There is no reason to sugarcoat this: the craps table is easily the funniest place in the casino. A hot hand, a thirty-minute roll of the dice with players pressing their bets, laughing and screaming, and rooting on the shooter is a thrill you won’t find anywhere else.
Many folks don’t play craps because they feel like there are tons of rules or that they don’t have time to learn how to play craps, but we are going to walk you through a short but comprehensive guide that will have you making a pass line bet in no time.
From proposition and field bets to betting strategies and bankrolls, we’ve got you covered with your very own craps glossary in this all-encompassing guide for beginners.
More on How to Play Craps
- What Is Craps?
- Basic Rules of Craps
- The Different Craps Bets
- Outline Of Play
- Craps Table Layout
- Tips for Playing Craps at an Online Casino
- Tips for Playing Craps at a Land-Based Casino
- How to Win at Craps
- Craps Etiquette
- How to Play Craps FAQs
What Is Craps?
Simply put, craps is a dice game in which you bet on the outcome of rolls.
Unlike those back alley-type games, casino craps takes place on long craps tables, often 18 feet or more. Three dealers and a supervisor stand guard. This supervisor is called a box person, in reference to them sitting at what amounts to a large box. The dealers on either side of this box person are base dealers.
Basic Rules of Craps
Legal online casino gaming is spreading across the country slower than we’d like it to. If you fall into the majority of people who don’t live in a legal online gambling state, you’re not totally out of luck. Many real money online casino apps have a demo mode where you can learn how to play craps for free, regardless of your location.
The basics of the game are straightforward; we can either bet with the shooter or against them. To keep things clear, note that every bet we discuss has its opposite if we are betting against the shooter. The shooter receives five dice; they pick up two of them and toss them to the opposite side of the craps table in front of the stick person. The dice should hit the back wall and not go any higher than eye level.
If the first roll of the dice is seven or eleven, the pass bets win. The pass bets lose on two, three, or twelve with any other number becoming the Point. The Point is marked up, and the shooter must roll that number again before the dreaded seven rolls. Hit the Point, and we will begin the process all over again. If the shooter rolls a 7, most bets lose, including your pass-line bets and odds. The dice move to the next shooter.
The Different Craps Bets
Here’s a look at the different craps bets you can place:
- The Pass Line bet is simply betting that the shooter will make their Point. It wins on seven and eleven on the come-out roll before a point is established and loses on two, three, or twelve. Once a point is established, the pass-line bet wins if the Point is rolled again before a seven. This bet pays even money.
- The Don’t Pass is the exact opposite. It wins on two, three, or twelve on the come-out, though if you see bar 12, you only get a push on a twelve on the come-out roll. You lose on seven or eleven. Once the Point is established, a seven must roll before the shooter hits their Point. The pass line and don’t pass are some of the most basic bets
- Come bets work similarly to pass line bets, but they are made after the original Point is made. They win on seven and eleven and lose on two, three, and twelve. They travel from the Come to the Point once it’s established and win if that Point is rolled before a seven.
- Don’t Come is the same as a don’t pass, just after the initial Point. They travel behind the number when the Point is established.
- Odds bets are taken either behind pass bets or on top of come bets. House rules allow different odds at different casinos. The odds on a come-or-pass line can change our overall house advantage from about 1.4% all the way down to .2%. It all depends on how much we are allowed to take; 3x or more is good, but 5x or more is better. Odds bets pay true odds, which means double on the four and ten, 3/2 on the five and nine, and every 6 gets five on the six and eight.
- You can also lay odds on the Don’t Pass or Don’t Come. In this case, though the payouts are reversed, you win one for every two you bet on the four and ten. You win two for every three laid on the five and nine, and five for every six you bet on the six and eight.
- Place Bets on the numbers are one of the more popular bets and provide a bit of confusion again because each bet pays differently. Every $5 on the four and ten get $9. Every $5 on the five and nine gets $7, and every $6 on the six and eight gets $7. Do not worry; you’ll get the hang of it.
- Buy Bets and Put Bets: Most casinos will allow you to buy the four and ten once you get up to $20. This is because placing the four and ten is over 6% house advantage, and that is a very big number. A buy bet means paying a 5% vig in return for getting two to one on the four and ten instead of every $5 getting $9.
- Many casinos will also allow you to buy the five and nine, thus getting three to two instead of nine to five, in return for that 5% vig. This makes more sense at casinos that only charge the vig after the bet wins instead of getting the 5% upfront as most casinos used to. This again reduces the house edge further and makes the buy bet more attractive.
