How to play Craps

Craps is a hugely popular table casino game. In recent years, it’s grown in popularity around the world, especially thanks to online casinos. It can be played online easily, and it’s known for fast rounds that are a lot of fun. Unlike other table games that are played with cards, Craps uses dice. If you’d like to get started playing, Rizk Casino has lots of exciting Craps game you can play, including live Craps and regular Craps. If you want to know more about the game, read on for our full how to play craps guide.

What is Craps

Craps is a dice game that allows players to bet on the outcome of a roll of a set of two dice. When playing in a casino, you bet against the casino, placing your chips on the table to denote where you think the dice will land. Craps was developed in the US and is based on a European game known as hazard. This game has been played for hundreds of years and has fairly complicated rules. Luckily, Craps is a lot easier to understand, and as a result, it’s become very popular.

The popularity of Craps grew especially fast during World War II when soldiers played it to pass the time. From here, it became the dominant game in Las Vegas and Caribbean casinos once the war was over. Today, it can be found at most online casinos. While there are different variations, most games follow the same basic rules.

Basic Craps Rules

At land-based casinos, Craps is played around a table, with up to twenty players taking turns to be the shooter (the person who throws the dice). When playing online, the game rolls the dice automatically, or if you’re playing live Craps, the dealer will act as the shooter. The aim of the game is to simply guess what value the dice will land on, placing a bet before the round starts. Knowing Craps rules before you play is important, but it’s not as complicated as it first looks.

In all versions of Craps, the first roll of the dice is known as the come-out roll. You start by placing your bets on the table. When the dice is rolled, there are three possible outcomes:

• Natural – This is when the two dice add up to a seven or eleven. Rolling a natural is the best outcome in the game, meaning you win and get to roll again.
• Craps – A Craps roll is when the dice add up to two, three or twelve. Here you lose your bet, but you’ll get to roll again.
• Point – A four, five, six, eight, nine or ten is a point. When playing online, a small marker will be added to the table on the number that was rolled to signify the point. You then get to roll again, and if the dice add up to the same number as before, you’ll win. Landing a seven on the second roll will lead to a seven out.

However, your success in Craps will be based on the betting option you choose before the round starts. There are lots of different betting options on the table aside from the standard numbers, and it’s important to understand what these mean. You can also find more about casino terms in our general casino glossary for help understanding all of the best games.

Craps Bets

When you first join a Craps table, you’ll have access to two main betting types. These are:

• Pass/Don’t Pass – The first bet you need to place when you join a Craps game is on the pass or don’t pass line. This is a bet on whether you think the shooter will pass, either by rolling a natural or a point before scoring a seven out. Betting on don’t pass is the opposite. This is a bet that the shooter will either roll a two, a three, or roll a point before losing the second roll. There’s also the possibility of the shooter rolling a twelve, which results in a push bet. Here, your stake is returned, and you’ll get to play again. You can only bet on pass/don’t pass if there’s no point on the table. Once a point is on the table, the bet to make is come/don’t come.
• Come/Don’t Come – After the shooter lands a point, you can bet on either come or don’t come. A come bet is a bet that the dice will roll a natural before the point comes up. Don’t come is the opposite, betting that the point number will appear before the dice land a natural.

Aside from these two main bets, Craps odds bet also includes some alternative bets. These include:

• Proposition Bets – Proposition bets are a bet that the dice will land on a specific number. These include betting on any seven and any Craps. There’s also a bet that the dice will land on ace deuce (a three), aces (a two), boxcars (a twelve), or horn (two, three, eleven or twelve).
• Place Bets – Once the point is on the table, you can bet on any number on the table and can choose multiple numbers. If this number comes up before seven, you win your bet. You can also bet on a place to lose, betting that the seven will come up before a specific number, and you can bet on multiple numbers.
• Buy or sell number – Some variations of Craps offer the chance to buy or sell a specific number when the point is in play. Here you can choose a number that you think will either show up or not show up before the seven. Buy if you think it will show up or sell if you think it won’t. This bet includes a 5% commission if you win.
• Field bets – A field bet is a bet that a two, three, four, nine, ten, eleven or twelve is rolled. If a five, six, seven or eight lands, your bet loses.
• Big six and Big eight bets – You can bet that a six or eight is rolled before a seven, choosing either the big six or the big eight.

