The 4 bets worth making. The 5 to avoid completely. Everything else is noise.
Craps looks terrifying. A 12-foot table, chips flying everywhere, people yelling about points and hardways while the dealer whips away losing bets. Here's a secret most players never figure out: almost every bet on that table is a trap. The good news? A handful of them are among the best bets in the entire casino — and you only need to know those.
Craps revolves around one thing: a shooter rolling two dice. Everything on the table is a bet about those rolls. The very first roll of a shooter's turn is called the come-out roll, and it's where the two foundational bets — pass line and don't pass — are decided.
If a point is established, the shooter needs to roll that same number again before rolling a 7. Hit the point first → pass line wins. Roll 7 first → pass line loses. That's the whole game. Everything else is a bet on top of that basic structure.
Ranked from best to worst house edge. Stick to these four and you're playing one of the lowest-edge games in the casino.
Placed behind your pass line bet after a point is established. The casino pays true odds with zero house edge. You can only make this bet after a pass/don't pass/come/don't come — so it's a multiplier, not a standalone play.
The opposite of pass line — you're betting with the house. Technically slightly better than pass line, but socially less fun since you're rooting for the table to lose.
The classic craps bet. Betting the shooter wins. The entire table usually cheers with you. Only 0.05% worse than don't pass, so the social premium is basically free.
A side bet that either 6 or 8 will roll before a 7. Both are the most common point numbers. Critical: only bet Place 6 or Place 8. Place 5 and Place 9 have a 4% edge — much worse.
Bet pass line. Take maximum odds behind it.
If the table allows "3x-4x-5x odds" (most do), this combined bet has a blended house edge of about 0.37% — better than basic-strategy blackjack. Pair this with placing the 6 and 8 and you're playing the best craps possible.
Everything in the center of the table — the big prop area with the dice pictures — is designed to look exciting and pay big numbers. It's also where the house makes most of its money. Avoid these at all costs.
A one-roll bet that the next roll will be a 7. Pays 4-to-1 on a bet that hits 1-in-6 of the time. The worst standard bet on the table by a wide margin.
The even-money version of Place 6/8 found in table corners. Pays 1:1 instead of 7:6 for the same bet. A trap for beginners who don't know Place bets exist.
Betting that a number hits as a pair (2-2, 3-3, 4-4, 5-5). Flashy payouts, huge edge. Hard 4 and Hard 10 carry 11.1% edges; hard 6 and 8 are 9.09%.
Any prop betting on 2, 3, 11, or 12. Huge payout numbers, huge house edges. Single-number hop bets (like "Any Craps") can run over 13%.
Looks tempting — pays if the next roll is 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, or 12. Seven winning numbers! What it doesn't tell you: 5, 6, 7, and 8 cover the majority of actual roll combinations.
Everything above collapses into one clean playbook. You can play craps for hours with this and not get seduced into the sucker bets.
1. Bet the pass line on every come-out roll.
2. Once a point is established, take maximum odds behind your pass line bet (ideally 3x–5x).
3. Optionally, place the 6 and/or 8 for additional action on the most common numbers.
4. Ignore everything else — the hardways, the horns, the field, all of it. Politely decline when the dealer or stickman tries to sell you a prop bet.
After a hot roll, you'll be tempted to "press" your bets into the center of the table. That's exactly what the house wants. The center is where the money goes to die. The math doesn't care how hot the roll feels — keep your bets where the edge is low.
Craps isn't about predicting dice. It's about picking the right bets and ignoring the rest. Stay on the rail, take your odds, leave the middle alone.