- You can do something similar with a Put Bet on the don’t side. You pay the vig to get true odds on your bet against the number. For instance, if you Put $100 against the ten, you are betting that a seven will roll before a ten. You pay a $5 vig either upfront or when it rolls, and you win $50.
- The Big Six and Eight pay even money. Considering that if you placed the six and eight, you get $7 for every $6 you bet, it doesn’t seem like the best bet.
- The Field is another of those bets that the casino prays you place. Generally, you get even money on all the numbers listed in the field area and double on the two or twelve. But since the most rolled numbers (the seven, six, and eight, as well as the five) aren’t in the field, it is a pretty bad bet at over 5% against you.
- Hard Way bets are in the center of the table and under the control of the stick person. Just throw your bet to them and tell them what you want. For instance, you might put $10 on the Hard 4. Note that these aren’t contract bets, as they can come down when you ask.
- They are generally off on the come-out roll unless you ask for them to be working. And they aren’t one-roll bets like the rest of the center bets. They stay up until seven rolls or the number is rolled soft. So, for instance, a Hard four must roll two and two. A three and one lose. The Hard Six and Eight pay nine to 1, and the Hard Four and Ten pay seven to 1.
- Proposition Bets, or prop bets, include all the center bets like the Horn, the Any Seven, Any Craps, or Aces. These bets pay out various returns but are seldom worth betting. These are all just one-roll bets on a specific number coming. For instance, the horn bet pays if a two, three, eleven, or twelve rolls.
- Hop Bets allow you to bet basically any two numbers on the dice on the next roll. If you want to bet that the dice will come five-three, we can book that. Do you have a feeling it’s going to be a four and a one? Bet. Again, a terrible house advantage here means you should probably ignore those telepathic feelings in your head.
Outline Of Play
We’ve compiled a walkthrough of a game of craps:
Place a Bet (Pass Line Bet, etc.)
Whether playing online or at a brick-and-mortar casino, we must make a bet. The pass bets are the most popular. We are just betting that the shooter will make their Point. In the case of an old-school online craps game, we may always need to make a pass or don’t pass as we may always be the shooter.
In live dealer casino games and brick-and-mortar games, everyone takes turns being the shooter. We may need to wait for many shooters before it is our turn. But we can still make the pass bet (or any other bet) while we wait. The place numbers are off on the come-out roll or before the shooter establishes a point, so we can wait to make those and the come-out roll. So, at this point, you can bet the single-roll bets if you must.
Roll of the Dice and Bet Analysis
The shooter will make their first roll. Any craps and the pass line loses. Seven or eleven is a winning bet on the pass line, and we need to either replace our losses or pick up our winning bets. If a point is established, we need to consider what we want to bet next.
See the Established Point
Once we have a point, we can place the six and eight, make come bets, and, most importantly, take odds on our pass-line bets. A reasonable bet might be placing six and eight and then buying the outside bets.
Keep Betting (Proposition Bets, etc.)
If another point is rolled, we collect our winnings. Any craps or an eleven, and nothing happens to your bets. Of course, a seven will wipe out anything except that our last come bet wins. We can press our bets with our winnings or even take them all the one way down if some numb scull throws money down in the middle of the roll. That’s a joke we will discuss later, but you have the option.
Shooter Continues to Roll
Until the shooter rolls a 7, we will continue pressing or collecting, assessing our bets, and adding odds to come bets as they are moved to their new points. This is where the fun of the game can really start to pick up as the bets get bigger on the layout and the number of checks in the rail begins to grow. If you elect to to take down some bets as you go, remember that while you may take down the odds on a come bet, the actual come bet itself must stay.
The Round Ends
Once the shooter rolls a seven, all the bets fall except for new come bets. Of course, if you’d been betting the Don’t, you’d have been losing the whole time until now, at which point you’d finally have a winner. The dice will be sent to the next shooter in a clockwise rotation from the box person.
You don’t have to shoot when it is your turn; if you don’t wish to, you can opt to pass the dice. If there’s an emergency, you may pass the dice in the middle of your roll. If you’ve taken the honor of being the shooter, remember it’s best to wait for a seven or at least until you’ve made your Point to pass the dice. Why? Because a pass line is a contract bet and can not be picked up no matter what until the bet is decided.
Craps Table Layout
While layouts may differ between craps tables, all of them will have the same basic setup, design, and function.
Pass Line & Don’t Pass Bar
On most craps layouts, the pass line is directly in front of you and stretches along the whole side of the table. The don’t pass is just the other side of it and is often interrupted in the corner or hook of the table where the Big 6 and 8 take up a lot of space to advertise another terrible bet.
