How to Play Roulette for Beginners | All You Need to Know to Win in 2024

One of the most popular casino games in the world, roulette has been captivating gamblers for over 300 years. Like a fine wine, it seems to only get better with age. With the introduction of digital gaming and the internet, online roulette has taken off like wildfire and remains one of the best online casino games. 

Those who are keen to start playing the game for themselves have come to the right place. The experts at MySer-Gambling have combined their knowledge and experiences to present the ultimate guide for how to play roulette online!

Basics of the Game

The gist of a roulette game is very simple. The basic elements consist of a wheel, a ball, the croupier (dealer), and the players. The rules work the same for both online and land-based casinos.  

In an online game, players first set their bets and then the ball is dropped onto a spinning wheel. Around the wheel, there are spots that are numbered and colored. If the ball stops on a spot that the player’s bet was placed on, it’s a win.  

When you play roulette online, there is no dealer per se, and instead the computer generates the spin. Unless, of course, you are playing a live dealer roulette. 

The Roulette Wheel

A roulette wheel is lined with numbers at the perimeter. Depending on which variation of the game you play, there are either 37 or 38 numbers. American Roulette has an extra number, a double zero.  

The numbers are not set in any particular order, but randomized and alternate between red and black. The zero and double zero are green. When the wheel is spun, the ball spins in the opposite direction to the wheel.  

Betting Rules

The rules of roulette are few and simple, making it easy an easy game for beginners to learn. 

The first is that there are minimum and maximum betting limits of each roulette table and your bets must be within these limits. The caveat to this is the limits for inside and outside bets may be different.  

Typically, limits for outside bets match the table limits. However, limits for inside bets are usually lower than outside because inside bets have the potential for massive payouts. 

Second, your bets must be placed before the croupier spins the wheel. In an online game, this is not a concern because the wheel only spins once the player locks in their bet. At this point, the bet cannot be reversed or undone.  

That’s it for casino roulette rules – simple, right? The more complicated parts are in the betting options and roulette strategy.  

Betting Options

There are many different ways that players can place bets in roulette. Each type of bet has different odds and payouts. Players can make as many bets as they please and are not confined to placing a singular bet.  

The options for betting are divided into two broad categories, within which more specific bet types exist. The first category is inside bets and covers the numbers 0 to 36, for example. The other is outside bets and covers groups of numbers, such as odds or evens, reds or blacks, numbers 1 to 18 or 19 to 36, columns, and dozens.  

Inside Bets

As we mentioned, inside bets involve numbers 00 to 37, depending on which variation of roulette you are playing.  

Here are some examples of inside bets: 

• Straight – bet covers a single number and pays out odds of 35:1 

• Split – bet covers two numbers that lie adjacent to each other and pays out odds of 17:1  
• Street – bet covers three adjacent numbers and pays out odds of 11:1 
• Corner/Square – bet covers the corner of four numbers and pays out odds of 8:1 
• Six-Line – bet covers two rows of three numbers and pays out odds of 5:1 

Outside Bets

Outside bets involve the remaining parts of the table outside of the numbers, hence “outside” bets and involve groups of numbers.  

Here are examples of outside bets: 

• Red or Black – bet is placed on outcome being a red or black spot and pays out odds of 1:1 
• Odds or Evens – bet is placed on outcome being an odd or even number and pays out odds of 1:1 
• Dozen – bet is placed on any of the three dozen and pays out odds of 2:1 
• Column – bet is placed on an entire vertical column, totaling 12 numbers, and pays out odds of 2:1 
• High or Low – bet is placed on either the lower half or upper half of the board and pays out odds of 1:1 

Best Bets for Beginners

If you’re a beginner who wants to know how to play roulette to win, we have a few recommendations. In our discussion of bet types, we included the payout odds to aid in this question.  

The best bets for beginners who want to build confidence and have some wins under their belt are outside bets like red/black, high/low, or odds/evens. These are known as even money bets because they have a payout of 1:1 so your odds of winning are 50%.  

