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The Most Complete Online Roulette Guide of the Web

The Most Complete Online Roulette Guide of the Web

Finding the perfect place to play online roulette can be quite challenging. Even when you find it, you’ll be presented with different games that you might’ve not known. What strategies should you use to play in them? What are the best roulette strategies in the world? We’re sure that you have a lot of questions about this fantastic table game.

That’s why we’ve created a complete guide to help you get a strong grasp of online roulette and to help you understand which are the best online casinos in which you can play this amazing game. Learn all there is to know about roulette strategies, special offers to play roulette for free, the best roulette games on the internet, and much more. This is the ultimate roulette handbook to keep you posted on everything about one of the world’s most popular casino games!

How to Play Roulette

Playing roulette is extremely simple. However, mastering the art of playing roulette is extremely difficult. That’s the beauty of this amazing table game – it can be played by anyone, but not many players know how to overcome some of the odds that are placed against them. Naturally, in roulette, the casino always has the edge.

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This is the case for every type of roulette game. However, this is also one of the games in which you can expect to win rather often if you know when (and how) to take risks. To play roulette, all you need to do is grab your chip and place it on a number or section on the table. To be good at roulette, you need to do this strategically. We’ll be exploring some roulette strategies in this guide. First, however, let’s take a closer look at the bets you can make in the game and how they work.

Types of Roulette Bets

The first thing you’ll notice when you see a roulette table is that there are many different sections in which you can place your chips. It can be pretty overwhelming at first glance. However, it’s far easier than it looks. Each section represents different potential outcomes of a roulette roll, which pay different sums of money depending on their odds of landing. It’s really easy to play roulette. You just place your bets on whichever section, number, or color you want. If it lands, you get paid. These are the different types of bets that you can make on the game, as well as what they represent. Some of these bets will allow you to fulfill roulette wagering requirements really quickly.

The 'Almost 50-50' Bets

These are the safest roulette bets that you can make, as well as the most common roulette bets placed by newcomers. The reasoning is quite simple: these are the bets that give you the highest chance of winning and yield the smallest return rates (they can double your money), and they are represented by betting on odd/even, red/black, or high/low.

The reason why these bets are not really 50/50 is that European roulette tables have the zero whilst American roulette tables have the double zero as well as the zero. If the ball lands on one of these pockets, you will lose - no matter if you’ve placed your bet on any of these bet types.

Red or Black

By far the most popular type of bet, betting on red or black means that you will get paid based on the color of the number in which the ball lands. In European Roulette (the one type of roulette that we suggest playing), chances of landing either black or red are 47.4%.

The remaining percentage goes to landing 0, which is what gives the edge to the house. In any case, these are the most popular types of bets. They can be very profitable if you stick to negative progression systems, which try to turn the odds in your favor. They don’t do it, but they do give you the feeling of it happening.

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Odd or Even

Much like betting or red or black, odd or even bets are placed as outside bets and you will get paid based on whether the number in which the ball lands is an odd number or an even number. The odds of these landing are the same as red and black – the 0 doesn’t fall in either category.

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High or Low

High or Low bets are just the same as the last two, except you’ll be betting on whether the numbers that lands are 1-16 or 17-32. Again, the odds are just the same as landing any of the last two types of bets. You can play negative progression betting systems using any of these options.

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Columns

Column bets are a tad more diverse than the aforementioned betting systems. With column bets, the odds of landing one of them stay at 31.6%. You will be betting in one of three different columns, with each column representing a different section of the roulette. It’s fun, but riskier than any mentioned type of bet so far.

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Dozens

This one works pretty much like column bets. You will be betting by the dozen, and the odds are also 31.6%. As you can see, there is no type of bet that includes the 0 unless you place a straight-up bet on it. The 0 represents the house edge on every type of bet.

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Straight Up

Straight up bets are by far the riskier out of the bunch. They are often placed in combination with other types of bets as “insurance”, or simply made to increase the odds that the player has to win in a game. Straight up bets can also be placed when players have a “hunch”, but the chances of landing one are very, very slim. This is the right way to call bets that are placed directly on a single number. The odds of landing a straight-up bet are 2.63%. They are, by far, the most improbable types of bets that you can make in the game. We don’t recommend you to place them too often!

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Split

A split bet is the name of a bet that is made by placing a chip between two numbers. In roulette, you can actually place bets almost anywhere on the board. Placing chips between 3 and 6, for example, would be a split bet. These bets have a successful outcome percentage of 5.26%, logically doubling the odds of a straight-up bet. They do pay half the sum of cash of a straight-up bet, though.

