Atlassino Academy · Roulette · Lesson 1 of 6
Wheels and the layout
A roulette wheel has one zero or two, and the table sign or the layout tells you which before a chip goes down. Here is how to read both, and how to name any bet by where its chip sits.
Two roulette tables stand side by side, and from a step away they look alike. What is the one thing to count before a chip goes down?
The short answer
The zeros. A wheel with one zero has 37 pockets and a wheel with a zero and a double zero has 38, and that one extra green pocket nearly doubles the price of almost every bet on the layout. The zeros are printed at the head of the layout as well as on the wheel, so you can count them from the layout alone.
Count the zeros, and the number of pockets on the wheel follows; the number of pockets sets the price of almost every bet on the layout.
The two rows differ in one thing, the double zero. The numbers 1 to 36 are the same on both wheels and the payouts named on the layout are the same on both, so the extra green pocket is the whole of the difference between the two prices.
Leoformer dealer · rules and maths
I dealt roulette on both kinds of wheel, and the question I heard most from people at a strange table was what a bet was called. They knew where they wanted the chip to go and not what the dealer would call it. The name of a bet and its payout travel together, so a chip you can name is a chip whose payout you know before the ball is thrown.
Two wheels: one zero or two
Most roulette wheels are built one of two ways: with a single zero, or with a zero and a double zero.
A wheel with one zero has the numbers 1 to 36 and the zero, in 37 equally spaced pockets. A wheel with a zero and a double zero has the same numbers 1 to 36 and both zeros, in 38 equally spaced pockets. The zeros are green, and the numbers 1 to 36 are coloured red and black in turn.
| The wheel | One zero | A zero and a double zero |
|---|---|---|
| Green pockets | 0 | 0 and 00 |
| Name used in one rule book | English roulette | American roulette |
| The five-number bet on the layout | none | 0, 00, 1, 2 and 3 |
The layout: inside and outside
The layout is the cloth the chips go on, and it has two areas: an inside area for bets on numbers, and an outside area for bets on larger groups of numbers, such as red or black and odd or even.
The two layouts differ only at the head, where the zeros stand; the numbers 1 to 36 run in three long rows of twelve.
One inside bet covers one, two, three, four or six numbers, and on the layout with a zero and a double zero one more inside bet covers five. One outside bet covers 12 or 18 numbers.
The wheel order is not the layout order
On the layout the numbers run in order, 1 at one end and 36 at the other. On the wheel the numbers are not in numerical order, and red and black alternate around the rim.
That is why a group of numbers on the layout is only a group of numbers: a corner is four numbers and a dozen is twelve, wherever those numbers happen to sit on the wheel. For the price of a bet the only thing that counts is how many numbers the bet covers, and the layout shows that count exactly.
Inside bets: where the chip sits on the numbers
An inside bet is named by where its chip sits: in the middle of one number, on the line between two numbers, on the outer edge of a short row of three, on the point where four numbers meet, or on the outer edge where two short rows of three meet.
- AStraight up, 35 to 1In the middle of 5. Covers 1 number.
- BSplit, 17 to 1On the line between 11 and 14. Covers 2 numbers.
- CStreet, 11 to 1On the outer edge, level with the short row of 19, 20 and 21. Covers 3 numbers.
- DCorner, 8 to 1On the point where 25, 26, 28 and 29 meet. Covers 4 numbers.
- ESix line, 5 to 1On the outer edge where the short rows of 31, 32 and 33 and 34, 35 and 36 meet. Covers 6 numbers.
- FFive-number bet, 6 to 1On the corner where the zeros meet 1, 2 and 3. Covers 5 numbers. Only on the layout with a zero and a double zero.
The multiplier after each name is the payout the dealer calls; what it comes to in money is lesson 4.2.
Chip F exists on only one of the two layouts. On the corner where the zeros meet 1, 2 and 3, a chip covers five numbers, 0, 00, 1, 2 and 3, and the bet is paid 6 to 1. The layout with one zero has no double zero, and so no five-number bet. Why that one bet costs more than the rest of its layout is lesson 4.2 as well.
Outside bets: the boxes around the numbers
An outside bet has a printed box of its own, so the name of the bet is written on the layout: a dozen, a column, or one of the six even-money boxes.
- ADozen, 2 to 1In the box marked 1st 12. Covers 12 numbers.
- BColumn, 2 to 1In the box marked 2 to 1 at the end of the long row that finishes at 34. Covers 12 numbers.
- CEven money, 1 to 1In the RED box. Covers 18 numbers.
- DEven money, 1 to 1In the 1 to 18 box. Covers 18 numbers.
