The American Roulette Wheel

Laura Klusaite

Table Of Contents

Roulette Streaks Make No Difference To Your Chances Of Winning. Sometimes in roulette, the ball will land on the same number twice, three times or more in a row. This isn’t some freaky wizardry, it’s simple statistics. On an American roulette wheel, the odds of spinning the same number three times in a row can be calculated. So, American roulette has 38 sectors on the wheel. And in American roulette players have chips of their own colors: every player gets a set of certain color chips to differ from other players. It is convenient. The American Roulette rules are quite simple and almost the same as in European Roulette. The American Wheel. The roulette wheel, which can be found in casinos in the United States and Canada, the Bahamas and the Caribbean Islands as well as in some regions in Asia, is known as the American wheel. Its wheelhead consists of 38 numbered ball pockets, which are alternately colored in red and black.

There are still many different online Roulette variations available at Casino.com IN that use the European wheel. These games are more popular around the world for a variety of reasons. The biggest advantage these games have over the American game is the wheel consists of 36 pockets, with a single zero, instead of the 37 pockets and double-zero. Roulette is a game in which players place bets on where a ball will land on a circular wheel that contains dozens of different numbered pockets. On an American roulette wheel layout, you will see 38 pockets in total: the numbers 1-36, as well as 0 (zero) and 00 (double zero).

  • American Roulette and European roulette are two similar yet very different games
  • The Roulette table layout changes in each version of the game
  • You should always choose the single zero roulette over the double zero wheels

No. More. Confusion. Do you want to know what is the real difference between American and European Roulette?

That's what you find on this guide.

Roulette is one of the most played Casino games, and such popularity comes (also) from the invention of many variants of the game.

The most popular versions are the American and European Roulette.

On this article, you find clear and easy to understand answers to questions like:

  • What do the American and European wheel have in common?
  • What is the difference between American and European Roulette?
  • What Roulette strategy is best on American vs European Roulette?

The Main Difference Between American and European Roulette

The American Roulette Wheel

A quick look at the Roulette table layouts and at each Roulette wheel should be enough for you to notice the most important difference between American and European Roulette.

It doesn't matter whether you play Roulette online or you are standing next to a Roulette table at a brick-and-mortar Casino.

The difference is subtle yet clear. And the same difference affects both the design of the wheel and the house edge.

The Difference in Roulette Wheels

Random generator wheel

The American wheel has 38 pockets for the Roulette ball to rest in. Those are black and red numbers, from 1 to 36. And two extra green pockets for a single 0 (0) and a double 0 (00).

If you glimpse at European Roulette (often referred to as French Roulette), you will also see 36 numbered pockets that are either red or black. But only one green pocket for zero.

Also, you may notice that the numbers on the wheels are not in the exact same order. But that's a less relevant difference between European and American Roulette.

The main difference between an American and European Roulette wheel is the number of green pockets / zeroes. The European roulette wheel features one green pocket (0) whereas the American Roulette wheel (more popular in Las Vegas) features two of them: 0, 00.

The Difference Is in the House Edge

Although this subtle difference may seem irrelevant, it is one that can have an enormous impact on the outcome of your games.

American Roulette vs. European Roulette: the House Edge

The odds of winning when betting on particular numbers at American Roulette are lower. 1 in 38 compared to 1 in 37 when playing European Roulette.

In some games, when the odds are lower, the payouts are bigger. And that's logical, right?

But it's not the case with American Roulette.

Even with lower odds, for betting on the winning number you get paid the same - 35 to 1. Just like in European Roulette.

Having that extra green pocket was not the American Roulette designer's whim. It was a strategic move for the house to have a higher edge.

All in all, when you play American Roulette, the House Edge is 5.26%. And that's a lot. In the case of European Roulette, the House Edge is only 2.7%.

That's a huge difference, considering you are playing the same game, with exactly the same payouts, and the same level of excitement.

Which Variant of Roulette is Better?

Better odds, lower house edge… Do I need to spell it out?

The difference between American and European Roulette may be subtle. But the odds make European Roulette a better option.

Don't get me wrong.

I am not saying you should never ever play American Roulette. If you put a good Roulette strategy in place, you can lower the House Edge significantly no matter which variant you play.

Plus, playing American or European Roulette for free doesn't make that much of a difference to your bankroll, does it?

And finally, there are more variants of European Roulette to try online. Don't limit yourself to only American or only European Roulette.

There are so many Roulette variants for you to choose from, that you can alternate between the games where you get better chances (European Roulette) and the ones you want to play to try something new.

For example, you can try the Double Ball Roulette (free, on this page) where you play with two balls at the same time. And you know how they say, 'double the action, double the fun!'

