Betting Probabilities in European and American Roulette

Which is better to play on? The American double 0 wheel, or European single 0? Well you are going to lose your bankroll quicker on the American wheel, so the answer is simple: The European wheel is a much better option.

The only difference is the order of numbers, and the American wheel has one additional pocket (the double green zero).

But the payouts are exactly the same. For example, the payout of a single number win is 35 to 1 on either wheel.

If you bet on a single number:

For EUROPEAN wheels:

The ODDS of winning for a European wheel are 1 in 37 (because there are 37 pockets)

The PAYOUT for wins is 35 to 1 (you get paid 35 PLUS your original bet)

For AMERICAN wheels:

The ODDS of winning for an American wheel are 1 in 38 (because there are 38 pockets)

The PAYOUT for wins is 35 to 1 (you get paid 35 PLUS your original bet)

So for both an American and European wheel, you are paid 35-1 for a win. The difference is this will happen LESS OFTEN on the American wheel.

An analogy I used on the forum was “What would you prefer? A hole in your head, or a bigger hole in your head?”. I assume the problem with some forum members was they either didn’t care to understand the difference, or simply didn’t know any better. But I think back to when I started playing roulette, and I wouldn’t have fully grasped the difference. I would have thought it was just one pocket difference, which is insignificant. Now that I know better, I look back in bemusement of my ignorance. And I wonder if I knew so little back then, what am I currently clueless about today? I’ll just need to wait and see!

The house edge is simply the amount of the bet you expect to lose on each spin. See the table below which explains the types of bets, the odds, and payouts for roulette. Note that with one exception, the house edge is the same for every bet (for each respective wheel):

[kkstarratings]