Gambling terms, explained straight

Racing & Pari-Mutuel

Quinella meaning in English

A quinella is a bet on a race where you name two runners that will finish first and second, without needing to predict which one wins.

Also called
Quiniela; in Japanese keirin, nishafuku (2車複); in Japanese horse racing, uma-ren (連勝複式).14
Applies to
Parimutuel betting on horse racing and keirin.1
How it works
You pick two runners. You win if they finish first and second, regardless of which is first.3

Key points

  • A quinella requires picking the top two finishers in any order, unlike an exacta which demands the exact order.24
  • It is a parimutuel bet, meaning the payout depends on the total pool and the number of winning tickets, not fixed odds.1
  • Do not confuse with a quinella place, which pays if both selections finish in the top three in any order.14

Where this term is used

Not the same as

  • Quinella — the same term; this page is the full entry for quinella
  • Quinella vs quinella box — a quinella box covers multiple combinations of the same two runners, but the basic quinella is a single combination
  • Trifecta quinella — a trifecta quinella is a bet that combines a trifecta and a quinella, not the standard quinella
  • Quinella payout — that page explains how quinella payouts are calculated, not the definition of the bet itself
  • Quinella wheel — a quinella wheel is a strategy using multiple runners, not the basic quinella wager
Racing Quinella Full entry for the quinella bet. Racing Quinella vs quinella box How a standard quinella differs from a boxed quinella. Racing Trifecta quinella A combination bet that includes a trifecta and a quinella. Racing Quinella payout How quinella payouts are calculated in parimutuel betting. Racing Quinella wheel A betting strategy using one key runner with multiple others. Racing Tote trifecta A pool-betting wager on a race where you must name the first

Sources

  1. Parimutuel betting en.wikipedia.org Defines the quinella as a bet on the top two finishers in any order and lists alternative names.
  2. Betting on horse racing en.wikipedia.org Distinguishes quinella from exacta in horse racing betting.
  3. Glossary of Australian and New Zealand punting en.wikipedia.org Provides the Australian and New Zealand glossary definition of quinella.
  4. Keirin en.wikipedia.org Covers quinella in keirin and distinguishes it from quinella place.

Sources are drawn from regulators, universities and published research, and each one is labelled with what it actually is — a preprint is not called a paper. Bookmaker and affiliate pages are never cited here, because a page that sells betting is not a neutral authority on it.

Written and maintained by Ellis Warrender, writer and maintainer.

Last updated 28 July 2026. Spotted an error? Tell me and it gets fixed and logged on the corrections page.