Roulette, like any other casino game, carries the risk of draining your pockets within minutes. Keeping track of your bankroll is the wisest tactic to avoid losing every penny when gambling. Whether we play roulette, poker, or video slots, it is always crucial to have a money management plan in place, even though it cannot change the reality of casino gambling, which is that the house has the edge.
Importance of Money Management
Understanding the importance of money management is fundamental to long-term success when playing roulette online or in a land-based casino. The concept of managing one’s bankroll and adjusting the playing style accordingly is practically the same whether it is a live game or virtual roulette.
First and foremost, players should know that no money management plan, playing strategy, or betting system will shift the odds in their favor; each casino game is structured so that it gives the house a mathematical advantage. As a negative-expectation game, roulette is a perfect example, and over time casinos will always make a profit from players’ losses.
Depending on whether they feature an American or a French/European wheel, roulette games may have a house edge ranging from 2.70% to 5.26%, which means that players are expected to ultimately lose 2.70%-5.26% of their bets on average. This is just a theoretical expectation, however, and in a real-life situation, some players may lose more than half of their bankroll, while others may finish with a profit.
This is where money management comes in. With careful planning and a good money management strategy, players have a chance to maintain their bankroll for longer. In other words, money management cannot guarantee profits. It can only slow down potential losses, allowing players to enjoy their gambling experience to the fullest.
Last but not least, money management helps players maintain discipline and self-control even after a long losing streak that could easily trigger negative emotions. Chasing losses is never a good idea, so following a strict bankroll management plan will help players make wiser decisions and quit playing at the right time.
Money Management Strategies
There are many different money management strategies and tactics, and they depend on players’ personal preferences, experience at the roulette table, and tolerance for risk. Because there is no universal method for managing your gambling bankroll, we have selected some of the most widely used tactics among roulette players below.
Setting Up Loss Limits
Having Winning Goals
Single Session Strategy
Monthly Money Management Method
Setting Up Loss Limits
A widely used money management technique in roulette and gambling in general is setting a loss limit and leaving the casino once you hit it. The limit can be any amount or percentage of your bankroll; the exact figure is up to you. A cautious approach is to choose a cap that does not exceed 50% of your bankroll. With this safeguard, you will never lose all your money in a single session.
Of course, players can choose a loss limit of 20%, 30%, or 40%, depending on how conservative they are. If the loss limit is 30% and your bankroll is $500, you should stop playing when your losses reach $150. With that limit, you would still have $350 left.
Another option is to stop playing after a predetermined number of consecutive losses. This practice is especially common among land-based casino patrons who believe the croupier or the table is “cold,” or that a person or object is bringing them bad luck. When playing online, some players simply close the game and start a new one after four or five losses in a row.
Remember, the logic behind these “strategies” is flawed. Luck does not actually exist, and a basic understanding of roulette shows you cannot predict future outcomes based on past results.
Having Winning Goals
Some roulette players also set winning goals, and once they reach a predetermined profit, they leave the table until the next session. This tactic helps them lock in their gains, no matter how small. For example, if you start an online roulette session with a $500 bankroll and end up with $600, you have earned a $100 profit, or exactly 20%.
Inexperienced players may prefer a winning goal of 10%. They would quit after earning $50 in total profit. Although this may not seem like a large sum, it is an excellent way for novices to practice basic money management when playing online roulette. Over time, they can aim for higher targets such as 30%, 40%, or 50%.
Single Session Strategy
Many casino players wonder how large their bankroll should be, that is, the amount allocated for a day, a week, or an entire month. An effective approach is to break your bankroll into funds earmarked for a single session. This simple model helps you avoid overspending. For example, imagine you have a $1,000 bankroll, the total you can afford to gamble this month.
To set a session bankroll, decide how many times you plan to play roulette. You might play 30 sessions, one for each day of the month, or perhaps eight sessions limited to weekends. In that case, divide $1,000 by 8, giving you eight separate bankrolls of $125 each. You can pair this strategy with others, such as setting loss and win limits.
Monthly Money Management Method
Some players find it easier to manage their bankroll on a monthly basis because it allows them to plan all income and expenses. Keep in mind, however, that using a single monthly bankroll and applying loss or win limits to it may not be very effective, as these limits could be quite high. A 30% loss, for example, would be devastating. Therefore, dividing the monthly budget into multiple session bankrolls is recommended.
Choosing More Favorable Rules
As mentioned above, no money management plan can change the odds of the game. Every casino game gives the house a mathematical advantage embedded in its rules and payouts. For this reason, players should seek games with the lowest possible house edge. In roulette, European and French wheels provide better odds, offering a house edge that is half of what you will find on the classic American wheel.
