Online Roulette in Canada
How the wheel and the table work, what every bet pays and what the house edge costs on European, French and American wheels. The bet explorer below shows the math for any bet you pick.
Illustration only: one random pocket from the real European number order. No bets, no money and no balance. Each spin is independent of the one before.
- 37 pockets on a European wheel: 1 to 36 and a single 0
- 2.70% house edge on single-zero European and French wheels
- 5.26% house edge on the double-zero American wheel
What online roulette is
Online roulette is the casino wheel game in digital form. A ball is spun around a numbered wheel and you bet on where it will stop: a single number, a small group of numbers or a large group such as all the red numbers. Online, the result comes either from a random number generator (RNG) or from a real wheel streamed from a studio. The rules and the payouts are the same in both.
- 1
The wheel
A European wheel has 37 pockets: the numbers 1 to 36, alternating red and black, plus a green 0. The American wheel adds a second green pocket, 00, for 38. The numbers are not in order around the wheel; the sequence mixes high and low, odd and even.
- 2
The table
Bets go on a layout of the same numbers in three columns of twelve. Inside bets sit on the number grid and cover one to six numbers. Outside bets sit around it and cover larger groups: red or black, odd or even, a dozen or a column.
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The payouts
Every standard bet except the American five-number bet pays as if the wheel had only 36 pockets. A single number pays 35 to 1 but comes up about once in 37 spins on a European wheel. The gap created by the zero is the house edge, and no betting pattern removes it.
Bet explorer: what each bet covers and pays
Pick a bet type, then click or tap any number on the layout to move the bet. The panel shows the payout, how often the bet comes up and the house edge on a single-zero and a double-zero wheel. It is a calculator for the published rules: no money and no game involved.
Click or tap a number on the layout to move the bet, or pick an outside box directly.
Split 17/20
Covers 2 numbers: 17, 20.
The payout is the same on both wheels and is set as if the wheel had 36 pockets. The zero pockets lower the chance of every bet, and the extra 00 is why the American edge is almost twice as high.
How a round works
An RNG table and a live table follow the same five steps. The difference is who starts the round: you press spin at an RNG table, while a live table runs on a timer.
Choose a table and a budget
Check which wheel the table uses (single or double zero), the minimum and maximum bet shown on the table, and decide in advance how much you are prepared to spend.
Place chips on the layout
Select a chip value and put it on a number, a line between numbers or an outside box. Inside and outside bets can be combined in the same round.
Betting closes
At an RNG table the round starts when you press spin. At a live table a countdown runs and the dealer closes bets while the ball is still moving.
The ball settles
Wheel and ball spin in opposite directions until the ball drops into one pocket. That number, its colour and the groups it belongs to decide the round.
Bets are settled
Bets that cover the number are paid at the fixed odds of the table; all other bets are collected. The next round starts from scratch: earlier results have no effect on the next spin.
European, French and American roulette compared
The number of zero pockets decides the cost of the game. French roulette uses the European wheel and adds a rule that gives back half of an even-money bet when the ball lands on 0.
| European | French | American | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pockets | 37: 0 and 1 to 36 | 37: 0 and 1 to 36 | 38: 0, 00 and 1 to 36 |
| House edge, most bets | 2.70% | 2.70% | 5.26% |
| Even-money bets (red/black, odd/even, low/high) | 2.70% | 1.35% with la partage; about 1.37% to 1.39% with en prison, depending on the rule | 5.26% |
| Five-number bet (0, 00, 1, 2, 3) | Not offered | Not offered | 7.89% |
| Return to player, most bets | 97.30% | 97.30% (98.65% on even-money bets with la partage) | 94.74% |
| Typical extras | Racetrack for neighbour bets | Call bets in French: voisins du zéro, tiers, orphelins | Five-number bet |
What the house edge means over many spins
- French, even-money bets 1.35% with la partage C$1.35
- European and French, other bets 2.70% house edge C$2.70
- American, standard bets 5.26% house edge C$5.26
- American, five-number bet 7.89% house edge C$7.89
The figure is the long-run average the game keeps from the total amount bet. It is not a prediction: a single session can end well above or well below it. Money that is bet again counts towards the total every time it is bet.
The main variants
Roulette lobbies usually offer a mix of the five types below. Studios add their own names and visual themes, but the wheel underneath is one of the first three.
The standard single-zero game: 37 pockets, a 2.70% house edge on every bet. Live, auto and multiplier tables are usually built on this wheel.
The European wheel with a French-language layout and the la partage or en prison rule on even-money bets, which lowers the edge on those bets to 1.35% with la partage and about 1.37% to 1.39% with en prison, depending on the rule. Call bets such as voisins du zéro are placed on a racetrack.
A double-zero wheel with 38 pockets. The payouts are the same as on the European wheel, so the house edge rises to 5.26%, and to 7.89% on the five-number bet.
A real wheel in a studio, spun by a dealer and streamed in HD. You bet on a digital layout during a countdown. Expect a slower pace and a slightly higher minimum bet than at RNG tables.
Auto roulette uses a real wheel that a machine spins without a dealer, for shorter rounds. Multiplier games such as Evolution’s Lightning Roulette add random multipliers to a few numbers each round and pay less on a standard straight-up bet to compensate. Check the RTP in the help screen.
RNG or live roulette
- RNG roulette
A random number generator picks the pocket for every spin, and an animation shows the ball. You start each round yourself, and table minimums are usually lower than at live tables.
- Live dealer roulette
A physical wheel and ball decide the result on camera. Rounds run on a clock: bets close, the wheel spins, the dealer announces the number. Evolution and Pragmatic Play Live are two of the major live studios.
- Same math in both
The house edge comes from the wheel, not the format. A live European table has the same 2.70% edge as an RNG European table, unless the game adds multipliers or side rules.
- The wheel has no memory
“Hot” and “cold” number panels only show past results. Every spin is independent, so a number that has not come up for 100 spins is no more likely to come up on the next one.
What the games look like
Screenshots from the free demo versions on the studios’ own websites, taken on 13 October 2026. The play-money status bar of each game has been cropped off.
Is online roulette legal in Canada?
It depends on your province. Under the Criminal Code only a provincial government can conduct and manage online gambling, so each province decides who may offer casino games such as roulette. Ontario has run an open market of registered private operators since 4 April 2022, and Alberta opened its own on 13 July 2026. Most other provinces offer online casino games through a single Crown platform, and the territories have no online casino platform. Our guide Are online casinos legal in Canada? covers each province, its regulator and its minimum age.
Frequently asked questions
Play within your limits
Roulette is a game of chance and the house edge applies to every spin. Set a time and money limit before you start and treat any spend as the cost of entertainment. 19+ (18+ in Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec). Free, confidential help: ConnexOntario 1-866-531-2600, and every province’s helpline is on our responsible gambling page.