What is a casino house edge? It is the average share of every bet that a game keeps over the long run, built in by paying winners a little less than the true odds. On a single zero roulette wheel it is 2.70%, so for every 100 units wagered the game keeps about 2.70 units on average. Every casino game has one. The size depends on the game, the bet and the rules at that table.
At the table
Meaning
The game's average cut of every unit wagered, over many bets.Roulette
2.70% single zero, 5.26% double zero, 1.35% on even money bets with la partage.RTP
Return to player = 100% minus the edge. Single zero roulette: 97.30%.Lowest edges
Blackjack with basic strategy, the craps odds bet, baccarat banker.Highest edges
Keno, the big six wheel and many slot machines.Your cost
Total wagered times the edge, not your starting bankroll.
What is a casino house edge, in plain words
Picture a fair coin game where heads pays 1 to 1. Over many tosses, nobody wins in the long run. Now change one thing: add a pocket that makes every bet lose. That is roulette's zero. The payouts stay as if the zero were not there, so the game keeps a small slice of every bet.
That slice is the house edge. It does not mean you lose 2.70% of every bet you make. Single bets win or lose in full. It means that over thousands of bets, the losses outweigh the wins by that share of the total you put in action. Over one evening, anything can happen. Over a year of spins at a busy table, the edge is about as reliable as the clock.
How the house edge is worked out
Multiply each result by its chance, add them up, and the answer is what the average bet returns. The shortfall is the edge.
- Roulette, one number, single zero: win 35 units with chance 1 in 37, lose 1 unit with chance 36 in 37. That is 35 minus 36, divided by 37: a loss of 1/37 of a unit per bet, or 2.70%.
- Roulette, one number, double zero: 35 minus 37, divided by 38: a loss of 2/38, or 5.26%.
- Craps pass line: it wins 244 times and loses 251 times out of 495 on average. The gap of 7 in 495 is 1.41%.
- Baccarat banker: wins about 45.86% of hands, but a 5% commission trims each win to 0.95 units per unit bet; it loses about 44.62%, and ties push. The net is about 1.06%.
The same method works for any bet. The payout calculator runs it for roulette spreads, and the roulette payouts guide shows how the zero creates the gap bet by bet.
House edge and RTP: two sides of one number
RTP, or return to player, is the share of everything wagered that comes back to players on average. It is simply 100% minus the house edge. Slot machines and online games usually quote RTP. Table game guides usually quote the edge.
| Wheel | House edge | RTP |
|---|---|---|
| French, even money with la partage | 1.35% | 98.65% |
| Single zero | 2.70% | 97.30% |
| Double zero | 5.26% | 94.74% |
| Triple zero | 7.69% | 92.31% |
An RTP of 97.30% does not mean you get 97.30 units back from a 100 unit bankroll. It refers to every unit wagered, including winnings you bet again.
House edge in casino games: an approximate chart
Roulette's edge is fixed by its pockets. Most other games depend on rules and, in a few, on how well you play. The figures below are widely published approximations for common rules. Treat them as ranges. A rule change at your table can move them up or down.
| Game and bet | About | What moves it |
|---|---|---|
| Blackjack, perfect basic play | 0.3% to 1% | Payout for a blackjack, decks, dealer rules |
| Craps, odds behind the pass line | 0% | Pays true odds; needs a pass line bet first |
| Video poker, best pay tables, expert play | about 0.5% | Pay table and mistakes |
| Baccarat, banker / player | 1.06% / 1.24% | Commission on banker wins |
| Craps, pass line / don't pass | 1.41% / 1.36% | Fixed by the dice |
| Roulette, single zero / double zero | 2.70% / 5.26% | Number of zeros, la partage |
| Sic bo, small or big | 2.78% | Fixed by the dice |
| Casino war, going to war on ties | about 2.9% | Tie rules |
| Three card poker ante, let it ride | about 3.4% to 3.5% | Pay tables, play decisions |
| Slot machines | about 2% to 15% | Machine settings, often higher for small stakes |
| Big six wheel | about 11% to 24% | Which segment you bet |
| Keno | about 20% to 35% | Pay table |
For a ranking built around picking a game, see games ranked from best odds to worst.
How table rules change the house edge
The same game name can hide very different prices. Three examples:
- Blackjack paying 6 to 5. Cutting the natural blackjack payout from 3 to 2 down to 6 to 5 lifts the edge by roughly 1.4 percentage points, so a game near 0.5% climbs to about 2%.
- Roulette with la partage. When zero hits, players get back 50% of their even money stakes, which takes the edge on those bets from 2.70% to 1.35%. The French roulette page covers it.
- Video poker pay tables. Two machines with the same game can differ only in what a full house and flush pay. A common short pay version returns about 97.30%, an edge near 2.70%, against about 99.54% on the full pay version.
What the house edge costs your bankroll
Think of your average cost as edge times total action. Bring 100 units and stake 5 per spin over 200 spins, and you have put 1,000 units in action even if you never touched more than your first 100. Here is what that turnover costs on average in a few games.
European wheel: 27.03 units. American wheel: 52.63 units. Triple zero wheel: 76.92 units. The bankroll you bring is not what the edge eats. The total you bet is.
This is why fast games cost more. A quicker game puts more units in action per hour at the same bet size. The chart near the top of this page compares the average cost of 1,000 units wagered across games.
Can strategy beat the house edge?
In roulette, no. All bets on one wheel share one edge, and progressions such as Martingale merely shuffle the timing of wins and losses. The betting systems guide tests them in units. In blackjack and video poker, good decisions lower the edge to its published minimum, and mistakes raise it. In craps and baccarat, picking the right bet matters more than any pattern.
Your most powerful tool is not a system. It is the choice of game, bet and table rules, plus limits you set before you start.
Questions players ask
What is the house edge in gambling?
It is the share of each bet a game keeps on average over many plays. A 2.70% edge means about 2.70 units kept for every 100 units wagered. Single bets still win or lose in full.
What is the roulette house edge, European vs American?
A single zero wheel has a 2.70% edge on every bet. Two zeros raise it to 5.26%, or 7.89% on the five number bet. French tables with la partage cut even money bets to 1.35%.
Why is the American roulette house edge 5.26%?
The wheel has 38 pockets but pays as if it had 36. Bet 1 unit on every number and you stake 38 units, collect 36, and lose 2. Two out of 38 is 5.26%.
What is RTP in roulette?
RTP is return to player, 100% minus the house edge. That gives 97.30% with one zero and 94.74% with two. The figure covers every unit bet over time, not one session.
Which casino game has the smallest house edge?
Among common games, blackjack with correct basic play and friendly rules usually comes out on top at around 0.5%. Craps odds carry zero edge, though you must hold a pass line bet first. Baccarat banker is close behind at about 1.06%.
Does the house edge apply to every bet?
Yes, every bet has one, though it can differ by bet within a game. In roulette it is the same for all bets on one wheel except the American top line. In craps and baccarat it varies a lot by bet.