Two Wheel Layouts, Two Different Counts
When a player asks how many points are on a roulette wheel, they are usually looking at the numbered compartments around the rim and trying to understand what they are betting on. The honest answer is that the count depends on which layout the table uses. A European-style wheel carries 37 numbered pockets. An American-style wheel carries 38. The difference is one extra pocket, and that single pocket changes the arithmetic of every bet on the table.
Both layouts run the numbers 0 through 36. The European wheel has a single zero pocket. The American wheel adds a double zero pocket alongside it. That is the entire structural difference between the two common wheel types, and it is the reason the same bet can carry a different house edge depending on which wheel is in front of you.
What the Pockets Are
Each pocket on the wheel is a numbered slot that the ball can land in. The numbers are not arranged in numerical order around the rim. They are distributed in a sequence designed so that high and low numbers, and red and black numbers, alternate in a way that spreads outcomes across the wheel. The zero pockets are green. The remaining numbers are split between red and black.
The term "points" is not standard roulette vocabulary, but the question it points to is straightforward: how many separate outcomes can a single spin produce? On a European wheel, 37. On an American wheel, 38. Every bet you place is a wager on which of those outcomes will occur, or on a group of outcomes that share a characteristic such as colour, parity, or a range of numbers.
Why the Extra Pocket Matters
The double zero does not exist to give players another number to bet on. It exists because it is a pocket that no standard outside bet covers. A bet on red loses when the ball lands in either zero pocket. A bet on an individual number loses unless the ball lands on that exact number. The extra pocket therefore tilts the mathematics further toward the operator.
On a European wheel, a straight-up bet on a single number pays 35 to 1, but the true odds against that number appearing are 36 to 1 because there are 37 pockets. The gap between those two figures is the house edge on that bet. On an American wheel, the same bet still pays 35 to 1, but the true odds are now 37 to 1 because there are 38 pockets. The payout does not change. The probability does. That is the entire effect of the extra pocket, and it is why the wheel type is the first thing a player should identify before sitting down.
Main Bet Types and Where the Edge Sits
Roulette bets fall into two broad groups. Inside bets are placed on specific numbers or small groups of numbers on the inner section of the layout. Outside bets cover larger categories such as red or black, odd or even, or the first dozen numbers. Inside bets pay more because they are less likely to win. Outside bets pay less because they are more likely to win. Neither group changes the underlying structure of the wheel.
The house edge is not uniform across every bet on a given wheel. On the European layout, most bets carry the same edge because the single zero is the only uncovered pocket. On the American layout, the same is true: most bets carry the same edge, and that edge is higher than the European equivalent because of the double zero. There is one notable exception on both wheels, and it is worth understanding before you place a chip.
| Bet type | What it covers | Payout | European wheel (37 pockets) | American wheel (38 pockets) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Straight-up | One number | 35 to 1 | True odds 36 to 1 | True odds 37 to 1 |
| Split | Two adjacent numbers | 17 to 1 | True odds 17.5 to 1 | True odds 18 to 1 |
| Street | Three numbers in a row | 11 to 1 | True odds 11.33 to 1 | True odds 11.67 to 1 |
| Red or black | 18 numbers of one colour | 1 to 1 | Zero pocket uncovered | Both zero pockets uncovered |
| Odd or even | 18 numbers | 1 to 1 | Zero pocket uncovered | Both zero pockets uncovered |
The table shows the pattern clearly. The payout for each bet is fixed and does not change between wheel types. What changes is the number of losing pockets that sit outside the bet. On the American wheel, every outside bet has two uncovered green pockets instead of one, which is why the same wager loses at a faster expected rate on that layout.
Reading the Table Before You Buy In
Before placing any bet, identify which wheel you are at. The layout printed on the felt shows the answer immediately: if there is a 00 space next to the 0, you are on an American wheel. If there is only a single 0, you are on a European wheel. Some venues also run French-style layouts, which use the same 37-pocket wheel as the European version but add specific rules for certain outside bets when the ball lands in zero. Those rules do not change the pocket count; they change what happens to a losing even-money bet under defined conditions.
