card in which you had deposited previously. 

How to place a bet on Tote using the Tote website

Now that you are a registered Tote punter, the next step is to go ahead and begin betting into their pools. Placing a bet is simple and straightforward on the Tote website.

The menus on the desktop site are clear and uncluttered. Because Tote offer pools only on horse racing and football, the menu is streamlined compared with other bookmakers.

Under racing, the ‘Races’ tab is all you are likely to need. There are tabs for ‘Bet Types’, ‘Results’ and ‘Promotions’, but all of these can all be accessed from somewhere on the Races tab.

The Races section has a carousel flagging Tote promotions and Tote offers at the top, with the next races off just underneath. Under these comes the information for all the day’s racecards, including live information on the Placepot, Jackpot and Quadpot pools for each card. You can also click on an individual race to access all the race-specific markets such as Tote Win, Tote Place, Tote Exacta and so on.

Placing a multi-leg bet is a smooth experience. The default option is to select horses race by race, making use of Racing Post tipping content if you so wish. Alternatively, if you already have your selections in mind, the ‘Quick Pick’ function in the top right of the page allows you to see all races at a glance and offers the fastest way to select your horses. Selections are added to your betslip and the number of lines your bet will require is calculated automatically.

Single-race bets are just as simple. Depending on the number of runners, there will be three or four tabs at the top of the screen: ‘win/place/, ‘exacta’, ‘trifecta’ and ‘swinger’. Simply select your bet type and choose your horses and stake as you would for any other bookmaker. If you are placing a bet with more than one part, such as an each-way bet or permed Exacta, the betslip will calculate your number of bets.

On the right of the screen on the Tote site when you are logged in, there is a betting dashboard with four tabs: ‘Live TV’, ‘Betslip’, ‘Open’ and ‘Settled’. Live TV shows the current stream- which covers UK and Irish racing, as well as Hong Kong, South Africa and Scandinavian trotting. Betslip shows current selections on your betslip and, like the other tabs, displays a small numerical icon when you have selections in that betslip. Open shows your live bets, albeit without any live pool information, and Settled shows your recently settled bets, with returns.

Tote Mobile App

The Tote mobile app can be downloaded from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store and offers a very similar layout to the site, condensed and optimised for mobile devices. You still have the promotional carousel at the top, followed by the next races off and then the daily meetings. The main difference is that the tabs at the top of the screen are separated into ‘Multi legs’ (the default), ‘Single legs’ and ‘Now & next’. 

The other difference is that live race streams are not available on the main screen. However, go into any race on the app and you will be offered a live stream on that race. Once in a race you can select your bet type, just like on the Tote website. 

The main menu offers similar options to the site: ‘Home’, ‘My Bets’ (the site’s ‘Open’ and ‘Settled’ tabs combined) and ‘Deposit’. The betslip appears above the navigation bar once you make one or more selections.

Overall the Tote mobile app does an impressive job of turning the extensive but uncluttered experience on the Tote website into a similarly straightforward mobile experience.

Tote bet types

As a pools betting operator, the Tote offers a number of bets which differ from traditional fixed-odds bookmakers.

Tote Win

A standard win bet into a win bet pool. With the Tote Guarantee, this is an attractive option for those who bet near the off. Tote dividends can be especially generous relative to traditional odds when betting on outsiders.

Tote Place

Like the Tote Win, but the dividends will be split between the first two, three or four finishers depending on the type of race and number of runners. For this reason, Tote Place bets pay a lot less than Tote Win bets. The advantage of Tote Place bets over an each-way bet is that you are not obliged to have a win bet in order to bet on a horse to place

Tote Exacta

Very similar to the traditional forecast bet. The Exacta and forecast dividends can vary by a surprising amount, albeit neither is reliably more lucrative than the other

Tote Trifecta

The Trifecta is to the tricast what the Exacta is to the forecast. Name the first three finishers in order, or you can have a combination tricast to cover them in any order. Note that Trifectas are offered on far more races than the tricast is

Tote Swinger

A Tote-unique bet and one that I prefer to use over the forecast/Exacta or tricast/Trifecta. Nominate two horses and if they both finish anywhere in the first three then you will win a share of the pool. Dividends are not as good as the Exacta or Tricast but the Swinger is accordingly easier to win

Tote Quinella

A reversed Exacta which is offered for one stake. Offered primarily on Hong Kong races

Tote Placepot

Perhaps the Tote’s most famous bet, the Placepot offers big returns without having to back a winner. Select one or more horses in each of the first six races on a card and if at least one of them places (according to traditional each-way terms) in each leg then you win a share of the pool. The most lucrative Placepot dividends can pay five-figure sums to a £1 stake and nowadays you can play for as little as 1p a line, which hugely expands the everyday punter’s ability to cover a large number of the field in something like the Grand National.

