Rather than ‘real’ money, casinos use coloured or cash chips on their gaming tables. This means when you approach a roulette table you wish to play on, you must ‘buy in’. You hand over your money, and receive a stack of coloured chips in return, unless you specify you would prefer cash chips.
The advantage of playing with cash chips is that they can be bought and played at any table. This means you can move between roulette tables, play a differnt strategy or play on blackjack tables etc. without having to ‘cash in your chips’. The disadvantage of cash chips is if you have a lot of players using them, there can be confusion between who owns which chip. Especially if it is a winning chip! We've seen a few disputes here and there.
Coloured chips, on the other hand, remove all confusion. They can only be played with at the roulette table they are bought from, and only one player uses each colour: (unless you’re playing in some European countries, where only one colour is used per table and the croupier is expected to remember who has bet what). When you leave the roulette table, you must hand the coloured chips back to the croupier, who will then give you cash chips that you can take to the cashier to turn back into money.
A small but important point of roulette etiquette is that the croupier is unable to take money or chips from your hand. You must place them on the roulette table for him or her to pick up.
Betting Options
As a bettor, you have a choice of placing ‘inside’ or ‘outside’ bets.
The inside bet is a wager on any number, or combination of numbers, ranging from 1 to 36, including 0 and 00.
The outside bet is a wager on any of the ‘groups’ of numbers such as dozens, columns, odd/even, black/red and high/low.
These are the available bets:
Inside Bets
Straight Up.
This is when you place a bet on one number.
Split. A bet which covers two numbers.
Street.
Also known as a trio bet. A bet on the three consecutive numbers that always begin with the number in the first column: i.e., 1-3, 4-6, 7-9 and so on.
Corner. A bet which covers four numbers.
First Five.
American roulette wheel only. This is a bet that covers 0, 00, 1, 2, and 3. It carries an enormous house ‘edge’, higher than the 5.25% on all other American roulette wheel bets. Our recommendation is that you don’t make this wager.
First Four.
European roulette wheel. A bet that covers 0, 1, 2, 3. Same odds as a corner.
Six Line. Also known as a side street. A bet on six numbers, i.e., a ‘double street’.
Outside Bets
Column.
A bet on one of the three columns.
Dozen.
A bet on the 1st, 2nd or 3rd dozens.
Red/Black.
A bet placed on the red or black.
Odd/Even.
A bet placed on odds or evens.
High/Low.
Also known as 1st 18 and 2nd 18.
Bet Placement Illustration
The even money and 2-1 bets are clearly labeled on the table layout. The other wagers require you to place your chips in certain ways, but it won’t take you long to catch on, and the dealer will be most helpful in assisting you, should you need it. Just ask.
If you happen to be down one end of the table for instance, and unable to reach the number you wish to place a chip on, slide the chip across the table to the croupier, and he or she will place it for you. - (Don't throw or toss the chip to the croupier - they seem to not like this for some reason.)
The Winning Payouts
Where you place your bet will influence how much you win: as said before, the greater the risk, the greater the return. If you bet:
Straight Up the return is
35-1
Split
17-1
Street
11-1
Corner
8-1
First Five
6-1
First Four
8-1
Six Line
5-1
Column
2-1
Dozen
2-1
Red/Black
1-1
Odd/Even
1-1
High/Low
1-1
Who Can Win At Roulette?
Everyone: players are not in competition with each other at the roulette wheel. Unlike poker, for instance, in which there can only be one winner in a round, or unlike multiple Lotto winners who have to share first prize, all Roulette players who place a winning bet will be paid the full return.
French terms for the various roulette bets
Roulette is a game that began in France, and many tables still use the French language. These are the terms you may come across while you are playing: