Roulette Bonus Sites

Roulette Overview

First and foremost, players must be clued up on the variant they’re playing and how this affects their chances. European, French, and American are the prominent roulette variants, but they all follow slightly different rules. But have no fear  — we cover everything you need to know right here on this page.

Choosing a Roulette Bonus

Online roulette bonuses will come in many different shapes and sizes. When you first sign up to one of our recommended roulette sites, you’ll be given the chance to capitalise on a substantial welcome offer. Then, as an existing member, the best roulette casinos will frequently offer smaller bonuses. Here are the bonus types you’re likely to come across.

Matched Deposits

Most roulette casinos will serve up a matched deposit bonus as part of their welcome package, where the casino agrees to equal a portion of your first deposit. This could be an offer in the region of 100% up to £100, which would double any deposit up to that amount.

No Deposit Bonuses

If you’re not sure where best to front your hard-earned cash, then no deposit bonuses offer free play time without staking any money. Bonus amounts will be smaller as a result, but you’ll receive your bonus credit as soon as you sign up to the casino. 

Free Spins Bonuses

Now, free spins bonuses can’t be used at the roulette wheel, but since roulette isn’t the only playing option at UK casino sites, these can still come in handy. Free spins are to be used on the casino’s range of slots, with each spin carrying its own wagering value, usually 10p or 20p. 

Terms and Conditions of Your Roulette Bonus

Before you claim any casino bonus, it’s essential that you read the T&Cs first if you want to turn the bonus into withdrawable cash. Here are some of the conditions you’ll likely see with an online roulette bonus.

Wagering Requirements

Easily the most obtrusive condition to bonuses at online casinos, wagering requirements commit players to wagering their bonus a certain number of times over before it can turn a profit. You’ll usually see the figure set somewhere between 20–40x, but this will vary at each site. 

By way of example, let’s say you received a matched deposit bonus with a 30x wagering requirement, and you decided to activate this offer with a £20 deposit. You’d then need to wager a total of £600 (30 x 20) before you could make a withdrawal request. 

Game Weightings

Closely tied to the above are game weightings — a condition that limits the rate at which wagers chip away at the wagering requirements. For the majority of slots, this figure is placed at 100%, but table games are often saddled with much meaner percentages; it’s not uncommon to have weights down as low as 5% or even 0%.

Time Limits

Your bonus will be set against two clocks at the same time: one places a timer on the overall use of the bonus, the other on the completion of the wagering requirements. If either clock runs out of time, you’ll forfeit any remaining bonus credit.

Rules of Roulette

Most roulette wheels consist of either 37 or 38 numbered pockets. 18 of these are always red, and 18 are always black, but the composition of the remaining pockets depends on the variant that’s being played. European and French roulette wheels have 37 pockets, while the American version has 38. These extra pockets — signified as either a single zero or double zero — are marked as green and belong to the house. 

Separated from the wheel is the roulette table, where players place their bets. Due to its shape, the area on the table that marks the available bets is known as the racetrack. There are loads of different betting types available, each with their own allocated sections on the racetrack, but the most recognisable are even money wagers such as red or black, or odd or even. 

Players must place their bets before the wheel starts spinning. Once it stops and the ball finds its final resting place, all successful wagers will be paid out, while lost ones will go to the house. If the ball lands in one of the house’s green pockets, all wagers are lost. 

Odds and House Edge – What You Need to Know

The house edge refers to the casino’s long-term advantage over the player. Yes that’s right — the cliché, ‘the house always wins’ isn’t a cliché at all, but a statement of mathematical fact. In roulette, the house edge is impacted by the composition of the wheel: with single zero pocket games, such as European and French variants, the house edge is 2.7%; with the American double zero pocket, the house edge rises to 5.26%.

Of course, what makes any casino game worth playing is its variance. Within each spin of the wheel, players have the chance to win their bets and claim some winnings, but the longer they play, the less likely they are to escape the probabilities of the house’s inherent advantage.

In terms of odds, roulette wagers can be split into two categories: inside and outside bets. Here’s an explanation of both, with examples to match.

