Playing online roulette
Roulette is probably one of the most famous, and noisiest, games in any casino – but a lot of players avoid it because it seems complicated. The truth is quite different.
Roulette is actually a very simple game. All you need to do is choose where you think a ball will land on a slotted wheel. If it lands on your chosen number or in your chosen area, you win.
Online roulette is the exact same only, instead of a croupier spinning the wheel and releasing the ball it is a software programme that is using a Random Number Generator.
There are three main versions of roulette available to online casino players (and a few with some interesting twist on these three versions):
European roulette: this game has 37 slots on the wheel, numbered from 0 to 36.
American roulette: this version has an extra slot to give you 38 slots in total, 0, 00, 1 to 36.
French roulette: similar to European roulette (37 slots) but with some additional rules to play.
How do I play online roulette?
For our discussion we will be using European roulette (he most common and popular version) as an example. To read about the differences between the three version, click here.
The Table
Roulette is played on a table that consists of the roulette wheel and a patterned cloth surface called the layout.
The wheel is made up of slots or pockets randomly numbered from 0 to 36.
These slots are alternately coloured red and black, with the 0 being coloured green.
The layout is a 3×12 grid showing all the numbers in order. To the sides are various other betting option like odds/evens, red/black and various other ways of placing a bet on number combinations like 1 -18, 19 – 36, 1st 12 (1 -12), 2nd 12 (13 -24), 3rd 12 (25 -36).
As should be obvious, if you bet on a single number your odds are way higher than betting on a spread of number (but your win is also much higher).
Basic gameplay
Players place their bets on the layout. There are a number of bets that can be placed and we will outline these below.
Once all bets are placed the croupier spins the roulette wheel in one direction and then spins a small ball in the other direction. The ball loses momentum and drops into the area of the wheel that is filled with slots.
The ball bounces around until it eventually comes to rest in one slot. That slot will have a number and a colour that determines who wins.
Placing your bets
You can bet on one number, on multiple numbers, on odds, on evens, on rows, and more.
You can also bet multiple times in the same game, on different numbers or combinations.
‘Inside bets’ are bets that are placed inside the main grid of numbers. They pay more but are harder to get.
Inside bets are bets placed on the numbers that appear on the wheel. They are called inside bets because your chips are placed inside the main 3×12 grid of numbers on the layout. Inside bets pay more but are harder to get.
| Bet | Description | Where you place your chips |
| Straight bet | Bet on a single number | Within the square of the chosen number |
| Split bet | Bet on two adjacent numbers | On the edge shared by the numbers |
| Street | Bet on three numbers in a row | On the outer edge of number at the end of the line |
| Square bet | Bet on four numbers that meet at one corner | On the common corner |
| Six line | Bet on six consecutive numbers that form two horizontal lines | On the outer corner shared by the last numbers |
‘Outside bets’ are placed on the outer edge of the main grid. You have a higher chance of winning on these but your payout is much lower.
| Bet | Description | Where you place your chips |
| Red or black | Bet that the number will be the chosen colour | In the red or black box |
| Odd or even | Bet that the number will be the chosen type | In the odd or even box |
| 1 to 18 (Low or Manque) or 19 to 36 (High or Passe) | Bet that the number will be in the chosen range | In the 1 to 18 or 19 to 36 box |
| Dozen bet | Bet that the number will be in the chosen dozen: 1st 12, 2nd 12 or 3rd 12 | In the 1st 12, 2nd 12 or 3rd 12 box |
| Column bet | Bet that the number will be in the chosen vertical column of 12 numbers, such as 1-4-7-10 on down to 34. | On the space below the final number in this sequence. |
Are there any strategies to playing online roulette?
Roulette is a game of pure chance. There are no strategies or cheats to give you a winning edge. While you will probably find a bunch of so-called expert strategies online (Labouchére System, the D’Alembert System, the Martingale Strategy, etc.) the Guru recommends you just enjoy playing roulette for the thrill of the game and the CHANCE to win some cash.
If you want to know a bit more about how to play roulette, visit our roulette page here.