Your first trade walkthrough

Before you start

Make sure your Betfair account is connected (see Connecting your Betfair account) and that you have funds available in your Betfair wallet. HRT places real orders on the live exchange — this is not a simulation.

If you want to get familiar with the interface before risking money, keep your stake at the minimum (£2) for your first few trades until you feel comfortable with the flow.

Opening the trading terminal

Navigate to /trading. The terminal loads in three panels: the Race Navigator on the left, the Ladder in the centre, and the AI Intelligence panel on the right. On mobile, these are accessible via the bottom tab bar: Races, Trade, and AI.

Selecting a race

In the Race Navigator, you will see today's UK and Irish racing cards. Races are listed by scheduled off time with a live countdown. Click any race to load it into the ladder. You will see the runners populate the active runner tabs above the ladder.

Select a runner by clicking its tab. The ladder updates to show that runner's live Betfair price.

Reading the ladder

The ladder shows 17 price rows centred around the current best available price.

• The left (blue) column is the BACK side — money available for you to back at each price. Clicking a price on the left side places a BACK order (you are backing the runner to win).
• The right (pink) column is the LAY side — money available to lay at each price. Clicking a price on the right side places a LAY order (you are acting as the bookmaker, offering someone else a back bet).

The centre column shows the price. Numbers in the BACK and LAY columns represent total money queued at that price on the exchange.

The best available BACK price is always lower than the best available LAY price. This spread is normal — it represents the market's bid-offer gap.

Setting your stake

Above the ladder you will see stake preset buttons: £2, £5, £10, £25, £50, £100. Click one to set your stake. The selected stake is highlighted. You can also type a custom amount in the stake input field.

In Safe Mode (the default), a liability preview appears before your order is confirmed. This shows your maximum potential loss so you can review it before committing.

Placing a BACK or LAY order

Once your stake is set and you have selected a runner:

1. Click a price on the BACK (left) side to queue a back order at that price.

2. Or click a price on the LAY (right) side to queue a lay order at that price.

3. In Safe Mode, a confirmation dialog shows the order details and liability. Click Confirm to submit.

4. Your order appears in the order book. If matched immediately, it shows in your active positions.

Watching the AI Intelligence panel

As you trade, the AI Intelligence panel on the right (or the AI tab on mobile) may update with output from the active AI engines. The Liquidity Interpreter runs continuously and provides real-time commentary on order book conditions. The Pre-Race Brief fires approximately 3 minutes before the scheduled off.

These outputs provide structural context about the market. They are not instructions. Read them alongside your own analysis.

Closing your position

To close a position, you place an opposing order at a price that offsets your initial trade. Use the Green Up button in the position panel to automatically calculate and place the order needed to lock in equal profit across all outcomes. See the Green-up article for full details.