European Versus American Roulette: Rules and House Edge Compared

American roulette costs almost twice as much per bet as European roulette: the house edge is 5.26% on a double-zero wheel against 2.70% on a single-zero wheel. The reason is one pocket. Both versions pay the same odds, 35:1 on a single number, but the American wheel has 38 pockets (1 to 36, 0 and 00) and the European wheel 37 (1 to 36 and 0), so the American game has one more pocket where number bets lose. On even-money bets the gap can widen further: some single-zero tables add La Partage, which halves the edge on those bets to 1.35%. We base this on the published rules of Loto-Québec, PlayNow and BetMGM Ontario, read on October 19, 2026.

Casinos for players in Canada

Featured casinos pay us commission. Affiliate disclosure

• Spinrise Up to €5,555 + 257 Free Spins Offer from our affiliate partner's list, October 23, 2026. Check the casino's terms. Visit Spinrise (opens in a new tab) T&Cs apply. 19+ (18+ in Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec). Responsible gambling
• NorthSpin Up to €7,000 + 250 FS Offer from our affiliate partner's list, October 23, 2026. Check the casino's terms. Visit NorthSpin (opens in a new tab) T&Cs apply. 19+ (18+ in Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec). Responsible gambling
• JeetCity Up to $10,000 + 180 Free Spins Offer from our affiliate partner's list, October 23, 2026. Check the casino's terms. Visit JeetCity (opens in a new tab) T&Cs apply. 19+ (18+ in Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec). Responsible gambling

What is the same in both games?

The betting layout and the payouts. Loto-Québec’s roulette rules list straight up at 35:1, split 17:1, street 11:1, corner 8:1, line 5:1, column and dozen 2:1, and the even-money bets (red or black, even or odd, low or high) at 1:1. BetMGM’s American Roulette in Ontario pays the same 35:1 on a straight-up bet. On both wheels, a zero loses every outside bet unless a special rule applies.

What is different?

The wheel. European: 37 pockets with one zero. American: 38 pockets with 0 and 00. BetMGM Ontario’s help page describes its live American Roulette as 38 slots including 0 and 00, and the Nevada Gaming Control Board’s rules for a double-zero game describe the same 38-pocket wheel.

An extra bet. The American layout adds a five-number bet on 0, 00, 1, 2 and 3. BetMGM pays it at 6:1.

Even-money rules. On single-zero tables in our check, La Partage appears in the rules of two French Roulette tables, at Loto-Québec and at PlayNow. BetMGM’s American Roulette rules describe no La Partage or En Prison.

How big is the difference, and why?

Work it out from the pockets:

• European, straight up: wins 1 time in 37 and returns 36 units. Average return 36/37 = 97.30%, house edge 2.70%.
• American, straight up: wins 1 time in 38 and returns 36 units. Average return 36/38 = 94.74%, house edge 5.26%.
• American, five-number bet: wins 5 times in 38 and returns 7 units. Average return 35/38 = 92.11%, house edge 7.89%.
• European with La Partage, even-money bets: half the stake back on zero, so the edge on those bets is 1/74, about 1.35%, and the return 98.65%.

The ratio between 5.26% and 2.70% is about 1.95, which is why “almost twice” is the accurate summary. The same 1.95 applies to every standard bet on the two wheels, because every bet loses to the zeros in proportion to the numbers it does not cover.

How often does a zero decide the result?

More often than it feels. Over 100 spins of a single-zero wheel, zero comes up about 2.7 times on average, and the chance of seeing it at least once is 1 minus (36/37) to the power of 100, about 94%. On a double-zero wheel, 0 or 00 comes up about 5.3 times in 100 spins, and the chance of at least one is above 99%. Every one of those spins takes a loss on all outside bets, which is the house edge at work.

What does the difference mean in money?

Take an evening of 100 spins at $10, $1,000 staked:

• European wheel: expected cost about $27.
• American wheel: expected cost about $53.
• European wheel with La Partage, betting only even money: expected cost about $13.50.

The figures are averages. Any single evening can end far from them in either direction, but over many sessions the totals move toward these numbers.

Where can you play each in Canada?

• European, single zero: every live roulette table whose rules we read at Loto-Québec (eight tables) and PlayNow.com (four tables). Loto-Québec’s standard tables return 97.30%; its multiplier tables, Lightning and Gold Vault Roulette, list 97.10% on straight-up bets and Red Door Roulette 97.09%.
• European with La Partage: Casino de Montréal Roulette 14 at Loto-Québec, 10¢ to $10,000, and Live French Roulette at PlayNow.
• American, double zero: BetMGM’s live American Roulette in Ontario. BetRivers in Ontario also lists tables called American Roulette, but their rules open only after login.

Live single-zero tables also have rules for the spin itself: Loto-Québec’s French Roulette requires the ball to complete at least 6 full revolutions before it drops, and its Immersive Roulette at least 3, or the spin is invalid.

Our page on wheel numbers and zeros covers the triple-zero variant too.

Is there any reason to choose the American game?

Only if the table offers something you value more than the cost: a limit that suits you, a dealer or stream you prefer, or the five-number bet itself. On cost alone, the European wheel is cheaper on every bet, and a single-zero table with La Partage is cheaper still on even-money bets. Betting systems do not change this: our page on the Martingale system shows why no staking pattern removes the edge.

What we could not confirm

• The wheel at BetRivers’ American Roulette tables.
• Limits at BetMGM’s American Roulette: not on the help page.

Check before you sit down

Count the zeros on the layout, read the straight-up return in the rules (97.30% or 94.74%), and look for La Partage if you bet on red, black, odd, even, high or low. If both versions are on offer at limits you can live with, the single-zero table is the cheaper choice for every bet. Our explainer on La Partage and En Prison shows how much that rule saves.