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Your Guide to Roulette Strategy and Tips

Roulette Wheel

If you don’t know roulette by name, you’ll definitely recognize it when you see it! Roulette is an exciting and fast-paced casino game which is often seen in movies, characterized by the round, spinning wheel with black and red numbers. Roulette has made leaps and bounds since it was first invented accidentally in 1655, and it now makes appearances in almost every online casino!

Roulette seems like a fairly simple game, a croupier rolls a ball around a "little wheel", as the term roulette translates from French, and the ball falls on a coloured number. The complexity comes in the betting options and the house edge stems from the green coloured numbers. These green numbers are either "0" and "00" depending on the variant of roulette being played, European or American. The rest of the bets are all weighted evenly to the odds meaning you will need a strategy to beat the house edge.

We will detain some of these strategies that can give the player the edge in making some coin. So read up and head over to the games page to practice these strategies so you know what you are doing when it comes time to play for real money.

Roulette Betting Systems

It is widely known that roulette is a game based entirely on luck. There is no way that the table could be rigged, especially in online versions. However, there are certain systems and strategies you can use when placing your bets in order to keep focused while taking a systematic approach to the game. There are dozens of systems you could use when it comes to Roulette but the most popular ones include:

Flat Betting System

This is definitely the simplest of the betting systems and it is often recommended for beginners. To use the flat betting system, simply use the same amount for each bet for each and every round. This keeps things straightforward and it’s easy to keep track of how much you are winning and losing. Many players are against this system as they believe yu eventually lose to the house because of the house edge.

De ‘Alembert System

De ‘Alembert betting system is also quite basic. The rules in this system state you should decrease your original bet by one unit after a win and increase your bet by one unit after a loss. This system is based on a well-known gambling myth that wins are more likely to crop up after losses and that losses in turn follow wins.

Martingale System

This betting system is well known around the world and is a bit more complicated than the first two systems mentioned.  The system states that each time you start your first bet at 1 unit and each time you make a loss you double your bet, and continue doing so until you make a win. After a win, you bet 1 unit again and continue betting 1 unit until you make a loss, at which point you double your bet again. This system can be quite effective; however you may have to bet exceptionally high during a long losing run.

Reverse Martingale System

As you may have guessed, this system works in the reverse way that the Martingale system does. You start with 1 unit and double it after every win, returning to the single unit after ever loss. A long winning streak can cause you to start betting very high amounts so it may be a good idea to lower your bet before you lose.

Fibonacci System

This system uses the famous Fibonacci number sequence to help determine the sequence of your bets in Roulette. As with the Martingale system, you start off with a 1 unit bet and upon a loss you double it. From then on, after every loss, your new bet is the sum of previous two numbers in the sequence. To give you an idea the Fibonacci sequence goes as follows: 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 21, 34, 55, etc. When making a win, simply delete the previous two numbers in the series and start from there. This can be tricky and it helps to have the sequence in front of you while betting.

Reverse Fibonacci System

Much like you’d expect, this system works in the opposite way to the Fibonacci system while still using the famous sequence as a guide. In this system you raise your bet to the next number in the sequence each time you make a win and go two numbers back in the sequence every time you make a loss.

Labouchere System

This system can be a little more complicated and is recommended for more experienced players. The first thing you need to do when playing with this system is to think of a realistic amount you’d like to win. As an example, let’s use 10 units. Now create a list of various small numbers that add up to 10. Again for an example our list goes as 1; 2; 3 2; 1; 1.

The next step is to add the first and last numbers of your sequence to get your first bet amount, which would be 2. If you win, remove the first and last number so that you’re left with 2; 3; 2; 1. Now again, add your first and last number of the sequence together to get your bet, which is 3. If you lose, add 3 as a whole number to the end of your sequence so it reads as 2; 3; 2; 1; 3. Keep repeating this cycle until all the numbers have disappeared. Once this happens you know you’ve won your intended amount of 10 units.

Types of Roulette Bets

Roulette BetsPlacing bets in online Roulette can be a rather complicated affair as there are so many bets to choose from! You are typically presented with a mat displaying all the bets available. Below are some of the options you have when betting. Keep in mind it is possible to make more than one bet per round.

Roulette Odds

The house edge is quite an important factor to consider when choosing a Roulette game to play. The house edge is essentially the advantage that the online casinos have over the player expressed as a percentage. The lower percentage of the house edge the better it is for the player! French and European Roulette usually has a similar house edge of approximately 2.7%. American Roulette is slightly higher at 5.26%.

Game Variations

As with most casino games, Roulette has a few variations. The biggest divide in Roulette is between the European version and the American version, with the European lacking the additional ‘00’ on the wheel that the American version is famous for. French Roulette, which is slightly less popular than both American and European Roulette, is also void of the ‘00’ but has a slightly different betting map to the other two versions.

When playing online you should have the choice between an automated (but still totally random) Roulette game or playing Roulette with a live dealer. Online Roulette games may also have certain themes to make them more exciting and assist them in standing out from the crowd.

General tips for Roulette

One of the best tips when it comes to playing Roulette is to always choose European Roulette over American Roulette as European Roulette’s odds are more in your favour. This is because there is only one ‘0’ on the wheel in the European version as opposed to the ‘0’ and the ‘00’ in the American version.

Learn as much strategy as you can by playing free demo versions of Roulette to get a feel for the game before you start playing for real money. This will help you understand how the different strategies work and give you confidence in making bets.

Roulette can get emotional and heated at times but it is important to remember to play with your head and not your heart as well as to keep calm and employ strategies to assist you.

Last Updated: December 17, 2022

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