Roulette is one of the most popular games in the world, known for being an easy casino game to play that’s full of excitement, a low house edge, and potentially lucrative payout odds. Here we’ll tell you about the different online roulette bets, the best roulette odds, and the ideal roulette strategy to apply so you can improve your roulette odds and beat roulette at its own game.
Types of Roulette Bets & Roulette Payouts
Roulette casino games have plenty of different types of bets, each with its own payout odds, so players have multiple ways of winning when playing roulette. Although there are a few variants of roulette, the most commonly played are American and European roulette. A European roulette wheel has numbers 1-36 plus an extra single zero (0) pocket, while American roulette has two extra pockets – a single zero (0) and double zero (00).
The difference in the number of pockets means that the odds in roulette vary depending on the roulette game played.
Roulette bets can generally be divided into two categories- Inside Bets and Outside Bets. The roulette odds vary depending on the type of bet placed. To bet, players place their chips on particular numbers or sections of the roulette ‘layout’, which sits alongside the roulette wheel. Players can bet on as many numbers as they choose, as long as the minimum bet is wagered on each outside bet, or that the combined total of all inside bets meets the table minimum.
Inside Bets
Inside bets are made with a roulette bet on single numbers or a few individual numbers at a time. Inside bets are named as such because they are based on numbers that are located on the inside of the roulette table layout.
Straight Up
A Straight Up Bet is a bet on a single number. When the ball lands on the number selected, you win. If it doesn’t, you don’t win. A win on a straight single number bet pays 35:1.
Split
Split Bets are the opposite of a straight bet, where rather than betting on one single number, you place a bet on the line between two numbers. For example, 1|2 or 13|14 or 25|26, etc. If either number comes up, you win. Any two numbers located next to each other can be split and a bet made between them. This bet pays 17:1.
Street
A Street Bet is also sometimes called a Trio Bet or Steam Bet. This is a bet placed on any number in a row of three numbers. For example, 1, 2, 3 or 4, 5, 6 or 7, 8, 9, etc. If the ball lands on any of the numbers in the trio, the Street bet payout will be 11:1.
Corner
A Corner Bet is sometimes also called Square Bets or Four Number Bets. Corner bets work similarly to a split bet, but instead of betting on two numbers, this wager involves betting that one of four numbers will come up. A win on a corner bet pays 8:1.
Line
Similar to streets bets, and sometimes called Six-Number Bets, Line Bets cover two rows of three numbers. The six numbers need to be on two adjoining rows in a consecutive sequence of six numbers. For example, 1-6 or 4-9 or 7-12 or 13-18, etc. The payoff is 5:1.
Five-Number Bet
Also called a Top-Line Bet, the Five-Number Bet is a wager made in American Roulette which is placed on the first five numbers of the roulette layout – 0, 00, 1, 2 and 3. The payout for this roulette bet is 6:1.
Basket
The Basket Bet is also called the First Four Bet and comprises betting on the numbers 0, 1, 2 and 3. This bet pays 6:1.
Snake Bet
Representing the form of a snake when bets are placed on the roulette layout, this bet covers the numbers 1, 5, 9, 12, 14, 16, 19, 23, 27, 30, 32 and 34. This pays 2:1.
Outside Bets
Outside bets are located on the roulette layout’s perimeter, made up of a group of numbers or colors instead of a specific number. Some outside bets are considered to have the lowest house edge and best odds of winning.
Red/Black
The easiest and most popular bet in roulette, the Red/Black Bet involves simply betting on either a red or black color coming up. While it’s an even-money bet that pays 1:1, the odds of winning are actually less than 50/50 due to the presence on the wheel of the single zero (0) in European roulette and single zero and double zero (00) in American roulette, as neither are black or red.
Odd/Even
Similar to the red/black betting concept, the Odd or Even Bet simply involves betting on whether an even or odd number will come up on the roulette wheel. To make this bet, chips are placed on either the Odd or Even section of the layout. Such bets pay out at 1:1 but the odds are not 50/50 due to the zero (0) and double zero (00) slightly reducing the odds.
High/Low
The High/Low Bet involves betting on whether the roulette ball will fall on a low number (1-18) or a high number (19-36). Both are even money bets, paying out at 1:1. Again, American roulette odds are slightly lower than those on a European single zero wheel, as the 0 and 00 affect the true odds of this type of bet.
Columns
The Column Bet is based on the roulette ball landing on one of the three columns of twelve numbers that span the length of the layout. For example:
- Column 1 – bets placed on numbers 1, 4, 7, 10, 13, 16, 19, 22, 25, 28, 31, 34
- Column 2 – bets placed on numbers 2, 5, 8, 11, 14, 17, 20, 23, 26, 29, 32, 35
- Column 3 – bets placed on numbers 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 21, 24, 27, 30, 33, 36
A win on one of these columns will result in a bets win of 2:1.
