La Partage in Roulette
La Partage is a roulette table rule that returns half of an even-money stake to the player when the ball lands on zero, instead of the whole bet being lost. It covers the three pairs that pay 1:1: red or black, odd or even, and 1–18 or 19–36. The name is French for “the sharing”, and the rule is most closely tied to French roulette on a single-zero wheel. Its effect is to cut the house edge on those bets from 2.70% to 1.35%.
How La Partage Halves the House Edge
A single-zero wheel has 37 pockets, and an even-money bet wins on 18 of them. Without the rule, zero takes the full stake, so the player gives up one unit in 37 over the long run, which is the familiar 2.70% edge.
With La Partage, zero costs only half a unit, so the long-run loss falls to half a unit in 37, or about 1.35%. Over €1,000 staked on red, that is a theoretical average loss of €13.50 rather than €27, a long-run figure and never a forecast for one evening.
Straight-up numbers, splits, columns and other inside or outside bets that do not pay 1:1 keep the standard 2.70% edge, even on a French table.
Where Players Meet It and Common Mix-ups
The rule is printed in the game’s help or rules panel, and online software applies it automatically when zero hits. Whether a given table carries it varies between operators and studios, because a game labelled “French roulette” is not a guarantee in itself.
The usual confusion is with En Prison, a different rule that locks the even-money bet for the next spin instead of refunding half straight away. Both reach the same 1.35% edge over time, although En Prison makes individual outcomes swing more, and a table normally offers one or the other rather than both.
What I check first on any roulette page is the rules panel, never the title.
