| Updated: September 26, 2025Most people associate progressive jackpots with the buzz and whirl of the one-armed bandits. The good news is that these impressive prizes are no longer reserved exclusively for slot players. Roulette enthusiasts from around the world now have the chance to finish their sessions with a hefty prize, thanks to software providers such as Playtech and Microgaming.
Progressive roulette games follow the conventional rules, but they pique players’ interest with an intriguing twist. These games are pooled together in a jackpot network shared across all online casinos that use the software.
The prizes grow steadily, reaching jaw-dropping amounts that motivate even more people to play. The more people play, the bigger the progressive jackpots become. Progressive roulette is still relatively new. If you’re curious to learn more, stay with us.
Fixed-Value vs. Progressive Jackpots in Roulette Games
Traditionally, this wheel-based game does not have enormous winning potential, with the biggest payout being 35 to 1 for successful straight-up bets. You will hardly find progressive roulette games on the floors of brick-and-mortar casinos. Some landbased gambling operators try to draw in more customers by introducing roulette tables with fixed-value jackpots where you need to place a specific side bet to qualify.
In contrast, the progressive roulette variations you can find online have a much bigger winning potential. The top prizes here are not limited to a fixed amount. Instead, the jackpot starts at a fixed value, called a seed.
Such is the case with the variation Back 2 Back Roulette, which you can find on the floors of Reno's Atlantis Casino Resort & Spa. This game awards a fixed-value jackpot of 1,200 to 1 if you place an optional side bet of $1 to $5 on a number or numbers of your choice. If your selected number(s) shows back to back, i.e. two times in a row, you collect the fixed jackpot.
Software supplier IGT Interactive launched an online roulette variation called Triple Bonus Spin Roulette where players have the chance to win a fat fixed-value jackpot of 12,000x their wager with a bonus side bet. The game plays on a wheel with three zeros and has an additional yellow pocket for the bonus side bet.
The bonus pocket is 30% bigger which increases the chances of the ball landing there. When this happens and the player has posted a side bet, they are granted three free spins for the chance to collect the 12,000 to 1 payout if they make another optional side bet.
The jackpot builds up in increments as a percentage of each bet players make on the game is added to the prize pool. Here is a made-up example to demonstrate how exactly the progressive jackpot builds up.
We use a nice round percentage for the purpose of simplicity. It does not necessarily represent the percentages of an actual progressive roulette game but will suffice for you to understand the mechanics of the jackpots.
The fictitious progressive roulette game from our example retains 10% of each bet made. After a lucky player collects the prize, the progressive jackpot is reset back to its seed amount, say $100,000. The seed usually accumulates from the bets players contribute to the overall progressive pot.
In our example, we shall assume 9% of each bet goes toward the progressive pool while the remaining 1% is used to fund the seed. Once the seed amount of $100,000 is reached, the full 10% of the bets go toward the constantly increasing jackpot.
The pool continues to grow until someone eventually wins so that the pot is reset to its base value again. To continue with the example, suppose you are betting $5 per spin. In this instance, $0.50 of each bet you make will go toward the seed while the remaining $4.50 are handled the same way as the bets on standard, non-progressive roulette.
In some progressive roulette variations, the seed amount is provided either by the software supplier or by the online casino. The purpose of the seed is to motivate players to continue betting on the game after the jackpot is won. If the pot starts to accumulate from scratch, the game will lose its appeal and the pools will grow at a snail's pace because very few players would care to contribute with bets.
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Criteria for Collecting the Progressive Roulette Pots
Many slot games with pooled progressive jackpots require players to stake the maximum amount to be eligible for the prize. This is not the case with progressive roulette, where there are two ways to qualify for the pot. Players can either place an optional jackpot side bet, or the pot may drop randomly on any spin, regardless of the stake size or result.
Mystery Jackpot Games Games With Jackpot Side BetsMystery Jackpot Games
In roulette games with a mystery jackpot, the huge prizes are awarded at random, meaning a massive win can occur on any spin of the wheel. Whether your bet itself wins or loses is irrelevant. Once the jackpot feature is unlocked, you are guaranteed to walk away with either a portion of the progressive prize or the entire jackpot.
