European roulette: rules, odds and house edge

European roulette is the single-zero version of the game: 37 pockets numbered 0 to 36, one green zero, and a house edge of 2.70% on every standard bet. That one difference from the American double-zero wheel roughly halves what the casino keeps from each dollar you bet, which is why European roulette is the version to look for in any Canadian lobby, online or live.

How the European roulette wheel is laid out

The wheel has the numbers 1 to 36, split evenly between red and black, plus a single green 0. Evolution's Euro Roulette rules describe exactly this: the numbers 1 to 36 and a single zero, for 37 pockets in total.

The zero is the whole story. It is neither red nor black, odd nor even, high nor low. When it lands, every outside bet loses, and that is where the casino's edge comes from. The payouts are set as if the zero did not exist, so the true odds and the paid odds never quite match.

Bets, payouts and probability

Every standard bet on a European table pays as if there were 36 numbers, while the wheel has 37. Here is how that works out for each bet:

Inside bets (straight up, split, street, corner, line) can include the zero. Outside bets (dozens, columns and the even-money bets) do not cover it.

Take a $10 straight-up bet. Over 37 spins with every number landing once, you stake $370, win once and get back $360 (your $10 plus $350 profit). You are $10 short, which is 2.70% of what you bet. Run the same sum on a red bet and you get the same 2.70%. On a standard European table, the house edge does not change with the bet you pick.

European vs American roulette

American roulette adds a second green pocket, the 00, for 38 pockets in total, but keeps the same payouts. The edge climbs from 1 in 37 to 2 in 38:

The American wheel also has one bet that is worse than the rest: the five-number bet on 0, 00, 1, 2 and 3, which pays 6 to 1. Its edge is 7.89%.

If a lobby offers both wheels at the same limits, the European wheel costs you about half as much per bet. There is no betting reason to choose the American one.

French roulette and La Partage

French roulette uses the same single-zero wheel but can add the La Partage rule. Evolution's French Roulette rules put it this way: if you make an even-money bet and the ball lands on zero, you lose only half your bet. That halves the edge on red/black, odd/even and high/low bets to 1.35%, so those bets return 98.65%. Evolution lists the game's RTP at 98.65%.

La Partage only helps even-money bets. A straight up or a dozen on a French table carries the same 2.70% edge as on a European one. If you mostly bet red or black, a French table with La Partage is the cheapest roulette you will find.

Lightning roulette and other multiplier versions

Multiplier games change the pay table. In Evolution's First Person Lightning Roulette, a straight-up bet pays 29 to 1 instead of 35 to 1, and some numbers on each round get boosted payouts of 50x, 100x, 200x, 300x, 400x or 500x. The rules give the RTP as 97.10% to 97.30%.

The trade is simple: you give up some of every normal straight-up win to fund the rare big multiplier. The long-run cost is close to classic European roulette, but results swing much more. Always check the RTP in the game's own help screen before you assume a branded variant pays like the classic wheel.

Does any roulette strategy beat the house edge?

No. Each spin is independent, and every combination of standard bets carries the same 2.70% edge on a European wheel. A system can change how your results are spread out, but not the average.

The Martingale shows the problem. You double your bet after every loss on red, planning to win back everything plus $1. At a table with a $1 minimum and a $10,000 maximum, like the Euro Roulette limits Evolution lists, the sequence 1, 2, 4 and so on reaches $8,192 on the 14th bet. Lose that and you cannot double again. Fourteen reds missed in a row has about a 1 in 11,280 chance on any given run, which sounds small, but it costs you $16,383 to try to win $1. Over thousands of spins the edge comes out the same.

"Hot" and "cold" numbers do not exist either. The wheel has no memory. A number that has not hit in 100 spins still has a 1 in 37 chance on the next one.

Playing European roulette online in Canada

Most online lobbies carry several roulette versions side by side. A few checks before you play:

• Look at the wheel. One green pocket is European or French. Two green pockets (0 and 00) is American.
• Open the help or rules screen. Licensed game studios publish the RTP and payouts for each table. If a roulette game does not show its RTP, pick one that does.
• Check the table limits. The minimum and maximum bet decide how long your bankroll lasts and cap any doubling system.
• Read bonus terms. Many casinos count roulette at a low rate, or not at all, toward wagering requirements.

Live dealer tables use a physical wheel on camera; our guide to live dealer casinos in Canada explains how those rounds are run. For how roulette compares with blackjack, baccarat and slots on return, see the best RTP casino games.

Play within your limits

A 2.70% edge is low by casino standards, but it is still a cost on every spin, and roulette rounds are fast. Set a budget before you start, use the deposit limits your casino offers, and stop when the budget is gone. Our responsible gambling page lists provincial help lines.

Sources

Evolution Euro Roulette rules (operator help page), Evolution French Roulette rules (operator help page), Evolution First Person Lightning Roulette rules (operator help page), UK Gambling Commission RTS 3: rules, game descriptions and the likelihood of winning. Probabilities and house edge figures are calculated from the number of pockets and the standard payouts.