Perhaps you’ve had the distinct pleasure of playing the game of roulette online, or at the casino. This engaging table game was invented by French mathematician Blaise Pascal; it is an age-old game with fabulous winning potential and just enough mystique to captivate the public's attention.

Dubbed ‘little wheel’, roulette is a fascinating game of chance with a sprinkling of elegance and sophistication to keep the high rollers plenty interested. It's a game of numbers and that means that it's also a game of probabilities.

If you have ever wanted to uncover the great mysteries of roulette, welcome. This guide to winning at roulette covers everything you need to know. Once you have completed reading this comprehensive guide, you will have a much better understanding of roulette. Armed with this information, you'll be able to make confident betting decisions. Since roulette is a chance-based game, the more information you know the better.

Our in-house gaming experts have devised this failsafe guide to help you win at roulette. By understanding the odds and following our sage advice, you will be in a much better position to win roulette games.

No doubt you're itching to get started. Let's begin with some important information about the game of roulette.

Table of Contents

tournament ticket

An Ancient Game Comes to Life

Roulette has been around for hundreds of years. When Blaise Pascal invented it, he was actually seeking a perpetual spinning machine – not a roulette wheel. This game has evolved over time to become an international celebrity of the casino scene. In fact, roulette is the poster child of casinos the world over. 
Spinning games were evident thousands of years before French mathematician Blaise Pascal invented roulette.

Tribesmen used to spin their shields, putting the fate of their entire village in Lady Luck's hands. Fortunately, we don't need to live and die by the outcomes of roulette spins. This casino game is for entertainment purposes only and that's the most important tip to remember.

There are those who claim to have perfected roulette betting systems. Truth be told, no betting system will ever be able to guarantee you a win in roulette. From Martingale to Fibonacci, and Labouchere to the James Bond strategy, roulette has beaten them all, time and again.

Anyone claiming to have a mathematical system which guarantees roulette wins is simply blowing smoke. Avoid the snake oil salesman; the only guaranteed winner over the long run is the house.

Is there a Better Way to Play Roulette than Simply Spinning the Wheel and Betting on Random Numbers?

Now that you know that betting systems are nothing more than hocus-pocus, what approach should you adopt when playing roulette?

Is it all simply a crapshoot? Do you simply pick random numbers, place your bets and hope for the best? Absolutely not! There are a series of steps you can take to confidently place intelligent bets in the game of roulette. 

Decades ago, players were able to uncover chinks in the game’s armor to exploit weaknesses for personal gain. Things like biased roulette wheels, staged settings, corrupt dealers, magnetized balls, electronic interference, and other illegal methods all played a part in tilting the odds in favor of players.

These elaborate scams may have worked back then, but they don't work so well anymore. Ours is not a roulette cheat guide; it’s a roulette winning guide.
Remember that wheel strategies and betting strategies are not the same thing.

We're going to take you behind the scenes with our roulette betting experts. Mathematicians, statisticians, and experienced players have contributed to our one-of-a-kind study. You will find this information to be extremely beneficial to your roulette gaming sessions. We begin with an introduction to the concept of ‘En Prison’.

What is the En Prison Rule in Roulette?

Have you ever heard the terms En Prison or Surrender? They basically refer to the same thing. In a game of roulette, you may benefit from this if you bet on high or low numbers, odd or even numbers, red or black numbers. How? If the ball lands on 0 or 00, you will typically only lose 50% of your bet. The other 50% is returned to you. These types of bets are known as even money bets with a payout of 1:1.

It's a simple rule, yet it changes the odds dramatically. Consider that in American Roulette, the surrender option reduces the house edge from 5.26% to 2.63%. How can you benefit from this in practical terms? Simply place outside bets on high or low numbers, odd or even numbers, red or black numbers a.k.a. the even money bets, and you're golden.

The En Prison rule works in a similar fashion. It also reduces the house edge by 50%, if the green 0 hits. You will typically find the En Prison rule in effect with European Roulette or French Roulette games where a single 0 appears on the wheel. Let's assume you have placed an even-money bet and 0 lands. Your bet will be locked up ‘En Prison’ until the next spin. 

Say for example you bet on an odd number. On the next spin if an odd number comes up, you will win your bet back. However, if an even number results you will lose your bet. If the green 0 lands again, your bet will be ‘En Prison’ until the next spin, etc. European Roulette and French Roulette games have a house edge of 2.70%. With the En Prison rule in play, the house edge can be reduced to just 1.35%. This rule is without a doubt the most important betting assist you will ever have.

american roulette

How to Win at American Roulette Every Time

American Roulette often gets a bad rap from casino strategists. Unfortunately, this game features 0, 00, and numbers 1-36. That means there are 38 numbers on every American Roulette wheel. The odds on any number coming up are 1/38. Clearly, you're on the back foot when you're playing American Roulette. In European Roulette and French Roulette, there are just 37 numbers, since the 00 is absent.

So, is there a way to win at American Roulette every time?

