The American Roulette Wheel: 38 Pockets, Table Layout and the Real Odds of Every Bet

The American roulette wheel has 38 pockets: the numbers 1 to 36, a single zero and a double zero. Because payouts are calculated as if the wheel had only 36 pockets, every standard bet loses 5.26% of the amount staked over time. That is roughly double the 2.70% edge of a single-zero European wheel.

This guide walks through the wheel, the roulette table layout, every bet and its true odds, and what happened when we simulated 100,000 players spinning an American wheel 1,000 times each.

How the American roulette wheel is laid out

The wheel is a spinning bowl divided into 38 pockets. Thirty-six are numbered 1 to 36 and coloured alternately red and black, 18 of each. The remaining two, 0 and 00, are the green zero pockets. A dealer (or a random number generator online) spins the wheel one way and the ball the other, and the pocket where the ball settles decides every bet.

The double zero is what makes the wheel "American". The single-zero wheel came first: the Blanc brothers introduced it at Bad Homburg in 1843, according to Wikipedia's history of roulette. American casinos kept the extra pocket, and with it a higher house edge.

The roulette table layout and roulette board

The roulette board (the felt layout where you place chips) mirrors the wheel but arranges the numbers in order:

• The number grid. Numbers 1 to 36 sit in 12 rows of 3. Each row of three is a "street", and each of the three long columns holds 12 numbers.
• The zeros. 0 and 00 sit at the top of the grid, above 1, 2 and 3.
• The outside boxes. Around the grid are boxes for the three dozens (1–12, 13–24, 25–36), the three columns, and the even-money bets: red or black, odd or even, and low (1–18) or high (19–36).

Bets placed on the grid are called inside bets; bets in the boxes around it are outside bets. On the roulette wheel table, inside bets pay more because they cover fewer numbers.

Every bet on the American wheel: payout, odds and edge

The table below lists every bet type on a double-zero wheel, with the chance of winning, the payout and the house edge. "True odds" are the fair odds: losing pockets to winning pockets.

Two things stand out. First, every standard bet has exactly the same edge. Second, the five-number bet is the only exception, and it is worse. The Wizard of Odds lists the same figures: 5.26% for double-zero bets and 7.89% for the five-number bet.

The odds and the math behind the house edge

Probability on a fair wheel is simply favourable pockets divided by total pockets, as Britannica's guide to gambling odds explains. The house edge is what you lose on average per unit staked.

Every standard bet is priced so that numbers covered × (payout + 1) = 36. That is why the edge never changes: you always get back 36 units for every 38 units of risk. The five-number bet only returns 35 (5 × 7), which is why it costs more.

Worked example: 10 USDT on red

You bet 10 USDT on red. There are 18 red pockets, so you win 18 times in 38 on average and lose 20 times.

• Expected return: (18 ÷ 38) × 20 USDT = 9.47 USDT
• Expected loss: 10 − 9.47 = 0.53 USDT per spin, which is 5.26% of 10 USDT

If you made the same bet on a single-zero wheel, you would win 18 times in 37 and the expected loss would be 0.27 USDT.

What our simulation shows: 1,000 spins on each wheel

To see what the edge does to a real bankroll, we simulated 100,000 players on each of three wheels. Every player bet 1 USDT on red for 1,000 spins.

What the numbers mean:

• On the American wheel, only 4.35% of players finished ahead. On a single-zero wheel the figure was 18.68%, about four times higher.
• Even the lucky end lost money. On the American wheel, the 95th-percentile result was -2 USDT, so 95% of players finished at that figure or worse.
• The median loss tracks the edge. The typical American-wheel player lost 52 USDT out of 1,000 USDT wagered, close to the 52.6 USDT the 5.26% edge predicts.

Strategy for the American roulette game: what works and what doesn't

There is no bet on an American wheel that beats the house edge, and no sequence of bets either. Britannica's article on roulette house odds puts the American edge at about 5.26% and notes that betting systems can't overcome it. Our own test of four systems is in the roulette strategy guide.

What doesn't work:

• Covering more numbers. Spreading chips across many inside bets raises your win rate but not your return. Every chip still loses 5.26% on average.
• The five-number bet. It looks like a cheap way to cover the zeros, but at 7.89% it is the most expensive bet on the board.
• Chasing "hot" or "cold" numbers. Each spin is independent. A number that hasn't come up in 100 spins is no more likely on spin 101.

What does help:

• Choose a single-zero wheel if one is offered. It halves the cost, from 5.26% to 2.70%.
• Pick your volatility on purpose. Red or black wins often and pays little; a single number wins rarely and pays a lot. Our risk and reward breakdown shows how much each bet swings.
• Set limits before you start. Our stop-loss roulette test shows what session limits do and don't change.

Playing American roulette with USDT

Online casino roulette works the same with crypto as with cash: the wheel, payouts and edge don't change. What changes is the cost around the game.

• Keep the bankroll in a stablecoin. A 100 USDT bankroll is worth 100 dollars at the start and end of a session. A bankroll in BTC can rise or fall in dollar terms while you play, which adds risk the wheel doesn't show.
• Include network fees in your budget. At a 5.26% edge, 100 spins of 1 USDT cost about 5.26 USDT on average. A deposit or withdrawal fee of similar size doubles the real cost of that session. Our USDT TRC20 guide covers one of the commonly used networks.
• Know what else is on offer. Crypto casinos often publish games with lower edges. Our dice game odds guide explains a 1% edge game, and our dice odds calculator lets you compare its expected loss with roulette's.

Common mistakes

• Playing a double-zero wheel when a single-zero wheel is available.
• Making the five-number bet because it "covers the zeros".
• Thinking more chips on more numbers means a better chance of profit.
• Treating a run of reds as a sign that black is due.
• Forgetting that network fees add to the house edge on small crypto bankrolls.

For a broader tour of the game, start at the roulette guides hub.