So you want to learn roulette? Both land and internet roulette are comparatively easy games that offer players an assortment of wagers and proportionate pay back sums. But to beat roulette – and roulette online, for that matter – players must know what they are up against. Learn the odds and you immensely increase your potential winnings.
The wheel, whether at a live or online game, has either 37 (European) or 38 (American) enumerated pockets into which the small white ball can fall. In 1842, wheel designers added a zero “0” in order to increase the house edge. US-based wheel builders created their own variation by appending 00 to increase the house edge even more.
Question: Which event has better roulette odds after ten consecutive blacks? Red or another black?
Answer: Each spin is a separate case so the roulette probability remains constant.
After ten consecutive blacks, or subsequent to any spin at all, the odds of a black appearing are still equal to those of a red. Recall the fact that the wheel has no memory and it does not record the slot or pocket in which the ball previously landed.
Let us assume, for example, that you hold $100. If you consider betting $5 on black for 20 consecutive spins on a US-style wheel, basic probability suggests that you would win at roulette on each second spin and lose each spin after that. After 20 spins (approximately 30 minutes of play at an active table) you would be ahead by around $10 if you were fortunate, and would be behind $10 if you were luckless.
This is why knowing when to quit will be the most crucial aspect of determining how much money you win.
It might be tempting to think that the number of opportunities to win at roulette will improve when you play in online casinos because there is no actual, physical wheel and, therefore, no little, spinning ball falling on random, enumerated pockets. Unfortunately, the same randomness that applies in land casinos applies to internet roulette.
The tool employed in producing the chance outcomes in online roulette wheels is known as a Random Number Generator (RNG). The RNG creates thousands of random numbers per second, any of which may be selected at any given moment as the winning number. By using the RNG, roulette probabilities remains steady. Respected online casinos also furnish independently scrutinized payout tables offering careful analyses of their payouts.
Observing this fact, the most expert beat roulette scheme is merely to cut down the advantage that the casino owns. Below is a simple list of exceptional rules that will help you trim the house edge:
- Helpful Roulette Rule #1—Surrender
The surrender rule holds true solely on outside bets (Odds, Evens, Black, Red, etc.) that pay out at even money. If the ball falls on 0 or 00 (double zero) you simply lose one-half of your original bet. The house advantage then falls to 2.63%. US-style tables use the surrender rule where the wheel has one 0 and one 00.
- Helpful Roulette Rule #2—En Prison
If the ball falls in the zero slot, then the dealer offers ‘en prison’ and all even money bets are immobilized and held over to the next spin. This rule cuts down the house advantage to a more diminutive 1.35%, thereby increasing your chances of winning.
- Helpful Roulette Rule #3—Five Way Bets
Both the land and online casino advantages are equal on every single wager you put down, with the exception of the five way bet on a double zero wheel which feeds the house a larger advantage.
Roulette Probabilities
If we think of this as a game of chance where the player cannot impact the result of a spin, viewing the betting odds for or against a specific event grants you your best opportunity to win.
The chart below displays the true odds compared to what the house pays out for both American (2 zeros) and European (single zero) wheels.
ROULETTE BET | CASINO PAYOUT + INITIAL ROULETTE BET | ODDS OF WINNING AGAINST (AMERICAN) | ROULETTE PROBABILITY (%) |
| Straight Up | 35 to 1 | 37 to 1 | 2.63% |
| Split (2 Numbers) | 17 to 1 | 18 to 1 | 5.26% |
| Street (3 Numbers) | 11 to 1 | 11.667 to 1 | 7.89% |
| Corner (4 Numbers) | 8 to 1 | 8.5 to 1 | 10.52% |
| Five Numbers | 6 to 1 | 6.6 to 1 | 13.16% |
| Column Bet | 2 to 1 | 2.167 to 1 | 31.58% |
| Dozen Bet | 2 to 1 | 2.167 to 1 | 31.58% |
| Red | 1 to 1 | 1.111 to 1 | 47.37% |
| Black | 1 to 1 | 1.111 to 1 | 47.37% |
| 19-36 | 1 to 1 | 1.111 to 1 | 47.37% |
| 1-18 | 1 to 1 | 1.111 to 1 | 47.37% |
| Even | 1 to 1 | 1.111 to 1 | 47.37% |
| Odd | 1 to 1 | 1.111 to 1 | 47.37% |
Tiers: the term used for those numbers that sit on the opposite side of the wheel between 27 and 33, inclusive of those numbers as shown in the list below.
Chips in groups of six are bet as follows:
- 1 on the 5/8 split bet
- 1 on the 10/11 split bet
- 1 on the 13/16 split bet
- 1 on the 23/24 split bet
- 1 on the 27/30 split bet
- 1 on the 33/36 split bet
Orphans: the term used for the numbers that make up the slices of the wheel outside the Tiers and “Voisins” (“neighbors”). These areas contain eight numbers, as shown in the list below.
Chips in groups of five are bet as follows:
- 1 is placed straight-up on 1
- 1 on the 6/9 split
- 1 on the 14/17 split
- 1 on the 17/20 split
- 1 on the 31/34.
Zero Spiel: the term used for a special bet that takes its name from the groups of numbers surrounding 0, as shown in the list below.
Chips in groups of four are bet as follows:
- 1 on the 0/3 split 1
- 1 on the 12/15 split
- 1 straight up on 26
- 1 on the 32/35 split.