This article will cover the American Roulette wheel and not the European wheel from which it was derived. What’s the difference? In Europe, the roulette wheel has the numbers one to thirty-six and a zero slot. The American roulette wheel adds a slot-double-zero. That added slot means the chances of winning are one out of thirty-eight in American roulette, a little worse than the one in thirty-seven for the European version.

The numbers are arranged around the roulette wheel in a way that seems arbitrary, even random. However, there is a method: high, low, odd, and even numbers are as mathematically balanced as possible. The zero and double-zero are at opposite sides of the wheel, odd and even numbers alternate, and the colors of the numbers alternate between black and red, with zero and double zero standing out in green. All of the numbers offer the same chances of winning.

Roulette Rules

The basic action is simple. The dealer, also known as the croupier, spins the roulette wheel in one direction and rolls a small ball in the opposite direction. When the ball stops bouncing and stays in a slot, that number wins. It’s a simple game with certain complications.

When sitting down at a roulette table, first take notice of the sign indicating the table minimum and maximum. Nothing is more embarrassing than betting the wrong amount of money and being scolded by the dealer. A typical roulette table minimum-maximum sign might indicate something like “$2 minimum, $500 maximum.” That’s fairly clear: a player has to bet at least $2 but no more than $500 per spin of the roulette wheel.

Sometimes the table minimum-maximum sign will be a little more involved, such as “Inside minimum $1, Outside minimum $2, $500 maximum.” In roulette, “inside” refers to all the numbers on the betting layout (0, 00, 1-36) and “outside” refers to all the other betting areas on the roulette layout.

After noting what the table minimum-maximum is and making sure it’s within your gambling budget, find an open seat and get roulette chips. Roulette chips are different from casino chips in that they are color-coded to differentiate between the roulette players, not according to their cash value. “Inside bets” are those made on the thirty-six number and zero and double-zero layout.

“Outside bets” are all those made outside the number layout. Sometimes the betting is fast and furious, and the different chip colors make it easier to keep track of the action. Most casinos have eight colors of roulette chips. If more than eight people want to play at any one time, the extra players have to use the regular casino chips. This can become quite confusing when a few people start playing with casino chips, so the dealer may limit the number of players using casino chips.

The dealer marks the roulette chips to indicate the value the player would like for each chip. Unless the player says otherwise, the chips are usually valued at the table minimum, such as fifty cents or one dollar each. All roulette chips should remain at the roulette table. The roulette dealer will cash in your roulette chips with casino chips when you are ready to leave the table.

After getting your roulette chips, you are now ready to make some bets. Refer to the figure above to follow where the various bets are placed. Bets can be placed up until the moment when the dealer drops the ball and announces, “No more bets.” In the explanations below, “chips” refers to roulette chips. Also, for each payoff indicated, remember that the bet remains on the table.