Craps Strategy

The best strategy you can apply on your game is to play with free odds and on this page I will explain you why. Free odds can be taken on the pass, don't pass, come and don't come bets. Free odds bets are paid back at true odds, so when you're making these bets the casino has no house edge whatsoever, it's an even game.

Now, how do you make this free odds? Simple: When the shooter establishes a point on the come-out roll, any player who has made a pass line bet is allowed to "take the odds." A single odds bet is an additional wager, up to the amount of your original wager, that the point number will be repeated before a 7 is rolled.

Besides the fact that the odds bet has no house edge associated with it, also it has no official designated space on the dice table. So you can place a pass line bet with odds you need first to make your pass line bet and then, after a point is set you take more chips and place them behind your pass line bet. The odds bet wins if your flat bet (original bet) wins and loses if your flat bet loses.

For example if you were betting $5 on a pass line bet and the point got set to '4', you could put down the equivalent to, or a larger bet, just below your original wager. Physically place the chips half on and half off of the bottom of the pass line. If on the next roll a '4' is hit you win your pass line bet back, and an additional sum of money derived from the odds bet. In this case you are paid 2 to 1 on the odds bet.

What determines the payout on odds bets is the actual number the point is set to (because some points are easier to hit than others, refer to the dice chart on our rules of craps page). If the point is set to 4 or 10, odds bets are paid back at 2 to 1 odds. If the point is set to 5 or 9, odds bets are paid back at 3 to 2 odds. If the point is set to 6 or 8, odds bets are paid back at 6 to 5 odds. Since the odds pay off better than the initial bet, you should always maximize your odds bet.

When you bet a Pass line bet the natural house edge is around 1.42%. When you back the bet with free odds, the overall house drops. The house edge on a pass line bet with ten times odds is only 0.18% so this it means that the greater the proportion of your bet that is on free odds, the lower the edge will get. This is why most casinos limit the amount you can place on free odds.

Usually you will see a printed sign on the table to let you know how much you can bet on free odds and if there are no signs, the dealer will tell you. For example, when the table has a 5x showing, it means you can place five times as much on your odds as you put down as the Pass line bet. If you bet a $10 Pass line bet, you could put as much as $50 down on free odds.

To look further into developing a strategy, simply learn every possible bet, and choose between the best and worst. Each of the other bets available are described on the craps bets page.

Different Craps Strategies

6 & 8 Bettors
This is a bet used more among novice players, simply because the pass line and placing numbers is easy. There is some solid logic behind it too, as the pass line, when backed with odds, gives you the best house edge, and placing the 6 and 8 are among the next best bets on the table. As far as simple craps strategies to follow, I think this is a great one for beginners.

Hedge Betting
The basic concept is that when you place a bet, you can always place a second bet that wins when the first one loses, enabling you to cover your loses. This is a bet that will give you headaches if you think too much about it and is a bet usually used by the players who think they know all about craps and what is going on the table. One sure thing about this bet is that it will decrease volatility on your game.

Wrong Bettors
These bets offer a slightly better house edge then their 'with the dice' counterpart. The only problem that appears when you are playing in a casino among superstitious players is that many will say that you bring the bad luck at the table for the ones who bet with the dice. Consequently you will be shunned, and blamed if the table goes cold. Of course, if the table has gone cold for the 'right bettors', then the wrong bettors are making all of the money!

Bankroll strategies
Setting win and loss limits ahead of time is a powerful way to approach craps. Using a good bankroll strategy you ensure that you will actually walk away while up. Many long time gamblers have come to realize this as vital, and recommend you walk away after going 20% up. That may not seem like much at all, but considering the edge is against you, beating it by more than 20% is quite an accomplishment.