In multi-tiered jackpot roulette, this usually involves revealing matching symbols that correspond to one of the progressive prizes. If the player fails to uncover the symbols within the designated timeframe, the software randomly awards one of the available jackpots.
Developers encourage players to place larger bets by designing the games so that the likelihood of winning increases in proportion to the wager size. In other words, the higher your bets, the better your chances of entering the progressive jackpot round.
Games With Jackpot Side Bets
In roulette games with jackpot side bets, the player must place a small additional wager to qualify for the prize. This wager is usually optional and typically no more than $1, although it ultimately depends on the game. In some versions, the software automatically places the side bet on every spin.
The virtual layout features an extra betting grid where these side bets are made. You can collect a portion of the jackpot or the full prize when the same single number appears several times in a row. The more consecutive hits the number produces, the bigger the payout.
In progressive titles such as Microgaming’s Roulette Royale, the entire jackpot goes to the player whose number hits five times in a row. The odds of the wheel landing on the same number five consecutive times are astronomically small, as we will explain later.
You must place the side bet to be eligible for the jackpot. If your number lands multiple times in a row without the side bet, each winning spin pays only the standard straight-up odds of 35 to 1.
Without the side bet, those consecutive hits count for nothing. This can be one of the most frustrating experiences a gambler can have. If you are chasing the big prize, you must place the side bet on every spin, which becomes quite costly over time.
The Biggest Progressive Jackpots in Roulette
Online roulette games with progressive jackpots are not widely available at most online casinos. You can typically find them at gambling sites that use specific software providers such as Microgaming or Playtech.
Evolution Gaming offers live progressive jackpots, but the selection is limited to house-banked poker games like Casino Hold’em, Texas Hold’em, and Caribbean Stud. Below is what Microgaming and Playtech bring to the table in the realm of progressive jackpot roulette.
Roulette Royale Age of the Gods Roulette Frankie Dettori's Jackpot Roulette Dragon Jackpot RouletteRoulette Royale
Roulette Royale is available at Microgaming-powered casinos and offers a pooled jackpot that can climb to hundreds of thousands of credits. Otherwise, it is the conventional European version of the game, featuring the usual inside and outside bets and a single-zero wheel with 37 pockets.
This game also requires a side bet to qualify for the jackpot. Here, the software automatically deducts the side-bet amount from your real-money balance on every spin. If your regular wager per round is $10, you will actually spend $11 on each spin in Roulette Royale.
Profits from the standard wager are paid at the usual roulette odds. The mandatory side bet pays out whenever the same number appears at least twice in a row. The portion of the jackpot you collect depends on how many successive hits you achieve.
The pot accumulates across all Microgaming casinos, allowing it to reach six-figure sums. You can track the ever-growing jackpot in the jackpot meter built into the game, located in the upper corner of the screen. Below are the prizes that consecutive numbers can earn you in Roulette Royale; it is irrelevant which number hits, as long as it appears several times in a row.
- 15 credits for 2 consecutive numbers
- 200 credits for 3 consecutive numbers
- 3,000 credits for 4 consecutive numbers
- The full jackpot amount for 5 consecutive numbers
Age of the Gods Roulette
Age of the Gods Roulette is a mythology-inspired roulette variation from Playtech. The game follows European rules but uses a wheel with 38 pockets: numbers 0 through 36 plus a purple pocket for the bonus game.
You unlock the bonus game by wagering on the Age of the Gods bonus grid when the ball lands in the purple pocket. This awards three spins for a chance to collect extra payouts ranging from 5x to 100x your bet.
The main attraction, however, is the four-level jackpot, consisting of the Power, Extra Power, Super Power, and Ultimate Power prizes. This mystery progressive jackpot is pooled across a wide-area network of Playtech casinos.
Slots from the studio’s Age of the Gods series also feed the four pots, which is why the Ultimate Power prize usually exceeds one million. The other three jackpots are smaller but drop more frequently.
A small percentage is deducted from every bet and divided among the four pots. Players can win a progressive prize on any spin, even a losing one. Although the jackpot can trigger on any wager, your odds of winning rise or fall in proportion to your stake size.
Once you enter the Age of the Gods jackpot game, you are guaranteed to walk away with one of the four pots. Twenty coins appear on the screen, each hiding one of the jackpot symbols. Reveal three matching symbols, and the corresponding jackpot is yours.