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Street

Street bets are placed by picking any dozen and placing a chip between your selected dozen and two other numbers on the table. This basically allows you to take a risk at betting on two random numbers whilst also betting on a whole section, which increases your odds of winning more money if the specific number lands. A They aren’t as popular, but they do provide you with a 7.89% odds of winning if placed on three horizontal numbers, or even better odds if you place the bet on an entire section.

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Corner

Corner bets are made by placing chips on the corner of four different numbers, and they only pay out when any of these numbers land. They have a 10.53% chance of being won, which also places them on the not-so-lucrative end of the best you can make at the game. Professional roulette players often place corner bets in combination with straight ups and, in some cases, they also it as part of larger betting strategies.

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Line

Placing bets on consecutive rows, in six different numbers, create what is called a line bet. Line bets provide you with decent odds of winning, standing at 15.79%. With a 5 to 1 pay, they can be extremely lucrative and players tend to take risks with a couple of these bets per round. They can also be combined with other types of bets to create better profit potential.

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Five-Number

The popular five-number bet is a cult bet in roulette, which aims to place your luck in five specific numbers: 0, 00, 1, 2, and 3. As you can see, seeing as we’re using the 00 in our example, this bet is specific to be placed in American Roulette tables. Five number bets can also be made in European Roulette, but the 00 is often substituted by the 35.

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Basket

The basket bet, also known as the “first four” bet, is similar to the five-number bet. You’ll be placing your luck on any of the first five numbers to land if you bet one of these. The basket consists of placing four different bets on the following numbers: 1, 2, 3, and 4.

Snake

The snake bet is a type of bet that offers the same odds as betting on the red or black, even or odds, and even high or low. It’s just a bit more of a complex way of placing the bet, as you’ll have to place individual chips in the following numbers: 1, 5, 9, 12, 14, 16, 19, 23, 27, 30, 32, and 34. The shape that the chips make on the board resembles the pattern of how a snake moves, which is where this bet gets its name.

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Cult Bets

We’ve already gone through the most popular types of inside and outside bets that pro players often make in roulette. However, there are many other types of bets that have their own names and that many players like to make in roulette tables across the world. We could list them all for you, but we’d be here for days. We’re calling them “cult bets” because they have grown to become part of the pop culture of roulette players and are now a fundamental part of games from all over the world.

Types of Online Roulette Games

Even though we mainly recommend our readers to focus on playing European Roulette, this brilliant game also has a ton of variants that you can enjoy in the world’s most prestigious online casinos. One of the reasons why we think roulette is better played online than in land-based casinos is exactly because of this – there are many variants of the game that provide the player with more options. That way, when you get bored and feel like mixing things up, you’ll be able to try out different modes!

There are dozens of roulette types that you can play in many of the best online casinos. However, we’ve listed here the most prominent and the most popular ones out of the whole bunch. Before understanding which are the most common roulette games on the internet, let's take a look at the two most common roulette layouts worldwide: the American and European roulette tables.

European Roulette

European roulette is probably the roulette game that you've heard of before. The European roulette table layout is the most common out there, with no additional pockets on the wheel or bet variants on the table, and the one where most roulette versions come from - including Lightning Roulette. The house edge of this game is 2.70%.

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American Roulette

American roulette came after the introduction of European roulette and, as its name suggests, it was created in North American soil. The principles of the roulette game are the same as in the European variant, but the only difference is that American roulette has an extra pocket: the double zero. This small change allows for more beds to be made, but it also makes the house edge of the game jump to an average of 5.25%.

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Traditional Roulette

Traditional roulette can be found in any of the world’s best online casinos. It doesn’t matter if you really want to play European roulette or if you’d rather try out the American version – you will be able to find the best tables in any online casino ranked here at The Casino Wizard. Traditional Roulette tables are the most played types of roulette games in the world, as it is to be expected.

You can find them in every single variation of online casino games, ranging from digital table games to live dealer tables with real dealers. Just be sure to play traditional roulette games created by the world’s most prominent developers in the industry. This will ensure that your money will not be stolen, as the creators of the most prominent online casino games offer fantastic RTP and make the games feel exactly like it feels to play roulette in any land-based casino.

Keep in mind that European Roulette can be played in the form of European or American; this is specified when selecting the type of game that you’ll play. Furthermore, you can check out the type of game once you enter the table. Tables with two green numbers (0 and 00) fall under the category of American roulette tables. Tables with a single green number (0) are European roulette tables.