Where to Play American and European Roulette

No matter which version of Roulette you choose, you need a place to play it. And that should be a good place, too. Especially, if you want to play Roulette for real money at an online Casino.

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In 2019, I recommend you to have a look at the European Roulette and American Roulette games featured at Mongoose Casino, an up-and-coming new website with lots of Roulette games.

Here's a quick list of the different Roulette games available at Mongoose.

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Roulette GameDemoPlay
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French RouletteDemoPlay Game
American RouletteDemoPlay Game
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American RouletteDemoPlay Game
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A selection like that one is great to discover the game, understand the differences between European Roulette and American Roulette, and enjoy even the craziest single-number bets.

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Roulette

Roulette remains one of the most popular casino games around, both online and at your local casino.

The premise of the game is simple – you pick a number and hope when the spinning ball stops that it lands on a number you have placed a bet on.

The game’s popularity is worldwide, but there are differences to roulette around the globe, with there being both a European and an American version, which both offer exactly the same roulette odds.

In this article, we look through both versions and explain the differences between the two as well as finding out more about the ball which makes it all possible.

Want to give roulette a try? You can also play on our online roulettetables here.

European Roulette Wheel

This is by far the most popular version around with 37 pockets on the wheel with numbers from 1-36 as well a single green zero pocket.

Roulette wheel numbers sequence

The sequence of numbers on a European roulette wheel is as follows:

Wheel

0, 32, 15, 19, 4, 21, 2, 25, 17, 34, 6, 27, 13, 36, 11, 30, 8, 23, 10,

5, 24, 16, 33, 1, 20, 14, 31, 9, 22, 18, 29, 7, 28, 12, 35, 3, 26

The sequence does not follow any particular pattern and that is what makes it even more difficult to try and predict what number the ball will land on each time.

From looking at the wheel you cannot see a relation between one number and the next other than that it goes in an odd-even fashion.

As well as that, the adjacent numbers also go in a red-black format all the way around and again you cannot see a pattern emerge from where the numbers are placed.

The numbers are also alternate between low (1-18) and high (19-36) and the only real exception is with 5 and 10’s position on the wheel.

Even and odd numbers are evenly distributed around the wheel, and on no occasion is there more than a run of two even or odd numbers in a row.

American Roulette Wheel Game

While playing roulette there is certain information which is made available to players based on previous results, enabling them to place a bet based on that.

Generally, it shows what numbers have come out more often than others and the colour of the winning bet – which could influence whether you place a bet on a red or black number.

European Roulette table

The European roulette table shows every number you can bet on, while the green zero is placed at the top of the table.

It is also divided into several sections in which you can place bets, such as:

Red/Black – You can place a bet on the ball landing on a red or black number.

Odd/Even – You can place a bet on the ball landing on an odd or even number.

1st/2nd/3rd 12 – You can place a bet on the ball landing on numbers 1-12, 13-24, 25-33.

Columns – You can place a bet on whether the ball lands on a number in the left, centre or right column.

Halves – You can place a bet on whether the ball lands on a number between 0-18 and 19-36.

American Roulette Wheel

An addition to the American Roulette Wheel which isn’t on the European version is a 38th potential outcome – a green double zero.

Roulette wheel numbers sequence

The sequence of numbers on the American roulette wheel is as follows:

0, 28, 9, 26, 30, 11, 7, 20, 32, 17, 5, 22, 34, 15, 3, 24, 36, 13, 1,

00, 27, 10, 25, 29, 12, 8, 19, 31, 18, 6, 21, 33, 16, 4, 23, 35, 14, 2

Just from looking at the numbers above, you can see there is more of sequence and pattern than on the European version with the preceding numbers appearing adjacent on the table.

Although it is only a minor difference it can have a major impact as the addition of the double zero gives the American casinos more potential profit over the person playing roulette in comparison to European roulette.

American roulette table

All tables are again very similar, and the only difference being that the American version has the addition of the double zero, which again is placed next to the single zero at the top of the table.

Roulette ball

A roulette ball, or as it is also known, a pill, used to be made out of ivory but is now more commonly made out of moulded acetal, nylon or phenolic and all three of those materials can play a big role in the ball’s liveliness on the roulette wheel.

The livelier a ball is on the wheel the more difficult it is to predict where it will land, and therefore it is commonly used in casinos to avoid players using number-projecting schemes. However, there are some drawbacks to a livelier ball as it can jump out onto the floor and cause delays in the game.

At most casinos, a dealer is likely to have two or three additional balls at their disposal and they change the ball as and when they feel it is necessary and they also come in a series of sizes – 3/4 of an inch, 13/16 of an inch or 7/8 of an inch.

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