While the wins will be small, it will still boost your confidence and have you continuing to play as you learn the game and develop your best strategy. Once you gain some more experience, then you can try your hand at other bet types; maybe even risking a straight bet with odds of 35:1.  

Strategies

If you want to play to win, knowledge and experience are essential tools for any discerning gambler. The roulette wheel is a fickle mistress who cannot be tamed, but that doesn’t mean people will not try.  

Strategies are one way to bring order to that which cannot be controlled, fate and luck. There are numerous strategies that roulette players employ to get an edge on the house.  

For beginners to roulette, it’s a good idea to play with one of these systems or try them all. Find what works for you and before you know it, you’ll have your own go-to methods and systems.  

Martingale

A recommended strategy for beginner players, the Martingale method is also the most popular of them all. The point of this strategy is to recoup any losses. For this strategy, simply double your bet when you lose a hand. 

The idea behind this is that you will eventually hit a win, and by doubling your bets in the meantime, it will make up for the previous losses.  

Just make sure you don’t go bust if you end up on a losing streak, and be mindful of the table limits. To maximize the utility of this strategy, select a table with low minimum bet and use only on even money bets.  

Grand Martingale

A variation on the Martingale is the Grand Martingale that is essentially the same, but when you double your bet on a losing hand, add in the amount of your original bet.  

The advantage to this strategy is you could win a significant amount in a short amount of time but should only be used by those with a larger bankroll.  

Paroli or Reverse Martingale

This is another great strategy for beginner players, as well as experienced, and is essentially the Martingale but reversed.  

As a positive progression system, after each win, simply double your next bet. Repeat until you hit three consecutive wins, at which point, start back at the beginning.  

This is a very old strategy that has been around since the 16th century and works in a variety of games, although it is most effective in roulette.  

The idea behind the strategy is to take advantage of winning streaks and minimize losses. The advantage is that it doesn’t require a large bankroll and losses are gradual and minimal. Again, utilize only on even money bets.   

D’Alembert

This strategy is similar to the Martingale but progresses at a much less aggressive pace. This is an easy and low risk strategy so it’s great for beginners. Like the others, this is used for even money bets.  

Start off by creating a base stake unit. This could be $1 or whatever you would like. With every loss, increase the stake by the base unit. And with every win, decrease the stake by the base unit. The advantage to this system is that it takes into account winning and losing streaks in a conversative manner.  

The Reverse D’Alembert strategy will have you do the opposite: increase the stake by the base unit with every win and decrease the stake with every loss.  

Fibonacci

This strategy takes its name from the Fibonacci sequence and progresses at a much slower rate. The Fibonacci sequence goes like this: 1-1-2-3-5-8-13-21, so on and so forth. Each number in the sequence being the sum of the two numbers that precede it.  

Utilizing this method looks like the following. Start at the beginning of the sequence with a minimum bet. As a negative progression system, every time you lose, make the following bet the next number in the sequence.  

So, if your next hand is a loss, make your stake 1. If the next hand is a loss again, make your stake 2, following the Fibonacci sequence. If you win, move your stake back two places in the sequence. 

The advantage of this strategy is that it offers a lower risk and slower progression, so it is another good strategy for less experienced players. This strategy should only be used on even money bets.  

Now You’re Ready to Play

This wraps up our guide on How to Play Roulette for Beginners. We’ve covered a number of topics that include the basics of the game, rules for betting, types of bets, and strategies to the game.  

With this knowledge in mind, try your hand at a free roulette demo or a real money game if you’re feeling brave! There are a number of variations of roulette you can play, so check out our article on Online Roulette to get a quick summary of each.  

Alternatively, for more in-depth information on the roulette variants, read our articles on American, European, and French Roulette.  

 Good luck on the tables and come back to MySer-Gambling for more tips and guides for online gambling, as well as recommendations for the best online casinos! 

FAQ: How to Play Roulette