Auto Roulette

Auto roulette is played in live dealer casinos. It is the same as European roulette, but the only difference is that the roulette doesn’t really have a dealer. It plays “itself” automatically after the betting rounds finish.

Speed Roulette

Speed roulette is incredibly quick. On average, you can play 50 extra rounds per hour when compared to the normal version of the game. It has an extremely fast pace, so be sure to place your bets as quickly as possible. Don’t fall behind – the game won’t wait for you!

Double Ball Roulette

This game works similarly to traditional European roulette, but there are far more options for a large win. However, that also means that chances to split a win are double what they are in the normal game. If you bet on the same number twice and the ball happens to land there, you will get a win worth 1300 the amount of your stake.

The Best Roulette Strategies to Maximize Your Chances of Winning

The beauty of playing roulette (except Russian roulette, of course) is that you can place bets in any way that you want. You can follow your instincts, your gut, or a strategy. It doesn’t really matter how you want to play roulette – what matters is that you’ll be relying on your luck to win. We know that many veterans of the tables do not like it when players use strategies to play. Some people see strategic methods as shams that simply don’t work. This, however, couldn’t be farther from the truth. Sure, betting methods aren’t going to guarantee you wins and could cost you a lot of money if you don’t use them right.

However, they’re also proven to work at least somewhat reliably. Roulette strategies are methods that work with the negative odds that are inherent to the game and try to turn them in your favor. They offer you strategic patterns that you can choose to employ in order to reduce the odds of losing cash after losing a round or two. Strategies often encourage you to take risks, although some are far riskier than others. Let’s take a look at the most prominent ones.

Fibonacci Method

In order to use the Fibonacci method, you will need to set any “base” value for your first bet depending on your own budget. For our example, let’s say that you make an original bet of €6. If you win, you will make the same bet again and restart the method. If you lose, you will make another €6. If you lose again, then, you will need to bet €6 + €6 (a bet consisting of your last two bets). Then, if you lose again, the next bet would be €6 + €12. The idea of this method is to place bets on places of the table that provide you with “even” odds of winning. You can do this with even/odds, black/red, or high/low. It’s up to you to choose which method to choose. What’s important is that you don’t place any other type of bet.

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Martingale Method

The Martingale method is designed to work with any “even odds” bet as well. You’ll need to assign any monetary value to your first bet and keep at it until you lose. For example, let’s say that you place a bet on the red worth €5 and you lose. Your next bet should be worth €10, again on the red. If you lose, then you’ll place €20 on the red. You’ll do this until you win again, which will yield a profit of €5. With the Martingale method, you will always gain a profit equal to the sum of your original bet. A very unlucky streak could obliterate your balance, though! Be careful not to overdo it.

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James Bond Method

The James Bond method was popularized in the Casino Royale book. Since the book was released, the method has been very prominently used in casinos all over the world. Much like the Martingale method, you will always double your bets upon losing around. However, you will need to distribute your bets in the following way: Start off with a bet of €200. Ideally, you’ll need a budget of €5,000 for this method to work.

You will then need to place a €140 bet on 19 to 36 (high numbers), and six €10 bets in the following numbers (or a six-line bet, of course): 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18. To top things off, place a €10 bet on 0, just as insurance. If you lose, double all bets. If you win, you’ll make a different profit depending on where the ball lands. It’s a fun and extremely varied method!

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Labouchere Method

If you’re looking for the safest betting system for roulette, then the Labouchere is probably the one you’ll want to check out. It plays the long con, which means you don’t need to make any lost money back as soon as you lose it. You can take your time and see how things go after a few rounds, in hopes that you manage to make back some of your lost cash (and a profit, even). To start off with this strategy, you need to set the total amount of money that you want to win. Let’s say that you want to win €200 for this example. Divide that sum of cash into smaller portions. Let’s say that you divide into 20-20-50-20-10-20-10-50.

You will then go on and bet the leftmost number in combination with the rightmost numbers (in this case, it would be €70 = €20 + €50). If you lose, you’ll add the number to the rightmost part of the sequence. It would then look like this: 20-20-50-20-10-20-10-50-70. If you win, however, you would remove the two numbers from the list, in which case, it would look like this: 50-20-10-20-10. Continue doing so until you run out of numbers! Remember to place the bets in sections with even odds, just like in most of the other methods on this list.