Dozens
The Dozens bet covers betting on 12 numbers, either the first, second or third dozen, as follows:
- 1st 12 – Bet on the ball landing on numbers 1-12
- 2nd 12 – Bet on the ball landing on numbers 13-24
- 3rd 12 – Bet on the ball landing on numbers 25-36
Each dozen pays 2:1 (double your bet).
Call Bets
Called bets are only used on European or French Roulette tables. In land casinos, they are often in the form of announced bets that players make by calling their bet out aloud, whereas in online roulette, in called bets the chips are placed on numbers on what’s referred to as the ‘racetrack’.
Voisins du Zero
French for “Neighbors of Zero”, this bet covers all the numbers located closest to 0 on the left side of the racetrack, including 22, 18, 29, 7, 28, 12, 35, 3, 26, 0, 32, 15, 19, 4, 21, 2 and 25.
Jeu Zero
This requires placing a bet closest to zero, such as 12, 35, 3, 26, 0, 32 and 15. All numbers are included in the Voisins bet, but are placed differently.
Tiers du Cylindre
Most commonly referred to as Tiers, and literally translated as “one third of the wheel”, this bet is placed on the twelve numbers on the other side of the wheel between and including 27 and 33, consisting of 27, 13, 36, 11, 30, 8, 23, 10, 5, 24, 16 and 33.
Orphelins
Bets on the two slices of the racetrack between the Tiers and Voisins bets, which include these eight numbers: 17, 34, 6, 1, 20, 14, 31, and 9.
Neighbors
Bets on a number and the two numbers on either side of it, making up a five-piece set. For example, the “0 and the neighbors” bet consists of a straight-up bet on 3, 26, 0, 32 and 15.
Final Bets
These bets involve betting on numbers all ending in the same “final” digit. For example, placing a final bet on all numbers ending in 5, so the numbers wagered would be 5, 15, 25 and 35.
Imprisonment Bets
This bet only appears in French Roulette, where a loss on an even money bet like odd, even, red, black, 1-18 or 19-36 pays back half the amount bet if the ball lands on the zero.
Complete Bets, Full Complete Bets & Maximum Bets
These bets involve taking all inside bets and placing them on a particular number to maximize potential winnings. A popular complete bet is on 17, which includes all bet types and has the potential for multiple payouts if the roulette ball happens to land on 17.
Roulette Payout & Roulette Odds Chart
Now that we’ve covered all the different roulette bet types, let’s have a look at the roulette odds you can expect for winning bets on both an American roulette table and a European roulette table.
| Bet | Payout | European Roulette Odds | American Roulette Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red / Black (18 numbers) | 1:1 | 48.65% | 47.37% |
| Even / Odd (18 numbers) | 1:1 | 48.65% | 47.37% |
| Low / High (18 numbers) | 1:1 | 48.65% | 47.37% |
| Dozen (12 numbers) | 2:1 | 32.43% | 31.58% |
| Column (12 numbers) | 2:1 | 32.43% | 31.58% |
| Double Street (6 numbers) | 5:1 | 16.22% | 15.79% |
| First Five (5 numbers) | 6:1 | – | 13.16% |
| Corner (4 numbers) | 8:1 | 10.81% | 10.53% |
| Street (3 numbers) | 11:1 | 8.11% | 7.89% |
| Split (2 numbers) | 17:1 | 5.41% | 5.26% |
| Straight (single number) | 35:1 | 2.70% | 2.63% |
Best Roulette Bets
As you can see from this roulette payout chart, the bets with the best odds in roulette games are outside bets where a single bet covers half the numbers (18 numbers), such as red/black bets, even/odd and low/high numbers. While many consider betting on these to be the best roulette strategy, if you’re looking to calculate roulette payouts, it’s worth bearing in mind that numbers with the best roulette odds are also those with the lowest payouts, at 1:1.
Roulette at Online Casinos
It’s possible to play European roulette and American roulette at online casinos these days, often as well as some other variants of roulette. With a low house edge, roulette at online casinos offers a range of minimum and maximum bets, and all the above mentioned odds for each bet. This provides the same roulette probability of winning as at land-based casinos, but with the added comfort and convenience of playing online roulette from your home or phone.
Try Your Luck at a PlayStar Roulette Table
If you’re looking to play roulette online, look no further than PlayStar. We offer many different roulette games with great roulette odds, from classic European Roulette to American Roulette, Live Dealer Roulette and First Person Roulette. We also have Lightning Roulette with its exhilarating lightning strikes of extra bet payouts, plus plenty more of the most amazing roulette action and casino games that you’ll find this side of Vegas.
