Roulette Strategies: The Ultimate Guide

Roulette is a popular casino game enjoyed by millions of people around the world and has spawned a ton of creative roulette strategies from those who have lived, breathed and played roulette over the course of their lives. In this comprehensive guide, we will delve into the exciting realm of roulette strategies, unveiling a diverse array of tactics to help you navigate the roulette wheel with confidence and insight.

We will also explore the various types of bets, from straightforward even-money wagers to high-risk, high-reward propositions. Whether you’re a novice seeking a simple betting approach or a seasoned player looking to refine your strategy, this guide has something for everyone.

Let’s get started..

Basics of Roulette

Before delving into the best roulette strategies, it’s essential to have a solid understanding of the basics of roulette. After all, the most successful roulette strategy is based on a solid understanding of the ins and outs of a roulette table.

The roulette wheel is typically divided into 36 numbered pockets, with one or two green pockets depending on the variation of the game. Players can place bets on individual numbers, groups of numbers, or colours.

Different types of bets in roulette

There are tons of different types of roulette bets out there, so here are a few of the most common ones you’ll see implemented as part of a successful roulette strategy.

Odds and payouts for each type of bet vary, with straight-up bets having the highest payout but the lowest odds. There will also commonly be a minimum bet that one will need to participate in the wheel.

Inside Bet

Inside bets in roulette are wagers placed on specific numbers or small groups of numbers within the wheel’s numbered grid. These bets offer higher payouts but lower odds of winning, including straight bets on single numbers, splits on adjacent numbers, corners on four numbers, and six-line bets on two rows.

Deposits on inside bets in Roulette

Inside bets are usually paid out as follows:

Outside Bets

On the other hand, we have outside bets in roulette, which are wagers placed on larger groups of numbers such as even or odd numbers, red or black, or high or low numbers. Think of this manner of bets in comparison to inside bets as spreading yourself thinly across the table layout.

As a result, the payout for each type of bet varies, depending on the odds of that bet winning. For example, a straight-up bet (a single bet placed on a single number) has a payout of 35 to 1, while a bet on red or black has a payout of 1 to 1.

Deposits on outside bets in Roulette

Bets on the outside are paid out as follows:

*Note that how much a bet pays out may vary depending on the casino.

The Best Roulette Strategies

There are several types of different roulette betting strategies, each with its own unique approach to betting.

Scores of punters and roulette enthusiasts alike over the years have honed their skills and analysed the roulette betting system to its core, sometimes dedicating their life’s work to creating the best roulette strategy there is.

Fortunately, we now have access to entire libraries of these strategy tips, so we’ve decided to break them down into three main categories.

Here are the three main categories of strategies:

💡 Progressive Strategies

Progressive strategies involve increasing or decreasing the size of bets based on the outcome of previous bets. They are based on heavy analysis of progressive roulette betting systems to come up with the best betting strategy to come out on top and win at the roulette tables.

Here are three popular progressive strategies:

Martingale Strategy

The Martingale betting strategy is one of the most famous, widely used and renowned roulette strategies out there, and it’s not hard to see why. It’s really a fun and nifty tactic, and the main intention of old Martingale is to recover those losses.

Therefore, a roulette strategy of this ilk involves doubling the size of your bet after every loss until you win. Once you win, head on over back to your original bet size.

This strategy is risky because it requires a large bankroll to cover the increasing bet sizes, which makes for some thrilling roulette wheel action.

Fibonacci Strategy

The Fibonacci strategy is based on the Fibonacci sequence, where each number is the sum of the two preceding numbers. This is a sequence for those who play roulette with the intention of living on the edge, with this strategy tending to be a more risky strategy than say, the D’Alembert Strategy.

The concept is that even though you lay down more money when you lose, you’ll bet more money when you win, which will result in larger winnings. This will make a significant portion of those losses easier to recover more rapidly, hopefully enabling you to prevail or at the very least break even.

You can’t depend on a wagering system for guaranteed victory, so be aware that chance may not always be on your side and that you could lose the entirety of your bankroll before a win.

D’Alembert Strategy

Named after the French Mathematician, this is a strategy that has established itself as a timeless classic, and it is a perfect strategy for new faces in the roulette strategies world, as it is easy to learn and utilise.

The D’Alembert strategy involves increasing or decreasing the bet size by one unit after a loss or win, respectively. The goal is to have an equal number of wins and losses by the end of the session.

There is also a popular alternative to this roulette strategy called the Reverse D’Alembert Strategy. As you might imagine, this is essentially the same tactic as the original, however, you increase your bet size when you win, and decrease it when you lose.

💡 Non-Progressive Strategies

Non-progressive strategies involve keeping the size of bets constant throughout the session, introducing a semblance of stability into the thrill and suspense that plays roulette awards.

Here are three popular non-progressive strategies:

James Bond’s roulette strategy

If you’ve seen Casino Royale (or any James Bond film) you’ll be well aware that there aren’t many things cooler than the M16 agent in a casino setting. Much like the suavest spy in the game, this strategy is best used for those who want to hop in and hop out in a quick manner.

The James Bond strategy involves placing bets on a combination of numbers to cover more than half the table.

