Roulette Beginners Guide

Learn the roulette basics

Roulette is a fascinating game of chance. The game is simple to play but involves a complex betting schedule that offers challenges and suspense. Roulette is one of the most popular games at casinos around the world. There are thrills, excitement and no deposit casino bonus giveaways that come with the game.  If you’re planning on playing the game for real money, you should take a few minutes before the first spin to explore the rules of the game, theme variations, and the different bet types.

Online Roulette vs. Land-Based Roulette

Roulette is a featured game at land-based and online casino sites. Roulette got its start in the 17th century when the roulette wheel was developed by Blaise Pascal who was trying to develop a perpetual motion machine. Game operators combined the wheel with the  Italian game of Biribi to create a game that would fascinate gamers for centuries to come.

Roulette was first introduced to Paris in the late 1700s and was quickly adopted by casinos that were established on the French Riviera. Over the years roulette proved to be a popular game. Multiple variations have been introduced over the years but the classic European Roulette and the 19th century hybrid American roulette have remained the favorites for roulette aficionados throughout the world.

Roulette

The game has been played in its present form since as early as 1796 in Paris where people found playing the “Little Wheel” game to offer a fascinating and rewarding gambling adventure. 

The original game, now called “European Roulette” featured a wheel with 36 pockets and one “zero” pocket. Later on, American roulette was introduced and it featured a double zero pocket together with the single zero pocket and the 36-numbered pockets. Additional rules were introduced for players who wanted to experience a more involved and thoughtful game including the “en prison” rule and the “la partage” rule.

Most gamers prefer the traditional form of roulette. Here is a beginners guide to roulette:

Rules

The rules of roulette are basically straightforward. You have a wheel that features black and red pockets. Each pocket has one number on it. The numbers are 1 – 36. There’s also a green pocket on the European roulette wheel and two green pockets on the American roulette wheel. The green pocket on the European wheel has one zero and the additional green pocket on the American wheel has two pockets.

Alongside the wheel, you have a table that is sectioned off. That’s the betting table and you use that table to place your bets.

Betting Table

The betting table is sectioned off and the player places his bets. When all the participants in the game have placed their bets, the dealer spins the wheel. A small ball is thrown into the wheel and the number/color of the pocket into which the wheel falls indicates the win.

There are some small differences in the table layout from one game to the next but it won’t impact on the outcome of the game.

On all betting tables, you have the option to bet on a single number or on a group of numbers. Each combination/single number bet gives you a specific opportunity to win your wager.

The bets are divided into three main categories: inside bets, outside bets, and announced bets. All of the roulette games offer options for making inside or outside bets. If you’re looking for a more advanced game you might want to explore the announced bets which are a bit more complex and not something that we want to cover in a beginners guide. 

Inside Bets

The part of the roulette table that focuses on individual numbers (zero to 36) is the area of the betting table where you can place an inside bet. There are 7 types of inside bets including

  • Straight Bets – bets that cover one number. To make an inside bet, place the chip inside the square of the number.
  • Split Bets – a bet that covers 2 numbers that are side-by-side on the table. To make a split bet, place the chip on the shared line that separates the two numbers on which you want to bet
  • Street Bets – Street bets are those wagers that are placed on three consecutive numbers that are located on the same line. A street bet is made by placing the chip on the outer corner of the row.
  • Six Line Bets – Bets on two adjacent lines, made by placing the chip on the common outer corner of the 2 lines
  • Corner Bets – Also called a “square bet”, this is a four-number bet which are made when the player places the chip on the common corner of the 4 numbers.
  • Trio Bets – bets placed on three numbers that include a zero or the double zero. A trio bet is placed on the line that’s shared by the zero box and the two other numbers
  • Basket Bet – A bet made on a 0 (and double zero in American roulette),  1, 2 and 3. The bet is made when the player places a chip on the corner shared by the zero box and the first line.

Each type of bet brings you different odds and different payouts. In general, inside bets are harder to hit but if you do hit them, the payouts are significantly better than outside bets.

Outside Bets

Outside bets are laid on the betting table on the sections that cover larger groups of numbers, outside the number field. The outside bets include:

  • Colors Bets – the bet is placed on the color of the number – whether the winning number will be black or red
  • Evens or Odds – bets that are placed on whether the winning number will be an even or an odd number
  • 1-18 or 19-36/37 – Wagers placed on whether the winning number will be 18 or under or `19 and over.
  • Columns Bets – betting on which of the three columns will contain the winning number
  • Dozens Bets – wagers made on one of the three dozen as found on the layout of the table (1 – 12, 13 – 24, 25 – 36/37)

The decision about which bet to make is made by considering what type of game you want to play.

Do you want to play a safer game? Then the outside bets are for you. Are you interested in taking a bit of a risk? Inside bets would give you the higher element of risk that you’re looking for. 

Enjoy your game!