Which roulette wheel should you play?
The maths is short enough to check yourself. On a single-zero wheel there are 37 pockets, so cover every one of them with A$1 and you have staked $37. One chip wins and pays 35 to 1, returning $36 including the stake. You are down $1 on $37 of turnover, which is 2.70%.
Run the same test on a double-zero wheel. There are 38 pockets, so covering the layout costs $38, the winning chip still returns only $36, and you are down $2 on $38 of turnover. That is 5.26%, near enough to twice the cost for an identical game with an identical payout schedule.
Lobbies rarely label the wheels helpfully, so count the pockets on the layout or open the table's own rules panel before you sit. American tables are still stocked because they exist, not because anyone should choose them, and both wheels usually sit side by side in the same live section.
| Table type | Pockets and zeros | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|
| European roulette | 37 pockets, one zero | The default choice: 2.70% of everything you stake, on every bet on the felt |
| French roulette | 37 pockets, one zero, plus la partage or en prison | The same wheel with a zero refund rule on even-money bets, which halves their cost to 1.35% |
| American roulette | 38 pockets, zero and double zero | 5.26% instead of 2.70%, and it carries the five-number bet at 7.89% |
| Live studio roulette | Usually 37 pockets, physically spun | A real wheel on camera with limits printed on the tile, covered on the live dealer page |
| Multi-wheel and double ball | Several wheels or two balls on one 37-pocket wheel | Turnover per round multiplies with the wheels, so the cost per round rises with it |
| Auto roulette | 37 pockets, no dealer, fast cycle | Up to twice the rounds per hour of a dealt table, which doubles the cost of the same stake |
Compare the casinos on their published terms
Bonus, wagering, minimum deposit and payout conditions, with the operator's full wording under every row.
Bonus terms
Offer placeholder. Bonus amount, wagering, minimum deposit and eligibility are to be confirmed with the operator before publishing. 18+. T&Cs apply. Play responsibly.
Bonus terms
Min. deposit €20 | 125% bonus up to €1,000 + 100 free spins | 40x wagering on bonus & free-spin winnings | Bonus valid 7 days | Free spins credited over 4 days | First deposit only | T&Cs apply.
Bonus terms
18+ | New customers only | Bonus code BLISS | Min. deposit €20 | 120% bonus up to €500 + 125 free spins | 40x wagering within 14 days | T&Cs apply.
- #4
Bonus terms
Min. deposit €20 | 1st dep: 100% up to €500 + 100 FS | 2nd dep: 75% up to €2,000 + 75 FS | 3rd dep: 50% up to €2,000 + 75 FS | 4th dep: 25% up to €3,500 + 50 FS | 5th dep: 50% up to €2,000 + 100 FS | 40x-50x wagering on bonus & FS winnings | Bonus and free spins valid 3 days | Max withdrawal 5x deposit | First 5 deposits only | T&Cs apply.
- #5
Bonus terms
New customers only | Min. deposit €20 | 100% bonus on the first deposit up to €600 + 125 free spins (25 free spins daily over 5 days) | Wager the bonus within 7 days | T&Cs apply | 18+ | Gambling can be addictive.
- #6
Bonus terms
Welcome bonus 280% up to €3,200 + 800 free spins. Bonus winnings are subject to wagering and are capped at €500. The bonus expires after 5 days if the wagering is not met. One bonus per person. 18+. T&Cs apply. Play responsibly.
- #7
Bonus terms
New customers only | Min. deposit €250 | Deposit bonus 100% up to €5,000 + 100 free spins on Collapsed Castle (€0.20 per spin) | Free spins credited in 2 packs of 50 every 24 hours | Bonus wagering x25 (free-spin winnings x25) | Wagering to be met within 14 days | Bonus can be reactivated after 7 days | Bonus is not withdrawable until fully wagered | Bonus T&Cs apply.
- #8
Bonus terms
18+ | New users | Welcome pack across 3 deposits: 100%/80%/60% bonus, up to €2,500 in total + 300 free spins | Min. deposit €20 | 45x wagering | Max bonus bet €5 | Activate within 48 hours, valid 5 days | T&Cs apply | BeGambleAware.org
- #9
Bonus terms
18+ | New customers only | 100% deposit bonus up to €200 | Min. deposit €20 | 40x wagering | Max bet €5 | Bonus valid 10 days | Max withdrawal 10x the bonus amount | T&Cs apply | Gambling can be addictive.
