Roulette is the wheel game most people picture when they think “casino”. Online and live versions both run at every SA casino. The right table choice can take your house edge from 5.26% (American) down to 1.35% (European with La Partage). The wrong choice can quietly cost you 4x more per spin.
How roulette works
The wheel has 37 or 38 numbered pockets (1 to 36, plus a green 0 in European, plus an extra green 00 in American). The croupier spins a small ball around the wheel, the wheel slows, and the ball settles in one pocket. You win if your bet covered that pocket.
European vs American: pick your wheel
| European Roulette | Single 0. 37 pockets total. House edge 2.7%. RTP 97.3%. The standard. |
| American Roulette | Single 0 plus a 00. 38 pockets. House edge 5.26%. RTP 94.7%. Avoid where possible. |
| French Roulette (La Partage) | European wheel plus the La Partage rule, which returns half your stake on even-money bets when the ball lands on 0. House edge on those bets drops to 1.35%. |
| Lightning Roulette | Evolution’s hybrid. European wheel plus 1 to 5 random “lucky numbers” each round paying 50x to 500x. Straight bet RTP 97.10%, lower on the lucky bonus. |
| Speed Roulette | European wheel, faster rounds (~25 seconds vs ~50). Same odds. |
| Auto Roulette | No dealer, automated wheel, even faster. Same European odds. |
The single rule that matters: never play American Roulette if you have a European table available. The 00 doubles the house edge. The wheels look almost identical but the math is twice as bad.
The bets you can place
- Inside bets (lower hit rate, bigger payouts):
- Straight: 1 number, pays 35:1.
- Split: 2 adjacent numbers, pays 17:1.
- Street: 3 numbers in a row, pays 11:1.
- Corner: 4 numbers, pays 8:1.
- Six-line: 6 numbers, pays 5:1.
- Outside bets (higher hit rate, smaller payouts):
- Red/Black: pays 1:1, hits 18 of 37 (48.6% on European).
- Odd/Even: pays 1:1.
- 1-18 / 19-36: pays 1:1.
- Dozen (1-12, 13-24, 25-36): pays 2:1.
- Column: pays 2:1.
All bets on a European wheel have the same RTP (97.3%). The casino doesn’t favour one bet over another. Outside bets give you steady wins, inside bets give you rare big payouts. Pick whichever fits your bankroll and patience.
Roulette strategies and why they don’t work
Every roulette “system” is a way to manage variance, not to beat the house edge. The wheel doesn’t remember the last spin. After 10 reds in a row, the next spin is still ~48.6% red on a European wheel.
- Martingale. Double your bet after each loss. Mathematically certain to bust your bankroll on a long enough losing streak. Casinos love this system because the table maximums kill it.
- Fibonacci. Slower bust than Martingale. Same end result.
- D’Alembert. Add one unit after a loss, subtract one after a win. Smoother than Martingale. Still loses to the house edge over time.
- Labouchere. Cancel-numbers system. Complex bookkeeping. No effect on RTP.
- Flat betting. Same stake every round. Honest about your variance, doesn’t pretend to beat the math. The most rational choice if you’re playing for entertainment.
Where to play roulette in SA
- Hollywoodbets: European Roulette, Lightning Roulette, Speed Roulette via Evolution. Pragmatic Play Live too.
- YesPlay: Auto Roulette plus Evolution live tables.
- Playabets: R5 minimum on Speed Roulette. Standard live and RNG roulette.
- Easybet: Evolution-led roulette suite.
- Gbets: Pragmatic Play Live roulette plus Evolution.
- Betshezi: 50+ live tables include several roulette variants.
- Cloudbet: 300+ live dealer tables, deepest roulette selection in our test set.
Roulette FAQ
What’s the difference between European and American roulette?
The 00 pocket. European has 37 pockets (1-36 plus a single 0). American has 38 (adds a 00). The extra pocket doubles the house edge from 2.7% to 5.26%. Always play European where available.
Are some roulette numbers more likely to come up?
No. On a balanced wheel, every pocket has the same 1/37 (or 1/38) chance per spin. Past results don’t change future probabilities. The “hot numbers” board is a memory aid, not a predictor.
Does the Martingale system work?
No. Doubling after losses works until you hit a long enough losing streak to bust your bankroll or hit the table max. Both happen, given enough rounds. The math is unforgiving.
What is La Partage?
A French roulette rule. When the ball lands on 0, even-money bets (red/black, odd/even, 1-18/19-36) get half the stake returned instead of losing the full bet. Effective house edge on those bets drops to 1.35%.
Lightning Roulette: better or worse than European?
Different. Lightning Roulette has 97.10% RTP on straight bets, slightly worse than standard European at 97.3%. The trade is that lucky-number multipliers (50x to 500x) hit on randomly chosen numbers each round, making big wins more frequent. High variance, slightly lower RTP.
What’s the minimum bet on roulette in SA?
Most SA operators start at R5 on live roulette tables and R1 on RNG roulette. VIP tables go from R100 to R500 minimum.
See also: live dealer, how RTP works, or the Games hub.
18+. Roulette is gambling. Play responsibly. National Responsible Gambling Programme: 0800 006 008. iGaming Reviews is independent and may earn a commission when you sign up through our links. This does not change our review or rating.