Roulette Strategy
A guide to getting the most out of your roulette gameYou’ve seen it in the movies: excited crowds cheer as the dealer spins the wheel and hits the lead actor’s number for a big win! But in reality, it feels more like a guessing game. Never fear; we’ve got all of the best roulette strategies and tips to help you play your best game!
Roulette strategy: Which one is the most popular?
Named after the French word for little wheel, roulette is just that, a spin of a numbered wheel to determine the ball’s final position. Players bet on where they think this final position will be. As simple as it is, roulette has become one of the world’s most popular games of chance.
You can use strategic betting to reduce the element of luck in the game and increase your chances of winning.
There are many roulette strategies, and we’ll take a look at the best ones to see how they can improve your game.
Roulette strategy n°1: Martingale
The Martingale strategy is the most commonly used strategy for roulette. It works best in a game where you can get 50/50 odds.
Designed to help players recover from losing streaks in a game, it sees you double up on your losing bets and half your winning bets.
Roulette strategy n°2: Reverse Martingale
This strategy is exactly as it sounds, the opposite of the Martingale strategy.
It is also best for bets where you can get 50/50 odds; it will see you doubling your stake after each win and reducing your losing stakes by half.
Roulette strategy n°3: Fibonacci
The Fibonacci strategy is seen as one of the safest roulette strategies. It is used exclusively for even-money bets or bets where you have a 50% chance of winning.
The strategy uses the Fibonacci sequence of numbers (a series of numbers where each number is the addition of the previous two, ie., 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34) to determine your bets.
You follow the numbers for your wagers until you hit a winning bet, then you move two steps back down the sequence and bet that amount.
This pattern continues until you are back at the beginning of the number sequence and are in profit.
Roulette strategy n°4: The D’Alembert
The D’Alembert strategy is similar to the Martingale strategy in that it requires you to bet more on your losing bets.
Instead of doubling the bet like the Martingale, the D’Alembert strategy suggests that you add one unit to your stake with every loss.
This system is also designed to work best with even-money bets.
Roulette strategy n°5: Contra D’Alembert System
The Contra D’Alembert System of betting plays the opposite side of probability to the D’Alambert Strategy.
The system requires you to double down on your winning positions by adding one unit to your stake with each winning bet.
Roulette strategy n°6: The James Bond Betting Strategy
The James Bond Strategy is referred to as a flat betting system which means that you wager the same stake in each round of betting.
Using this system you would place a combination bet to try and reduce the house’s edge built into the game.
Your stake should be split into three bets, usually covering the high numbers, the six-line or double street, and the number 0.
The idea is to cover as much of the table as you can using your bets while still netting a profit.
Roulette strategy n°7: Fisher
Developed years ago by Samuel Fisher, the Fisher Roulette Strategy works on all roulette variants.
Also designed to work best on even-money or 50/50 odds bets, the Fisher System can survive multiple consecutive losses while still keeping you within the house betting limits.
Using this strategy, you keep your bet the same for your first four bets; if the bets lose, your fifth bet amount must be the sum of the last three bets.
If you keep losing, the next three bets will be the same amount, with your ninth wager being the sum of the previous three stakes.
Roulette strategy n°8: Labouchere System
Designed by Henry Labouchere, this system also uses even-money bets. The strategy requires you to predetermine how much money you want to win.
Once you have that figure in mind, you need to break the number into a few smaller numbers to create your betting sequence.
Your first bet will be the sum of the first two numbers in the series. If you win, cross off those first two numbers, and your second bet will be the sum of the first and last numbers left in the sequence.
If you continue winning, the process continues using the first and last numbers, crossing them off as you go. If you lose, you don’t cross out any numbers; add your losing bet amount to the end of your number sequence and continue.
Roulette strategy n°9: Reverse Labouchere System
The Reverse Labouchere is the opposite of the Labouchere Strategy. You still decide how much you want to win and break that number up into smaller numbers to determine your betting sequence.
This time though, you’ll add the stake that you won to the end of the series, and you’ll cross off the numbers that you used to determine any stake that you lose.
Roulette strategy n°10: Andrucci System
This betting system relies heavily on mathematical probabilities within chaos theory to help you choose lucky numbers.
It works by placing straight-up bets that payout 35-1. You’ll need to watch and record the winning numbers for a run of about 30-35 spins.
You’ll find that the ball typically lands on one number more than any others. The Andrucci System then requires you to bet on this ‘lucky’ number for 15-25 spins or until you win.
If you chose the number correctly, you should hit a win within the first 34 spins to profit or 35 spins to break even.
Roulette strategy n°11: Paroli System
With the Paroli System, you increase or decrease your stake depending on what your last result was.