Come & Don’t Come
The Come bet section is a large rectangle in the middle of the layout on each side between the field bet and the numbers section. The Don’t Come bet is a much smaller rectangle to the outside of the numbers place section in front of the base dealer.
While both the Come and Don’t Come are considered self-service bets that can be set up and picked up by the player, the reality of the Don’t Come is that unless you are directly beside the base dealer, you may not be able to reach it. You can always inform the dealer of a Don’t Come Bet.
Also, remember that the Come is the working area of the table. That’s where you should place your buy-ins and color-ups. It’s where the box man will run down your color-ups and where the dealer will sometimes cut out and leave your bets, though in most cases, they will be handed off to you.
Center Section
You may occasionally hear the stick person say, “Get your center bets, prop bets, hop bets now.” The center section of the craps table is taken up with the one roll and hard way bets, the so-called proposition bets. These are under the control of the stick person, and they will book and set up all of these bets. Just throw them into the center and tell them what you wish to bet on; they will take care of the rest.
If you hit a center bet, the stick person will typically pay you for that bet minus your losers, leaving you up the same way. For instance, if you bet any seven and all the hard ways, you won’t get anything if the shooter rolls a seven. Your four-dollar winner was used to put your hard ways back up. If you wish something different, let them know before they send the dice back out.
Big 6 & Big 8
The Big 6 and 8 take up a large space in the bend or hook of the table. This even money bet has a large house edge, so there is plenty of room to lure the unwary.
Field
This is another bet with a history of large house advantage, more than likely over 5%. If you find a table in downtown Las Vegas that pays triple on the twelve, or sometimes on the two, you can cut the house edge to a bit below 3%, but that still needs improvement. It’s the reason it stretches across both sides of the table and also why you may hear craps dealers say, “Only farmers get rich in the Field.”
Place
The place section of the table includes the numbers four, five, six, eight, nine, and ten. It’s not a self-service bet, and if you wish to place a bet, please inform the dealer, and set your chips down on the Come. They will set up your place bets for you.
Buy bets move from the Come to the Place section as well. They will sit inside the box while the place bets sit on the line. Where you are on the table denotes where your place or come bets sit on that number, and that is how the dealer keeps track of whose bet is whose.
Don’t Come bets move into the smaller box behind the place numbers and denote your position on the table. Odds on the Come or Don’t Come should be set in front of the number in the Come area and clearly announced as odds, a place bet, or a new come bet.
Tips for Playing Craps at an Online Casino
Craps online follows the same basic rule set as what we’ve just outlined but on a layout on a computer. You’ll find two basic versions of online craps, the first operating via a traditional random number generator. Users can start playing the RNG version on a video game-looking screen.
Live dealer craps is a newer type that has become popular in the past few years. This game has a real craps table with actual dice that is live streamed to your computer or phone. A mechanical arm or a live shooter rolls the dice. Many people prefer actual dice’s perceived randomness to computer programming.
Find an Online Casino
We first need a reliable real money online casino that meets our needs. Understand that everybody will want something different, so it’s seldom a one-size-fits-all. One person may be looking for bare-bones table minimums, another for at least 5x odds on their come bets, and someone else may want a substantial sign-up match bonus to get the most out of their first deposit.
Do some research; if the info on this page doesn’t help you find the best sites, go deeper or check the links here. In states like New Jersey, you have more than 20 of the best online casinos that you can explore for your perfect craps casino.
Register an Account
Don’t worry – registration should be fast and easy. Ensure you have your identification documents when you begin so you don’t have to look for them later. You can register and even test out some of the craps games in demo mode from anywhere, but you will need to be physically in a legal state before you make your first bet. When it comes time to place a wager, most casinos will have many options for deposits. Almost all deposits will be instant, but make sure to read the terms and conditions.
Find a Craps Game
Unlike slots, craps titles tend to range in the ones or tens rather than the hundreds. Still, think about your bankroll and what kind of game you’re looking for, then match that with the proper game of craps and table minimum.
Place Bets & Throw the Dice
Again, a lot of time and effort has been spent to make these online craps games easy to understand. Most are point-and-click with your mouse. Almost all of them will let you start playing in demo mode, so try it out before you wager real money and ensure you understand the controls.
With a live dealer game, consider that you have the added benefit of having someone walk you through most of the steps. Many people play online to avoid talking to other people, so just read through the info page carefully – it’s all spelled out right there.
Claim Your Winnings
When it’s time to collect your winnings, remember to ensure you’ve met all the terms and conditions to withdraw your cash and keep your bonus money. Most online casinos require “playthrough,” which is the total amount of your deposit times the amount that you bet each hand. This is some number that the casino has spelled out in their terms and conditions. While you can always withdraw your funds before you hit that playthrough, you will forfeit any bonus or match money that the casino has added to your account.
Tips for Playing Craps at a Land-Based Casino
Much like finding the proper online casino for your craps play, finding the right brick-and-mortar casino also involves thinking about our goals. Unlike online casinos, we need to be very aware of table minimums. $25 games are pretty standard on a busy weekend in Vegas or Atlantic City, and because it involves many multiple bets plus laying odds on those bets, the fast-paced game can add up quickly.
We also want to look for the right mixture of people at a table. Pouty dealers and bratty players can make for a long night. If the dealer won’t make eye contact or say hello, or the guy to your right looks only seconds from heaving, it’s always best to find another table.
If you’ve taken our advice and want the best odds, ask the stick or box person how many odds you can take on your pass-line bet. Refrain from settling for one or two. At least get 3x, though 5x odds or better is even more preferable.
Find the Right Casino
Finding the right casino can be tricky depending on where in the country you are, as land-based casinos are often miles apart. If you are fortunate to be in an area with several casinos within walking distance, do a little online research about what craps games they have plus their rules and table minimums.
Check and see if casinos near you have craps variants like Crapless Craps or side bets like All Tall or Small if those things interest you.
Choose a Craps Table
As we discussed, choosing a craps table can be an art form in itself. Look over the players and dealers to make sure you feel like you can play craps with them for an hour or two and watch the speed of the game. Look at the minimum signs posted under each base dealer to ensure they aren’t more than your bankroll can afford.
Place Bets & Throw the Dice
Dice players, especially the kind of dice players playing at a brick-and-mortar casino on a Saturday night, are a very superstitious bunch. I’ve written articles about their many varied superstitions, but more than anything else, NEVER BUY IN, IN THE MIDDLE OF A ROLL. No matter how hot the hand, please wait for the seven or at least for the shooter to make his Point. You can thank us later.
The box man and the dealer are your friends. They might not always seem like it, but put a couple of dollars down next to your pass line bet or throw in some hard ways for the crew and see how quickly their attitude changes. No matter how much of an expert you think you are, they know some tricks, some bets that pay better, and some that have less house edge.
Ask them. Craps dealers love to talk about craps. They can teach you some things, especially the ins and outs of their house rules that might not be immediately apparent to an outsider.
Claim Any Winnings
Look, you need a number – a number that you want to win. This is just good bankroll management. When you hit that number, you go to the bar, have a drink, and call it a night. Not right away, mind you. We don’t color up in the middle of a roll and miss the hand of a lifetime, but after a seven out and we have what we came for, it’s time to go.
You take your smaller denomination chips and make sure the dice aren’t already sent out to a new shooter and are, in fact, in the middle of the table. Announce loudly to your base dealer “Color coming in” and set your chips in the come area four feet from the dealer. They will announce the color to the box man, who will count them down. Pay attention, as they are going to want you to verify the total when they are done. Once the two of you concur, he will give you larger, easier-to-carry denomination chips.
This is also another great time to throw in a tip for the crew. Ask which way to go to the cage, where they will convert those chips to cash. The cage will be without fail in the farthest corner from the front entrance, which gives the house a chance to get you to spend some of that money either walking in or walking out.
How to Win at Craps
If I had a nickel for the number of times a player asked me for the specific house edge on a craps bet in the thirty-plus years I’ve stood behind a craps table, I would have two nickels. Which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it happened twice. But maybe knowing which bets are better and which are outright dumb could make a big difference in your game.
Making bets that are under 2% and preferably closer to 1% will save you dozens of average bets across even ten hours of play over a weekend trip. Sure, the field looks bright and shiny with all those numbers stretched across the whole side of the table, but there’s a reason for it. Yes, the stick person keeps selling you on those hard ways that you bet just once 15 rolls ago because they know a sucker when they see one.
Stick to come bets and pass bets with full odds, place the six and eight, buy the five and nine if they only take juice on winners, and always buy the four and ten. Look for at least 5x odds on those pass-and-come bets. And always stick to your bankroll. By adhering to these craps betting tips, you should see longer sessions with more of them in the black.
