All about American roulette: main differences or advantages and disadvantages

Roulette is one of the most popular casino games. During its existence, it has taken many forms, but there are three main directions. American, European and French roulette. Our article focuses on the first one, in which we will tell you everything about this type of roulette, how it is played, what differences and advantages or disadvantages it brings in the game compared to other variants.

How to recognize American roulette?

In online casinos, you can come across a wide variety of roulettes. Therefore, it is always necessary to focus on their identification marks and determine exactly what type of roulette it is. Only if you know the type of roulette, you can work with its rules. You will certainly recognize American roulette at first glance, because it has relatively clearly defined identification marks. The basic parameters of American roulette are:

• American roulette contains two zero fields (0 and 00)
• You will find 38 fields on its field
• The house edge of American roulette is 5.26% (RTP 94.74%)
• All terms on the playing field are in English or the language of the online casino

After examining all these signs, you will very quickly recognize whether it is American roulette or another version of this popular casino game. American roulette is characterized primarily by its two zero fields, thanks to which you can safely recognize it practically at any time and you cannot be mistaken.

American Roulette vs. Other Roulettes

As you may already know from our other articles, the differences between roulettes are not fundamental. In fact, they are more about details that can make a fundamental difference in the game. If you want to compare American roulette with the others quickly and easily, we bring you a clear table where you can find the most important information.

Comparison of roulette types

Other differences in American roulette

In addition to the obvious visual differences that distinguish American roulette from others, there are also differences in special rules. American roulette has not adopted any of the rules that we commonly know from French roulette. On the other hand, you do not have to learn rules such as En Prison or La Partage, which adds to its simplicity. Let’s explain these rules briefly.

• The En Prison Rule – One of the rules that is not found in American roulette and distinguishes it from other types is En Prison (literally “In prison”). If the ball stops at zero in the case of even bets (with a payout ratio of 1 to 1), even bets are not returned, but remain “trapped” in their place until the next spin. If the player wins in the next round, his stake is returned without winnings. If he loses, he loses his stake.
• La Partage Rule – This rule means that if the ball lands on zero on even bets (with a payout of 1 to 1), players betting on this type of bet will be paid half of their stake. This rule increases the RTP of roulette to 98.65%.

Layout of the playing field and wheel

American roulette has a wheel with 38 positions, which are also projected onto the table. This then offers other betting options, which are almost always the same in all types of roulette. The numbers on it have a value from 1 to 36 and are divided into red and black according to the colors. In addition, American roulette also has two zeros, usually marked in green. However, the numbers on the American and European roulette wheels are in a different order, which can affect betting strategies.

Racetrack American Roulette

In addition to these basics, most offline and online roulette also includes a so-called racetrack. It is designed to resemble the arrangement of numbers on a roulette wheel. It involves placing special bets on groups of numbers that are close together on the wheel.

What are the betting combinations?

All betting combinations are basically similar to other roulettes. The basic division is:

• Outside bets – bets on options other than numbers
• Inside bets – bets directly on individual numbers and their combinations
• Combined bets – bets on multiple numbers

However, there are of course more betting opportunities on the screen. You can read about the specific bets in American roulette, along with their probabilities and payout ratios, in the table after this paragraph. If you would like a more detailed explanation with pictures, you can definitely read the article How to play roulette.

Probability of winning and payout ratios of betting combinations

The problem with American roulette is and will always be that although the payout ratios remain the same as in other classic types of games, the probability of winning is slightly lower, precisely because of the high casino advantage. Of course, everything depends on what you are betting on. If you are interested in how these important parameters are in American roulette, you will find everything you need to know in the table below.

If you would like to see all the bets individually and more clearly laid out, check out the detailed article on how to play roulette.

How to bet in American roulette?

The principle of betting is as simple as in all other types of roulette.

In American roulette, there are no special rules that you can use to reduce your losses or win more money. The game is extremely simple and it is always just a matter of luck whether you win or lose.

You can find detailed instructions with pictures in the general article about roulette here.

Play American Roulette for Free

However, if you don’t feel like playing for real yet, you can hone your skills and strategies on free online roulettes. You’ll find all types of roulette here, no registration required and no risking your money as you’re playing with virtual currency.

Where is American roulette played the most?

As its name suggests, American roulette is most played on the American continent. Many casinos in Las Vegas only offer players the American version. However, this does not mean that you will not find it in Europe at all. It is increasingly penetrating both online and brick-and-mortar casinos within it. However, if you have a choice, it is better to go for European roulette.

For all beginners, there is of course an online Demo version, where they can try the game without risk, only with virtual money. Some online casinos are also starting to work with more modern variants of American roulette. In them, you can find, for example, multipliers for winnings, a game with two wheels or a screen reduced by half. So far, these are rather exceptions, but with the growing number of different providers, it is quite possible that American roulette will give way to its newer successors in the future.

Currently, the so-called Live casinos, which are the perfect combination of an authentic casino experience and the comfort of home. This of course includes Live Roulette, which you can read more about in the article below.

History of American Roulette

The roots of roulette as such go back to the 17th century in France and since then it has spread practically all over the world. It was given its form by the Blanc brothers, who added a zero to it and thus gave the casino a significant advantage of 2.70%.

At the beginning of the 19th century, roulette was already played practically all over the world, which means that it also reached America. Here, however, the casinos almost immediately added a second zero, i.e. “00”. Thanks to this, they got an even greater advantage than with classic roulette, to be precise 5.26%. Otherwise, however, American roulette follows the pattern of all its predecessors.

American Roulette – to Play or Not to Play?

Roulette in general is an extremely popular casino game that, with a few exceptions, can be found in practically all online casinos. American roulette is one of its forms, which is mainly used by casinos on the American continent. It is not so popular among European players, because while its payout ratios remain the same, the chances of winning are much lower. So, if you have a choice, it is ideal to choose European or French roulette and play on them.