Designed to help you take advantage of winning streaks, the Paroli System dictates that you double your stake after winning and place flat bets or keep your stake the same when losing.
This system works well with even bets that have a roughly 50% chance of winning.
Roulette strategy n°12: 3/2 System
The 3/2 system is a betting strategy designed to get you winning small amounts more often. It does this by covering 70% of the wheel with every bet, making the odds of a win high.
Using this system, you’ll split your bankroll into units, staking three units on one bet and two on another in each round.
You should place the three-unit bet on either red or black, and the two-unit bet on one of the number columns.
Roulette strategy n°13: 1 3 2 6 System
This betting strategy aims to try and achieve a winning streak of four games in a row.
Your bets get progressively bigger by multiplying them by the four numbers in the sequence when you are winning.
When you are losing, you drop back down to the beginning of the sequence and start again.
Which Roulette strategy should you choose?
Though having a betting strategy will increase your odds of winning, no roulette strategy is foolproof, and each method has its own pros and cons.
To get the most out of any system, you’ll need to determine which will best suit your style of play and your chosen variant.
Some work best for European Roulette or the French Roulette game variants and some are better suited to American Roulette, which features a 00 on the wheel.
The best strategies to try when you’re new to a casino
If you are new to the casino world, it’s probably best to use a betting strategy that is easy to follow and that can net small wins more often with the least risk.
Try to stick to the simple systems first until you have a firm grasp on the roulette table layout, the odds and the payouts.
We’d recommend trying the 3/2 system or the low-risk D’Alembert strategy to start.
The 3/2 system is designed to bring small wins more often. You’ll need to break your bankroll into units. For simplicity’s sake, let’s say you have NZ$5 to play per bet.
You would place a NZ$3 bet on either red or black and NZ$2 on one of the three number columns. This system has you covered 70% of the numbers on the wheel and is easy to understand.
With the D’Alembert Strategy, you’ll determine your own betting amount. When you hit a win, you decrease your stake by one unit and when you lose, you increase your stake by one unit.
Roulette strategies to play if you’re a pro
If you’re an old hand at roulette and are completely comfortable with the game and its rules, you’ll also be aware of its risks.
This means that you can try some riskier strategies that require more in-depth knowledge of the game. Here are the methods we recommend for pro players.
The Andrucci System requires some patience and good memory. It has high risk but also high rewards.
To excel at this system, you’ll need to take note of the winning numbers of at least 30 games and use those results to pick a ‘lucky’ number.
You’ll then place a straight-up 35-1 bet in your chosen amount and repeat this bet.
Odds are your lucky number will hit within the first 34 spins to put you in profit; if it hits early on, you’re in for a big win. Once you have won, you should start again with a new research phase and number.
The Fibonacci strategy can be risky and can lead to high losses when used incorrectly.
Using this strategy, you’d place your stake on one of the even-money bets where there are only two options – red or black, even or odd, 1-18 or 19-36.
The amount that you bet should follow the Fibonacci number sequence, so you’d start with NZ$1 for your first bet, NZ$1 for the second, NZ$2 for the third and so on.
If you win, you step two steps back down the number sequence and continue from there. Keep an eye on how close you are to the house betting limits, though.
Roulette strategies that got the most wins
- Charles Wells won two million Francs in Monte Carlo in 1881 using his strategy, the Wells Pendulum. His approach is similar to the D’Alembert system and calls for the stake to be reduced by one unit on a win and increased by one unit on a loss.
- Known as the man who bet his entire life on a single bet, Ashley Revell won US$270,000 in 2004 in Las Vegas. His strategy was a very risky single bet with a 50/50 stake on red.
- Sean Connery won $27,000 in St. Vincent in 1963. His strategy was to place a single straight-up bet on the number 17. When the bet lost, he played the same again; after a second loss, he did the same. The bet won on the third spin; Sean let it ride and landed a 17 for the second time. He let the bet ride once more, and at odds of about 50,000 to 1 he won for a third consecutive spin.
General beginner mistakes that are easy to avoid
Roulette is an exciting and entertaining game, and if you have the will to learn and apply a good strategy, you can have yourself winning more often than not.
Here are a few rookie mistakes that you should avoid if you want to make the most of your roulette strategy.
- Don’t hop around from strategy to strategy – It’s tempting to change strategy mid-game when things aren’t going right. This should be avoided as most strategies rely on probability, and you may be right at the point where this pays off when you jump over to another method and start all over.
- Don’t exceed your budget – Set a limit for your game and stick to it. This will prevent you from becoming despondent and perhaps making desperate, risky bets that lose you large amounts.
- Don’t forget to keep track of your bets – The betting strategies work because they use the laws of probability, odds and patterns to determine your bets. Falling out of the betting sequence because you forgot where you were could cost you that big win.