Craps Table Layout

The Craps table contains all of the spaces where you’ll be placing your chips, so it’s important to understand the layout before you play. The pattern will be the same for the vast majority of variations.

On the outer left side of the table is the pass line, and just inside it, the don’t pass bar. You’ll need to place your bet on one of these to start the game off.
On the inner corner of the pass line are the big six and big eight places. You’ll place your chips on either of these if you think the shooter will roll a six or an eight before a seven.
The field is the next place on the table in from the pass line and the big six and big eight places. This is a bet that the dice will land on either two, three, four, nine, ten, eleven or twelve.

Above the field is the come section and to the left corner of that is the don’t come place. These can only be bet on if the white marker is on the table to signify that a point is in play.
Directly above the come section is the place section. Here, you can bet on a specific number that you think will land before a seven. There are places for four, five, six, eight, nine and ten.
On the other side of the table, there’s space for the proposition bets. These are single roll bets that the dice will land on specific numbers.

Craps Payouts

As there are lots of different bets in Craps, there are also lots of different payouts too. It’s worth paying close attention to these. Knowing the best odds in craps and how much you can win from your bet is always important before you start playing.

• Pass/don’t pass – 1:1
• Come/don’t come – 1:1
• Buy bets for 4 or 10 – 2:1
• Buy bets for 5 or 9 – 3:2
• Buy bets for 6 or 8 – 5:6
• Lay bets for 4 or 10 – 1:2
• Lay bets for 5 or 9 – 2:3
• Lay bets for 6 or 8 – 5:6
• Field bets for 3, 4, 9, 10 or eleven – 1:1
• Field bets for 2 – 2:1
• Field bets for 12 – 3:1
• Place bets for 4 or 10 – 9:5
• Place bets for 5 or 9 – 7:5
• Place bets for 6 or 8 – 7:6
• Proposition bets can be between 4:1 and 30:1 and are usually shown on the table

How to Play Craps

Before the round starts, players will have to place their bets on a pass bet line or a don’t pass bar. You can also place bets on the proposition section or field section if you prefer. When playing online, choose your chips before you start and pay close attention to your bankroll.

After placing your bet, you can choose the roll button to automatically roll the dice. If you’re playing live Craps, you may have to wait for a countdown for the round to begin after placing your bets. If the first dice roll lands on seven or eleven, you’ll win if you bet on the pass line but lose if you bet on the don’t pass bar. On the other hand, if the dice land on two, three or twelve, don’t pass bets win. Any other number will see a small white marker saying “on” appear on the screen, and the game will continue.

When the small white marker appears on the table, it means the point is set on the number that was rolled previously. Here, you’ll have a choice of betting on the dice to land on specific numbers, to not land on specific numbers, to come or not to come. This round continues until a seven, or the point appears.

When either the seven or the point appears, the game restarts with players placing a pass or don’t pass bet. This continues for as long as you want to play.

Craps Strategy

Craps is a game of pure chance, and there isn’t any way to influence your odds, but you can make them work in your favour. For most players, sticking to the pass/don’t pass and come/don’t come bets is the best strategy. These have the lowest house edge of any bet, and although the payouts are smaller, this makes the most sense. When you’re a beginner, it’s easy to get lost in all the different betting options that Craps offers, so choosing the simplest and most straightforward is usually the best option.

As you get to be a more experienced player, you’ll learn more about when the other bets are appropriate, and some players prefer certain strategies over others. However you prefer to play, the proposition bets are almost always the worst option, as they come with a significantly higher house edge. This is despite the fact that they often have big payouts, which a lot of players may be tempted by.

Finally, when you play Craps, you should always make sure you’re having fun and enjoying the game responsibly. Keep a close eye on your bankroll at all times and limit your bets to an amount that you can afford to lose. Winning at online dice is great fun, but if you find yourself losing often, take a break and come back another day when you’re feeling luckier!

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