Understanding Your True Odds of Winning Roulette Online

Put simply and straightforward, the odds of winning money on a European wheel will always show the house with a 2.63% edge whenever you make a bet. This advantage doubles to 5.26% on an American wheel, because of the Double Zero space. You can of course increase your probability of winning by making more bets, but this automatically increases the cost of your win because of your total wager. For example, you could place two Dozen Bets for $5 each on one spin, improving your odds of winning to 63.16%. (A Dozen Bet is a wager placed on 12 consecutive numbers from 1 through 12, 13 through 24, or 25 through 36). However, only one of your bets can win on any spin, and there is the possibility you could lose both bets, with your win cashing in at 2 to 1. Here is a screenshot of both types of roulette wheels, notice the 00 space on the American roulette wheel.

This means you could alternately win $5 if one of your two dozen bets comes up on the wheel, and lose $10 if the third dozen appears. You have raised the roulette odds in your favor, but at a significant financial loss on the guaranteed proposition of losing one of your bets every time. Obviously, you immediately raise your odds of winning roulette online, or off for that matter, if you stick to European or French versions of the game which do not have the extra Double Zero space. On the American table, there are 38 possible slots where the roulette ball can land on any spin. On the French or European version, there are only 37. If you are reading this and thinking it makes an insignificant difference, then let me describe to you what is happening here in a different way.

Real Life Example

Let us say there are two legal online roulette sites which have the exact same type of table layout and wheel. There is no Double Zero, and the standard 36 numbers. This means there are only 37 slots on the roulette wheel where the ball can drop. In the first casino, there is a $2.63 percent charge on every 100 bets, while there is no fee levied at the second casino. Which one would you wager at? The answer is obvious, and there is simply no reason to accept worse odds of winning roulette, assuming you have a choice. Also, getting the best odds at roulette generally means staying away from the sexier wagers. Yes, if you bet on any single number, you will receive a 35 to 1 payout if that number hits. But since the odds are 36 to 1 against on a European table, and an uglier 37 to 1 against on an American table, your odds of winning are very small.

If you attempt to increase your roulette odds of hitting a number by placing a chip on two consecutive numbers, your payout drops to 17 to 1. Yes, you now have two times the chance of winning, but your payout in comparison to the single number bet has dropped to less than half. This adds another built-in 0.5% edge to the house, just another reason why the Outside Bets on a roulette table always deliver the best odds. The only thing that may make particular Internet casinos more attractive than others is if one web casino decides to increase its payout table significantly, but this is rare. You are always advised to contact the customer support team at any web casino where you are going to enjoy some roulette, to ask them what their payout table is. Sometimes this information is transparently displayed, sometimes it is not.

Generally, Internet casinos are happy to pay out at the traditional levels, since they have a built-in advantage which guarantees them winning money over the long run. Another reason to stick to the European wheel online since it is the only way you have of improving your odds without decreasing the size of your win by placing multiple bets is the minimum bet offered. Online, European and American wheels generally support the same minimum bet, usually $1. In physical casinos, because of the reduced house edge, European roulette wheels are generally tucked away in some corner of the casino that is not immediately visible. Brick-and-mortar casinos with European roulette wheels also raise the table minimum significantly, in the hopes that the average punter will simply stick to the American tables that are offered. This is not the case online, as you can benefit from these advantageous odds of winning roulette without having to place a higher minimum wager on the French or European wheel.

We mentioned above that the American table version offers roulette odds which favor the house immediately by a 5.26% advantage on all bets. Actually, that is not true. If you decide to bet the 0-00-1-2-3 combination, the house advantage jumps up to an even more unfriendly 7.89%. As long as you remember that this is an entirely luck-based enterprise where you have no control on the outcome, and you bet accordingly, roulette is a fun, fast and exciting casino game to play. Its attraction is that it takes little mental commitment on the player's part, and is a nice diversion after wearing your thinking cap while playing Texas Hold 'Em or legal online blackjack. Remember that the outside bets give you better odds of winning roulette, combinations of bets improve your chances of winning but lower your financial expectation, and always play European whenever you can.

USA Casino Sites Offering Solid Roulette Odds

The following are the online casino brands that we have personally vetted and found to offer a highly secure gaming environment, are legally authorized, and provide a pleasing performance when it comes to online roulette and live dealer roulette games. We have specifically listed the table games bonus at these casinos, but they may not include roulette. So be sure to double check the terms.

Other Casino Games

Here are some of the other popular casinos games in our guide: