The D’Alembert system is one of the most popular betting strategies, after the Martingale system. It’s also a negative progression because it includes raising the bet after a loss. However, after winning, this strategy requires lowering the bet.

Jean le Rond d’Alembert, a French mathematician, provided the inspiration for the strategy. He began by suggesting that a coin that had previously landed on Tails would be more likely to land on Heads in the future. This belief is called Gambler’s Fallacy.

The gambler’s fallacy, also known as the Monte Carlo fallacy, is the false assumption that if an outcome occurs more frequently throughout time, it is less likely to occur in the future. This is clearly not the case, as the probability remains the same because it is impossible to foresee. Simply said, the outcome is utterly unpredictable and uncontrollable. For instance, consider the coin toss. Heads or tails are the two possible results, and both have an equal chance of occurring.

The strategy was applied to gambling in the late 18th century, with gamblers increasing their stakes after a loss in the hope that they would be able to recover their losses with future bets. The D’Alembert strategy quickly became a popular roulette strategy, however, it’s also employed in a variety of other casino games, and it’s still in use today.

How does the D’Alembert strategy work?

The D’Alembert strategy is meant to be used with bets that have a 50% probability of winning, the so-called ‘even’ bets, which is one of the similarities between this strategy and the Martingale. The other similarity is that the D’Alembert is also a negative progression betting system. After a loss, the D’Alembert strategy requires you to increase the bet. But, unlike the Martingale system, this one requires you to raise your bet by one when you lose rather than doubling it. When you win, this strategy requires you to decrease the bet by one.

Let’s explain this win an example. for instance, you have a balance of €50 and start with a base bet of €5. The progression will go as follows:

1st bet – €5. Loss. The balance is €45.

2nd bet – €10. Loss. The balance is €35

3rd bet – €15. Win. The balance is €50.

4th bet – €10. Win. The balance is €60.

5th bet – €5. Loss. The balance is €55.

6th bet – €10. Win. The balance is €65

As you can see, with the D’Alembert strategy you will always be in profit even when the number of wins is equal to the number of losses.

Bet Progression Modifications

Many changes have been made to the strategy since it was first introduced. However, none of these changes was popular enough to establish a new strategy. Still, we’re bringing them up so you can decide whether or not they’re something you’d be interested in.

One change is to adjust the bets so that instead of one base unit, the bets are increased and decreased by two or more units. This is significantly riskier because you could lose a lot of money, but you could also make a lot of money.

Another modification is to choose a bet level at which you will stop increasing the bet and return to the basic unit to start a new progression. That way, the chances of running out of money fast are lower.

D’Alembert Strategy in Roulette

The D’Alembert approach was designed specifically for roulette. It is now used in a variety of games, although it is still considered a roulette strategy. If you apply this method in roulette, you only have three betting possibilities because it can only be used on even odds bets. You can choose to bet on colour (red/black), even/odd, or high/low. But remember that these even-odds bets do not actually have a 50/50 chance of winning because of the house edge.

The house edge is the casino’s built-in statistical advantage that allows it to make a profit over time. The house edge is obvious in roulette games in the shape of the green zero on the wheel in European and French roulette, as well as the zero and double zero pockets in the American roulette. Due to the double zero, the house edge in American roulette is 5.2632% while in European roulette is 2.7027%.

D'alembert strategy in roulette

To start using the d’Alembert strategy in roulette follow these steps:

  • Choose one of the best online casinos in Kenya from our list, register and make a deposit.
  • Choose the online roulette game you want to play
  • Choose your base bet. This will be the unit by which you increase or decrease the bets.
  • Place your first bet on red/black, even/odd, or high/low.
  • Decrease the value of your bet by one unit after each win.
  • Increase the value of your bet by one unit if you lose.
  • To begin a new betting sequence, repeat the process.

When playing d’Alembert, we recommend joining many online roulette casinos to take advantage of several casino welcome bonuses.

Advantages of the D’Alembert Strategy

No Experience Needed: The D’Alembert Strategy is straightforward and simple to implement in any casino game. You don’t need any prior strategy expertise or experience. You only need to be familiar with the game to apply this easy method.

Lower Balance: To start with the D’Alembert strategy, you won’t need as much money because the nature of the progression keeps you safe.

Win Back Losses: Since you are increasing the bet by one unit after each loss, it is much easier to win back the losses and make a small profit along the way.

Less Risk: The D’Alembert is a low-volatility system in comparison to many others. It does not require you to place exceedingly large bets, and that makes it less risky than the other strategies.

Table Limit: With this progression, the chances of hitting the table limit after a few lost rounds is nearly impossible.

Disadvantages of the D’Alembert Strategy

When applying the D’Alembert strategy, or any strategy on games of chance, there are no guarantees.

The first and most serious disadvantage is that the house always has the upper hand. The house edge is a disadvantage that reduces your odds of winning. The D’Alembert strategy, or any other, can’t do anything to reduce the house edge; it just capitalizes on winning streaks.

You gamble tiny amounts and win modest amounts, therefore the D’Alembert strategy is low-risk. This is why you shouldn’t expect to make a lot of money. If you’ve had a long losing streak, it can be difficult to recover all of your losses. It takes patience, so if you prefer fast results, this is definitely not the strategy for you.

Reverse D’Alembert Strategy

Most strategies have a reverse version, and so does the D’Alembert strategy. As the D’Alembert is a negative progression strategy, while the Reverse D’Alembert is a positive progression strategy. So, you will have to do everything in reverse. Simply, you increase your wager by one unit after a win and decrease it by one after a loss. As a result, the Reverse D’Alembert strategy pays off only when you’re on a winning streak, so is a lot riskier than the other one.

Taking the dame example as for the D’Alembert strategy, we will show an example when the player starts with a base unit of €5 and a balance of €50 and uses the reverse D’Alembert strategy:

1st bet – €5. Win. The balance is €55.

2nd bet – €10. Win. The balance is €65

3rd bet – €15. Win. The balance is €80.

4th bet – €20. Loss. The balance is €60.

5th bet – €15. Loss. The balance is €45.

6th bet – €10. Loss. The balance is €35

As you can see the balance is increasing rapidly if you’re on a winning streak, but if you start losing the balance is dropping rapidly and pretty soon you might end up with 0. However, if you get lucky and keep the winning streak, the Reverse D’Alembert strategy can bring you lots of money.

Online casinos in Kenya to try the D’Alembert strategy

You’re undoubtedly excited to start playing after reading our handy tutorial to the D’Alembert roulette strategy. We’ve already done the research for you by finding the best online casinos in Kenya. Check out our casino reviews page of the best online roulette casinos to use the d’Alembert betting progression on games from top software providers.