Online roulette is a game of chance where you bet on which numbered pocket a ball will land in after the wheel spins — and your betting options range from a single number to broad red/black or odd/even wagers, each with its own odds. Roulette has been popular for centuries, and practical odds references such as the Wizard of Odds roulette guide show why the zero matters so much.
A little know-how goes a long way. This guide explains how online roulette works, walks through every betting option, compares the main variants and their house edge, and covers the side bets and multipliers you will see in modern games.
How Online Roulette Works
Picture a wheel divided into numbered pockets coloured red or black, with a single green zero — and a double zero in American versions. The table layout mirrors those numbers, and that is where you place your chips.
Online, the spin is handled one of two ways. In digital roulette, a Random Number Generator (RNG) — the software that produces a random result for every round — decides where the ball lands. In live roulette, the game is streamed from a studio with a real dealer spinning a real wheel. Either way, you place your bets, the wheel spins, and the ball settles into one random pocket. If you backed that outcome, you are paid out based on the bet’s odds.
Your Betting Options in Online Roulette
Roulette bets fall into three groups, each with different odds and payouts.
Inside bets focus on specific numbers or small groups — higher payouts, lower odds of hitting:
- Straight: a single number.
- Split: two neighbouring numbers (chip on the line between them).
- Street: a row of three numbers.
- Corner: four numbers that meet at a corner.
- Line: two rows, six numbers in total.
Outside bets cover larger sections of the wheel — lower payouts, but they land more often:
- Red/Black: the colour of the winning number.
- Odd/Even: whether the number is odd or even.
- High/Low: the 1–18 (low) or 19–36 (high) range.
- Dozen: one of three sets of twelve numbers.
- Column: a full column of numbers.
Announced (call) bets, common in European and French games, cover a segment of the wheel rather than the table — for example Voisins du Zéro (the numbers around the zero) or a neighbour bet that covers a number plus those beside it on the wheel.
Roulette Variants and Their House Edge
Each version follows the same core rules, but small differences change your odds. The number of zeros is the biggest factor — it sets the house edge, the long-run percentage the casino keeps.
| Variant | Pockets | House edge | What’s different |
|---|---|---|---|
| European | 37 (single zero) | 2.70% | The standard, balanced version |
| French | 37 (single zero) | down to 1.35% on even bets | Adds La Partage and En Prison rules |
| American | 38 (double zero) | 5.26% | Extra 00 raises the casino’s edge |
| Speed Roulette | 37 (single zero) | 2.70% | Faster rounds, more spins per session |
| Lightning Roulette | 37 (single zero) | varies | Random multipliers up to 500x on straight bets |
French roulette is the most player-friendly: La Partage returns half your even-money bet if the ball hits zero, and En Prison locks it for the next spin instead of losing it outright. If you care about odds across the casino floor, see our breakdown of which casino games have the best and worst odds.
Special Mechanics and Side Bets
Beyond the classic format, modern roulette adds extra layers:
- Game speed: Speed Roulette compresses each round so you get more plays in the same window.
- Multipliers: games like Lightning Roulette apply random multipliers to straight-up numbers for bigger potential payouts.
- Side bets and jackpots: titles such as Age of the Gods Roulette bolt a progressive jackpot onto the wheel, giving an extra way to win on top of your main bet.
These mechanics add variety, not better odds — the underlying house edge still applies. For more on picking a table, read our guide to casino roulette and our practical roulette tips.
Conclusion
Roulette pairs simple rules with a wide range of bets, from a single number to a whole colour. Learn the inside, outside, and announced bets, understand how the single or double zero shapes the house edge, and pick the variant that suits how you like to play. With the basics down, every spin becomes a decision rather than a guess.