A dozen and a column both cover 12 numbers and both are paid 2 to 1. The difference is the direction the group runs.
- A dozen runs acrossTwelve numbers in order: 1 to 12, 13 to 24 or 25 to 36. The box sits below the numbers.
- A column runs alongEvery third number, one long row of twelve, named by the number at its end: 34, 35 or 36. The box sits at that end, marked 2 to 1.
The six even-money boxes each cover 18 numbers: red, black, odd, even, 1 to 18 and 19 to 36. None of the six boxes covers a zero, and that is why the zero matters to every outside bet; lesson 4.2 counts what happens to the outside bets when the ball lands in a zero.
Which wheel is at this table
The wheel is not always in view from where you stand, and it does not have to be. Three looks settle the question before a chip goes down.
- Read the table sign. Some rooms put the wheel into the name of the table: a sign reading Single Zero Table or Double Zero Table.
- Count the green boxes at the head of the layout. One box marked 0, or two boxes marked 0 and 00: the layout carries the same zeros as the wheel beside it.
- If the wheel is in view, count its green pockets. The zeros are the green pockets, and every other pocket is red or black.
A Triple Zero Table is a different wheel again; lesson 4.5 covers it.
Where a table uses the names of the game instead, English roulette is the wheel with one zero and American roulette is the wheel with a zero and a double zero: the numbers 0 to 36, or 00 and 0 to 36.
Mayaformer floor supervisor · manners, money and breaks
Know the wheel before you buy in: two zeros nearly double the price. Settle at home how much money the evening gets and how long it runs, and stop when either one is used up.
Money lost at one table is not a debt the next table owes you, and putting more down to get it back only makes the evening dearer. If it starts to feel that way, the lines below are there for exactly that.
If it stops being fun
If gambling stops being entertainment, help is available. 19+ in most of Canada; 18+ in Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec. More on responsible gaming.
Practice: name the bet
A chip lands on the layout and you name the bet, together with the payout the dealer calls with it. Level 1 is the inside bets on the numbers; level 2 is the whole layout, the six line, the five-number bet and the outside boxes included; level 3 puts three chips down at once and asks for all three names in order.
Nothing is paid here. No ball is thrown and no sum of money appears, because the name of a bet is settled before the wheel turns. What a bet pays in money is lesson 4.2, and this practice stops at the name.
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Level 1 · On the numbers
A layout with a zero and a double zero
Name the bet under the chip, and the payout the dealer calls with it.
- Straight up, 35 to 1 A chip in the middle of 17 covers 1 number: that is a straight up bet, paid 35 to 1.
- Split, 17 to 1 A split has its chip on the line between two numbers. This chip sits in the middle of 17, so the bet covers 1 number, not 2 numbers.
- Straight up, 17 to 1 17 to 1 is what a split is paid, for 2 numbers. A straight up bet covers 1 number and is paid 35 to 1.
Read the chip by the place it sits on the layout, not by the nearest number. A straight up bet is the bet whose chip sits in the middle of one number, and the dealer calls its payout 35 to 1.
Winning bet on a single number
Place chip on the line between two numbers
Place chip on outside border of three numbers
Place where all four numbers intersect
Place chip so bet overlaps 2 different rows of numbers
Place bet on the “2 TO 1” area of desired column
Place bet on your choice of either “1st DOZEN”, “2nd DOZEN” or “3rd DOZEN”
Place chip on “19-36” for high and on “1-18” for lowOLG PlaySmart · Roulette Odds and Payouts · read
Level 2 · The whole layout
A layout with a zero and a double zero
Name the bet under the chip, and the payout the dealer calls with it.
- Five-number bet, 5 to 1 5 to 1 is what a six line is paid, for 6 numbers. The five-number bet covers 5 numbers and is paid 6 to 1.
- Five-number bet, 6 to 1 A chip on the corner where the zeros meet 1, 2 and 3 covers 5 numbers: that is the five-number bet, paid 6 to 1.
- Street, 11 to 1 A street has its chip on the outer edge, level with one short row of three. This chip sits on the corner where the zeros meet 1, 2 and 3, so the bet covers 5 numbers, not 3 numbers.
Read the chip by the place it sits on the layout, not by the nearest number. The five-number bet is the bet whose chip sits on the corner where the zeros meet 1, 2 and 3, and the dealer calls its payout 6 to 1. The five-number bet exists only on the layout with a zero and a double zero.
