The payout on 00 is the same as on any other number
A player who puts a chip directly on the double zero and sees the ball land there is paid 35 to 1. That is the same payout as a winning straight-up bet on 7, on 23, or on any other single pocket on the wheel. The double zero is not special in what it pays. What makes it matter is that it exists at all.
The 35-to-1 figure is the standard straight-up payout on both major wheel layouts. If you wager one unit on 00 and win, you receive 35 units in profit and keep your original wager. That arithmetic is identical on a European wheel for a bet on any number there. The difference between the two wheels is not in the payout table for a winning number. It is in how many losing pockets sit on the wheel while you wait for that number to appear.
Why the double zero changes the price of every bet
An American roulette wheel has 38 pockets: the numbers 1 through 36, a single zero, and a double zero. A European wheel has 37 pockets, because the double zero is absent. The payout for a straight-up bet is 35 to 1 on both wheels. But the chance of hitting any one number is not the same on both wheels.
On a European wheel, one number out of 37 pockets means the true odds against hitting that number are 36 to 1. The casino pays 35 to 1. The gap between those two figures is the house edge. On an American wheel, one number out of 38 pockets means the true odds are 37 to 1, and the casino still pays 35 to 1. The gap is wider. The extra pocket does not change what a winner receives. It changes how often a winner occurs.
| Wheel type | Pockets | Straight-up payout | True odds against a single number | Effect of the extra pocket |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| European | 37 (single zero) | 35 to 1 | 36 to 1 | Smaller gap between true odds and payout |
| American | 38 (single and double zero) | 35 to 1 | 37 to 1 | Wider gap on every bet placed |
The same logic applies to other bets. A split bet covering two numbers pays 17 to 1 on both wheels, but the chance of winning differs because the wheel has a different number of total pockets. A red or black bet pays even money on both wheels, but the zeros are typically neither red nor black under the standard colouring, so the extra zero adds one more losing outcome to an even-money wager. The payout schedule looks identical on paper. The wheel underneath it is not.
How a round runs
The sequence matters because the double zero question usually comes up while someone is learning where to place chips. A round begins when the dealer opens betting for the next spin. You place chips on the layout, either directly on a number or on the lines and boxes that represent groups of numbers. The dealer then sends the ball around the outer track in the opposite direction to the spinning wheel. When the ball drops into a pocket, the dealer marks the winning number and clears losing bets before paying winners.
Buying in means placing cash on the table rather than handing it to the dealer, who then exchanges it for roulette chips. Roulette chips are often colour-coded per player so that bets on the same number from different people can be told apart. At the end of your session you exchange those chips back at the table, because they carry no value at the main cashier cage.
The decision points are simple compared with blackjack or craps. You choose which bets to place and how much to stake on each. There is no decision to make after the ball is moving, and no strategy choice that changes the odds of any individual bet. The only decisions are which bets to combine and when to stop.
Bet types and where their edges differ
Roulette offers a wide range of bets, but they are not all priced the same. The payout for each bet type is set in relation to how many numbers it covers, and the house edge on a given wheel is the same across most standard bets because the payout is one step short of the true odds. The table below shows the main inside and outside bets and what they pay.
| Bet | Numbers covered | Payout | What the player is choosing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Straight-up | 1 | 35 to 1 | Highest payout, lowest hit frequency |
| Split | 2 | 17 to 1 | Two adjacent numbers on the layout |
| Street | 3 | 11 to 1 | A row of three numbers |
| Corner | 4 | 8 to 1 | Four numbers meeting at one corner |
| Six line | 6 | 5 to 1 | Two adjacent rows |
| Dozen or column | 12 | 2 to 1 | A block of twelve numbers |
| Red, black, odd, even, 1-18, 19-36 | 18 | 1 to 1 | Even-money coverage of half the non-zero numbers |
The house edge on an American wheel is higher than on a European wheel for every bet in that table, because the double zero is an additional losing pocket that is not offset by a higher payout. The one partial exception on some American layouts is a five-number bet covering 0, 00, 1, 2 and 3, which pays 6 to 1. That bet carries a worse edge than the rest of the table because the payout is short even by American wheel standards. If a table offers it, it is the most expensive standard wager on the layout.
No betting pattern changes any of this. Covering more numbers increases the frequency of winning spins but reduces the payout on each win, and the edge remains built into the payout schedule. A player who spreads chips across many numbers is not reducing the house advantage; they are redistributing when and how they lose.
What new players get wrong at the table
The first procedural mistake is treating the double zero as a better or worse number than any other. It pays the same as every other straight-up number. The reason to notice it is not the payout but the wheel it indicates. If a table has a double zero, every bet on that table carries the wider gap between true odds and payout. The player who understands that can choose a table accordingly, where local rules and available tables allow.
The second mistake is placing a bet after the dealer has called for final bets. Once the ball is in motion and the dealer signals that betting is closed, a late chip is returned or moved off the layout. The time to place a bet is before the spin begins, and the dealer's call is the boundary.
The third mistake is leaving the table with coloured roulette chips and expecting to cash them at the main cage. Roulette chips are exchanged at the table where they were issued. If you walk away with them, you are carrying table-specific value that no other table or cashier will accept. Cash out before you leave the rail.
FAQ
Does the double zero pay more than a regular number?
No. A straight-up bet on the double zero pays 35 to 1, the same as a straight-up bet on any other single number. The double zero is significant because its presence on the wheel changes the total number of pockets, not because it carries a different payout.
Is an American wheel always worse than a European wheel?
For the same bet, the American layout gives the house a wider edge because the extra pocket is an additional losing outcome with no compensating increase in payouts. Whether a player has a choice between wheel types depends on what tables are available where they are playing. The posted table rules and layout tell you which wheel you are on.
Can I bet on both zero and double zero at once?
Yes. On an American layout the two zeros sit next to each other, and a split bet between them pays 17 to 1, the standard split payout for two numbers. Some layouts also offer the five-number bet covering 0, 00, 1, 2 and 3, but that wager pays 6 to 1 and carries a worse edge than a standard split.
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