Craps rules guide
How to Play Craps
Craps looks complicated because many wagers share one layout. The underlying game is a simple cycle: a come-out roll either ends immediately or establishes a point, then the shooter tries to repeat that point before rolling seven.
Practice at the Craps table →The basic Pass Line cycle
On the come-out roll, Pass Line wins on 7 or 11 and loses on 2, 3, or 12. A 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10 becomes the point. Once a point exists, Pass Line wins if the point repeats before a 7 and loses if 7 appears first.
Don't Pass mostly takes the opposite side: it wins when a 7 appears before the point and loses when the point repeats. On the come-out, 2 or 3 wins, 7 or 11 loses, and 12 normally pushes.
The bets beginners should understand
Pass Line and Don't Pass are the foundation. After a point is established, both can be backed with an odds wager that pays at the true mathematical odds and carries no additional house edge.
Place bets on 6 and 8 are among the better standalone number wagers. Center-table proposition bets may look exciting, but many carry double-digit house edges and resolve in a single roll.
- ◆Pass Line house edge: about 1.41% before odds
- ◆Don't Pass house edge: about 1.36%
- ◆Odds wager: 0% house edge
- ◆Place 6 or 8: about 1.52% house edge
How the table is run
The stickperson controls the dice and calls each roll. Base dealers place and settle wagers, while the boxperson supervises the game. The puck reads OFF during the come-out and moves ON to the point number after a point is established.
The table reacts to every roll: one-roll wagers resolve, Come and Don't Come bets may travel to numbers, place bets may pay and remain working, and a seven-out clears many active wagers before a new shooter begins.