For most people Win and Each Way bets are the main type of Grand National bets they place.

A win bet means you are backing your selection to come in first. This is the most popular type of bet for the national.

An each way bet on the Grand National is your horse both to win and the other is to finish in the first four

Having an each way bet on the Grand National is like have two bets on the same horse and this is the second most popular Grand National Bets.

Here's how each way bets work

Say you have £20 each way on a horse called Rolfing. The the total cost of this bet is £40 (£20 to win, £20 to place)

Say the odds on Rolfing are 10/1.  If he wins at this price you get £200 back for your win plus £20 stake i.e. £220 and then because he placed in the Top 4 you get £200/4 back plus your £20 stake i.e £70.  So you bet £40 and got £290 back which means you won £20.

If Rolfing didn't win but placed in the top 4 you would get £70 back i.e. a profit of £30

Round about the time of the National most major bookmakers like Blue Square will offer free bets on the National and also will offer promotions such as extending placing to the Top 5 runners.