David Cooper | January 3, 2023 | Updated on: February 27th, 2024
Craps looks like an intimidating casino game if you have never played it before. Yet, you will mostly hear or read gambling experts say you should play the game because of its really low house edge. In fact, if you make the right bets, you’ll only face a house edge of 1.36%.
However, these bets aren’t likely to win you lots of money. Remember that anything with a low house edge offers a low payout too. So, what’s the best roll in craps?
You may not like this answer, but we still think the best roll in craps are those that provide you with the best odds of winning, even if they don’t pay out much. Below we explore this idea by first looking at the craps bets with the lowest house edges and then looking at why sticking at these bets is a good idea.
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Craps Bets with a Low House Edge
There are five bets with a shallow house edge in craps. These are:
Pass and Don’t Pass
Pass and Don’t Pass are the most straightforward bets in craps. You make this bet before the shooter rolls the dice. Both of these bets pay 1:1.
A Pass Line bet wins if the come out roll is 7 or 11. However, you lose the bet if the come out roll is 2, 3, or 12. If a point number is established, pass line bets win if the point number is rolled again. It loses if the number 7 is rolled before that. The house edge on a Pass bet is 1.41%.
Don’t Pass is the opposite of a pass bet. It wins if a shooter rolls a 2 or 3 on the come out roll but loses on a 7 or 11. If a point number is established, it wins on a 7 and loses if the point number is rolled first on the second roll. The house edge on a Don’t Pass bet is 1.36%.
Come and Don’t Come
Come and Don’t Come bets mirror Pass and Don’t Pass bets, but they are placed after the point has been established. These bets also pay 1:1.
The Come bet wins if a 7 or 11 is rolled after the point, but loses if a 2, 3, or 12 is rolled. A Don’t Come bet wins on 2 or 3, but loses on a 7 or 11. You also face a house edge of around 1.41% on these two bets.
Odds Bets
An odds bet is a side wager that you can place after the point is established and placed a Pass bet. The bet wins if the point number is rolled before a 7. Essentially, this bet has a house edge of 0% on any number you bet on. However, the payout for an odds bet varies according to the point number as follows:
| Point Number | Payout |
| 4 and 10 | 2:1 |
| 5 and 8 | 3:2 |
| 6 and 8 | 6:5 |
With 0% house edge and some favorable payouts, this is a side bet we recommend you take a chance on every once and a while.
Laying the Odds
The laying the odds bet is the opposite of an Odds bet. You can place this bet after placing a Don’t Pass bet. A Laying the Odds bet wins if 7 is rolled before the point number. There is also a 0% house edge on this bet at the moment. Payouts vary based on the point number as follows:
| Point Number | Payout |
| 4 and 10 | 1:2 |
| 5 and 8 | 2:3 |
| 6 and 8 | 5:6 |
Why are these the Best Rolls in Craps?
These are the best rolls/bets in craps because you keep the house edge as low as possible. So, you are more likely to win. Most of the players who have won big while playing craps usually do so by sticking to these bets.
In fact, the largest amount of money won on a single bet on a table game has long been a Don’t Pass bet made by William Lee Bergstrom, which netted him $777,000. Obviously, he made a big bet to get that sum, but he took the easiest odds to beat to double his money.
There are many stories of gamblers profiting big on craps, some after really long gaming sessions. Often, they do this by sticking to bets that are easy to beat and using effective betting systems.
You can take your chances on a single roll bet that pays out 33:1, but chances are you won’t win it because of the high house advantage. If you keep repeating this bet with the idea that you need to win sometime, you’re likely in for a short gaming session.
So, take our advice; stick to craps bets with a low house edge, and you’ll find yourself a winner more often than not.
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