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D’Alembert Method

Last, but not least, we have the fantastic D’Alembert method. To use it, you will need to set a monetary value, which will be the base value that determines how much cash you’re going to bet in total with this strategy. For this example, we’ll set a monetary value of €10 to the original stake. With each loss, you will add €10 to your stake. With each win, you will subtract €10 (unless you’re already at €10, of course). The logic of this method is that, judging by the odds, you will eventually even out the profits or, in the best-case scenario, you might even take some winnings home. It is a risky way to play, though, as you won’t recoup money as quickly as you would with a traditional Martingale. However, it also means you’ll lose less money in unsuccessful rounds.

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Why Use Strategies in Roulette?

Let us be really clear with one thing: roulette strategies are not bulletproof. You can end up losing a lot of money if you blindly believe in them. However, the strategies do play in your favor as they “even” the odds and use every loss as a chance for you to increase your bets and win more money when playing in roulette websites.

It’s not impossible to win with roulette strategies, and players have been very successful while using them. You do need a ton of luck if you want them to be successful, though! Roulette strategies also inject the players with confidence and fill them with a sense of purpose when playing the game. You can read more about the math behind popular strategies in our article on roulette stats.

Many gamblers need a direction when gambling, and roulette can be a very overwhelming game if you just place random bets all over the table. Use strategies because they’re fun, not because they’re effective. That’s our advice to you!

Tips for Playing Online Roulette

Apart from the basic strategies that could help you win a ton of money in roulette, there are also other things you can do to improve your chances of winning in roulette (or, at least, help you avoid losing too much money). We have compiled a list of helpful tips that will surely help you better your odds of winning at the game. Just bear in mind that these tips are meant to help you out exclusively. They don’t really have any influence on the outcome of the games per se. You will get a better understanding of roulette, though, which goes a long way into helping you better your odds at the game!

Outside Betting is the Safest Way to Go

We know that placing bets on the inside of the table is often a very tempting thing to do. If you’re lucky enough for the number of your choosing to be the winner, you could multiply that €10 and turn it into hundreds of euros. However, outside bets provide you with the best odds at winning in the long term. The odds will never be in your favor, but they will become as positive as they can be if you stick to using some of those outside betting strategies that we have so thoroughly recommended. No need to take any extra risks!

Go for Smaller Bets if the Inside is Your Goal

With that said, some players do love the thrill of placing inside bets. Some people take higher risks and, in many cases, they can pay off very handsomely. If you wish to stick to playing inside bets, our advice to you will be to keep those quantities small – especially if you don’t have a large budget. If you have a budget of around €1,000, then stick to placing inside bets of €5 or €10. A win would provide you with a large profit, whilst a loss wouldn’t cost you a huge chunk of your budget. It’s all about balancing the odds and your budget in the same balance!

Avoid American Roulette by All Means

There really is no advantage for you to play American roulette. The only difference between American roulette and European roulette is that American has two green symbols – the 0 and the 00. This only increases your odds of losing. Some people like to play American roulette and bet on the two green symbols, but there really isn’t any advantage of doing so. If you want to use any of the betting strategies that we’ve mentioned in this guide, your odds will be better if you play European roulette. Even then, the house has an edge. There’s no need to make that edge bigger.

Be Sure to Understand the Odds First

Some people head into online casino roulette tables and place random bets all over the place without properly understanding how the odds of the game work. Sure, in some cases, they do walk away with a profit. We’re trying to keep “beginner’s luck” away from this guide, though. If you have a thorough understanding of the odds of roulette, you’ll know where to risk more money and you will even be able to build your own strategies. Study the odds and create betting methods that suit your playstyle – that’s the beauty of this fantastic game!

Check Out Our Betting Strategies – But Don’t Think that You’ll Always Win!

Now that you know all there is to know about strategies and the odds of the game, you might want to check out different betting strategies and attempt to reduce the odds as much as possible. Just remember that you will never be able to completely eliminate the odds of losing at the game, but you will have the chance to reduce them to as little as 3%. Don’t get carried away by these strategies, though. You can make a killing in prizes and, in some cases, you might even break even. They won’t work flawlessly all the time.

Always Play Games with the “En Prison” Rule

There is a rule in certain roulette tables referred to as the “En Prison” rule. What this means is that every single time that the 0 lands and you haven’t bet on it, your money will then be moved to a sort of prison, where it will stay until the next round. If you happen to win the next round, then you will get your money back. You won’t get the profits from the bet you made, but the money that you bet will be moved back to your balance. This is basically a pardon that casinos can give to players, although is far more uncommon than you think. If you find a table with this feature, be sure to take full advantage of it.

