Ultimate Roulette Guide — Bets and Betting Systems

If you enjoy playing roulette, you’ve probably asked yourself — is there a strategy that could help me win?

Unfortunately, since roulette is a game of chance, the answer is negative.

Basically, all you can do is hope for the best while the ball is bouncing around the spinning wheel.

However, there is something you can rely on to help you maximize your winnings while playing roulette — you should simply pay attention to the basic betting systems and bet types.

There aren’t a lot of games where you can see even odds for different outcomes. With roulette, that’s the case when you’re betting black or red, even or odd, and high or low.

On top of that, the only house edge, if you can call it that, is when the ball lands on the green squares. When this happens, all outside bets are at a loss when the ball lands on zero or double zero.

There are two types of roulette — European and American — which differ in terms of odds.

To be more specific:

• European wheels have 37-1 odds
• The American variant have 38-1

In both European and American Roulette there are numbers from 1 to 36.

• You will find a single zero in European and French roulette and the double zero in the American roulette.

If you call a specific number and end up with a straight-up win, the casino will pay you 35-1, which means the house edge is 5.26%. This slight edge comes from the little green squares.

With that in mind, there are plenty of ways to bet on roulette, and it’s up to you to choose your favorite method.

Before you start placing bets with real money, you might want to go through this guide and practice with some chips at home, just to make sure you’re on the right path to success. Take a look.

Common Bet Types

In roulette, there are inside and outside bets. You should have a clear understanding of both bet types if you want to play this casino game.

• Inside bets have lower odds of winning, but the payout is much higher if you do win.
• Outside bets are the complete opposite, meaning you have higher chances of winning, but the payout is smaller than you might expect.

Both inside and outside bets have different subtypes of bets. Namely, inside bets having eight subtypes, while outside bets have six of them.

We’ll go through each of them so that you can have a clear understanding of all 14 types of roulette bets.

Inside Bets

As the name suggests, inside bets are the bets you can make on the squares closer to the inner section of the table. These bet types are more suitable for high-rollers or those players who like to take more risk when betting.

Go through the available inside bets to understand them perfectly.

• Straight Up/Single Bet — This bet is exactly what it sounds like — you’re betting on a single number. It choose this kind of bet, your chances of winning will be the slimmest, as the winning payout is 35-1. For example, if you place your bet on Red 19, the ball needs to land on the exact color and number for you to win.
• Split Bet — Split bet suggests betting on two numbers that are vertically or horizontally adjacent. For example, you need to place your bets on 10 and 11 or 28 and 29, and so on. The winning payout is 17-1.
• Street Bet — By choosing a street bet, you need to place your wager on three consecutive numbers. These numbers have to be in a horizontal line. For example, 7, 8, and 9. Your bet is placed at the end of the row. The winning payout is 11-1.
• Six Line Bet/Double Street Bet — With this bet, you will need to place a wager on six numbers in a row. These numbers have to form two horizontal lines — for example, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, and 30. It’s also simply called a line bet, and the winning payout is 5-1.
• Corner/Square Bet — Similar to the street bet, a corner or a square bet suggests betting on four consecutive numbers. These numbers need to meet at one corner and touch each other on the table — 10, 11, 13, 14, for example. The winning payout is 8-1.
• Five/Basket Bet — This bet type is available only in American roulette since it contains betting on the double zero square. You’re placing a bet on 0, 00, 1, 2, 3. The wager is placed on the outer corner shared by 0-1 or 00-3. The winning payout is 6-1.
• Trio Bet — Like the street bet, you’re wagering on three numbers, but this time you need to select one of the zeros (0 or 00). For example, you can bet on 0,1,2 or 0, 2, 3 or 00, 2, 3. The winning payout is 11-1.
• First Four Bet — This bet type is only available on European tables, and you can bet on 0, 1, 2, 3. The bet is placed on the outer corners shared by 0-1 or 0-3. The winning payout is 8-1.

Outside Bets

Outside bets are the better choice for more conservative players who are just starting out, as the gaming sessions are longer and you have higher chances of winning.

Outside bets encompass a broader category of numbers, and you’re required to place bets on a certain kind of number as opposed to a specific number. Take a look at the six available outside betting types below:

• Column Bet — By choosing this bet type, you’re wagering on 12 numbers. Your bet is that the ball will land on one of the numbers in the 12-number vertical column you’ve chosen (for example, 1, 4, 7, 10 — all the way down 34). This bet covers nearly ⅓ of the table, meaning that the European table’s coverage is 32.4%, while the American’s coverage is 31.6%. The winning payout is 2-1.
• Dozen Bet — You’re betting that that your number will be in the chosen 12 from the three sets of 12 numbers. You can choose the first (1-12 or P12), second (13-24 or M12), or third (25-36 or D12). The winning payout is 2-1.
• Red or Black — Betting on color is one of the most common bets in roulette. All you need to do is choose the color where your ball will land. The number does not matter, and the winning payout is 1-1.
• Even or Odd — As the name suggests, you’re betting that the ball will fall on any even or any odd number. The winning payout is 1-1. Note that 0 and 00 are not part of this bet type.
• Low or High — Here, you select either all the low (1-18) or all the high numbers (19-36) and hope the ball falls in your selected range. The winning payout is 1-1.
• Snake Bet — This bet is not available in all casinos and it is considered to be a special bet type. It covers the numbers 1, 5, 9, 12, 14, 16, 19, 23, 27, 30, 32, and 34, and it has the same payout as the dozen bet. You place the chip on the lower corner of the 34 square bordering the 19-36 betting box. You can see that, in some layouts, the bet is marked with a two-headed snake, which winds from 1 to 34. You can place this bet on the head at either end of the body.

HowCast | Inside and Outside Bets

Basic Betting Systems

There are three basic betting systems in roulette that we would like to mention:

• D’Alembert
• Martingale
• Reverse Martingale

D’Alembert

D’Alembert is the safest betting system out there. You can increase your rates after a loss at a smaller rate compared to Martingale. You need to pick a starting bet first. Afterward, you are supposed to increase your bets by one after a loss and decrease them by one after a win.

The main point is that the number of your losses has to eventually even out with your wins, so you will ultimately end up with a profit.

• You can use the D’Alembert system for Red or Black, Even or Odd, and Low or High bets.

Martingale

Although D’Alembert is the safest, Martingale is the most commonly used betting system among roulette players.

If you opt for this system, you need to double your bet every time you lose, which is why this method is also known as the double-up method. On the other hand, once you win, you should restart and bet the original amount you’ve started with.

• The Martingale bet is available for both inside and outside bets.

Reverse Martingale

As its name suggests, the Reverse Martingale bet is just the opposite of the classic Martingale. You should double your bets after each win and stay in the same spot. On the other hand, with each loss, you should go back to the starting sum.

• This bet type is riskier but more profitable.