- #10
Bonus terms
18+ | New players | Min. first deposit €20 (CAD/AUD: 15) | Bonus code FIRST | 100% bonus up to €1,000 + 100 free spins | 40x wagering on bonus & free-spin winnings | Max bonus withdrawal equals the bonus amount received | Max bet €5 while wagering | T&Cs apply | BeGambleAware.org
- #11
Bonus terms
Welcome bonus: 100% up to €1,250 on the first deposit (min. €20). The bonus must be wagered 30x with real money and is valid for 14 days. One redemption per player. 18+. T&Cs apply. Play responsibly.
- #12
Bonus terms
18+ | All deposits | Min. deposit €50 | Privilege Wheel: up to €700 bonus or 50 free spins on 3 Royal Coins / Lucky Streak 1000 | 30x wagering | Max withdrawal from free spins €300 | The prize must be activated with a min. €50 deposit | T&Cs apply | BeGambleAware.org
- #13
Bonus terms
Min. deposit €20 | 1st dep: 100% up to €1,000 + 200 FS | 2nd dep: 100% up to €200 + 50 FS | 35x wagering on deposit & bonus | 40x wagering on free-spin winnings | Bonus must be activated within 7 days | Wagering to be met within 10 days | Max withdrawal 6x the bonus amount | First 2 deposits only | T&Cs apply.
- #14
Bonus terms
Welcome package: 100% bonus up to €10,000 + 500 free spins, min. deposit €20. Bonus funds and deposits must be wagered 3x before a withdrawal is possible. Check whether your country is accepted before depositing. Full terms apply. 18+. Play responsibly.
- #15
Bonus terms
18+. New customers only. The casino welcome bonus of 100% up to €500 + 50 free spins applies on a successful first deposit after the bonus code is entered. Before any withdrawal a 5x wagering of the deposit is required, counting only sports bets at minimum odds 1.6 and casino bets without minimal or zero risk. Withdrawal limits and further bonus conditions apply under the general terms. 18+. T&Cs apply. Play responsibly.
What the extra pocket costs over a real session
A percentage of turnover is abstract until you multiply it by the number of spins you actually play. A dealt live table runs roughly 40 to 50 rounds an hour; an auto table runs closer to double that. Take 50 spins as one hour of ordinary play and the difference between the two wheels stops being a rounding error.
| Stake per spin | Turnover over 50 spins | European wheel | American wheel |
|---|---|---|---|
| A$2 | A$100 | $2.70 | $5.26 |
| A$5 | A$250 | $6.75 | $13.16 |
| A$10 | A$500 | $13.50 | $26.32 |
| A$25 | A$1,250 | $33.75 | $65.79 |
Those are long-run expectations, not a forecast for your hour: any individual session lands anywhere around them. What the table does show is the shape of the decision. At $10 a spin the American wheel costs about $13 more per hour for exactly the same game, and an auto table at the same stake charges you that twice as fast because it deals twice as many rounds.
Rounds per hour is the hidden dial
Cost is the percentage multiplied by turnover, and turnover is stake multiplied by rounds. Halving your spin rate does more for your balance than any change to how you spread the chips, which is why a dealt table with a chatty dealer is cheaper to play than an auto wheel at the same stake.
La partage and en prison: the rules worth looking for
French tables run the 37-pocket wheel with an extra rule that applies only to the even-money bets: red or black, odd or even, high or low. Under la partage, when the zero lands you get half your even-money stake back instead of losing all of it. A $10 bet on black loses $5 rather than $10, and because the zero is the only losing case that rule touches, the long-run cost of that bet falls from 2.70% to 1.35%.
En prison reaches the same place by a different route: the stake is locked for one more spin instead of half returned, and it is released if the bet wins next time. Either rule makes an even-money bet the cheapest thing on any roulette table anywhere, and neither does anything at all for a straight-up number or a corner. Check the table rules panel, because the same lobby often carries a French table and a plain European one at similar limits.