Tote Quadpot

While a Placepot covers races one to six on a card, the Quadpot covers races three to six. It is in essence a chance for those who are knocked out early from the Placepot to go in again, although the dividends will not be as great

Tote Jackpot

Like the Placepot but only winners will do. The Tote Jackpot can pay significant amounts, as it can roll over for several days at a time. It is only offered on one meeting per day.

Tote Scoop6

A special version of the Jackpot which runs on Saturdays and other terrestrial TV days. These are usually chosen as the six hardest races on the ITV coverage and, uniquely for a Tote bet these days, has a set unit stake of £2. Rollovers can get into the millions and are often won by syndicates, but there have been many cases over the years of single-line punters taking home a seven-figure haul

Tote Best Features

Tote Ten To Follow

Still the closest thing horseracing has to Fantasy Premier League, the Tote Ten To Follow allows users to select ten horses for the season. Points are gained for winning big races, with a selection of races offering bonus points. There is a transfer window just before the Cheltenham Festival. The Ten To Follow costs £5 to enter and winners receive a six-figure payout. 

 

Placepot Guarantee

Tote bets are only as good as the size of pool you are playing into, so the Tote Placepot Guarantee is a huge boon for midweek punters in particular. Having £100,000 guaranteed in the pool for even a Monday meeting makes it well worth trying to take down a perm at Kempton or Wolverhampton.

Live Streaming

Anyone who is logged into their Tote account, via the website or the app, can watch any race on which a pool is offered for free. There is no obligation to bet and it is particularly handy for watching races when you are out and about.

Tote Fantasy

A fantasy racing game which gives players a fantasy budget to spend on one meeting per day and divides the pool among the top performers. Players are given two ‘boosts’ to increase their totals and the form pages allows them to see which horses are most popular among other players. Can give an interest across a whole card for an entry fee of £7.

Tote+

Available on selected races where the Tote+ label is visible. This feature allows those who bet directly through the Tote website or app to receive a bigger payout on winning bets. Works nicely with the Tote SP Guarantee to make betting with the Tote in the minutes before a race goes off a highly competitive offering to betting exchanges, which for many years had been clearly the best-value option for those who bet late. Note that Tote+ applies only on dividends of 1.20 or above.

What sports can you bet on at Tote?

Tote initially only offered betting on racing, but has expanded its package to also allow punters the chance to wager on football. The racing offer is extensive and includes UK and Irish racing, as well as South Africa, Hong Kong, US and Scandinavian trotting.

The Tote also participates in the World Pool, in which several major racing nations commingle their pools so as to offer exceptionally large pools. World Pool is offered on over 20 of the world’s biggest Flat racing meetings, including Royal Ascot and Glorious Goodwood.

Tote Address

Tote was founded in 1928 as a statutory corporation set up by Winston Churchill with the intention of providing a safe, state-controlled alternative to illegal off-course bookmakers. It was acquired by Betfred in 2011 before being sold to UK Tote Group in 2019. Its headquarters is based in Wigan. 

Customer Care
Waterside House
Waterside Drive
Wigan
WN3 5AZ
United Kingdom

Tote Contact Details

Telephone: 0800 032 8188

Email: customercare@tote.co.uk or feedback@tote.co.uk

Tote also offers an extremely useful live chat facility which can be found in the bottom right corner of their contact us page, which customers may prefer to use.

Safer Gambling at Tote

Gambling is one of the world’s most popular pastimes in our modern culture. It provides a thrill and a buzz for many to the sporting events they enjoy in their lives. That buzz can bring a financial reward but, of course, it’s important to maintain control over gambling too.

The adverts are out there and it really is important that: ‘When the fun stops, stop’ is every punter’s mantra.

Safer Gambling is something Tote takes seriously, to ensure punters get the right amount of enjoyment without overstretching their limits. Customers on the website are reminded after 15 minutes of inactivity, or 60 minutes on the site, whether they want to continue or would like to be logged out.

Gambling is a form of entertainment and not a source of income. It never should be viewed as such. Punters should monitor time and money spent on gambling and play within their means. Tote allows punters the chance to set deposit limits and to keep track of their activity by analysing bet history, which details overall profits and losses. 

There is also a short Self-Assessment tool via the Tote website, where you can answer some quick questions that will help recognise the signs of problem gambling. There’s also a handy section that lists common gambling myths that some punters might believe, while there’s a neat How Gambling Works section that details everything from understanding the odds on sports betting to playing online bingo games and roulette. 

For any customers experiencing gambling problems there are links to various sources that can help get matters back under control. All in all, the Tote site has an extensive lists of tools at your disposal to ensure you can enjoy a safe, controlled and fulfilling betting experience within your own limits.