FIRST FIVE (AMERICAN ROULETTE) 6 to 1Loto-Québec · Game rules: Roulette · section The wheel, the bets, the round, payouts · read
Give line bet on five numbers (0, 00, 1, 2, 3): pays 6 to 1GameSense by AGLC · Roulette · read
Level 3 · Three chips at once
A layout with a zero and a double zero · three chips
Three chips, marked A, B and C. Which line names all three bets?
- A: Straight up, 35 to 1 · B: Corner, 8 to 1 · C: Dozen, 2 to 1 Chip A sits in the middle of 9: a straight up bet. Chip B sits on the point where 23, 24, 26 and 27 meet: a corner. Chip C sits in the box marked 1st 12: a dozen.
- A: Corner, 8 to 1 · B: Straight up, 35 to 1 · C: Dozen, 2 to 1 Chip A and chip B are named the wrong way round. Chip A sits in the middle of 9, which makes chip A a straight up bet; chip B sits on the point where 23, 24, 26 and 27 meet, which makes chip B a corner.
- A: Straight up, 35 to 1 · B: Dozen, 2 to 1 · C: Corner, 8 to 1 Chip B and chip C are named the wrong way round. Chip B sits on the point where 23, 24, 26 and 27 meet, which makes chip B a corner; chip C sits in the box marked 1st 12, which makes chip C a dozen.
Three chips are three separate bets. Read one chip at a time, by the place each chip sits, and the payout named with each bet belongs to that chip alone.
Winning bet on a single number
Place chip on the line between two numbers
Place chip on outside border of three numbers
Place where all four numbers intersect
Place chip so bet overlaps 2 different rows of numbers
Place bet on the “2 TO 1” area of desired column
Place bet on your choice of either “1st DOZEN”, “2nd DOZEN” or “3rd DOZEN”
Place chip on “19-36” for high and on “1-18” for lowOLG PlaySmart · Roulette Odds and Payouts · read
Every moment in the practice run is read the same way: find the place the chip sits, count the numbers that place covers, and the bet and its payout follow. No ball is thrown here and nothing is paid, because the name of a bet is settled before the wheel turns.
How the practice run works
Where the moments come from. Each moment is a place on the layout, and the bet at that place, the numbers it covers and the payout named with it come from the same model of the wheel and layout that the house edge tool uses. Nothing is written down as an answer by hand. Each wrong answer is one named mistake: the chip read as another bet whose chip sits nearby, or the right name given the payout of a neighbouring bet.
One strip, and no rounds. Every square on the strip is one moment of this lesson, and all of the squares are there from the start. Your first answer fills its square; when the squares of one level are full, the next level begins by itself, with no button in between. Practising a moment you got wrong turns its cross into “fixed in practice” and does not change the count, because only first answers count.
Your progress stays in this browser, and nothing is sent anywhere.
Check yourself
Mayaformer floor supervisor · manners, money and breaks
Five quick ones. Pick an answer, then check it. No timer, no points: just whether it stuck.
Back to the question we opened with. Count the zeros. Whether the wheel has one zero or two is the one thing that changes the price of almost every bet at the table, and the head of the layout shows it before the first chip goes down.
Where the wheels are, and further reading
19+ (18+ in AB, MB, QC) · Play responsibly · the helplines are further up this page
Further reading
- Game Rules — Roulette · Société des casinos du Québec (Loto-Québec)The rules this track follows: what the wheel holds, how inside and outside bets work, and the whole payout table.
- Casino Regulations, sections 113 to 123 · Province of Nova ScotiaThe regulator on the wheel itself: 37 pockets with one zero, 38 with two, the zeros green and the rest alternating.
- Roulette Odds and the House Edge · OLG PlaySmartWhere the difference between true odds and the payout comes from, in the operator’s own words.
- How to Play Roulette · Fallsview Casino ResortA room that posts three different wheels, and its own note that pay tables differ from table to table.
How it’s worked out
Numbers, drawings, sources and hosts
Where this happens. Every wheel on this page stands at a live table in a room you can walk into. A wheel on a screen at home is asked for different things by a different book of rules, and it belongs to a track of its own.
Numbers. The pocket counts, the bets and the place each chip goes, how many numbers each bet covers and the payout named with each bet come from one model of the wheel and the layout, the same model the house edge tool uses, and every figure is worked out when the page is built. The price of a bet on each wheel is counted from the pockets and the payout, and the quote beside it, from a training material, gives the same figures. A column is paid from the same row of the model as a dozen, because the two cover the same number of numbers and are paid the same.
The drawings. The layouts follow the geometry of the model: the numbers 1 to 36 in three long rows of twelve, each long row ending at 34, 35 or 36. The numbers are drawn without colour and the wheel is drawn with blank pockets, because no document we could read prints the colour of each single number or the order of the pockets around the wheel; the documents say only that the zeros are green, that the other numbers alternate red and black, and that the numbers are not in numerical order. Drawing an order would mean inventing one.
