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Roulette is a game where a ball lands in a numbered pocket and you bet on where it stops. European roulette has 37 pockets, numbers 1 to 36 plus a single zero, and carries a house edge of 2.70%. American roulette adds a double zero, making 38 pockets and a house edge of 5.26%. Always choose European where both are offered.
Roulette is simple to play and easy to play badly. This guide covers the bets, the odds behind them, and the one decision that matters more than all the others.
You place chips on a betting layout, the wheel spins, and a ball settles in one numbered pocket. Every bet either covers that number or it does not, and winning bets pay at fixed odds published on the table.
Online roulette uses either a random number generator or a live streamed wheel. Both are subject to the game fairness requirements in Ontario's Registrar's Standards for Internet Gaming at any licensed operator.
There is no sequence, pattern or memory in a roulette wheel. Each spin is independent of every spin before it, which is why systems built on past results do not change the odds.
One pocket, and it doubles the house edge. European wheels carry 37 pockets: 1 to 36 plus a single zero. American wheels carry 38: the same numbers plus a double zero.
| Wheel | Pockets | House edge | Single number payout |
|---|---|---|---|
| European | 37 | 2.70% | 35 to 1 |
| American | 38 | 5.26% | 35 to 1 |
| French, with la partage | 37 | 1.35% on even-money bets | 35 to 1 |
The payout on a single number is 35 to 1 on both wheels, even though the American wheel has one more pocket. That gap is precisely where the extra house edge comes from.
If both are offered, choosing European instead of American is the single most valuable decision you can make at a roulette table, and it takes one click.
Bets divide into inside bets, placed on numbers, and outside bets, placed on groups. Inside bets pay more and win less often; outside bets pay less and win more often. The house edge is identical across almost all of them.
A common misunderstanding is that outside bets are safer. They win more often, but the expected loss per dollar staked is the same. What changes is variance, not value.
No. Systems such as the Martingale, where you double after each loss, do not change the odds of any spin. They redistribute wins and losses into a different pattern, which can feel like an edge while it lasts.
The Martingale specifically fails for two hard reasons: table maximums cap how far you can double, and a losing run long enough to break you is far more likely than most players expect.
La partage is a French roulette rule where even-money bets lose only half the stake if the ball lands on zero. Where it applies, the house edge on those bets falls from 2.70% to about 1.35%, which is among the best in any casino game.
A related rule, en prison, holds the bet for one more spin instead of taking half. Both improve even-money bets specifically and do nothing for inside bets.
These rules are not offered everywhere. Where a French roulette table is available with la partage, it is the strongest roulette option on the site for even-money betting.
Live dealer roulette streams a physical wheel and a real croupier, with bets placed through the interface. It has become one of the most popular casino formats in Canada, and it typically runs slower than software roulette.
That slower pace matters more than most players realise. Fewer spins per hour means less total exposure to the house edge over the same session length.
Betway's own published app listing names Lightning Roulette among its live dealer titles. Lightning-style games apply multipliers to selected numbers, funded by a reduced payout on straight up bets, so read the payout structure before playing them.
In Ontario, any operator listed in the iGaming Ontario operator directory is authorised to offer casino games. That directory held 48 regulated operators running 83 gaming websites when last checked, with Betway listed under the legal entity Cadway Limited.
Alberta's private market opened on 13 July 2026 under Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis. Elsewhere in Canada, the provincial lottery corporation runs the online casino.
Four checks, all visible before you place a chip, and each one affects your money directly.
Roulette is fast, particularly in software form, and a fast game with a fixed edge costs you in proportion to how many spins you play rather than how long you sit there.
Decide two limits before you open the game: a money limit and a time limit. The second matters more than most players expect, because roulette absorbs attention and a planned twenty minutes becomes an hour easily.
Flat staking works well here. Betting the same amount every spin removes the temptation to increase after a losing run, which is where most roulette bankrolls disappear.
Betway offers roulette inside its Ontario casino product, and its own published app listing names Lightning Roulette among the live dealer titles. Betway is listed in the iGaming Ontario operator directory under the legal entity Cadway Limited, authorised for both casino and sports betting.
Lightning-style formats apply large random multipliers to selected numbers each round, funded by a reduced base payout on straight up bets. That trade-off is published in the game's own payout table, which is worth reading before you play one.
For a roulette player who also bets on sport, the single-account structure matters. One balance covers the wheel and the sportsbook, one identity verification covers both, and Betway Plus loyalty points accrue across the two rather than in separate schemes.
French roulette with la partage gives the lowest house edge on even-money bets at about 1.35%. European roulette is next at 2.70%. American roulette at 5.26% is the worst of the three.
No. The zero pocket means red and black each cover fewer than half the pockets, which is exactly where the house edge sits on those bets.
No. Each spin is independent, and online games use certified random number generators or physically shuffled live wheels. Past results carry no predictive value.
Nineteen and over in Ontario and 18 and over in Alberta. Every licensed operator must verify your age before you can play for real money.
Both must meet the same game fairness requirements at a licensed Ontario operator. Live tables use a physical wheel; software tables use a certified random number generator.
Roulette's appeal is how quickly the next spin arrives, and speed is the part of the game that costs the most. A time limit protects you here more effectively than a money limit, because a budget can disappear inside twenty minutes at a fast table. Use the session reminders in your account. Ontario players can reach ConnexOntario free and confidentially on 1-866-531-2600; Alberta players can call 1-866-332-2322.