Inside and outside bets
Inside and outside bets are the two families of roulette wager: inside bets sit on single numbers or small clusters on the numbered grid, while outside bets cover broad groups around its edge. Inside bets pay between 5:1 and 35:1 and land rarely; outside bets pay 1:1 or 2:1 and land far more often. On a single-zero wheel, that trade-off changes how a session feels, and almost nothing about what it costs.
Which bets count as inside or outside
The inside family runs from the straight-up bet on one number, paying 35:1, through the split at 17:1, the street at 11:1 and the corner at 8:1, down to the six line at 5:1. Some layouts add a first-four or basket bet, though which of these a table offers varies between games.
Outside bets are red or black, odd or even, and 1-18 or 19-36, all paying even money on 18 numbers, plus dozens and columns paying 2:1 on 12. The zero belongs to none of them, which is where the house takes its margin.
Columns confuse people.
Why the house edge stays the same
A common myth holds that outside bets are the safer choice, but on a European wheel with 37 pockets every standard bet carries the same 2.70% house edge. Take €10 straight up on 17 for 37 spins: a single hit returns €360 against €370 staked, and €10 is the same 2.70% that eighteen red bets would cost over that run on average. What differs is variance, so the inside player sees long dry spells while the outside player loses more slowly per spin. American wheels add a double zero and raise the edge to 5.26%, and its five-number top line costs 7.89%; tables using la partage return half of an even-money bet on zero, cutting that bet’s edge to 1.35%.
One session proves nothing either way.