What is deliberately absent. There is no payout table on this page, no arithmetic of a payout in money and nothing about what a zero does to the outside bets: those belong to lesson 4.2. Why almost every bet on one wheel costs the same is lesson 4.3. Buying wheel chips, “no more bets” and the marker are lesson 4.4; choosing a wheel, the triple-zero table, the pace of a table and what an hour costs are lesson 4.5; the board of past numbers is lesson 4.6. No document we could read prints how many pockets a triple-zero wheel has, so no count is given for that wheel. Bets that would take in a zero together with ordinary numbers are left out of the practice run, because no document we could read lists all of them with their payouts. La partage, en prison and surrender on the even-money bets appear in none of the rule books or room pages we could read, and nothing on this page suggests any table offers them.
Sources. Every claim on this page carries a button with the sentence it rests on, the publisher who wrote that sentence and the date we read it.
Hosts. Leo and Maya are illustrated characters. Their backstories, a former dealer and a former floor supervisor, are written for the course: neither is a real person, and neither speaks for any casino. The rules and numbers on this page come from the sources it cites, not from their experience.
No promise. Roulette is played against the house on every spin. Knowing which wheel is at the table and what a bet is called tells you what you are buying before a chip goes down; nothing on this page makes the price smaller, and nothing here says how an evening at the wheel would end.
One zero or two, and what each costs
it significantly lowers the house edge: 2.7% compared to American Roulette’s 5.26%.
The main distinction to European Roulette is that the table layout (and the corresponding wheel slots) only feature a single zero, while American Roulette features a double zero.
Which pockets are green
with one marked “0” and coloured green and the others marked “1” to “36” and coloured alternately red and black
one marked “0” and coloured green, one marked “00” and coloured green and others marked “1” to “36” and coloured alternately red and black
Section ss. 55(2), 113–123
Province of Nova Scotia · Casino Regulations (Gaming Control Act) · read
The Roulette wheel consists of numbers 1-36, alternately coloured red and black, plus 0 and 00 which are green.
GameSense by AGLC · Roulette · read
The roulette wheel is marked with numbers one through thirty-six, zero, and double zero. Numbers are alternately colored red and black while the zeros are green.
Casinos of Winnipeg · How to Play Roulette (Stadium Gaming) · read
Where the chip goes for each bet
Winning bet on a single number
Place chip on the line between two numbers
Place chip on outside border of three numbers
Place where all four numbers intersect
Place chip so bet overlaps 2 different rows of numbers
Place bet on the “2 TO 1” area of desired column
Place bet on your choice of either “1st DOZEN”, “2nd DOZEN” or “3rd DOZEN”
Place chip on “19-36” for high and on “1-18” for low
The five-number bet
FIRST FIVE (AMERICAN ROULETTE) 6 to 1
Section The wheel, the bets, the round, payouts
Give line bet on five numbers (0, 00, 1, 2, 3): pays 6 to 1
GameSense by AGLC · Roulette · read
English and American roulette
115 Each roulette wheel shall be of a single zero variety or a double zero variety.
Section ss. 55(2), 113–123
Province of Nova Scotia · Casino Regulations (Gaming Control Act) · read
The wheel contains the numbers 0 to 36 (English roulette), or 00 and 0 to 36 (American roulette).
Section The wheel, the bets, the round, payouts
Where the chip goes for each bet
Winning bet on a single number
Place chip on the line between two numbers
Place chip on outside border of three numbers
Place where all four numbers intersect
Place chip so bet overlaps 2 different rows of numbers
Place bet on the “2 TO 1” area of desired column
Place bet on your choice of either “1st DOZEN”, “2nd DOZEN” or “3rd DOZEN”
Place chip on “19-36” for high and on “1-18” for low
Pockets on a wheel with one zero
117 Each single zero roulette wheel shall have 37 equally spaced pockets around the wheel where the roulette ball may come to rest.
Section ss. 55(2), 113–123
Province of Nova Scotia · Casino Regulations (Gaming Control Act) · read
One zero or two, and what each costs
it significantly lowers the house edge: 2.7% compared to American Roulette’s 5.26%.
The main distinction to European Roulette is that the table layout (and the corresponding wheel slots) only feature a single zero, while American Roulette features a double zero.
