New roulette casinos: which wheel to play

Wheels compared

How each new variant plays: how to play new roulette games.

Roulette house edge: single zero against double zero

Roulette has one house edge per wheel, and the bet type rarely changes it. European roulette carries a house edge of 2.7% on every bet. American roulette carries a house edge of 5.26% on most bets. The extra zero on the American wheel adds a second losing pocket without raising any payout.

A straight up bet pays 35:1. Roulette straight up bets carry a house edge of 2.7% on a single-zero wheel. A red or black bet pays 1:1 and costs the same on that wheel. Roulette therefore rewards choosing the wheel, not the bet. Bet choice changes how often you win and how large the swings are, and it does not change the average cost.

American roulette has one exception. The first five bet covers 0, 00, 1, 2 and 3 and pays 6:1. The first five bet carries a house edge of 7.89%. Players at new casinos should avoid that bet on any double-zero wheel.

Roulette RTP is the share of stakes returned over a long run, and the house edge is 100 minus that figure. A lower house edge therefore means a higher RTP on the same wheel. Our guide to what RTP means at new online casinos explains how to read the number.

La partage and en prison: cheaper even-money bets

French roulette uses the single-zero wheel with one extra rule for even-money bets. La partage returns half of an even-money stake when the ball lands on zero. Even-money bets with la partage carry a house edge of 1.35%.

The en prison rule works differently. En prison locks the stake for the next spin when zero lands, and the bet is released if it then wins. Even-money bets with en prison carry a house edge of 1.39%. La partage is slightly cheaper, and both rules beat the plain European wheel.

Roulette rules vary by table, so read the rules panel before you stake. The panel states whether zero costs half the stake or the whole stake. Session length and table limits matter just as much, and our tips for table games cover both.

Multiplier and mini roulette: what the extra features cost

Lightning Roulette keeps the single-zero wheel and adds random multipliers on straight up numbers. Lightning Roulette pays 29:1 on a straight up bet instead of 35:1, and lucky numbers pay 50x to 500x. The lower base payout funds the multipliers, so the long-run cost stays close to European roulette.

Mini Roulette uses 13 numbers, from 0 to 12. Mini Roulette bets that do not cover zero carry a house edge of 3.85%. Mini Roulette bets that cover zero carry a house edge of 7.69%. The small wheel is poor value next to a full European wheel.

Live roulette comes from a small number of studios, and the studio decides which variants a casino can offer. Evolution and Playtech run most of the well-known wheels. Our profile of Evolution casino products lists what the studio supplies.

Roulette and bonus wagering

Roulette usually contributes little to bonus wagering. Many casinos count roulette at 10% to 20%, and some exclude it. A stake of 100 on roulette then clears only 10 to 20 of the requirement.

Operators restrict roulette because its low edge makes bonus clearing cheap. Check the contribution table in the bonus terms before you play. The balance rules matter too, and our guide to sticky and non-sticky bonuses explains how a bonus balance is locked.

How to choose a roulette casino

A good roulette lobby offers a single-zero wheel at every limit. Check three things before you deposit: whether a French or la partage table exists, which studio runs the live wheels and whether roulette counts towards the bonus. The ranking below shows casinos of every age, and the stamp on each one shows how new it is. A newer casino can still be a sound pick if it lists the wheels above.