How to Compute Roulette Payouts

Roulette looks like the easiest game in the casino. There's no dealer to play against, just a ball and a spinning wheel. The problem is there are so many ways to bet, and each way has it's own odds to payout.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Place a "straight bet." The bet with the highest payout is a "straight bet." In this bet, you're betting on the single number that the ball will land on. There are 38 numbers total (1-36, 0, 00). If you win this bet, your payout is 35:1. This means if you were place a bet of $10, you would win $350. But your odds of winning this bet are only one in 38.

2. Break up your bet to improve your odds. You can win in several ways at roulette. They're called split bets, when you bet on two different numbers that touch each other on the table. If you win, it's a 17-to-one payout. Corner bets are when you bet on four numbers that all touch, and your payout is eight-to-one when you win. If you combine your bets, you can increase your roulette payouts.

3. Choose one color to bet on. If you bet on red or black, you have pretty good odds that you'll win. However, keep in mind that the odds are an even payout. If you combine the color bet with another kind of bet, you can increase your roulette payout. If you bet $100 on red, and the ball lands in red, you win $100.

4. Bet on whether the ball will land on an odd or even number. This is a similar bet to the color bet--even pay out. You can increase your winnings if you combine this bet with another roulette bet.

5. Guess high or low. A low bet is saying the ball will land on a number between 1 and 18. A high bet is for 19-36. Each of these bets have payouts of 1:1.

Tips & Warnings

• This article is using American Roulette. Bets are slightly different in European Roulette, as that wheel has only 1-36 and 0. There is no 00.

Resources

• More information on computing roulette odds.