After careful analysis, experts agree that there is no way to win at American Roulette every time. The odds are simply stacked against you. The game has a much higher house edge and unless you are a casino owner, you are unlikely to win at this game every time. For everyone else, the best bets are always the even money bets, 2 to 1 bets, and the other outside selections. When luck is on your side, all bets are on.

How to Mathematically Win at Roulette?

We’re going to keep this short and sweet for you. By now you're well aware that certain bets have much better odds than others. Let’s take a look at American Roulette odds:


•    Single numbers have payouts of 35:1 with odds of 2.63%
•    2 number combinations have payouts of 17:1 with odds of 5.26%
•    3 number combinations have payouts on 11:1 with odds of 7.89%
•    4 number combinations have payouts of 8:1 with odds of 10.53%
•    Even/odd, and red/black bets have payouts of 1:1 with odds of 46.37%
•    1-12/13-24/25-36 bets have payouts of 2:1 with odds of 31.58%

Now let's turn our attention to European Roulette odds:


•    Even/odd, red/black,1-18, 19-36 bets have payouts of 1:1 with odds of 48.6%
•    1-12, 13-24, 25-36 bets have payouts of 1:1 with odds of 32.4%
•    Single number bets have payouts of 35:1 with odds of 2.70%
•    Combinations of 2 numbers have payouts of 17:1 with odds of 5.4%
•    Combinations of 3 numbers have payouts of 11:1 with odds of 8.1%
•    Combinations of 4 numbers have payouts of 8:1 with odds of 10.8%
•    Combinations of 6 numbers have payouts of 5:1 with odds of 16.2%

How to Win at Roulette Red and Black?

There is a roulette strategy based on betting on red and black numbers. As the name suggests, you simply bet on black numbers or red numbers – it's up to you which one comes first. This betting system states that you would place a bet on a specific color and you continue betting that same amount on that same color until you lose twice in a row. 

Once that happens, you double your bets until you win twice in a row, or you lose twice in a row. If you win, you would decrease your bet back to the original size. If you lose twice in a row, you would raise your bets by the original amount. This is an effective way to recover your losses when it is working. But again, roulette is a random game!

Single Zero or Double Zero Roulette Wheels?

Now that you've read about the En Prison and Surrender rules, you know that a single zero wheel offers you a much better chance of winning than a double zero roulette wheel. It's simple mathematics. With a double zero wheel, there are 38 numbers on the board. You stand a 1/38 chance of winning with American Roulette games. With a single zero game of roulette, there are just 37 numbers on the board and you stand a 1/37 chance of winning on any single number.

When the percentages are tallied, double zero roulette wheels have a house edge of 5.26% and single zero roulette wheels have a house edge of 2.70%. If given the chance, always pick European Roulette or French Roulette over American Roulette. However, you will want to check the minimum betting requirements on single zero roulette games versus double zero roulette games. If the minimums are too high on the single zero games, you may have to play double zero games.

Watch Your Roulette Bankroll like a Hawk

Gambling is an expensive business if you don't manage your budget. No roulette guide is worth anything if it doesn't stress the importance of bankroll management. If you cannot afford to gamble, then don't. There is no fun in losing your food money, your rent money, or someone else's money for that matter.
If you're planning to play roulette for real money, set aside some funds for precisely this purpose. You will know how much you can afford to allocate for roulette games, based on the table minimums and how much time you wish to spend at the roulette table.

Don't dip into your Rainy-Day Fund, or your College Tuition Fund. Budget for your roulette sessions and you will feel much more at ease when gambling for real money. If you're on a shoestring budget, you always have the option to practice roulette online for free before you wager for real money.

If you don't have the funds, don't feel bad. Just don't play. There's only one thing worse than not having money to play and that's playing with money you don't have to lose. In roulette as in other gambling games, there are high rollers, low rollers, and everyone else. You know which category you fall into. Those players dropping big money at the roulette wheel may not understand bankroll management at all. It's all about playing within your means – that's how you have fun at the roulette table.

Temper Your Expectations When Playing Roulette

Isn't this a guide about winning at roulette? It most certainly is! That's why you don't want to go in with a false narrative. Winning is obviously a desirable outcome in every game of roulette, but it's not a realistic objective. It's important to place intelligent bets on specific selections. Evaluate the odds of every possibility in an objective fashion. 
It's clear that single numbers are associated with the worst odds and the highest payouts.

Even money bets have the most favorable odds with the lowest payouts. Savvy? You can play it safe in roulette, or you can gamble with long shots. Either way, you should always play for the love of the game.

The Past Has No Bearing on the Future in Roulette

This is a tough one to wrap your head around. Let's say you're sitting at a European Roulette table and you see even numbers repeatedly coming up on the board. Logic dictates that an odd number is bound to come up on the next spin, right? If the game is completely random as the experts say, the odds of an odd number not occurring are slim to none, right? 