The two builds of wheel
115 Each roulette wheel shall be of a single zero variety or a double zero variety.
Section ss. 55(2), 113–123
Province of Nova Scotia · Casino Regulations (Gaming Control Act) · read
The wheel contains the numbers 0 to 36 (English roulette), or 00 and 0 to 36 (American roulette).
Section The wheel, the bets, the round, payouts
Pockets on a wheel with one zero
117 Each single zero roulette wheel shall have 37 equally spaced pockets around the wheel where the roulette ball may come to rest.
Section ss. 55(2), 113–123
Province of Nova Scotia · Casino Regulations (Gaming Control Act) · read
Pockets on a wheel with two zeros
120 Each double zero roulette wheel shall have 38 equally spaced pockets around the wheel where the roulette ball shall come to rest.
Section ss. 55(2), 113–123
Province of Nova Scotia · Casino Regulations (Gaming Control Act) · read
The wheel has 38 numbered slots (1-36), plus two green slots with “0” and “00”.
Which pockets are green
with one marked “0” and coloured green and the others marked “1” to “36” and coloured alternately red and black
one marked “0” and coloured green, one marked “00” and coloured green and others marked “1” to “36” and coloured alternately red and black
Section ss. 55(2), 113–123
Province of Nova Scotia · Casino Regulations (Gaming Control Act) · read
The Roulette wheel consists of numbers 1-36, alternately coloured red and black, plus 0 and 00 which are green.
GameSense by AGLC · Roulette · read
The roulette wheel is marked with numbers one through thirty-six, zero, and double zero. Numbers are alternately colored red and black while the zeros are green.
Casinos of Winnipeg · How to Play Roulette (Stadium Gaming) · read
The two areas of the layout
The roulette table has two main areas, an inside area for placing bets on numbers, and an outside area for placing bets on possible outcomes like odd/even or red/black, etc.
How many numbers an inside bet covers
Inside bets allow players to bet on one, two, three, four, five (American roulette) or six numbers with a single bet.
Section The wheel, the bets, the round, payouts
Les mises intérieures permettent au joueur de miser sur un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq (roulette américaine) ou six numéros avec une seule mise.
Section Le cylindre, les mises, le déroulement, rapports de paiement
Loto-Québec, Société des casinos du Québec · Règles du jeu — Roulette · read
How many numbers an outside bet covers
Outside bets allow players to bet on 12 or 18 numbers with a single bet. When the ball lands on “0” or “00,” all outside bets lose.
Section The wheel, the bets, the round, payouts
Les mises extérieures permettent au joueur de miser sur douze ou dix-huit numéros avec une seule mise.
Section Le cylindre, les mises, le déroulement, rapports de paiement
Loto-Québec, Société des casinos du Québec · Règles du jeu — Roulette · read
The order on the wheel
While the numbers are not in numerical order, the red and black pockets alternate to ensure a random result.
Loto-Québec · Casinos et Salons de jeux — Electronic Roulette · read
The numbers alternate in colour and are arranged randomly, not in a pattern
Where the chip goes for each bet
Winning bet on a single number
Place chip on the line between two numbers
Place chip on outside border of three numbers
Place where all four numbers intersect
Place chip so bet overlaps 2 different rows of numbers
Place bet on the “2 TO 1” area of desired column
Place bet on your choice of either “1st DOZEN”, “2nd DOZEN” or “3rd DOZEN”
Place chip on “19-36” for high and on “1-18” for low
The five-number bet
FIRST FIVE (AMERICAN ROULETTE) 6 to 1
Section The wheel, the bets, the round, payouts
Give line bet on five numbers (0, 00, 1, 2, 3): pays 6 to 1
GameSense by AGLC · Roulette · read
Where the chip goes for each bet
Winning bet on a single number
Place chip on the line between two numbers
Place chip on outside border of three numbers
Place where all four numbers intersect
Place chip so bet overlaps 2 different rows of numbers
Place bet on the “2 TO 1” area of desired column
Place bet on your choice of either “1st DOZEN”, “2nd DOZEN” or “3rd DOZEN”
Place chip on “19-36” for high and on “1-18” for low
A table with three zeros
Triple Zero Table
TRIPLE ZERO TABLE
Fallsview Casino Resort and Casino Niagara · Playing Roulette · read
Double & Triple Zero Roulette
Great Canadian Entertainment · Elements Casinos Ontario · read
English and American roulette
115 Each roulette wheel shall be of a single zero variety or a double zero variety.
Section ss. 55(2), 113–123
Province of Nova Scotia · Casino Regulations (Gaming Control Act) · read
The wheel contains the numbers 0 to 36 (English roulette), or 00 and 0 to 36 (American roulette).
Section The wheel, the bets, the round, payouts
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