Roulette Strategy Guide
Although roulette can be as straightforward as plunking chips on a number and watching the croupier spin the ball around the moving wheel, it also has room for strategy. There are several kinds of bets available, and each bet has a win probability. Different versions of the game have different house edges, and in some versions, there are bets that should be avoided altogether. Follow this strategy guide on how to play online roulette, and you’ll improve your chances of walking away a winner.
Different Online Roulette Games
With no space limitations like in land-based casinos, our online casino is able to offer more versions of your favorite casino games, and roulette is no exception. At Ignition Casino, four types of roulette are available in both free play and for real money. Online roulette, both European and American, come in classic formats, which emulate the traditional casino atmosphere. The game screen includes a roulette table, casino chips, a spinning wheel, the betting layout, and small details like the money slot on the felt table. It’s as if you’re looking at a roulette table in a brick-and-mortar casino.
In contrast to the classic versions of roulette, there are modern mobile-optimized ones, which are simply called “Roulette American” and “Roulette European”. These blue-backdrop versions comprise two screens: one has the betting layout and one has the spinning wheel. Dividing the action in two makes it easier to play on small screens. With no embellishments, the modern versions feel more streamlined than the classic versions. You can also take advantage of new features, including the Quick Spin option, and toggles for sound and music.
What is Classic American Roulette?
One question we’re asked frequently is What is Classic American Roulette? Classic American Roulette is simply a traditional version of the game; you can play it right here at Ignition Casino. The rules, payouts, and odds are the exact same as standard American Roulette, so you can feel free to play the one you want without compromising your earning potential.
European Roulette
Here’s a fun fact: the whole world was playing what’s known as “American Roulette” before 1842. Like American Roulette, the original roulette wheel, which came from France, had a 0 and 00 in addition to the numbers 1 to 36. It wasn’t until a gambling house in Hamburg, Germany decided to attract customers by removing the double-zero from the roulette wheel that the single-zero version appeared. Other European casinos followed suit and it became the norm.
The single-zero is what differentiates European Roulette from American Roulette. The zeros provide the casinos with their edge, so double the zeros equals double the edge. European Roulette continues to be the better version in terms of player payback, with a 2.70% house edge compared to the American version’s 5.26% house edge.
Other than the double-zero options, all bets are the same regardless of whether you’re playing the modern versions of European or American Roulette. The Classic variant, however, offers extra bets that are known as the French bets. Looking at the betting layout of Classic European Roulette at Ignition Casino, you’ll see an oval track with numbers 0-36. Inside the track are three bets: Voisins du Zéro, Orphans, and Tiers du Cylindre.
Voisins du Zéro: When looking at the roulette wheel, the Voisins du Zéro covers the 17 numbers that surround the zero hence the name neighbors to zero. The win rate for this bet is 45.9%.
Orphans: Between the Voisins du Zéro and the Tiers du Cylindre there are two sections of numbers not covered: 17 to 6 and 1 to 9. These comprise the Orphans bet, which has a 21.6% chance of panning out.
Tiers du Cylindre: When looking at the roulette wheel, the Tiers du Cylindre covers a third of the numbers (27, 13, 36, 11, 30, 8, 23, 10, 5, 24, 16, 33). The odds percentage of this bet winning is 32.4%.
When playing in a land-based casino, you’ll have to determine how to place chips on these French bets ahead of time, as there’s a specific way to do it. The Voisins du Zéro uses exactly nine chips to cover the 17 numbers, while the Orphans uses five chips to cover its eight numbers. The Tiers du Cylindre uses six chips to cover its 12 numbers. With online roulette, you don’t have to figure out how to place these bets; simply click the bet name and the chips are placed automatically.
American Roulette
The double-zero version of roulette made its way to America in the 19th century via European settlers. For a brief period of time, a version of roulette with numbers 1 to 28, a 0, a 00, and an American Eagle was used in the US, but the standard double-zero version predominated, and eventually the American Eagle, which created in an even higher house edge, was dropped altogether.
Nowadays, American Roulette consists of 0,00 for the house edge, and numbers 1 to 36. There is no oval racetrack like you’d find with Classic European Roulette. Instead, all bets can be found on the standard layout and are categorized as inside or outside bets.
Inside bets include small ranges of numbers, with the biggest range being six numbers and the smallest range being one number. These bets can be accessed by placing chips within the betting layout. There are seven types of inside bets.
- Single: Any one of the digits can be bet on as a Single bet.
- Neighbour: Any two joining numbers can be lumped into one Neighbour bet.
- Street: Three numbers found side by side comprise the Street bet.
- Corner: Four numbers that form a square make up the Corner bet.
- First Five: Numbers 0, 00, 1, 2, 3 constitute the First Five bet.
- Line: Two Street bets that are side by side on the betting layout can be grouped together through a Line bet.
When looking at a roulette betting layout, the bets found on the outside of numbers 1-36 are all outside bets. There are five outside bets.
Column: On the betting layout, numbers 1-36 are lined up in three columns. Betting on any of the columns constitutes a Column bet.
Dozen: Numbers 1-12 are 1st Dozen, 13-24 are 2nd Dozen, and 25-36 are 3rd Dozen.
Even/Odds: Betting on all even or odd numbers has close to a 50% win rate.
Red/Black: 18 numbers are red and 18 numbers are black.
High/Low: Bet on numbers 1 to 18 or 19 to 36.
With the exception of the First Five bet, which is available only with American Roulette, all these inside and outside bets can be used with any version of roulette. Learning the differences between these bets is crucial to figuring out how to win online roulette bets. Let’s take a look at the win probability for each bet.
| Bet Type | American—Win Rate | European—Win Rate |
| Single | 2.60% | 2.70% |
| Neighbor | 5.3% | 5.4% |
| Street | 7.9% | 8.1% |
| Corner | 10.5% | 10.8% |
| First Five | 13.6% | N/A |
| Line | 15.8% | 16.2% |
| Dozen/Column | 31.6% | 32.40% |
| Odds/Even/High/Low/Red/Black | 47.4% | 48.60% |
You won’t see any difference in the payout amounts between American and European Roulette. They’re the same regardless of which game you choose to play. Payouts are based on the odds of each bet winning. With the $500 betting maximum at Ignition Casino, the biggest payout possible is $17,500 with the Single bet.
| Bet Type | Payout |
| Single | 35:1 |
| Neighbor | 17:1 |
| Street | 11:1 |
| Corner | 8:1 |
| First Five | 6:1 |
| Line | 5:1 |
| Dozen/Column | 2:1 |
| Odds/Even/High/Low/Red/Black | 1:1 |
Earlier on, we mentioned that in certain versions of roulette, there are bets that should be avoided. That bet is the First Five in American Roulette. The First Five, also known as The Basket, is a bet on numbers 0,00,1,2,3. It has a win rate of 13.6% and a payout of 6:1. While the house edge is the same on all bets in the American version, the First Five is the one exception. The house edge increases from 5.26% to 7.89%
Now that you know the ins and outs of roulette, including the differences in house edge, payouts, and win percentage, you’re in a good position to craft a solid roulette strategy. Do you like to take risks for a chance to reel in massive payouts? If so, stick to the inside of the betting layout. Conservative bettors who prefer the security of a likely win will be more comfortable on the outside of the betting layout, where big ranges can be covered under one bet. Regardless of which camp you fall into, you now have the knowledge to make the bets that suit your gambling style. Good luck at the tables.