How to Play Roulette Online ? Rules, Bets, and Strategy

Roulette is easily the most thrilling casino game in the business. It's easy to learn, takes just a couple of minutes to master the rules, and can be a real hoot. No wonder that online roulette remains such a favorite — especially when playing real money roulette gives it that little bit of added zing.

Basic Rules

The concept is simple: there is a ball and a dealer. In online roulette, the dealer usually gets replaced by a random number generator, but there are some versions with live dealers. To win, a player has to correctly guess where the ball will land — whether it is a number, range of numbers, or color — based on what kind of bet they place. Speaking of bets, they are an essential aspect of the game, so let's discuss them in the next point.

Types of Bets

Roulette wagers will usually be divided into two general groups: inside bets and outside bets (more specialized divisions in some variations).

Inside Bets

Inside bets involve single numbers or combinations within the inner section of the table. These are the most typical ones:

• Straight-up: Place a wager on one number. Wins 35 to 1.
• Split: Place a bet on two adjacent numbers. Wins 17 to 1.
• Street: A bet on a line of three figures.
• Corner (or square): A bet on an accumulation of four figures.
• Six line: A bet on two rows side by side (six numbers in total).

The more numbers your wager covers, the higher your odds — but the smaller the reward. Risk-players are likely to place straight-up bets with high payouts, while conservative players may like safer, more consistent victories. Players in this category may enjoy outside bets.

Outside Bets

These are wider bets with greater odds of winning but smaller payouts:

• Red or Black: Bet on where the ball will land, red or black. Pays 1 to 1.
• Even or Odd: Bet on if the number will be even or odd. Also pays 1 to 1.
• Low or High: Guess if the number will be in the range 1–18 (low) or 19–36 (high).
• Dozens: The numbers split into three groups of twelve (1–12, 13–24, 25–36). A successful pick pays 2 to 1.

You can combine a number of bets — like place a dozen and a color simultaneously. Outside bets are great to have the steady flow of gains and losses instead of hoping for that single major stroke of luck.

Variations of the Game

French roulette is the original game and remains well-liked. It's characterized by the fact that French is spoken on the table.

European roulette is the same thing, only in English. Most common in internet casinos is this variant.

American roulette adds a twist, however: it has one zero and one double zero, and this increases the house edge. Also, the layout is slightly altered and call bets are not used.

Online roulette can even feature one-of-a-kind, non-standard variations. Bonus slots are a part of some of them that can multiply the bet hundreds of times, start mini-games, or give unexpected bonuses — thanks to the flexibility of web formats.

Playing Systems and Strategies

While every player will eventually create his own system, the following advice can assist you in starting off sensibly:

• Set a budget and make sure it is for a certain number of bets.
• Split risk by putting your bankroll — say 25% on high-risk inside bets and the rest on safer even-money outside bets. 
• Stop-loss: set the maximum you can afford to lose for a single session (e.g., stop when you lose 10% of bankroll). 
• Stop-win: set a profit target, e.g., 25–30%, and stop the session when reached.

No system will ever alter the outcome of where the ball lands — luck still plays the biggest role — but following a plan will permit you to keep your finances in check and make sound decisions. That's really the secret to having fun playing roulette and playing successfully in the end.