Give The Wheel of Fortune a Spin

Learn all about the Wheel of Fortune casino game

The Big Six wheel, The Big Six, or Wheel of Fortune is a popular gambling game around the world. The Wheel of Fortune is more commonly found in live casinos, but an increasing number of online casinos offer this game.

Wheel of Fortune rose to prominence in the United States. Head to Las Vegas and you find these games in almost every casino. A beautiful, often scantly clad, member of staff usually staffs the wheel, which detracts from the horrendous house edge.

The game is simple, as most games with high house edges are. A large vertical wheel, adorned by lights, is split into equal segments. Each segment has a monetary prize or a symbol representing a prize. There is a rubber pointer at the top of the wheel which helps slow the wheel down. The player bets on a segment, the dealer spins the wheel, and the pointer eventually stops on one of the segments. The player wins if they bet on the segment the wheel stopped on.

American Wheel of Fortune games has among the worst house edge of all casino games. The house edge ranges from 11.1% to more than 24%. It is a fun game, and not one gamblers take seriously.

Typical Australian Wheel of Fortune Odds and Probabilities

Bet Pays Number of Wheel Probability House Edge
Koala 1 24 46.15% 7.69%
Kookaburra 3 12 23.08% 7.69%
Lizard 5 8 15.38% 7.69%
Echida 11 4 7.69% 7.69%
Platypus 23 2 3.85% 7.69%
Emu 47 1 1.92% 7.69%
Kangaroo 47 1 1.92% 7.69%

Australian Wheel of Fortune games have their odds tipped more in favour of the punter. Each segment has an equal house edge of 7.69%. That puts them much higher than blackjack and roulette, but not as bad as some other games.

An Aussie wheel tends to have symbols instead of prizes. Where the American wheel has segments of $1, $2, $10, etc., the Aussie wheel has Koalas, Emus, and Kangaroos. The payouts, however, are similar.

Star City Casino, Sydney Odds and Probabilities

Bet Pays Number of Wheel Probability House Edge
1 1 26 46.15% 3.70%
3 3 13 24.07% 3.70%
6.5 6.5 7 12.96% 2.78%
12 12 4 7.41% 3.70%
25 25 2 3.70% 3.70%
Joker 52 1 1.85% 1.85%
Flag 52 1 1.85% 1.85%

Star City Casino in Sydney has its own take on the Wheel of Fortune. Its house edge is much fairer than some of its counterparts. Betting on the joker or flag, for example, pays 52-to-1 but has a house edge of only 1.85%.

Even the lowest payout, 1-to-1, has a house edge of 3.70%, which is lower than most pokies.

Gamesys Online Casino Edition

Bet Pays Number of Segments Probability House Edge
1 1 24 48.98% 2.04%
3 3 12 24.90% 2.04%
7 7 6 12.24% 2.04%
15 15 3 6.12% 2.04%
23 23 2 4.08% 2.04%
Logo 47 1 2.04% 2.04%
Joker 47 1 2.04% 2.04%

Online casino software developer Gamesys has its own version of the Wheel of Fortune. The house edge here is 2.04% regardless of your bet. Gamesys created a version it calls “zero house edge” which uses traditional rules, but with two key differences.

  1. All bets besides the Logo push instead of losing when the wheel stops on Logo
  2. Any bet on the Logo pushes instead of loses when the wheel stops on Joker

Those rule tweaks take the house edge to exactly 0.00%. There is a catch, however, there is no such thing as a free lunch! The player pays a 100% commission on any net win per gambling session. Gamesys determines a gambling session ending when there are any break-even bets of an hour or more.