BSP stands for Betfair Starting Price — the price at which bets set to “SP” on the Betfair Exchange are matched at the moment the race goes off. It is a cornerstone of how we report results.
How BSP is calculated
At the off, Betfair’s SP mechanism matches everyone who asked for “starting price” — backers against layers — and computes a single reconciled price for each runner. It is fully automated and reflects the actual weight of money on the exchange at the off.
BSP vs official SP
The official bookmaker SP is returned from on-course/industry prices; the Betfair BSP comes from the exchange. Historically the BSP has often been bigger (more generous) than the official SP across a large sample, which is one reason exchange bettors track it. The two can differ noticeably on individual runners.
Win BSP and place BSP
There is a BSP for the win market and separate “to be placed” markets (Top 2 / Top 3 / Top 4 depending on field size). In our Betfair Exchange horse racing results we publish the official SP alongside the win BSP and the relevant place BSP for every runner, so you can compare exactly what each price returned.
Frequently asked questions
BSP means Betfair Starting Price — the reconciled exchange price at which start-price bets are matched on the Betfair Exchange at the moment a race goes off.
Over large samples the Betfair BSP has often been bigger than the official bookmaker SP, though on any individual runner it can be higher or lower. They are calculated from different sources.
Place BSP is the Betfair Starting Price for the “to be placed” markets (Top 2, Top 3 or Top 4 depending on the number of runners), reported per runner alongside the win BSP.
