What Are Picture Bets in Roulette?
A roulette picture bet is a visual chip-placement pattern that covers several pockets in one recognisable shape. Some picture bets are formal call bets - Voisins du Zéro, Tiers du Cylindre, James Bond. Others are informal patterns players have named over time: "1 and neighbours", "two dozens", "the racetrack".
What they share is the visual: instead of tracking probabilities in your head, you place a familiar shape on the layout. This page collects the most common picture bets, shows what each one covers and gives you a printable cheat sheet.
Neighbour Bets
Neighbour bets cover a chosen number plus a chosen count of pockets on each side of it on the wheel. Common variants:
- 1 and neighbours - the number 1 plus a small group of pockets around it on the wheel. On a single-zero wheel that is 20, 14, 31, 9 alongside 1 for 2 each side, or the equivalent on American.
- 7 neighbours - the number 7 plus 2 pockets each side (5 total). Sometimes casinos label this as "7 and neighbours".
- 17 neighbours - centered on 17. On the European wheel: 34, 6, 17, 13, 36.
Terminology varies between casinos and software. Some platforms let you configure the neighbour count from 1 to 4 each side. See the neighbour bets page for the full mechanic.
Sector Picture Bets
The formal French wheel-sector bets are the biggest, most widely recognised picture bets in the game.
- Voisins du Zéro - 17 pockets around 0. Standard placement: 9 chips.
- Tiers du Cylindre - 12 pockets opposite 0. Standard placement: 6 chips.
- Orphelins - 8 pockets in two short arcs. Standard placement: 5 chips.
- Jeu Zéro - 7 pockets tight around 0. Standard placement: 4 chips.
All four sectors are shown with exact numbers on the roulette wheel sectors page.
James Bond Bet as a Picture Bet
The James Bond roulette strategy is one of the most photogenic picture bets on the table. A single spin covers 25 of 37 pockets across three chip placements:
- 140 units on high numbers 19-36
- 50 units on the six-line covering 13-18
- 10 units straight up on 0
It looks like a coverage system, and in one sense it is - but the 12 uncovered numbers (1-12) still lose the entire 200-unit stake when they land, and the expected value per spin is still negative. Popular as a visual bet, not as a winning system.
Two Dozens and Two Columns as Layout Patterns
The simplest picture bets live entirely on the table felt, not the wheel:
- Two dozens - a chip on any two of the three dozen boxes covers 24 of 37 pockets. Winning at 2:1. See the two dozens strategy.
- Two columns - a chip at the base of any two of the three columns. Same 24-pocket coverage as two dozens, arranged vertically. See the two columns strategy.
Both are easy to visualise, easy to place, and reasonable ways to spend a session with modest variance. Neither removes the house edge.
Picture Bets vs Roulette Systems
Picture bets are about where chips go. Systems (Martingale, D'Alembert, Fibonacci, Paroli, Labouchere) are about how bet size changes over time.
- A picture bet is a snapshot: this many chips, these pockets, this spin.
- A system is a rule: what to bet next based on what just happened.
You can combine the two - place two dozens each spin and progress the total stake with D'Alembert - but each layer keeps its own risk. Neither picture bets nor systems reduce the house edge.
Download the Roulette Picture Bets Cheat Sheet
The printable roulette picture bets cheat sheet collects the most common visual patterns on one page: neighbour-bet examples, all four sector bets, the James Bond layout, two dozens and two columns. Chip counts and pocket coverage are printed alongside each pattern.
Download Roulette Picture Bets PDF
For the full library of printable sheets, visit the roulette cheat sheet PDF hub.
Common Mistakes
- Thinking picture bets are secret casino hacks. They aren't. Every picture bet on this page is a standard multi-chip placement.
- Confusing neighbour bets with sectors. Neighbours are configurable around any chosen number. Sectors are fixed named groups.
- Not checking exact chip cost. Voisins is 9 chips per spin. James Bond is 200 units per spin in the classic version. Know the total stake before you place.
- Ignoring table limits. Large picture bets can hit the maximum on high or dozen bets before the placement is complete.
- Using visual bets without understanding coverage. A pattern that looks like "most of the table" can still miss on the uncovered pockets, and each miss can be large.
Responsible gambling note: Roulette is a negative expectation game. Cheat sheets and strategy guides help you understand bets, payouts and risk, but no system removes the house edge. Only play with money you can afford to lose, and stop when play stops feeling controlled.
For odds, payouts, wheel layouts and betting systems across every variant, return to the RouletteSheet.com cheat sheet hub.