Single-Zero Roulette
How to Further Reduce the House Edge
Single-Zero Roulette
European and French roulette variants use a wheel with 37 pockets: 18 red numbers, 18 black numbers, and a single green pocket for 0. In contrast, the American-style wheel includes two green pockets, 0 and 00. Because zero is not included in the main bet types (red/black, low/high, and even/odd) or in dozens and columns, it functions as a house number. This pocket provides the casino with its primary edge over players.
Despite the different odds and payouts, all bets in French or European roulette carry a house edge of exactly 2.70%. American double-zero roulette, by comparison, has a 5.26% edge, except for the five-line bet, which rises to 7.69%. Clearly, the single-zero wheel is more favorable, so players should avoid American-style games whenever possible.
How to Further Reduce the House Edge
Certain optional rules in French roulette can reduce the house edge to 1.35%. They are called La Partage and En Prison and apply when the ball lands on zero. Under La Partage in single-zero roulette, players who placed an outside even-money bet lose only half their stake when 0 wins. En Prison is a variation: the bet stays on the table for the next spin, giving players a chance either to recover their entire stake or to lose it all.
Another way to improve your long-term results is to focus on bets with a higher probability of winning. Although the house edge is identical for all bets, some wagers hit more frequently than others. The best choices are outside even-money bets (red or black, low or high, and even or odd). These bets have a probability of 0.48648648648, meaning they win about 48.64% of the time. By comparison, splits win roughly 5.40% of the time, while straight-up single-number bets win only 2.70%.
Progressive Betting Systems
Progressive betting systems are extremely popular among roulette players, and they can be used in both online games and traditional land-based casinos. Unlike strategy decisions in games such as blackjack or poker, betting systems do not dictate how to play individual hands. Instead, they are typically paired with one type of wager, usually an even-money bet, and involve adjusting stake size based on previous outcomes or expected future results.
These systems, often called betting progressions, consist of simple rules that determine the stake at any point during the game. They sometimes include numeric sequences that show how many units to bet after each win or loss. Players should note that betting systems come in several forms: positive, negative, and flat, and some can be extremely risky to a bankroll.
It is also important to remember that these systems do not guarantee substantial profit over time. In fact, some progressive systems can drain your bankroll very quickly; for example, certain methods require you to double your bet after every loss. For this reason, you should apply them cautiously and weigh their pros and cons.
Positive Progressions
Negative Progressions
Flat Betting Systems
Positive Progressions
Positive betting progressions are systems that tell players to increase their stakes after a win and decrease them after a loss. Well-known examples include the Paroli, the 1-3-2-6 System, the Reverse Labouchere, and the Contra D’Alembert. With the Paroli System, for instance, you double your bet after a win and return to your initial stake after a loss. The sequence ends after three consecutive wins, aiming to produce small but steady profits. This approach is viewed as mildly aggressive and carries a moderate risk of financial loss.
Negative Progressions
Negative progressions are even more popular; with these systems, players raise the bet size after a loss and reduce it after a win. The classic example is the Martingale, which requires players to double their stake after every loss and return to the base bet after a win. This approach is highly aggressive, and most experts advise avoiding it altogether.
Flat Betting Systems
Flat betting systems are straightforward and differ from the standard progressive models used in roulette. In a flat system, players place the same bet every time; there is no stake adjustment and no numeric sequence to follow. Flat bets are usually made on straight-up numbers or splits, with the idea that a high payout of 35:1 or 17:1 can offset several losses. Some players broaden their coverage by combining a few straight-up bets with an outside wager such as red or black.
Taking Advantage of Comp Points
Most online casinos have loyalty or VIP programs intended for regular players. They reward patrons for their activity on the website, i.e., their gambling, with points that can be exchanged for cash or other perks and rewards. Roulette players can take advantage of such schemes and offers, but before claiming a cashback bonus or another reward as part of the loyalty program, they should carefully review the T&Cs of the casino.
There are multiple restrictions and conditions applying to cashback or other types of bonus funds: maximum bet per spin, wagering requirements, maximum cashout, etc. Players should also check how many loyalty points they can earn while playing roulette; some casinos reward more points for slots play, for instance. To make the most of a casino loyalty program, players should also take into consideration the following factors:
- Comp return rate or percentage
- Speed of the game
- Number of hours played
- Average bet and the total amount wagered
- House edge and theoretical loss per hour
