How much do race horse trainers make?

Question

Do they only earn money if their horses win? Are they paid a predetermined amount regardless of if their horses win or not? Or is it a combination- they are paid a predetermined amount and then claim a percentage of the horses winnings?

Answer 1

Trainers earn money in the following ways.

1/ They charge a set livery fee for looking after the horse 24/7.

2/They charge a fee for transporting the horse to the races.

3/They receive a percentage of prize money won by that horse.

4/They charge a client a fee to find,inspect and buy on their behalf.

5/Some,but not all,will gamble on the result.

Answer 2

In the USA, there are trainers who are retained on salary by their stable owners, but there are few totally private racing stables like this these days.  Most trainers are public trainers, meaning that they train for anyone who wants to hire them.  Public trainers charge a "day rate".  That is a set fee per day that covers all the horse's normal daily expenses. (Out of this, the trainer pays for feed, hay, bedding, riders, grooms, tack, insurance, that sort of thing.) The day rate generally varies by the caliber of the racetrack or area of the country the trainer is at, or by the caliber of the trainer himself.  For instance, at Saratoga, a normal day rate might be $125.00 per day or more for a major trainer, or somewhat less for an unknown, while at Suffolk Downs, a normal day rate might go as low as $25.00 per day.  The day rate does not include vet work, shipping or farrier services, all of which are paid seperately by the owner.

On top of a day rate, the trainer usually gets a percentage of the purses earned by each horse.  10% of 1st through 3rd is pretty standard, although the owner and trainer can work out any kind of deal that they want to.

Sometimes trainers will take a horse on a "deal".  That is when the owner basically turns the horse over to the trainer, who in turn pays all the bills, charging the owner nothing.  In return, the trainer gets the lion's share of the horse's earnings, usually 60% or higher, with the owner getting the remainder, but no bills each month, either.

Sometimes trainers also make money by finding horses for their owners to buy.  Generally the fee is 5-10% of the purchase price, although many trainers do this for free, in order to get the horse in their barn to train.

Answer 3

I agree with Horsemanspal.  All I will add is that some trainers (eg Saeed Bin Suroor, Aidan O'Brien, etc) are private trainers (i.e. they only train for one client) so will be on the company payroll in much the same way as a retained jockey.