KEY TAKEAWAYS
Roulette is a game of chance in which players bet on where a ball will land on a spinning wheel. Players place chips on a layout of numbered squares, the dealer spins the ball, and every bet covering the winning number is paid at fixed odds. A single-number bet pays 35 to 1, and an even-money bet such as red or black pays 1 to 1.
The game needs no skill, and nothing a player does changes the odds on a given wheel. What does matter is the type of wheel and the type of bet. A European wheel has 37 pockets and a house edge of 2.70% on standard bets, while an American wheel has 38 pockets and a house edge of 5.26%. That one extra pocket doubles the average cost of playing.
This guide explains the wheel and layout, how a round works, the main inside and outside bets, their payouts, worked examples with the arithmetic, and the myths that cost players the most.
The Roulette Wheel and Layout
The wheel holds numbered pockets, each colored red or black, plus green zero pockets. A European wheel has 37 pockets: the numbers 1 to 36 and a single 0. An American wheel adds a double zero (00) for 38 pockets. Some casinos also offer triple-zero wheels with 39 pockets, which carry an even higher cost. Look for the zeros before sitting down, since they decide the house edge.
The betting layout is a grid printed on the table. The numbers 1 to 36 sit in three columns of 12 rows, with the zero or zeros at the top. Along the sides sit the boxes for the outside bets, such as red, black, odd, even, the dozens and the columns. The layout works the same on both wheel types apart from the extra 00.
Bets fall into two groups. Inside bets are placed on the numbers themselves and cover one to six numbers, so they win rarely but pay more. Outside bets cover larger groups of 12 or 18 numbers, so they win more often but pay less. The two groups differ in payout, not in house edge: on a given wheel, almost every bet carries the same percentage cost. Many casinos set different table minimums for inside and outside bets, and the rule varies by venue. For the underlying idea, see what the house edge is.
How to Play Casino Roulette, Step by Step
A round begins when players place chips on the layout. At many tables, players buy special roulette chips from the dealer, each player with a distinct color so the dealer can tell whose bets are whose. The color and value of chips vary by casino. Bets are placed by setting chips on a number, on the line between numbers, or in an outside box.
The dealer then spins the wheel in one direction and releases the ball in the other. Bets may be placed until the dealer calls “no more bets.” When the ball settles in a pocket, the dealer places a marker on the winning number on the layout, sweeps away all losing bets, and pays the winners. Players should wait until the marker is removed before placing new chips.
Inside bets
A straight-up bet covers one number. A split covers two adjacent numbers by placing a chip on the line between them. A street covers a row of three, a corner covers four numbers meeting at a point, and a six line covers two adjacent rows. The more numbers a bet covers, the lower the payout.
Outside bets
Red or black, odd or even, and 1 to 18 or 19 to 36 each cover 18 numbers and pay 1 to 1. A dozen (1 to 12, 13 to 24 or 25 to 36) or a column covers 12 numbers and pays 2 to 1. The zero pockets lose every outside bet, which is a large part of where the house edge comes from, unless a rule such as la partage applies.
Worked Examples: Corner and Red Bets
Suppose a player places a $5 corner bet on 8, 9, 11 and 12 at a European wheel. A corner bet pays 8 to 1, so if the ball lands on 11, the player wins $40 in profit and keeps the $5 stake. Any of the four numbers wins. If the ball lands on any of the other 33 pockets, the $5 is lost.
The average result follows from the probabilities: 4 chances in 37 to win $40, and 33 in 37 to lose $5. That works out to (4 × $40 − 33 × $5) ÷ 37 = −$5 ÷ 37, or about −$0.14 per $5 bet. Divided by the $5 wagered, that is −2.70%, the standard European edge.
Now take a $10 bet on red. If the ball lands on 32, a red number, the bet pays 1 to 1 and wins $10. If it lands on 0, the bet normally loses $10. At tables that offer la partage, half of an even-money bet is returned when the ball lands on zero, so the loss is $5. That rule cuts the house edge on even-money bets from 2.70% to 1.35%.
Roulette Payouts and House Edge
Every payout follows one formula. A bet covering n numbers pays (36 ÷ n − 1) to 1, so six numbers pay 5 to 1 and 12 numbers pay 2 to 1. The table below also shows how often each bet wins on a European wheel, where the chance is the number of covered pockets divided by 37.
| Bet | Numbers covered | Payout | Win chance (European wheel) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Straight up | 1 | 35 to 1 | 2.7% |
| Split | 2 | 17 to 1 | 5.4% |
| Street | 3 | 11 to 1 | 8.1% |
| Corner | 4 | 8 to 1 | 10.8% |
| Six line | 6 | 5 to 1 | 16.2% |
| Dozen or column | 12 | 2 to 1 | 32.4% |
| Red, black, odd, even, high, low | 18 | 1 to 1 | 48.6% |
The house edge depends on the wheel, not the bet. On a European wheel every standard bet has a 2.70% edge (1 ÷ 37), and on an American wheel it is 5.26% (2 ÷ 38) on every bet except the five-number bet on 0, 00, 1, 2 and 3, which pays 6 to 1 and carries 7.89%. A triple-zero wheel reaches 7.69%.
| Wheel or rule | Pockets | House edge |
|---|---|---|
| European, even-money with la partage | 37 | 1.35% |
| European, standard bets | 37 | 2.70% |
| American, standard bets | 38 | 5.26% |
| Triple zero | 39 | 7.69% |
| American, five-number bet | 38 | 7.89% |
In money terms, $1,000 wagered on a European wheel costs about $27 on average, while the same amount on an American wheel costs about $53.
Common Roulette Mistakes and Myths
The most persistent myth is that a number or color becomes “due” after a long streak. Each spin is independent of the last, so red is no more likely after seven blacks than after one. The wheel has no memory, and a streak of any length does not change the next probability.
The second is that a betting system can beat the wheel. Doubling after a loss, as in the Martingale, or raising bets after wins, changes only how results are distributed, never the house edge. Table maximums and limited budgets also cap how far such systems can go, so they tend to end in a rare, large loss.
A third mistake is sitting at an American wheel without noticing the double zero. The layout looks nearly identical to a European one, yet the cost per $100 wagered roughly doubles, from about $2.70 to about $5.26. A fourth is placing the five-number bet, since its 7.89% edge is the highest on an American layout.
Finally, “hot” numbers shown on display boards are history, not a forecast. A board listing recent results cannot predict the next spin on a properly working wheel.
What to Check at the Table
Before buying in, count the zeros. One zero means a European wheel, two means American, and three means triple zero, so the wheel type should decide whether to sit down at all. Then read the sign for the table minimums, as inside and outside bets often have separate limits, and ask whether la partage or en prison is offered on even-money bets.
Place chips clearly and before the dealer calls “no more bets”. Avoid touching chips once the ball is in motion, and ask the dealer if unsure where to place a bet. Chip colors and values vary, so confirm the value of the color assigned to you.
Finally, set a budget before the first spin and treat it as the cost of entertainment. Decide in advance when to stop, and do not raise stakes to recover losses. Because every bet carries a negative expectation, roulette is never a reliable way to make money.
What to Learn Next
With the rules clear, the best next step is to compare how the wheels differ in practice. A single zero versus a double zero is the biggest cost decision in the game, so a direct comparison of European and American roulette is a natural follow-up, along with the five-number bet and the la partage rule.
Readers who want to go deeper can then study why betting systems fail, why every spin is independent, and how the expected loss grows with the number of spins played. For a first look at the underlying math, the fundamentals of the house edge apply to every roulette bet.
Frequently Asked Questions
