Roulette odds and payouts explained
Every roulette bet has a fixed payout that reflects how many numbers it covers. The house takes its edge because the payouts are set as if the wheel has 36 numbers, but European wheels have 37 (or 38 on American wheels).
Complete payout table
Straight up (1 number) pays 35:1. Split (2 numbers) pays 17:1. Street (3 numbers) pays 11:1. Corner (4 numbers) pays 8:1. Line (6 numbers) pays 5:1. Column or dozen (12 numbers) pays 2:1. Even money bets (18 numbers) pay 1:1. These ratios are constant regardless of the casino or wheel type — only the number of total pockets changes.
How the house edge works
On a European wheel with 37 numbers, a straight-up bet covers 1 in 37 outcomes but pays 35:1 as if there were 36. The missing unit (1/37 × bet) is the casino’s average profit per spin. On an American wheel with 38 numbers, the same calculation applies to 2 out of 38 (the two zeros), roughly doubling the house’s margin. The zero pockets are the built-in advantage — payouts simply don’t account for them.