Craps Etiquette
Besides just the out-and-out superstition, craps has a lot of unwritten rules. At first, it can feel like an insular fraternity trying to keep you out. But craps appeals to a particular type of personality, and it’s not the kind that is prone to taking time to kindly explain things.
Let’s go over some of the Big No Nos on the Dice table before some big guy named Sal is staring you down and mumbling from across the table. Here are the top five.
- Buying In in the Middle Of A Roll: Nothing is more likely to get you the death stare or threats of physical violence than throwing cash down in the middle of a hot hand. Please note in this instance, we are referring to buying in before the shooter hits their Point or sevens out.
- Only then is it considered safe to buy in. One workaround I’ve seen that seems to soothe most, if not all, of the seriously superstitious is to buy in with cash at a nearby blackjack table. Armed with chips, you are less likely to engender the wrath of the table if a seven rolls following your cash buy-in and the end of a twenty-minute roll.
- Hands In The Layout: Watch the dice. Once the stick person sends them and says, “Dice Out,” get your darn mittens out of the way. While rational people would probably be inclined to tell you that the dice hitting or even coming near you is unlikely to change the randomness, that kind of forward-thinking is precisely what got Galileo into all that trouble with these same kinds of people.
- Do Not Say Seven: It’s best if you don’t even think it. Just banish it from your thoughts as well as your vocabulary while you are bellied up to a dice game. I’m not saying some of these guys are telepathic, but if they get the sense you’re even thinking it, there might be trouble.
- Beverage Staff: I’m almost certain this goes back to a time when women weren’t exactly welcome in the dice pits. For years when I was breaking in, I would see guys turn off their bets if the female cocktail server came around and asked the shooter if they wanted a drink. I’ve seen grown men color up in the middle of a roll if that server actually touched him. It’s still considered bad form to interact with the server while you are the shooter. Perhaps have your friend make your drink order.
- Don’t Speak to the Shooter: This is another superstition that has mellowed a bit from the old days, but making small talk or honestly any kind of talk with the shooter was once considered heretical. Now, it probably just borders on the blasphemous, but better safe than sorry. Always allow the shooter to give their undivided attention to rolling winners.
How to Play Craps FAQs
Check out these FAQs regarding how to play craps:
Are craps games rigged?
Craps games in licensed and well-regulated jurisdictions in the U.S. are unlikely to be rigged. They already have a considerable advantage over an inexperienced player. Still, besides that, top casino apps today are all Fortune 500 companies with way too much to lose by sneaking in loaded dice.
But if you are playing in that game down in the diamond district with all of the Eastern European gentlemen, who can say?
How do I win at craps?
Be lucky! Seriously, though, if you want a better chance of winning, just bet the bets with around a 1% house edge or lower. Be smart with money management. Bet into hot rolls, and if the table is cold, just walk away. Never chase money, and never start throwing some money on the hard ways just because you’re up.
Most importantly, whether you are playing in a brick-and-mortar casino or online, look for a casino that gives good comps, good free play, and good food and beverage offers. These things take the sting out of a small house edge, and when used properly, they can help you stand a chance of at least having a few winning sessions overall.
What is the best bet when playing craps?
Pass or Come bets with full odds, or Don’t Pass and Don’t Come bets with full odds, are the best bets, though they are a bit hard on the bankroll. Buy bets, especially on tables where they only take the vig on wins, are all under 2% house edge. Or you can lay them if that’s just the kind of person you are. Placing the six and eight likewise is only 1.6% against you.
How do I “shoot the dice” in craps?
Make sure you have a pass-line bet. Keep one hand on the dice with no switching die from hand to hand. Keep them over the table layout and throw them hard enough to hit the back wall but not so hard as to hurt somebody. Listen to the stick person on every roll of the dice; they will walk you through what rolled, what happened, and what they need you to do next.
If you roll a two, three, or twelve on the come-out roll, you lose your money and your friends but not the dice, so make another pass-line bet and keep shooting. Only once you have established a point and the dice roll has come seven do you lose your turn. Once you have made a point, don’t forget to make a come bet or take odds on your pass-line bet.
If your play crap online, you shoot the die by clicking the roll button. The roll of the dice is simulated on the screen and decided by random number generators unless you are playing a live dealer version of online craps. Remember, in the online game, you will always need a pass line or don’t pass wager as you are the only shooter. In brick-and-mortar games, you are not required to bet the pass line.
Do I need skill to play craps?
Whether you wish to play craps online or in a brick-and-mortar casino, you’ll need skill in the sense of bankroll management, bet discipline, and using casino bonuses, free play, and comps to help offset the house advantage.