French Roulette — La Partage, En Prison, 98.65% RTP

French roulette is the original version of the game: every other variant evolved from this 18th-century Parisian template. What sets it apart from European isn’t the wheel (that’s identical — 37 pockets and a single zero) but two “rescue” rules — La Partage and En Prison — that return part of your stake when zero lands. That’s exactly why French roulette has the lowest house edge of any variant: 1.35% on even-money bets¹ versus 2.70% for European and 5.26% for American.

In this article we break down how both rules actually work, which bets they cover (and which they don’t), the payout table, the called bets on the racetrack, and where to play for real money.

French roulette for free: a demo without registration

Random-number-generator versions of French roulette are available in demo mode — without a deposit and often without registration. It’s the best way to get used to the French layout (some tables are labelled in French: Rouge/Noir, Pair/Impair, Manque/Passe) and at the same time check which rule a given table uses — La Partage, En Prison or both.

To play for free, hover over your chosen title and click “Play for free”.

Best French roulette versions to start with

Specific titles differ in their rule set and the quality of the layout. Good options to get acquainted with:

• French Roulette by Evolution — a live table with La Partage, a benchmark for stream quality;
• French Roulette by NetEnt — an RNG version that “flies” even on weak devices;
• French Roulette Pro by Playtech — with a racetrack and the full set of called bets.

The two rescue rules: La Partage and En Prison

All of French roulette’s value rests on two rules that fire only when zero lands on an even-money bet.

La Partage: half the stake comes back instantly

La Partage (“the split”) returns half of your even-money stake immediately when the ball lands on zero. You lose 50% instead of 100% of that bet, with no decision to make — the dealer simply pushes half your chips back. It’s La Partage that cuts the house edge on red/black, odd/even and high/low from 2.70% to 1.35%.

En Prison: the stake “in prison” until the next spin

En Prison (“in prison”) doesn’t take your stake when zero hits — it “locks” it on the table for one more spin. If the next round wins, the stake is returned at par; if it loses, the stake is gone. Over distance the maths comes out roughly the same as La Partage², except instead of an instant half-refund the player gets a “second chance”. En Prison is rarer but is the historically classic rule.

Outcome comparison when zero lands (a $10 bet on red)

On average both rules give the same result — half the expected loss on a zero.

Which bets the rules cover — and which they don’t

A key nuance beginners often miss: La Partage and En Prison only work on even-money outside bets.

• They apply — red/black (Rouge/Noir), odd/even (Pair/Impair), high/low (Manque/Passe);
• They don’t apply — all inside bets (straight, split, street, corner, six-line) and column/dozen bets.

On “inside” and “dozen” bets the house edge stays at 2.70%, same as European — the rescue rules don’t touch them. The takeaway is simple: at a French table the whole point is to play outside, on even-money bets.

If a table is labelled “French Roulette” but its rules say nothing about La Partage or En Prison, you’re essentially looking at European roulette in French dressing. Always check the rules panel before you play.

Single-zero roulettes — try them free

▶ Play for free

Play at casino →

European Roulette

★ 4.7/5

👍8👎0

RTP: 97.30%

▶ Play for free

Play at casino →

Mini Roulette

★ 4.5/5

👍5👎0

RTP: 97.30%

▶ Play for free

Play at casino →

Penny Roulette

★ 4.6/5

👍6👎0

RTP: 97.30%

▶ Play for free

Play at casino →

Classic Roulette

★ 4.4/5

👍4👎0

RTP: 97.30%

French roulette payout table

The wheel and odds are identical to European — the only difference is how zero is handled on even-money bets. The table below is a guide to risk and payouts.

Note the last row: the payout is the same (1:1), but thanks to the half-refund on zero the effective house edge drops by half — to 1.35%. That’s exactly why the RTP on French roulette’s outside bets reaches 98.65%³ — the best figure in the family.

Called bets and the racetrack

French roulette traditionally comes with a racetrack — an oval map of the wheel for “called” bets on sectors:

• Voisins du Zéro (“neighbours of zero”) — 17 numbers around the zero, 9 chips;
• Tiers du Cylindre (“third of the wheel”) — 12 numbers opposite the zero, 6 chips;
• Orphelins (“the orphans”) — the remaining 8 numbers, 5 chips;
• Jeu Zéro (“zero game”) — 7 numbers next to the zero, 4 chips.

These are inside bets at heart, so La Partage doesn’t apply to them — but they’re handy when you want to cover a whole sector of the wheel in one move.

French roulette pros and cons

How to play French roulette: a step-by-step guide

Steps 1–2: choosing a casino and a table

Pick a casino from our rating and make sure the table rules explicitly mention La Partage or En Prison — without that the edge is European (2.70%), not French. For real-money play you’ll need to register and pass KYC (identity verification) before withdrawing.

Steps 3–4: deposit and even-money bets

Top up your balance (the threshold depends on the method, usually from $1) and bet on the outside markets — Rouge/Noir, Pair/Impair, Manque/Passe. That’s where the rescue rule works. Most French tables accept bets from $0.20 and run up to tens of thousands of dollars.

Steps 5–6: when zero lands and bankroll management

If zero lands on an even-money bet, La Partage returns half automatically (or En Prison “locks” the stake until the next spin). Set a session stop-loss in advance and don’t chase losses on emotion — even the lowest edge is still a house edge.

Strategies for French roulette

No strategy makes roulette profitable — but a French table suits bankroll management better than any other, because the low edge stretches out the session.

• Even-money bets only. Stick to 1:1 — that’s where La Partage works and the edge is minimal (1.35%);
• A slow progression. D’Alembert or Fibonacci on even-money bets: the rescue rule softens a losing streak better than anywhere else;
• Martingale — with care. Doubling on red/black is theoretically better value here (the half-refund on zero), but the table cap and your bankroll still limit the streak.

French roulette on mobile

RNG versions (NetEnt, Playtech, Pragmatic) and live tables (Evolution) are adapted for the smartphone: a vertical layout, large buttons, the racetrack folded into a separate tab. Minimum requirements — Android 8+ / iOS 13+, a browser with HTML5 support, from 5 Mbps for the live stream. Downloading an app isn’t required — the mobile site in a browser works just as well.