Play for Free to Begin Your Journey

We have told you all of the things you need to know in order to play roulette in a very competent way. However, that doesn’t mean you should dive straight into an online casino and start spending your money on the game if you have never played it before. We recommend you check out the features of “free play” before you make any deposits online. Get a grasp of the game and practice strategies using the techniques that we have given you. Be sure to study the odds first and create strategies of your own if you wish. There are many things you can do to get better at the game – even if you’re not playing with real cash, to begin with.

Only Visit Trusted Websites

Never play in an online casino just because it offers you cool stuff for free. Always check the background information of an online casino to make sure that the site is legitimate and that its promotions are easy to be enjoyed by any player. Even if you’re desperate to play in the best roulette tables, you will need to take a step back and analyze where your money is going first.

Keep a Clean Head – Never Drink and Play

Binge drinking while playing online is a very common practice among modern iGamers. However, it’s no coincidence that people who do this also end up being the ones that lose the most money. If your head is not in the right place, you can end up making stupid decisions that could cost you a lot of money in a very short amount of time. Play with a clear head and, if you’ve been drinking, be sure not to dive into any online casino. We wouldn’t recommend playing any game that involves money while being drunk.

Never Fall for the Gambler’s Fallacy

“If the last 5 times the ball has landed on the red, then this time it must surely be black. I’m going to bet all of my cash on it”. The gambler’s fallacy is one of the most dangerous lines of thought that you can follow as an online gambler (or as a gambler in general). Never apply the gambler’s fallacy while playing online or you could lose even more cash than you would lose if you were drunk and making bad decisions.

Play Within a Budget

Playing roulette is one of the easiest ways in which you can lose all of your money if you don’t stick to using a budget. The game is extremely tempting and it causes you to have that feeling of “I’ll win everything on the next spin” far more than any other table game, and even more than most online slots. That’s why one of the smartest things you can do, as an online roulette player, is to stick to a budget. The fact that you’re playing the game from your home (on most occasions) means that you don’t have any peer pressure around you, causing you to think more clearly and keeping you from making stupid decisions. Always start your gambling rounds with a budget. It’ll save you time, trouble, money, and it’ll keep you playing for fun – never for a large win!

The Casino Always Has an Edge Over You

It doesn’t matter which strategies you use or how many of our tips you put into practice; the online casino always has an edge over the player. Contrary to popular belief, quality online casinos aren’t rigged (and most online slots aren't rigged either). Most of them offer the same odds as any land-based casino in the world. That just means that you have the same chance of winning in an online site as you do in a brick-and-mortar establishment.

Take care of your money and wager smartly. If you’re losing too much cash, then know it’s time to quit. Every online casino might offer you different RTP rates, but roulette does have the same RTP in all online sites. Look for your favorite roulette game, place your bets as strategically as possible, and see if you can overcome the house edge!

Play in the Best Online Casinos Only

We don’t want to see you get scammed out of your money when playing in online casinos. It’s really important for you to visit online casinos that are ranked as trustworthy websites and proven to act in an integral way towards players. If you just visit the first online casino that you find, you’re taking a huge gamble with your money. It doesn’t really make sense to gamble in just nay online casino – especially if it’s an unlicensed site. Save yourself the time and trouble that comes with betting in an irregular online casino by sticking to the options that we’ve picked for you in the next section of our guide.

Where to Play Online Roulette

You can play online roulette in any of the best online casinos that we’ve ranked at The Casino Wizard. All of these sites offer roulette tables with variations of the game that can be played against real dealers or against the computer itself. Regardless of which type of roulette game you prefer, there’s always something to be found at one of the best online casinos on the internet. If you’re looking for the best of the best, then worry not. We’ve made a list of the best online casinos in which you can play roulette to help you get your adventure started with roulette no deposit bonuses. Any of the following casinos are a great place to start thanks to the quality of their games and, most importantly, because of the fantastic bonuses that they offer to newcomers!

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Last updated  January 25, 2024
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About the author

Marco

Marco

Chief Content Writer

Marco

Chief Content Writer

Marco is an experienced casino writer with more than half a decade of gambling-related work on his back. He took a keen interest in gambling as a young adult and started writing expert content for the casino and sports betting niche in 2015. Now, he specializes in online slots, table games, and sports betting – producing well-researched content on all fronts of the iGaming world.

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