Inside Bets

Inside bets refer to the betting options placed on the inside of the racetrack. The odds of these bets occurring are smaller, but the payouts are larger when they do. Examples of inside bets include:

• Six-line bet – A bet on six numbers, paying out at 5:1
• Corner bet – A bet on four numbers, paying out at 8:1
• Street bet – A bet on three numbers, paying out at 11:1
• Split bet – A bet on two numbers, paying out at 17:1
• Straight-up bet – A bet on one number, paying out at 36:1

For the more conservative players, outside bets will be more attractive: 

• Red/black – A bet on whether the ball will land on a red or black pocket, paying out at 1:1
• Odd/even – A bet on whether the ball will land on an odd or even number, paying out at 1:1
• Low/high – A bet on whether the ball will land on a low number (1-18) or a high one (19-36), paying out at 1:1
• Column – The pockets on the table are laid out in three columns of 12 numbers. Players can pick a column to bet on, which pays out at 2:1
• Dozen – Similarly, players can place a bet on a dozen, which divides the pockets into three numerical groups. This also pays out at 2:1

Playing Roulette with a Strategy

Since roulette bets include numerous even money propositions, the game lends itself well to playing strategies. These strategies are in no way a guarantee of success, but they give players a guideline on how they might approach the table and their bankroll. Below is a breakdown of some of the most prominent roulette strategies. 

Martingale

The core principle of the Martingale system is to double the wager after every loss. Under this strategy, any win will be significant enough to recoup all previous losses, provided that maximum stakes and maximum payouts aren’t a prohibiting factor. It’s an attractive theory, but any prolonged streak of unsuccessful wagers will quickly burn through a player’s bankroll. 

D’Alembert

The d’Alembert system requires players to first determine a single betting unit, for instance 50p. Then, in contrast to Martingale, this strategy decreases the bet after successful wagers, and increases it after any wins. The d’Alembert system is known as a low-risk strategy — it’s unlikely that you’ll blow your bankroll, but it’s also unlikely that you’ll break the bank. 

Fibonacci

Fibonacci’s sequence originally posited theories about the presence of mathematics in nature, but it’s since been adopted for use at the roulette wheel. It works by simply adding consecutive numbers together in a sequence that starts at zero and one, as follows:

0 1 1 2 3 5 8 13 21 34, and so on

For the purposes of roulette, each number corresponds to the number of betting units. When a wager is lost, punters move to the next number in the sequence; following a win, they must move back two spaces in the sequence. 

Different Variants of Roulette

American, European and French roulette are the three most popular variants of the game. You’ll find many other versions with their own unique interpretations, but they all follow the rules of one of these three variants. 

American Roulette

The meanest of roulette variants, the American version has 38 pockets on the wheel with a double zero pocket. This increases the house edge to 5.26%. 

European Roulette

Exactly the same as the American variant, only with one fewer zero pocket, generating a kinder house edge of 2.7%.

French Roulette

Like the European game, French roulette also has a single zero pocket, matching its house edge of 2.7%. The difference between the two is that the French variant includes a couple of extra rules: la partage, where players lose only half their stake if the ball lands in the zero, and en prison, where players reject la partage, keeping their stake where it is in the hope of recouping it in full on the next spin. 

Playing Roulette on a Mobile

You’ll be able to make use of any online roulette bonuses through your casino’s mobile site, which are optimised to adjust to smaller screens and different touchpoints. However, the best roulette casinos will offer members the option of downloading bespoke mobile apps. There’s nothing wrong with playing at a mobile casino in your browser, but our preferred option is to make use of dedicated apps wherever possible — here are some of the pros and cons of both options. 

Payment Methods

Roulette casinos will welcome deposits from a variety of different payment methods. Although there are plenty of options, you’ll need to be a little careful about which ones are eligible to pick up roulette bonuses. Check the T&Cs first. 

Debit Cards

Although debit card withdrawals are among the slowest around, they’re still in widespread use at UK casinos thanks to the guarantee of always being able to pick up bonuses. 

e-Wallets

In contrast to debit cards, e-wallets like PayPal, Skrill and Neteller offer extremely fast withdrawals — if you’ve made a previous deposit at the casino, your requested funds could be back with you instantly. On the flipside, these methods are often restricted from accessing bonuses.

Paysafecard

Paysafecard is best suited to those on tight budgets: only preloaded funds can be spent, and deposit limits are strict. There are limited opportunities to withdraw funds too. 

Cryptocurrencies

It’s vital that you conduct your own research before using cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, but this is a growing option at UK sites. These payment methods offer fast transactions and high limits, but you may not be able to claim a roulette bonus with a crypto deposit.

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