The table will also display minimum and maximum bet limits for inside and outside bets separately. These are printed on a small sign at the table. The limits matter because an outside bet and an inside bet are subject to different minimums, and the maximum for a straight-up number is usually lower than the maximum for a colour bet. Reading those limits before you buy in prevents the most common procedural mistake at a roulette table: trying to place a bet that the dealer has to send back.
The Sequence of a Round
A round of roulette moves through a fixed sequence. The dealer opens betting by announcing that bets are being accepted. Players place chips on the layout. The dealer spins the wheel in one direction and sends the ball travelling in the opposite direction around the outer track. At a certain point the dealer announces that no more bets may be placed, usually with a phrase such as "no more bets" or a hand signal. From that moment the layout is closed, and any chip placed after the call is returned or moved aside.
The ball loses momentum, drops onto the wheel, and settles in one pocket. The dealer marks the winning number on the layout with a marker, clears all losing bets, and then pays winning bets. Only after the payout is complete does the dealer reopen the layout for the next round. The entire cycle from open to open is short, which is why roulette sessions can produce many decisions per hour and why the house edge compounds across those decisions.
Procedural Mistakes New Players Make
The first mistake is placing a bet after the dealer has closed the layout. It happens most often when a player is watching the ball and waits until the last moment. The rule is absolute: once the call is made, no chip may touch the felt. The dealer will return the chip or hold it aside, and the player has simply missed that spin.
The second mistake is mixing chip values without understanding the colour system. At many tables, each player who buys in receives chips of a single colour that represent a value not printed on the chip. These are called wheel chips or colour chips, and they are only valid at that table. A player who tries to bet with them after leaving the table, or who assumes the colour means a standard casino denomination, creates confusion. Cash-value chips, which do carry printed denominations, are also accepted, but the two systems should not be combined in a way that makes the dealer reconstruct what was intended.
The third mistake is reaching toward the layout while the dealer is clearing or paying. The payout area is active until the dealer finishes settling all bets. A hand entering that area, even to retrieve a winning chip, can be read as an attempt to alter the layout. Wait for the dealer to finish and for the marker to be lifted before touching anything.
What Strategy Means at a Roulette Table
Roulette is not a game where a decision chart changes the outcome of a spin. The ball lands where it lands. What a player controls is which bets to place, how much to stake, and how long to remain at the table. Choosing a European wheel over an American wheel, where both are available, changes the expected rate of loss because the wheel itself has one fewer uncovered pocket. Choosing an outside bet over a straight-up bet changes the shape of the session: more frequent small outcomes rather than rare large ones. Neither choice creates an advantage.
No betting progression changes the pocket count. Doubling a bet after a loss does not make the next spin more likely to land on your number. The wheel has no memory, and each spin is independent of the one before it. A player who understands that can sit down, place the bets they intend to place, and treat the game as a form of paid entertainment with a known structural cost rather than as a puzzle to be solved.
FAQ
Is a roulette wheel the same as a roulette table layout?
No. The wheel is the spinning device with numbered pockets. The layout is the printed felt where bets are placed. The layout mirrors the wheel's numbers but also includes the outside betting areas for colours, parity, dozens, and columns. The pocket count refers to the wheel, not the layout.
Why does the American wheel have an extra pocket?
The double zero pocket is a design variant that increases the number of outcomes not covered by standard outside bets. It does not change the payout schedule, so the same wager returns less often on an American wheel than on a European wheel. The pocket exists as a structural feature of that layout.
Does the zero count as a number I can bet on?
Yes. The zero, and the double zero on an American wheel, are individual pockets that can be bet as straight-up numbers. They can also be included in some combination bets. They are green rather than red or black, so they are not covered by colour bets, which is precisely why they shift the house edge.
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This article is general information about how these mechanics work. It is not legal advice and not a recommendation to gamble or to use any particular operator. Availability and legality differ by jurisdiction — check the rules that apply where you are.