The idea of the James Bond betting strategy is to have a higher chance of winning, but the payout will be lower as you’ve already spread your cash thin across the table to increase your chances of beating the house.

This tactic is effective because it almost always results in a victory. However, the maximum table bets can rapidly surpass the one-third losing chance.

Because of this, using the James Bond betting strategy is recommended for those who do not intend to play roulette for an extended length of time.

The Reverse Martingale Strategy:

As you’ve probably already guessed, this strategy is of the exact same creed as the martingale strategy, however, all you have to do is reverse what you already know, and voila, you have the reverse martingale strategy. This strategy is alo reffered to as the Parlay Betting System.

This strategy involves doubling the size of your bet after a win and reducing it after a loss. The idea is to maximize winnings during a winning streak and minimize losses during a losing streak.

The Constant Bet Strategy:

As the name suggests, to properly use the constant bet strategy to its potential, players must decide on a fixed amount they’re willing to bet on each spin of the wheel. For instance, if a player decides to bet $5 on each spin, they’ll place a $5 bet on the table before each spin, regardless of the outcome of the previous spin.

The player can increase or decrease their bet amount according to their bankroll or betting preferences. The constant bet strategy can be used in any type of roulette game, whether it’s European, American, or French.

It’s a low-risk strategy that can help players maintain their bankroll for a more extended period, which can increase their chances of hitting a winning streak.

💡 Hybrid Strategies

Hybrid strategies combine aspects of both progressive and non-progressive strategies to create a completely new system that is a harmonious composition of its progressive and non-progressive predecessors.

Here are three popular hybrid strategies that you’ll commonly see hanging around the roulette world.

The 1-3-2-4 Strategy

The 1324 strategy is a famous betting system used for quite a lot of games across the board (no pun intended), and roulette players utilise it in the manner where you start by choosing a betting unit.

You then bet one unit on an even-money bet, such as red/black, odd/even, or high/low. If you win, you move on to the next number in the sequence (1-3-2-4) and bet that many units on the next spin.

If you lose, you go back to betting one unit on the next spin. The goal is to win four consecutive bets, which would result in a total profit of ten units. However, if you lose at any point during the sequence of outside bets, you go back to betting one unit and start over again.

The Oscar’s Grind Strategy

The Oscars Grind Strategy is a positive progressive betting system designed to help players minimise their losses while maximising their winnings. Using the Oscars Grind Strategy involves increasing the bet size by one unit after a win and keeping the same bet size after a loss.

The goal is to have a consistent approach to betting that minimises risk while still allowing for some profit.

Once you have won a total of one unit, increase the bet size and start the process again.

The strategy is named after the author of the book “Beat the Casino” by Frank Barstow, who used the pseudonym “Oscar’s System.”

The Pivot Strategy

The idea is that each number should win at least once during that time frame.

The Pivot Strategy is a betting system based on the idea that a specific number on the roulette wheel will come up more often than others in a series of spins. The idea is that each number should win at least once during that time frame.

To use the Pivot Strategy, players need to observe the results of the previous spins and identify the Pivot number, which is the number that has appeared twice within a series of 35 spins.

Once the Pivot number is identified, players place a bet on that number for the next 35 spins. If the Pivot number hits during this sequence, the player wins and should start the process over again.

If the Pivot number doesn’t hit within the 35 spins, the player should realise the relationship isn’t working out, get back on the scene for a new Pivot number and repeat the process.

💡 Labouchere System

In roulette, the Labouchere system involves creating a sequence of numbers, such as 1-2-3-4-5, and using it to place bets on even-money outcomes, such as red or black, odd or even, or high or low. The player starts by adding the first and last numbers in the sequence to determine the bet amount.

If the bet is successful, the player crosses out those two numbers from the sequence. If the bet is unsuccessful, the player adds the bet amount to the end of the sequence.

The process is repeated until all the numbers in the sequence have been crossed out, at which point the player stops playing or creates a new sequence.

The Labouchere can provide some much-needed structure to a wild European roulette wheel, but use it with caution so as to not put yourself at a loss.

💡 Dealer Signature

Everyone has a specific style of doing things, and Dealer Signature in roulette is a tactic of analysing the way dealers toss and spin the ball to make calculated decisions and come out on top.

However, this strategy is difficult to use in practice, as dealers are trained to vary their spinning patterns and ball releases to ensure that the game is fair and random.

Additionally, modern casinos often use automatic roulette wheels or require dealers to switch tables regularly, making it harder to identify and exploit any patterns in a particular dealer’s spins.

Find places to play Online Roulette

Now that you have a few strategies up your sleeve, you should test them out. You can find a list of the best roulette sites in NZ right here at Casinocrawlers where you can test out your new found knowledge.

References:

• Computingskillset. “James Bond Roulette Strategy Analysis: Losing with Style”, https://computingskillset.com/game-analysis/james-bond-roulette-strategy-analysis-losing-with-style/
• Investopedia. “Martingale System: What It Is and How It Works in Investing”. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/m/martingalesystem.asp
• Live Science. “What is the Fibonacci sequence?”, https://www.livescience.com/37470-fibonacci-sequence.html