Online Roulette Guide 2026

If zero hits, you get half your even-money bet back. Effectively halves the house edge on Red/Black, Odd/Even, High/Low from 2.70% to 1.35%.

If zero hits, your even-money bet is "imprisoned" on the table. If your bet wins on the next spin, you get your original stake back (no profit). Mathematically equivalent to La Partage.

Zero results in a loss on all bets. House edge is the full 2.70%. Better than American but worse than French.

A bet covering 0, 00, 1, 2, and 3. House edge of 7.89% — the worst individual bet in roulette. Never place this bet.

A third zero added. House edge rises to 7.69%. Found at some Las Vegas casinos. Avoid entirely — standard American Roulette at 5.26% is already poor value.

A 4-chip call bet covering zero and the 6 adjacent numbers. Common in German casinos. Effectively bets on Jeu Zéro numbers from the French call bet system.

The American equivalent of La Partage. When 0 or 00 hits, even-money bets receive half the stake back automatically. Reduces American Roulette's even-money house edge from 5.26% to 2.63%. Uncommon — only offered at select US casino properties by policy. Not to be confused with the Surrender option in blackjack.

A promotional variant that removes the zero pocket entirely, leaving only numbers 1–36. The house edge falls to 0%. Casinos that offer it typically restrict it to bonus-funded play, minimum stakes, or limited session windows to fund the edge removal. Plays identically to European Roulette in all other respects — same bets, same payouts, no zero.

The largest fixed call bet. Covers a section of 22 numbers from 22 to 25 (via 0). Uses 9 chips across multiple split, street, and corner bets.

Covers the "orphan" numbers that aren't in Voisins or Tiers: 1, 6, 9, 14, 17, 20, 31, 34. Placed as straights and splits.

Covers the 12 numbers opposite zero on the wheel (27–33 sector). Six split bets using 6 chips. Pays 17:1 on any winning split.

A smaller version of Voisins, covering just the 7 numbers nearest the zero (12, 35, 3, 26, 0, 32, 15). Used mainly in European live casinos.

Bet on any number and its two neighbours on each side of the wheel (5 numbers total, 5 straight bets). E.g., "17 and the neighbours" covers 6, 34, 17, 25, 2.

Bet on all numbers sharing the same final digit. "Final 5" covers 5, 15, 25, 35 (4 chips). "Final 7" covers 7, 17, 27 (3 chips). Common in French-style live casinos.

Covers a single number with every possible inside bet: straight up, all splits, corners, and streets. "Full complete 17" requires up to 40 chips at minimum stake. Highest payout potential on any single number.

Same 8 orphan numbers (1, 6, 9, 14, 17, 20, 31, 34) but placed as 8 individual straight bets. Pays 35:1 on each vs 17:1 for splits in standard Orphelins — higher payout, no split coverage.

What is the difference between European and American roulette?

European roulette has 37 pockets (numbers 1–36 plus a single zero), giving the house a 2.70% edge on all outside bets. American roulette adds a double-zero (00) pocket, creating 38 total pockets and raising the house edge to 5.26% on all bets except the five-number bet (0, 00, 1, 2, 3) which carries a 7.89% edge. The additional double-zero in American roulette nearly doubles the casino's mathematical advantage without offering any additional benefit to players. Always choose European over American roulette — the difference represents a 95% increase in expected loss per spin at identical stakes.

Does the Martingale system work at roulette?

The Martingale (doubling your bet after each loss to recover all previous losses on one win) has no effect on the house edge — mathematically, the expected loss per unit wagered remains 2.70% per spin regardless of staking pattern. In short sessions, the Martingale can produce many small wins, which is why it feels effective. However, it requires an unlimited bankroll to guarantee eventual success, which no player has. Real-world table limits (maximum bet) create a hard ceiling where doubling is no longer possible. When the run of losses hits the table maximum, all previous losses cannot be recovered and the session ends in catastrophic loss.

What is La Partage and En Prison in roulette?

La Partage is a favourable rule found at some European roulette tables: when the ball lands on zero, you receive half your even-money bet back (rather than losing the entire bet). This halves the house edge on even-money bets from 2.70% to 1.35%. En Prison is a similar rule where instead of losing or receiving half when zero hits, your even-money bet is "imprisoned" for the next spin — if your selection wins the next spin, the full bet is returned; if it loses, the casino keeps it. En Prison and La Partage have mathematically equivalent expected values. Look for tables with La Partage as it provides the best roulette odds.

Can you beat roulette over the long term?

Under standard conditions with a certified RNG, there is no strategy that can overcome roulette's mathematical house edge over a sufficient number of spins. However, in rare historical cases, physical roulette wheels developed biases (worn frets, uneven pocket depths) that caused certain numbers to appear more frequently — skilled players exploited these with sector betting before casinos replaced the wheels. Online RNG roulette has no physical bias. Some live roulette wheels may develop minor biases, but finding statistical significance requires thousands of recorded spins and the casino will replace any wheel showing patterns. Practical bias exploitation is not achievable in modern regulated environments.

What is the best single-number payout in roulette?

A straight-up bet on a single number pays 35:1. This means a £10 straight-up bet wins £350 plus your £10 stake returned. The probability is 1 in 37 on European Roulette (2.7%). The house edge is 2.70% regardless of which number you choose. Some live roulette variants (Lightning Roulette) apply random multipliers of 50× to 500× to selected straight-up numbers before each spin — but the base straight-up payout is reduced from 35:1 to 29:1 to fund the multiplier pool. The higher multipliers are exciting but the average expected value is lower than standard roulette.

How do roulette table limits work?

Online roulette tables have both a table minimum (the smallest total bet per spin) and individual bet maximums for different bet types. Outside bets (Red/Black) often have a higher maximum than inside bets (Straight Up). For example, a table might allow £25,000 on Red/Black but only £1,000 on a single number — because the 35:1 payout on a £1,000 straight-up would be £35,000, and the table maximum controls the casino's exposure. High-stakes VIP tables have much higher limits. Live roulette also has table minimums that vary by time of day — late-night tables often require higher minimums to manage lower player volumes.

Is there any difference between online RNG roulette and live dealer roulette?

Yes, in several ways. RNG roulette uses a software random number generator to determine outcomes — there is no physical wheel or ball. Outcomes are statistically equivalent to a fair wheel, certified by independent labs. Live dealer roulette uses a physical wheel and ball in a studio, streamed via video. Both are fair under regulated conditions. Key practical differences: live roulette has slower rounds (30–90 seconds), a social chat interface with the dealer, and no option to play at sub-£0.10 stakes at most tables. RNG roulette is faster (you control the spin speed), allows very low stakes, and is available in free demo mode. Strategy and house edge are identical.