Understanding Roulette Odds

In roulette, the purpose is to try predict where the ball will land trough various roulette bets. Your goal is to beat the house and come out a winner. Nobody likes losing his or her hard-earned cash because it creates a big hole in your pocket. It is possible to win handsomely in this game, especially if you get to understand roulette odds.

The spin is important here and roulette odds refer to the way you choose to place your bets on every spin. You need to ensure that you study the odds themselves in order to increase your chances of beating them.

American vs European Roulette Odds

The odds differ between the European and American roulette. Odds in the European version are better than the ones in the American version. This is because the European version has a single zero slot (0) while the American Roulette a single zero (0)slot and a double zero (00) slot.

The American roulette wheel has a series of 38 numbers which consists of 1 to 36 numbers plus a zero (0)as well as a double zero (00). It is probably prudent to start with easier bets to win. This can be anything on black and anything on red as well as any odd and any even. Outside bets are less riskier than inside bets hence to lower the risk loss, it would be advisable to wager on the outside bets.
In both versions, the zero slots exhibit the house edge and this tilts the odds of winning towards the house.

When playing European Roulette the house has a 2.7% edge over players with the zero slot and American Roulette has a 5.26% edge due to the addition of the double zero slot.
The top payout you can receive in the American version is 35 to 1 but remember that there are 38 possible numbers on which the ball can land on the wheel. The house advantage lies here and you would do well to keep this in mind as you play.
The European single zero slot yields the same payouts as the American version with the double zero slot. However, the odds in the European version are better that the ones in the American version. The roulette odds tip slightly more in favor of the casino when players make bets that cover five numbers.

Winning Is Simple

Winning these simple bets is easier than you think. However if you want, you can do more complex bets which among other things entails betting on a single number. Nevertheless, you must keep in mind that it will not be easy to pull this off.
You need to make more outside bets because they have better odds. In American roulette, the best odds for inside bets are at 38 to 6 while the best odds for outside bets are at 38 to 18. The disadvantage with payout from outside bets is that it is not significant and the inside bets actually produce bigger payouts.
An outside bet is made of one combination being picked as a winner. It is also made through a combination of winning numbers which are located side by side. Outside bets are placed in any of the boxes situated around the numbers. They are not placed on specific numbers but they are placed on rows or groups of numbers.