What every roulette bet pays
Here is the part most pages get backwards. On a single-zero wheel every bet in the list below costs you the same 2.70% of what you stake. Spreading chips across six numbers instead of one changes how often you win and how much you win, not the price of playing.
| Bet | Numbers covered | Pays | Long-run cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Straight up | 1 | 35 to 1 | 2.70% |
| Split | 2 | 17 to 1 | 2.70% |
| Street | 3 | 11 to 1 | 2.70% |
| Corner | 4 | 8 to 1 | 2.70% |
| Six line | 6 | 5 to 1 | 2.70% |
| Column or dozen | 12 | 2 to 1 | 2.70% |
| Red, black, odd, even, high, low | 18 | 1 to 1 | 2.70%, or 1.35% with la partage |
The exception is the five-number bet, and it exists only on the American wheel. It covers zero, double zero, 1, 2 and 3 and pays 6 to 1. Five pockets in 38 winning six units against 33 pockets losing one leaves three units short on 38, which is 7.89%: the most expensive bet on any standard roulette felt. Skip it, and with it the wheel that offers it.
What works
- One decision, the wheel, does more for your money than every other roulette choice combined.
- Even-money bets on a French table are the cheapest wager in the building at 1.35%.
- Every payout and every rule is printed in the table panel before you place a chip.
- Software tables have a free demo mode, so the layout can be learned at no cost.
What to watch
- Auto tables double the rounds per hour, and the cost per hour with them.
- Table minimums on live wheels can sit well above a software table's.
- Roulette is often excluded from bonus turnover or counted at a fraction of the stake.
- No state regulator stands behind an offshore operator if a settled round is disputed.
Do roulette betting systems change anything?
No, and the arithmetic shows why in one line. A wheel has no memory, so each spin is the same 19 losing pockets in 37 regardless of what the scoreboard above the table says. A staking pattern changes the order and size of your bets, which changes the shape of your results, and leaves the percentage exactly where it was.
Doubling after a loss is the pattern people mean. Starting at A$5 on black, the sequence runs $5, $10, $20, $40, $80, $160, $320. Six losses in a row cost $315, the seventh bet is $320, and winning it returns $640: the whole sequence nets $5. Six losing even-money spins on a single-zero wheel is 19/37 multiplied by itself six times, about one sequence in 55, which is something you will meet in an evening rather than in a lifetime.
| Loss number | Next bet | Staked so far | Net if that bet wins |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $10 | $5 | +$5 |
| 3 | $40 | $35 | +$5 |
| 5 | $160 | $155 | +$5 |
| 7 | $640 | $635 | +$5 |
| 9 | $2,560 | $2,555 | +$5 |
Read the right-hand column against the third. You are staking $2,555 in pursuit of $5, and the table maximum will usually stop the sequence before your balance does. That is the whole story of every progression: it trades a high chance of a small gain for a small chance of a very large loss, at the same 2.70% cost per dollar staked.
Check the wheel, then check the terms
Each row of the comparison table opens the operator's own conditions, including whether table games count towards turnover at all.
See the offerLive roulette or the software wheel
A software table is a random number generator drawing a pocket, dealt instantly, playable in demo mode and entirely at your own pace. A live table is a physical wheel in a studio, filmed and streamed, with a countdown you have to bet inside and no practice version. The live dealer page covers what the stream needs from a phone and how table tiles publish their limits.
- 01
Count the zeros
One zero, sit down. Two zeros, close the table and find the European or French version in the same lobby.
- 02
Open the rules panel
Look for la partage or en prison on the even-money bets, and for the minimum and maximum on the bet you intend to place.
- 03
Set the round count, not the balance
At A$5 a spin, 50 rounds is $250 of turnover and about an hour at a dealt table. Decide the number of rounds before you start.
- 04
Check the bonus terms if you are playing with bonus money
Roulette is frequently excluded from wagering or counted at a fraction of the stake, and a maximum bet clause can apply to a table chip exactly as it applies to a spin.
How turnover is counted, and why a game weighted at 10% makes a 40x requirement into something far larger in practice, is set out on how wagering is calculated. Offers that drop the requirement instead are on the no wagering page, and if you want the games where the published figures are strongest, the highest RTP page is the one to read.
One point of law belongs on this page, because roulette is named in the legislation. The Interactive Gambling Act 2001 prohibits the supply of online casino games, roulette among them, to a person physically present in Australia without a licence, and no such licence exists here. Every operator listed is offshore, and the Act puts its obligations on the business supplying the service rather than on the individual placing the bet. The legal page covers it in full, blackjack and baccarat get the same treatment on their own pages, and you can open the top-ranked casino to read its conditions directly.
