Roulette is one of the classic staple table games of nearly every casino. The game's clear-cut, every result is entirely random and luck-based. This guide will help both beginners or seasoned players hone their roulette skills. You’ll find out how to play roulette, how the odds and payouts work, and more.
Roulette rules
The basic roulette rules are very straightforward. To start, you place a bet on one or more numbers directly or via outside bets – such as red or black. Next, the croupier (live-dealer) or program spins the wheel, which features all of the numbers on the table.
Whichever numbered pocket the ball lands in dictates which bets win. As an example, the ball lands on the number 19. Number 19 is shown on the European Roulette table as being:
- Number 19
- A Red number
- An Odd number
- Within the bracket of 13 to 24 or 2nd 12
- Within the bracket of 19 to 36
- Along the lower 2 to 1-column bet line
As such, anyone with a bet in any or many of these zones wins and gets paid out for each bet. As a full rundown of what to expect on how to play roulette, here’s a scenario:
- Open the online roulette game that you want to play
- Select your preferred chip size for your bet at the bottom of the screen
- Tap or click on any number or betting zone that you want to back
- When you’re happy with your bet(s), press the Spin button
- The roulette wheel will then spin and produce a number
- If you have bet on that number or an outside zone bet that includes that colour or number, you win!
When you play roulette at a land-based casino or a live game like Lightning Roulette, you’ll be playing with a croupier. The croupier runs the game by announcing when the betting is open and closed. After the betting is closed, the croupier will spin the wheel counter-clockwise and run the ball around the outside clockwise.
That said, some croupiers trained for European Roulette or French Roulette will reverse the direction of the spin and ball between each round. When the ball eventually bounces down and settles in a pocket, the croupier will declare a winner. At physical tables, they collect the losing chips and add wins to the winning stacks. It’s automatic in online roulette.
Roulette table layout
Typically, your roulette table layout will consist of a wheel with numbered slots and a betting table. Here, you’ll see a 3x12 grid of numbers with one or two 0 places to the left of the main black and red numbers. Around this core number block, you’ll typically see nine more betting boxes beneath and three to the right.
Depending on the type of game, you may also see the racetrack-like ring of roulette numbers with a few additional betting zones. These are the same numbers as on the main block of the table, but they aren’t ordered numerically. So, the racetrack offers a number sequence that reflects the order roulette wheel online.
For those who want to know how many numbers on a roulette wheel there are, the answer is 37 or 38. There are 37 numbers on a European Roulette layout table (1-36 and one 0). With the American Roulette table layout, there are 1-36, a 0, and a 00.
Types of bets, roulette payouts, and odds
There are two main types of bets in roulette: inside bets and outside bets. Each of these bet types has several different bets that have different roulette odds. These are all of the bets that you can place in games and their associated odds:
Inside bets
- Straight Up – single number (35:1)
- Split Bet – two adjoining numbers with one chip (17:1)
- Street Bet – a line of three numbers (11:1)
- Corner Bet – four adjoining numbers with one chip (8:1)
- Six Line – two adjoining lines of three numbers (5:1)
- Five Bet – bet on the five lowest numbers of American roulette (6:1)
Outside bets
- Red or Black (1:1)
- Odd or Even (1:1)
- 1-18 or 19-36 (1:1)
- Dozen Bets – 1st 12, 2nd 12, 3rd 12 (2:1)
- Column Bets – usually on the right side of the numbers (2:1)
Racetrack bets
- Neighbours – bet on one number and its two neighbours on either side for 5x the cost (6:1)
- Voisins du Zero – place 9x the bet to cover 17 numbers at varying payouts (8:1, 11:1, 17:1)
- Tiers du Cylindre – a 6x bet over 12 numbers (17:1)
- Orphelins – a 5x bet that covers eight numbers, including the number 1 as a single bet (17:1, 35:1)
As you can see above, the roulette payouts vary with each different type of bet placed. What the lines above, like 17:1 show, is that when you bet 1 unit – such as $1 – you’ll get 17 units back plus the value of the one unit. To run a roulette payout calculator, winning a $1 bet at 17:1 will return $18 as you get your $1 bet back.
Roulette strategies & tips
If you’re looking for the perfect roulette strategy to guarantee more wins than losses, you simply won’t find one. Roulette is completely randomized, so you have the same odds of winning on the same number every time.
Some players enjoy tracking the hot and cold numbers, which can make for fun stats when playing, but they shouldn’t dictate a strategy. Similarly, some players attempt to look for the Law of Averages amongst the rounds, such as how many times the wheel lands on Red in 20 spins.
The Martingale strategy involves betting on even-money outside bets. These are ones like Red or Black. It’s a method of trying to recover losses. To do this, whenever you lose, you double your wager on an even-money bet. You repeat this until you win. Then, you return to a single-unit bet.
The problem with the Martingale strategy is the house edge’s influence on two-option roulette bets as well as the fact that the game is random. You may think that after 8 hits on Red, it’s time for Black to come up. This is not the case. Instead, on the next spin, Red is just as likely as Black to come up, and there’s a chance for the green 0.
The best roulette tip to take on board is to just embrace the chaos of the random roulette spin and enjoy your time at the table. The players who have the most fun are those who just follow their gut, bet down where they fancy, and only bet within their limits. Because knowing that every result is entirely randomized is integral to enjoying the table game.
How to play online roulette FAQs
Here are some speedy answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about online roulette in Canada:
Is online roulette legal?
Online roulette is legal in jurisdictions that have made iGaming platforms legal and regulate the scene, as Ontario does in Canada.
What is the difference between American and European Roulette?
The difference between American and European Roulette is the presence of the extra green pocket, the double-zero, in American Roulette. This gives it a much higher house edge than European roulette.
How do I make a deposit to play online roulette?
To make a deposit into your account, you need to sign up for theScore Bet, head to the account page, and then select the deposit option and the payment method that you prefer.
Can I win real money playing online roulette?
Yes, theScore Bet is a real money online casino where you can deposit money into your account and play with real cash.
How do I cash out my winnings from online roulette?
To cash out your winnings, simply go to your account page and select the withdrawal option. Next, pick your preferred payment method and how much you want to cash out.
Can I play online roulette on my mobile device?
You can play online roulette on your mobile device, regardless of if it’s the video-form European Roulette game or the high-tech, live Lightning Roulette.