How to Play American Roulette
Online casinos offer various versions of roulette; however, American roulette remains the most popular in North America. Roulette options differ not only in bets, but also in the structure of the table, where you can use one or more sectors. To place real money bets, you need to know how to play American roulette in the USA, which will help increase your winning chances.
What Is American Roulette
Only one zero sector is available in European and French roulette; in American roulette, there is a double zero sector, this small feature results in an increase in house edge from 2.7 to 5.26%.
Basic Rules
Various providers are developing their versions of American roulette for online casinos, including Microgaming, NetEnt, Betsoft, and Playtech. First of all, you need to decide which roulette version you give preference to, and then you have to set the bet size.
Next, you need to choose the format of the bet by placing chips on one sector or placing them on several sectors at the same time. You can place bets until the dealer announces the end of betting at the table; after that, it remains only to wait for the completion of the roulette wheel rotation and get a win if the ball lands on the sector you bet on.
Wheel & Table
The playing field in American roulette is divided into 38 sectors, like the Wheel of Fortune; there are black and red sectors, while 0 and 00 have a green color.
Your task during betting will be to determine on which of the sectors of the wheel the ball will stop.
You can bet on one sector to receive the maximum amount in case of victory, or use several sectors to increase the chances of winning.
Popular Bets & Odds
To understand how to play American roulette, you need to study the types of bets in detail.
| Number of Sectors | Name of the Bet | Payout |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Straight | 35:1 |
| 2 | Split | 17:1 |
| 3 | Street | 11:1 |
| 4 | First Four | 8:1 |
| 6 | Six Line | 5:1 |
| 12 | Columns | 2:1 |
| 12 | Dozens | 2:1 |
| 18 | Equal Chances | 1:1 |
Each of them involves the activation of a certain number of sectors, and the amount of the payout depends on the format of the bet. For example, the Equal Chances allows you to use 18 sectors at once, so the chances of winning will tend to 50%, but the payout occurs at a ratio of 1:1, while the Street bet uses only 3 sectors at a payout ratio of 11:1.
Inside Bets
You can place inside bets on one sector or on a group of them; they differ from the outside ones by lower chances of winning, but also by more significant theoretical payouts. They got their name from the fact that the sectors are located on the inside of the playing field; you can bet on 1, 2, 3, 4, or 6 sectors.
Outside Bets
There are 4 main types of outside bets:
- Small and large numbers
- Columns and dozens
- Red or black
- Even and odd sectors
A bet on small numbers allows you to use numbers from 1 to 18 inclusive, and when betting on large numbers, sectors from 19 to 36 inclusive are available. A bet on red or black is also easy to understand, as it activates the numbers on the red or black roulette sectors respectively. By betting on even numbers, you can win if the ball stops at 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and similar sectors; to win when betting on odd numbers, the ball needs to land in sectors 1, 3, 5, 7, etc. A more unusual option is betting on columns or dozens.
In the first case, you activate one of the three columns, which are highlighted in red in the screenshot. In the second, the bet is made on 12 numbers, which are available in the format of a 4 × 3 rectangle and are highlighted in blue in the image.
Betting Limits
Each table has certain minimum and maximum bet limits; you should choose a table that matches the deposit possibilities and the chosen strategy.
House Edge
Every casino game has a certain house edge, and roulette is no exception; the advantage can be easily described when betting on equal chances, where in theory the probability of winning should be 50%. In practice, these odds differ in different versions of the game:
- European roulette — 48.6%.
- French roulette — 48.6%.
- American roulette — 46.37%.
The reason is that in American roulette the number of sectors increases from 37 to 38 due to the additional 00, which almost doubles the house edge.
Withdrawal Methods
If you have decided to play American roulette in the USA for real money, then you need to choose the most suitable way to withdraw your winnings. Usually, online casinos offer bank cards, electronic wallets, and cryptocurrency wallets; each payment method has its own limits, and there can be additional commissions that you should consider when choosing the way to withdraw winnings.
Steps on How to Play American Roulette
To place bets in American Roulette, you need to sign up to the casino and select the appropriate game mode, for virtual chips (demo) or for real money; in the latter case, you need to additionally make a deposit before placing real money bets. Next, you need to familiarize yourself with the different versions of the game from various developers, which are available in the casino catalog.
You should make a bet in accordance with the chosen strategy and the possibilities of your bankroll.
After activating a certain number of sectors, you can only hope for your own luck; after the spin results are known, the casino automatically credits the winnings to your account if you are the winner.
Tips on How to Play & Win at American Roulette
To play American roulette and win real money, you need to control your own excitement; the rational decision would be to set the size of the minimum bet and stick to it regardless of the situation at the table; you can also set daily bet limits. You have to take breaks from your bets from time to time to help maintain a clear view and better control the game process. It is better to bet on several numbers, since the probability of the ball falling on one particular sector is very low.
Popular American Roulette Strategies
All strategies that you can use when playing roulette can be divided into progressive and non-progressive. The essence of the progressive strategies is the increasing of the bet size after each round; various strategies may consider or not consider the previous round. Progressive strategies offer you to follow a simple template understandable even if you are a newbie at the online casino; therefore, they are very popular.
The most relevant progressive strategies are Labouchere, Martingale, d’Alembert, and Fibonacci.
Since the bet size constantly increases, you have to set the size of the first bet correctly. If the progression does not have time to work, that is, you do not win back the previous bets before you run out of bankroll, then the strategy will not be profitable.
Non-progressive strategies are based on the fact that you repeat the same bet after each round, no matter what the outcome was in the previous game; non-progressive strategies are usually used at short-term bets.
Advantages & Disadvantages of Martingale Strategy
When going to play American roulette, newbies often prefer the strategy of John Henry Martingale, which he created in the 18th century; you can use It not only in roulette, but also in a number of other types of gambling titles.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Easy to apply | It is impossible to predict the number of bets before winning |
| Suitable for players with different bankrolls | — |
| Doesn't require complicated calculations | — |
| Works in different roulette versions | — |
When applying strategies in American roulette, you have to be sure that you understand their features exactly and can apply them in reality; it will be difficult to win with this strategy without a solid bankroll.
