The Rules of Roulette

Learning how to play Roulette is very easy since the rules of roulette are quite basic. The game doesn't require a deep understanding, analysis or a strategic thinking. Just an understanding of its basic rules.

The game has several variations, which have very similar rules. The French and European variants are popular in Europe while the American version of the game is common in US casinos. Online casinos usually offer all versions.

The game is played using a wheel, a ball and a table. The game is operated by a human croupier in land based casinos and by the computer in online casinos.

The Roulette Wheel

The Roulette wheel contains 37 pockets, numbered 0 to 36. The American Roulette wheel contains an additional pocket numbered 00. The wheel is spun by the croupier in one direction, while the Roulette ball is thrown in the opposite direction.

The Roulette Table

The Roulette table is where bets are placed, using casino chips. It contains 2 betting areas - the inside area, which displays the individual black or red numbers and the outside area which partially surrounds the inside area and displays the various "outside" available betting combinations.

You win if the number or color of the pocket in which the ball settled in is included in your bet. Players can either bet on individual numbers, a combination of numbers or a color. Once the ball settles in one of the pockets, the dealer announces the winning number and color and pays out all the wins.

The Bets

The major challenge in the game is to understand the types of available bets and their payout. As we mentioned before, there are two types of available bets - Insidebets, which are placed in the Inside area of the Roulette table and outside bets which are placed in the outside area of the table. Here is a list of Inside and Outside Betting options and their structure:

Inside Bets

Straight up - one number. This pays the highest payout, 1-35, which means that your original investment is multiplied by 35.

Split - 2 adjacent numbers for a payout of 1-17.

Street/Line - 3 horizontally adjacent numbers for a payout of 1-11.

Corner/Quad - You bet on 4 adjacent numbers by placing your chips in the corner of all 4, for a payout of 1-8.

Double street - 2 adjacent rows of numbers for a payout of 1-5.

Outside Bets

These are basically self-explanatory. They allow you to bet on the first twelve numbers (1-12, the second (13-24) or third (25-36); you can go for on all red number or all black numbers, you can go for odd or even numbers or even for numbers 1-18 or numbers 19-36.

Now that you already know the Roulette rules it is time to start practicing, using our free game.