American roulette is the double-zero form of roulette with 38 pockets: numbers 1 through 36, a single 0, and a 00. The extra green 00 pocket is the defining mathematical difference from single-zero European roulette. Standard payouts usually remain the same, so the additional losing pocket raises the house edge on most wagers to about 5.26%.
The term identifies the wheel, not the casino’s location
“American roulette” is best understood as a wheel-and-layout description. A double-zero table in Europe is still mathematically American roulette, while a single-zero table in the United States has the mathematics of European roulette.
Look at the wheel or betting layout rather than the country name. If both 0 and 00 are present, the standard wheel has 38 possible outcomes.
| Wheel type | Pockets | Green pockets | Typical edge on standard bets |
|---|---|---|---|
| European / single zero | 37 | 0 | about 2.70% |
| American / double zero | 38 | 0 and 00 | about 5.26% |
The full game is covered in Roulette, while European Roulette provides the direct comparison.
Why one extra pocket nearly doubles the standard house edge
The familiar roulette payouts do not normally increase when 00 is added. A straight-up number still pays 35 to 1. A split usually pays 17 to 1, a street 11 to 1, a corner 8 to 1, a six-line 5 to 1, a dozen or column 2 to 1, and an even-money wager 1 to 1.
Those payout ratios are easy to remember, but they hide the price difference between 37 and 38 pockets.
For a one-number bet on a 38-pocket wheel, a fair net payout would be 37 to 1. The casino pays 35 to 1. Across the 38 possible outcomes, that two-unit shortfall produces the standard 5.26% house edge:
2 ÷ 38 = 0.052631... = 5.26%
The same underlying disadvantage appears on most standard inside and outside bets because the payouts are scaled consistently against the same 38-pocket wheel.
Red is not a 50/50 wager on a double-zero wheel
American roulette contains 18 red numbers and 18 black numbers, plus 0 and 00. A $10 bet on red therefore wins on 18 of 38 outcomes and loses on 20 of 38.
That means the probability of winning is:
18 ÷ 38 ≈ 47.37%
The loss probability is:
20 ÷ 38 ≈ 52.63%
Because a winning red bet pays 1 to 1, the expected value on a $10 wager is approximately:
(18/38 × $10) + (20/38 × -$10) = -$0.526
So the long-run expected cost is about 52.6 cents per $10 wager. A single spin will not normally lose 52.6 cents; it will usually win or lose $10. Expected loss is an average across repeated comparable bets.
For the vocabulary behind that calculation, see House Edge and Expected Loss.
Inside and outside bets mostly share the same price
One reason roulette is easy to explain is that most standard bets have the same house edge even though their hit rates and payouts look very different.
A Straight-Up Bet hits rarely and pays 35 to 1. An Even Money Bet such as red/black wins much more often and pays only 1 to 1. On a standard American wheel, both are generally priced around the same 5.26% house edge.
That means choosing a lower-hit-rate number bet does not automatically mean accepting a worse percentage. It mainly changes volatility: fewer wins, larger payouts. Choosing red/black produces more frequent wins and smaller swings, but it does not remove the edge created by 0 and 00.
The five-number bet is the important exception
American roulette has a notorious special wager covering 0, 00, 1, 2, and 3. This is commonly called the five-number bet, basket, or top-line bet depending on the table language.
It is usually worse than the standard 5.26% bets because the payout does not compensate adequately for covering five of the 38 pockets. Players who assume “all roulette bets have the same edge” can therefore make a real pricing mistake on American roulette.
This is why “most standard bets” is more accurate than “every bet” when describing the 5.26% figure.
Where you encounter American roulette
The term appears on physical casino layouts, electronic roulette terminals, online RNG games, live-dealer menus, training manuals, and game-rule documents. Online products may label it “American Roulette,” “US Roulette,” or “Double Zero Roulette.” The label matters less than the visible presence of both green pockets.
The Nevada roulette rules of play describe roulette wheels with numbers 1 through 36 plus a 0 and/or 00, which captures the core distinction. The Wizard of Odds roulette basics provides standard payout and house-edge calculations.
Why a betting system cannot remove the 00
Progressions such as Martingale, Fibonacci, D’Alembert, or “bet what is due” systems change stake patterns. They do not change the number of pockets or the payout table.
If the underlying $10 red bet has negative expected value, doubling the next wager after a loss changes the distribution of session outcomes but not the fact that each dollar of comparable action is exposed to the same wheel pricing.
The most direct improvement available to a roulette player is therefore structural, not magical: if the table minimum and rules are otherwise acceptable, choosing a single-zero game usually reduces the long-run price substantially.
American roulette from the floor-management side
A double-zero roulette table is attractive to operators because the game is easy to recognize, the edge is strong, and many players already know the basic bets. Operationally, however, roulette is not simple. Dealers and supervisors must control late bets, marker placement, winning-number procedures, payout calculations, chip color/ownership, buy-ins, table limits, and disputes.
Surveillance pays particular attention to late betting, past-posting, dealer-player collusion, chip movement, wheel procedures, and payout accuracy. The mathematics may be straightforward, but the physical game generates many small transactions per spin.
The wider Casino Operations section covers the control environment beyond the player-facing rules. Regulatory guidance such as the UK Gambling Commission game requirements guidance illustrates how game offering sits inside licensing and control requirements.
A compact comparison before choosing a table
If two tables have the same minimum and standard rules, the wheel itself gives you the quickest comparison:
- 0 only: 37 pockets; standard edge about 2.70%.
- 0 and 00: 38 pockets; standard edge about 5.26%.
- Additional special rules: check whether they alter even-money outcomes or settlement.
- Special American five-number bet: do not assume it has the standard 5.26% edge.
This is one of the clearest examples in casino mathematics where a visual detail on the layout directly changes expected cost.
Why table rules still matter after you identify the wheel
Recognizing 0 and 00 tells you the standard American-wheel price, but it does not eliminate the need to read the house rules. Some roulette products add special settlement rules, electronic betting options, proprietary side wagers, or minimum/maximum restrictions that change how a particular bet behaves.
The safest comparison is therefore two-step. First, count the green pockets. Second, inspect the rules that apply to the bet you actually intend to make. A double-zero wheel with a special promotion is still a double-zero wheel unless that promotion genuinely changes the expected value of the wager under written rules.
The same caution applies online. A screen may use an American-looking layout while adding multipliers, bonus numbers, or other mechanics. At that point, the standard 5.26% figure may no longer describe every available wager even though the base wheel still has 38 pockets.
For a beginner, this prevents a common mistake: seeing a familiar red/black or number grid and assuming all roulette products are interchangeable. The wheel count is the starting point; the posted settlement rules finish the comparison.
Related roulette terms worth knowing
American Roulette is only one part of the vocabulary. Compare it with European Roulette before choosing a wheel. Use Straight-Up Bet for one-number wagers and Even Money Bet for red/black, odd/even, and high/low. The main Glossary connects those terms with House Edge and Expected Loss.
The essential definition is simple: American roulette means double-zero roulette. The practical consequence is equally simple: the extra 00 raises the long-run price of most standard wagers without giving the player a matching increase in payout.