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The Difference Between Roulette Variants
American, French, European: The Difference of Roulette Variants – Roulette is one of the oldest casino games and has been played for almost 200 years. Over time, it has had different rules depending on the region in which it is played, and today it has three basic variants. These are known as European, French, and American. While the basic rules are the same, these variants are quite different from each other in terms of betting options, chances of winning, and house edge. Below we explain what these differences are and tell you what to expect from each variant. Note that you can try all the games mentioned in this article free of charge at roulette77.us.
European Roulette
This is the most common variant of the game. European roulette house edge is 2.70%, and RTP is 97.30%. Simply put, this means that for every 100 units you wagered, you can earn 97.30 units back in the long run. Most of the games you can find on the internet are European roulette and most guides are prepared for this variant.
European roulette has 37 numbers on the wheel (0 – 36). Its visually distinctive feature is that there is only one 0 pocket in the wheel. There are two categories of bets, inside and outside, and using them it is possible to bet on a certain numb game er, a range of numbers, a color, or whether the outcome will be an odd or even number. Some of the outside bets offer a chance of winning up to 48.60%.
American Roulette
This variant has emerged as a result of casino owners wanting to increase their chances of winning. Thus, when roulette game came to the United States. Visually, the American variant is very easy to recognize as it has two 0 pockets (0 and 00) on the wheel. Therefore, there are 38 numbers in total in this game. This is a more substantial difference than you might think, as the additional casino pocket reduces the game’s RTP to 94.75% while increasing the house edge to 5.25%. This means that the player will earn less in the long run (compared to other variants).
It is no different from other variants in terms of betting options and general gameplay. However, in American roulette, there is a special type of bet called “basket”. This bet allows you to bet on a total of 5 numbers (0, 00, 1, 2, 3). The basket bet is exclusive to the American variant, but its house edge is very high (7.89%).
French Roulette
At first glance, this variant looks like European roulette: There are 37 numbers on the wheel and the betting options are exactly the same. However, the French roulette RTP is 98.65% and the house edge is 1.35%. These are almost as good odds as video poker and blackjack. The fact that French roulette has much better RTP values is due to two special rules. These are not betting options; they are constantly active rules and allow the players to get some of their bet back under certain conditions.
- La Partage: If the players bet on options that pay 1:1 and lose, they get half their money back.
- En Prison: If the players bet on options that pay 1:1 and lose, they can use the same bet again in the next spin.
This variant uses one of these two additional rules and because cashback is an option, the RTP rate is very high compared to other variants. Unfortunately, it is also a rather rare variant.
Which One to Pick?
The European variant is ideal for beginners as it strikes the perfect balance between simple rules and satisfactory RTP rates. The fact that it is very common also makes it easy to find: you can be sure to find this variant in every online casino. After gaining some experience, you can switch to French roulette.
In general, the American variant should not be preferred. This is simply because of the low RTP and high house edge rates. Apart from an additional bet option, American roulette has nothing to offer. The house edge for this option is already quite high, even known as the worst bet in roulette. Therefore, it would be a much better idea to opt for the European and French variants in general.
