Roulette vs Poker: What’s the Better Game to Earn Money?

Our site, as all our faithful readers know, is dedicated to the game of roulette. Often dismissed as a game of chance, we happen to know otherwise. Roulette is an exciting game of skill, but all too often, players don’t have the confidence to commit to mastering the game. They’ll spin the wheel, send up a silent prayer to Lady Luck and sometimes, they’ll even get lucky. More often than not, they won’t. So they put it down to bad luck and wish themselves ‘better luck next time.’ It never seems to occur to most of them that it’s possible to level up their roulette-playing skills.

Rather, most players will dismiss Roulette as the original game of chance. Poker, in all its variants, on the other hand, is considered to be the original game of skill. But you can be learning and training at playing poker for a few years before developing the level of skill that would enable you to earn regular income from it. It can take several years to hone those poker skills. The skills for playing profitable Roulette, on the other hand, can be mastered in a comparatively quicker time-frame. In comparison, profitable Poker-playing skills actually take a much longer time to develop and master. There is such a plethora of roulette sites with real money and different versions like American or French Roulette, it’s strange that punters are not showing more interest in developing their Roulette game.

Similarities Between Roulette & Poker

Let’s take a look at the similarities between these two popular casino games. It’s true that they don’t look similar. Yet they have certain aspects in common.

1. They are The Two Most Popular Casino Games: Every casino in the world, be it land-based or online, offers some roulette variant and some poker variant. No other casino game is as popular as either of these two.
2. There are Several Variants of Both Games: Depending on where you are in the world, you will find different variants of both Roulette and Poker. Roulette comes in geographical variants like French Roulette or American Roulette. As for Poker, from the American favourite Texas Hold’Em to Indi’s Teen Patti, you will find different versions of this game.
3. Both are Games of Strategy: Both games which can yield great financial results if the correct strategy is applied. They favour those with a mathematical mindset.
4. You Will Find Them on Live Online Casino: These games have made a successful transition from land-based casinos to online casinos. Although mobile casinos feature slots and computer-type games, they usually always feature a live casino section where games such as Roulette and Poker variants can be played with live hosts and hostesses. The live dealers have made a successful transition to the online space.

Differences Between Roulette & Poker

We’ve seen the similarities between these two classic casino games. Now let’s take some time to check out the differences between these games.

1. They are Two Very Different Types of Game: Poker is a classic card game, in all its forms. Roulette, whatever variant you play, is usually played on a large, colourful wheel. When the host or hostess sets the wheel in motion, it has the effect of giving the player what amounts to be the ultimate thrill of casino gaming. The build-up, the suspense and hopefully, the winnings. The turn of the Roulette wheel symbolises all the thrills of casino gaming.
2. Roulette Has a House Edge, Unlike Poker: The game of Roulette is constructed so a casino makes a small percentage from each spin of the wheel. That’s what is known as a ‘house edge’. Poker doesn’t have a house edge. Instead, the Casino deducts a minute fraction of the pot in every game played. This small amount is called a ‘rake’.
3. Poker Psychology Poker is primarily a game of psychology. Skilled Poker players know how to show the expressionless ‘Poker face’, play their cards close to their chest and never show their hand. It takes psychology and skill to win at Poker. Roulette’s more straightforward. The roll of the wheel determines where the ball lands.

Winning at Roulette?

In Roulette, players don’t control where the ball falls. But smarter players understand the physics that determines where the ball falls. This enables them to improve their odds of winning to be better than random. A classic example is visual ballistics, where the speed of the wheel and ball are estimated, to predict where the ball will fall.

All gambling games are odds vs payout. Roulette is no exception. From the perspective of statistics, the casino profits by offering payouts below the chances of winning. In other words, unfair payouts. Accurately predicting winning numbers is the only way to overcome this. Related techniques are called “advantage play”.

In Poker, you aren’t playing against physics. You’re playing against other players. So consistent profits rely on you being better than other players.

Which is More Profitable?

The statistical advantage you can get is generally much higher in roulette. That’s because various conditions enable a very high degree of accuracy, for predicting winning numbers. One example is roulette computers, which are concealed devices to predict winning numbers using physics. Although they’re not legal everywhere.

The only disadvantage in roulette is your winnings are limited by what the casino will allow you to win. You could theoretically win a $1m in a few hours of play, with a suitably high bankroll. But the casino surveillance will notice you before your winnings become that large.

With poker, the casino wont lose money if you win millions. Other players lose the money. This means your winnings are limited by the size of stakes.

So which is overall the best game? Ultimately it depends on the specific conditions available to you. In some cases, poker is better. In other cases, roulette is best. The key deciding factor is mostly what you can win at roulette, without being detected. In most casinos, it’s about $5000-$10,000 per night. But you can’t realistically do this night after night, without being detected. Overall it’s marginally better than typical poker games, and the same profit can be achieved in less time with roulette.