A quinella bet requires two selected horses to finish 1st and 2nd in any order in a race. This means you’ll receive a payout regardless of whether your picks finish 1st and 2nd or 2nd and 1st.

The finishing sequence doesn’t matter as long as both place in the top two spots.

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How to Place a Quinella Bet

When placing a quinella bet, you need to select any two horses in a boxed combination. Most bookmakers require you to outlay $1 per combination.

For example, a $2 quinella on horses 4 and 7 means you’ll have horses 4-7 and 7-4 covered for a cost of $2. The quinella is the only exotic bet that allows the boxing of just two horses.

How is a Quinella Payout Calculated?

The quinella dividend is calculated by the total quinella pool divided by the number of winning quinella bets. Let’s say the quinella pool in a race was $20,000, and 50 winning quinella tickets were sold.

The dividend would be $20,000 / 50 = $400 for a $1 bet. The more bets placed, the bigger the pool grows. Fewer winning tickets mean a higher payout.

Why Consider Quinella Betting?

Quinellas provide better odds than betting horses individually to place. You’re reducing 8-10 contenders down to just 2 selections.

They are also easier to hit than other multis like trifectas, as you need two horses in the placings.

Quinellas offers a balanced exotic option with solid returns. For example, the 2022 Melbourne Cup quinella paid $316.30.

Quinella vs. Exacta – what’s the difference?

The main difference between a quinella and an exacta bet is:

Quinella:

Requires 2 horses to finish 1st and 2nd in any order.
Payout is the same whether selections run 1st and 2nd or 2nd and 1st.

Exacta:

Requires 2 horses to finish 1st and 2nd in EXACT order.
Bets are placed on specific finish combinations, such as 1st and 2nd.
Pays more than a quinella on average.

Now that you’re up to speed with what a quinella is, head on over to our homepage to check our recommendations for the top betting sites in Australia, Australian bookmakers, and best betting apps.

About Ben Leighton

Ben has been an avid horse racing, AFL, NRL, NBA and EPL fan for as long as he can remember. Born and bred in Melbourne, Ben loves nothing more than getting along to the footy to cheer on his beloved North Melbourne Kangaroos and getting trackside for as many Flemington and Caulfield horse racing meets at possible. Ben is our head writer at Betting Sites Australia.