Frankie Dettori's Jackpot Roulette
This title also originates from Playtech and plays similarly to Age of the Gods Roulette. Its theme is inspired by horse racing legend Frankie Dettori, and the game is linked to the same jackpot network as Playtech’s slot of the same name.
Like Age of the Gods Roulette, it employs a wheel with 38 pockets, one of which is reserved for the Magic 7 bonus game. The bonus is thematic and features a racetrack where players uncover prizes for a chance to win up to 279x the triggering stake.
This roulette variant offers not one but two progressive prizes: the Golden 7 jackpot and the smaller Silver 5 pot. Either prize can be won on any spin at any stake size, and the bonus game triggers randomly.
When the bonus begins, a new screen with twelve squares appears, with each square hiding a gold or silver trophy. Revealing five silver trophies awards the smaller prize, while revealing seven gold trophies takes you to the finish line and unlocks the Golden 7 jackpot.
Dragon Jackpot Roulette
Also developed by Playtech, Dragon Jackpot Roulette uses a standard European wheel with 37 pockets. Like most Playtech progressive games, it features a multi-tiered jackpot comprising the Red, Green, Blue, and Gold Dragon prizes.
A bonus game is included for good measure. You unlock it by placing a bet on up to 12 numbers and having the ball land on one of them. The bonus is a two-stage affair: you first spin an outer wheel to earn two additional pointers, a free respin, or a 2x multiplier. The inner wheel then awards multipliers of up to 20x.
The main attraction, however, is the four-tiered mystery jackpot. It can be unlocked randomly on any spin during the main game, even a losing one. To qualify, you must activate the dragon jackpot button; once enabled, the software deducts 1% of each wager and splits it among the four pools.
During the jackpot game, the player must uncover three symbols of the same color (red, blue, green, or yellow) to collect the corresponding pot. The biggest prize is awarded for uncovering three yellow symbols.
Odds and House Edge of Jackpot Roulette Games
Odds of Winning the Pot in Side-Bet Jackpot Games Progressive Roulette and Positive EVOdds of Winning the Pot in Side-Bet Jackpot Games
As discussed, certain progressive jackpot versions require a small side bet to qualify for the top prizes. In Microgaming’s iteration, this side bet is automatically deducted from your casino balance, making the game rather costly to play over the long run.
To win the entire jackpot, the same number must appear five times in a row – a highly unlikely event. You can compute the odds by raising the probability of a single number hitting to the fifth power.
The likelihood of any given number landing five times on a single-zero wheel is 1/37 x 1/37 x 1/37 x 1/37 x 1/37 or (1/37)5 = 1/69,343,957. In other words, this is an extremely rare occurrence.
Progressive Roulette and Positive EV
It quickly becomes clear that winning a progressive jackpot is no walk in the park, especially when you must hit the same number five times in a row. Another challenge stems from the fact that the theoretical return-to-player (RTP) percentage of progressive games is lower than usual to offset the massive jackpots.
This also means the house edge is higher in progressive roulette. Compare the edge of a non-progressive single-zero game to that of a progressive version and you will immediately notice that the former yields higher long-term return percentages.
So, is it worth chasing the big prizes? The answer is yes – but only if the current amount on the progressive jackpot meter is high enough. The jackpot must exceed its break-even point for the game to offer a positive expected value. In Roulette Royale, that threshold is $760,501.
Until the jackpot reaches this break-even point, you are playing a negative-expectation game where the house enjoys a higher-than-normal edge. Check the table below to see the average wins, seed amounts, and hit frequencies of the most popular progressive roulette games.
| Progressive Roulette Game | Developer | Average Jackpot Win | Average Hit Frequency | Seed Amount | Jackpot Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roulette Royale | Microgaming | $440,353 | 9 years and 8 months | $60,000 | Mandatory side bet |
| Age of the Gods Roulette (Ultimate Power pot) | Playtech | $664,716 | 6 weeks and 5 days | €100,000 | Random jackpot |
| Dragon Jackpot Roulette (Gold pot) | Playtech | $107,244 | Nearly 4 days | €20,000 | Random jackpot |
| Frankie Dettori Jackpot Roulette (Golden 7 pot) | Playtech | $495,609 | 21 weeks | €70,000 | Random jackpot |