Here’s the thing: every single number on an unbiased roulette wheel has an equal opportunity of coming up. There are just as many odd numbers as there are even numbers. There are just as many red numbers as there are black numbers. There are just as many high numbers as low numbers. The wildcard is the green 0, and that's what contributes to the house edge in roulette games.

If you're hoping for a number to come up simply because it hasn't come up in a while, you may be on a losing proposition. There is absolutely no guarantee whatsoever that any number is due to come up at any time. Number 7 can come up three times in a row, or not at all.

It's completely random. No mathematical model can accurately predict when any number or bet selection will arise. That's the beauty of roulette. Neither the ball, nor the wheel will hold you accountable for not placing a bet on a specific selection.

How to Win at Roulette Wheel?

Let's circle back to a point we raised earlier on in our comprehensive roulette guide: Biased Wheels. A biased wheel is one which favors a certain number or quadrant. How is this possible? Perhaps the wheel has a manufacturing defect, it is unbalanced, or is sufficiently worn to favor certain combinations of numbers.

It's not outside the realm of possibility – it's simply rare nowadays to find them. Biased roulette wheels are a reality in certain old-school establishments. You're unlikely to find them at the prestigious Las Vegas resorts like the MGM Grand, Luxor, Bellagio, Wynn or Caesar's Palace.

To uncover a biased wheel, you would need to spend an inordinate amount of time studying the outcomes of every spin. If these outcomes reveal skewed results, you may be onto something. Armed with this information and enough ammo (bankroll), you could start betting on the biased numbers hoping for an outsized return. 

Most people don't have the time or the wherewithal to scrutinize thousands and thousands of roulette outcomes. Rather than looking for statistically significant bias on a roulette wheel, simply note numbers that have come up repeatedly and bet on them.

You Don't Have to Play Every Spin

In Las Vegas, the locals have a joke about the city – they call it ‘Lost Wages’. We all know that the house edge guarantees the casinos will have the last laugh. In the short term, anyone can beat roulette. You just need to Lady Luck to be smiling on you at that moment in time to be able to walk away a winner. That means you don't have to play every single game. 

Take a couple of minutes to play slot games, video poker, or simply have a meal at the casino. The house edge will impact you bankroll – there's no two ways about it. Don't lose your shirt or your nerve. Every spin and every outcome are independent of every other spin and every other outcome. Don't berate yourself if your number came up while you weren't playing – it's just luck, nothing else.

How to Win Roulette at the Casino

Now that you've read this comprehensive guide to playing roulette, you know what works and what doesn't. For starters if you want to win roulette at the casino, don't buy into all these fake roulette strategies. They don't work. Trust common sense, bankroll management, and the tips in this guide. For starters, pick a roulette game that you can afford. That means the minimum bet amount must be within your bankroll. There's no point playing at $25 minimum tables if you have a bankroll for $5 minimum tables.

•    If you're on a limited budget, play the outside bets, not the inside bets.
•    Always make use of ‘En Prison’ and ‘La Partage’ rules when available.
•    Practice roulette games in demo mode before you wager for real money.
•    Always sign up for a generous bonus or promotional offer to boost your bankroll.
•    Pick European Roulette or French Roulette over American Roulette. The numbers simply make more sense.
•    Never play roulette for real money when you are under the influence of medication, drugs, or alcohol.

How to Win at Video Roulette?

Video Roulette is a variant of traditional roulette games, featuring multiple buttons, sections and windows for players. These are conveniently set up, with the roulette racetrack in the middle of the screen, featuring your current bet and the most recent winning numbers. Video Roulette is similar to traditional roulette in many regards. In both cases, a felt-covered table is evident with various roulette betting numbers.

There are 37 in European and French Roulette, and 38 in American Roulette. Certain Video Roulette games feature live dealers, while others use video roulette systems with giant-sized roulette wheels in the center of the screen.

Video Roulette is designed for cost-saving benefits for the casino, but the player will find it equally exciting. The rules are the same, and the gameplay is identical. You will want to pick the right games at the right minimum bets. Always manage your bankroll well (this tip holds true in all gambling games), and take a break between your gaming sessions to avoid playing on tilt.

How to Win Roulette in Las Vegas?

Las Vegas is America's adult playground. It is a veritable casino paradise for the avid gambler, and roulette is always high on the agenda. When seeking roulette games in Las Vegas, always pick European Roulette or French Roulette over American Roulette. Look for the ‘En Prison’ and ‘La Partage’ rules and use them to your advantage.
In Las Vegas, you're also going to be offered lots of comps.

Perhaps you're fortunate enough to score a gambling credit at the casino, or you have an MVP card which you can use to score points and benefits. Either way, you will be best served by picking roulette games with the most favorable player odds. While you're playing roulette, try not to imbibe too much. 

The casino hosts will be swarming around you, offering you free drinks to loosen you up while you're wagering big bucks. Make sure you've had a good meal before you drink and play roulette. You want to have the option to practice-play games in Las Vegas, unless of course you’re playing online casino in demo mode. Always stick to this guide – it'll work for you anywhere in Las Vegas.