Roulette Bankroll Management – Your Definitive Guide

What Is Roulette & Casino Bankroll Management?

Simply put, it’s having a few rules that you follow for money you spend on gambling. It’s knowing a bit about luck, and being able to control your emotions.
The principle is the same whether it’s roulette, slots or anything else you’re gambling on.

Why Is Bankroll Management Important?

Roulette bankroll management is super important. Without it you risk spending more than you wanted, and gambling for longer than you planned.
With a good bankroll plan is in place though, you can feel more in control and enjoy your roulette sessions more.

Bankroll management doesn’t have to be anything fancy or complicated. Think of it as some simple rules and a plan to ensure gambling remains a fun and affordable form of entertainment for you.

How Do I Practice Good Bankroll Management?

So we’ve covered what it is and why it’s important. What’s actually involved in managing your roulette bankroll well?
Let’s go over the four key parts of it.

#1 – Choose Your Bankroll

Setting aside money for your roulette session is simple but important. If you have, say, $50 that you’re happy with spending (and potentially losing), stick to that amount. If you’re not happy risking more, don’t. Make that decision in advance.

There is no ‘right’ bankroll amount. All of us have different incomes and outgoings. Some of us have more and different responsibilities. (Yes, fellow parents – I’m talking about the money drain of kids!)

The point here is to decide how much is right for you before you start gambling.

#2 – Decide How Long You Want To Play For

Once you’ve chosen how much you’ll set aside, now you want to think about how much time you’ll spend gambling.
This is especially important if you’re playing online or mobile roulette.

Here’s why – there’s technically nothing to stop you gambling for as long as you want. (OK perhaps if it’s a live casino it might be affected by the opening times.)
But in the world of online casinos, they never close.
So the risk is you continue gambling and end up betting when you’re tired. Or perhaps you end up bored, frustrated or annoyed. And then you start making bad decisions.

My advice? Set aside some time and stick to it. How long that time is is up to you.

#3 – Decide What Stakes You’ll Play For

The next part of planning your bankroll management is thinking about stakes. The higher the stake, the higher the return. But also the higher the loss.
Your chosen stake/bet should be influenced by your bankroll.

So let’s say your bankroll is $50. If you’re going to be staking $10 per spin of roulette, you won’t be there long! Conversely, if you decided to stake $0.10 per spin, you could be there for a while (but not winning much money).

Again, it’s up to you. There isn’t a wrong/right amount here when managing your casino bankroll.

But it is worth thinking about in advance as it gives you extra confidence and positivity when you start your roulette session.

#4 – Never Chase Your Losses

We’ve all been there. We sit down looking forward to a fun session of roulette. And….we lose. Over and over again.

It’s brutal I know! But that comes with playing a game based on luck.

I also know it’s so easy to react by betting more and betting higher. You’re so frustrated (and maybe angry) that you’ve lost.
So you chase that loss, determined to win it back. Hell, you might feel you ‘deserve’ that money and get righteous about it.

Well guess what? Chasing losses never works. Playing in that mindset isn’t fun, isn’t profitable and isn’t practicing good bankroll skills.

Keep your cool and keep your emotions in check. Trust me, you’ll feel better for it!

Understanding Variance

A spinning roulette wheel

Whether it’s roulette or any gambling game you do, it’s helpful to understand what variance is.
Variance is basically luck. It means that sometimes there will be upswings and downswings.
That sometimes there will be what seem to be patterns in your betting outcomes.

It’s due to variance that people say they’re “on a winning streak” or “having a lucky session“. In these states, people feel they should carry on betting as they’re “on a roll‘. And that could negatively affect your roulette bankroll.

Remember this though – every spin of the wheel, or roll of the dice, is random. Just because the roulette ball landed on black five times in a row doesn’t mean that red is ‘due’ a win next round.
kit’s the same if you flip a coin. As well all know, the odds of you guessing it correct are 50/.50 (as there are two outcomes – heads or tails).

The coin doesn’t have a memory. So if you keep flipping a coin tons of times, you will see ‘streaks’ when heads comes up ten times in a row, for example.
The odds are always the same though.

I mention variance to you as something to remember. If you’re losing tons at the roulette tables, it’s tempting to feel defeatist. In that kind of emotional state there’s a real risk you start playing differently to how you planned.
Many folks end up making silly bets or just going ‘all in’ out of frustration. All this achieves is more money lost quickly, and feeling angry.

Basically, try to keep your emotions away from the roulette table! This is a key part of casino bankroll management.

Don’t Borrow Money To Gamble With

I really hope this is seen as common sense. But please never ever borrow money or use credit cards to gamble.

Stacks of casino chips on a roulette wheel

Doing so would be the exact opposite of good bankroll management!

If you’re borrowing money to gamble you’re risking being in debt and going into a spiral of trying to recover your losses. Which simply won’t happen.
Not only could you end up in tons of debt, but you’ll pay the price emotionally too. Debt, especially if caused by gambling, can cause anxiety, depression and more. (See our guide to problem gambling for more help there).

So please avoid funding your casino gaming via overdraft, loans, credit cards or borrowing from people you know. It’s no fun and it just isn’t worth it.

Take Advantage Of Casino Bonuses

A huge plus for playing roulette online is being able to get a welcome bonus. All the best gambling sites offer these and they are a great way of boosting your roulette bankroll.
Depending on how much you deposit and play through, they could be worth thousands of dollars to you.

However – the ‘play through’ requirements (i.e. how much money you’re actually required to bet) usually don’t take into account very low risk roulette bets.
So generally speaking, betting on red or black, or even or odd, won’t be factored in to your spend.
Make sure you understand the T&Cs of the deal before you start going for that welcome bonus.

Do it wisely though and you have an easy way of upping your casino bankroll!

Roulette Bankroll Management – Our 8 Expert Tips

If we had to summarise everything about successfully managing your bankroll for roulette, here’s the tips we’d give you:

  1. Only gamble with what you can afford
  2. Never play roulette or gamble when you’re drunk
  3. Don’t chase your losses
  4. Stick to your plan and budget
  5. Don’t be afraid to cash in your winnings
  6. Take advantage of online roulette site bonuses
  7. Understand the best and rules
  8. Master your emotions

Managing Your Bankroll In Roulette – Summary

So wrapping up, we’ve seen that a plan for your casino bankroll management is a good thing, and super simple.
By having some clear guidelines (that you give yourself) you’re making the experience more fun and less risky.
Key to this though it sticking to the rules. It’s SO easy to make them then in the heat of the moment go against them.

Be strict with yourself and your gambling bankroll and you’ll feel a lot better about it. Now go have fun at the tables!

Roulette Bankroll Management FAQs

What is a good bankroll for roulette?

A good bankroll in roulette is one that suits your budget and your appetite for risk.

Should your bankroll be different if you’re playing online?

No, I would always suggest having the same attitude to bankroll management whether you’ve in a live casino or online.