A guide to roulette bets & betting strategies

The perfect bet for a beginner, here you’re wagering that the winning number will either be red or black. This bet pays out even money, meaning you’ll keep your original wager plus an equal amount back in winnings.

This bet covers all odd or even numbers on the table. In total, your bet will cover either 18 odd or 18 even numbers. Just like red or black, this bet pays out even money.

The numbers on the wheel can be separated into two halves. The numbers 1-18 are considered low and 19-36 are considered high. This is another outside bet that pays even money.

A roulette table is split into three columns – this bet covers one entire column. The chances of winning are lower than even-money bets, but the payouts are also higher at 2 to 1. Players can choose to play one, two, or three columns in a single round. The numbers included in each are:

• 1st column: 1, 4, 7, 10, 13, 16, 19, 22, 25, 28, 31, 34
• 2nd column: 2, 5, 8, 11, 14, 17, 20, 23, 26, 29, 32, 35
• 3rd column: 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 31, 24, 27, 30, 33, 36

The numbers on a roulette table are also divided into dozens. The first dozen covers numbers 1-12, the second covers 13-24, and the third covers 25-36. On a table, you’ll find this bet located in-between the even money bets and the inside numbers. Just like a column bet, a single dozen will payout at 2 to 1.

This bet is a wager on a single number. Players can choose any number on the table from 1-36, as well as the 0 or 00 if playing American roulette. It’s a simple bet, but the chances of winning are very low – that’s why that payout is high at 35:1. Players can wager on as many straight-up bets as they like in one round.

Split bets cover two adjacent numbers on the roulette layout. For this bet, chips are placed on the line between the two numbers – for example, 8 and 9. Winning split bets pay out at 17:1 – this is slightly lower than a straight-up bet because two numbers are involved. Here’s a top tip to remember – numbers that are next to each other on the board aren’t next to each other on the wheel.

Street bets, or row bets, cover three numbers in a row on the layout. The numbers are all consecutive, for example, 1,2,3 or 4,5,6. Chips are placed at the bottom of the row and below the first number in the line. The payout for a street bet is 11:1 as the wager is based on three numbers.

Corner or square bets are wagers on four numbers on the roulette layout. The chip is placed on the corner where the four numbers meet – for example, in-between 8, 9, 11, and 12. The payout will be 8:1 as the wager relies on four numbers. Corner bets are great for upping your coverage of the table while still playing with more lucrative odds.

Like the name suggests, six line bets cover six consecutive numbers. This bet covers all the numbers on two adjacent rows of the table, like 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, or 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12. For this bet, the chip is placed on the line that separates the outside and inside bets, and in-between the two rows of numbers you want to cover. The odds for a six-line bet are 5:1 – you might also hear it called a quint bet.

Also known as a ‘sucker’ or five number bet, a basket bet is unique to American roulette. The bet includes five numbers: the two zero pockets (0 and 00) as well as 1, 2, and 3. The odds of winning a basket bet is 6:1. However, there’s a reason it’s called a ‘sucker’ bet. The bet has a low probability of winning matched with a low payout, meaning the house edge is much higher. For comparison, all other roulette bets come with a house edge of 5.3%, while the basket bet comes in at 7.9%. Steer clear at all costs!