Craps Table Explained

• Craps Betting 101
• Craps C And E Bet Explained

If you want to learn to play craps, you should start by learning how the craps table works.

Again, this bet is the easiest ticket to get you hated by the table. Craps is a game about the whole table working together, and when you come in betting against everyone, they aren't going to be too fond of you. The field bet is the first of the bets that you really don't need to. The craps table is covered in felt that is printed with a diagram showing the spaces for the types of bets. There is a center section where Hardways and One Roll bets can be placed. The ends of the table each have sections for the Pass Line, Come, Place, Field, and other bets. The ends of the table are mirror images of each other.

• The Craps Table Explained. The craps table and how it is laid out has a lot to answer for when it comes to scaring off new players. This is not to say that it is laid-out incorrectly or illogically, but it does end up looking a little confused. One of the main problems is that the names of the sections are not self-explanatory.
• The Craps Table Layout. A standard craps table layout comprises two sections: Side section (there are two identical side sections, one on each end of the table), and; Center section. Each side section is manned by a dealer. The center section is manned by the stickman.
• Hot Table: A craps table where all shooters are playing for a while without sevening out, normally referring to the pass line bettors. House Edge: Same as ‘edge'. Inside Bet: When you wager on a 5,6,8 and 9. Inside Numbers: Place numbers 5, 6, 8 and 9. Insurance Bet: When you make two or more bets in an attempt to cover one another if.

It might seem intimidating at first, but it's less complicated than you think.

And smarts craps players ignore most of the table, anyway.

This post explains in detail for beginners what they need to know about placing bets on the craps table.

The Basics of the Craps Table

In casinos, craps is played at a table, usually one covered in green felt. The bets available are labeled on the felt. The table is also the playing surface for the game – you roll the dice on the same table where you place your bets.

Most of the best US casinos use a long table for craps – it's 12 feet long, but it's kind of rectangular. You'll find smaller craps tables sometimes, but most casinos use the 12 feet long table because it accommodates more players – up to 16 people can play craps comfortably at a 12 feet long table.

The rail around the table is padded because a lot of people get tired of standing and want something to lean on. Craps isn't like blackjack; you don't sit on a stool at the craps table.

Each player has a rack where he can put his chips while he plays. That's located next to the padded railing.

The green felt is considered the bed of the craps table, and it has (almost) all the bets available stenciled on it.

Also, the craps table isn't really a flat table – it's more like a big, rectangular bowl. This prevents the dice from rolling onto the ground. The walls inside the table are padded with rubber pyramids, which serve to further randomize the rolls of the dice.

If you're the shooter, you're required to roll the dice all the way to the pyramids on the other side of the table.

How the Bets Are Laid Out on a Craps Table

If you've never played before, you'll think craps is too complicated because of all the different bets available on the layout.

But it's easier than you think.

You can think of the table as having a side section and a center section. (Really, there are 2 side sections – one on either end of the craps table. They're identical, though.)

You'll see blocks with numbers and words in them in each section. Vagas red casino. Tropicana gold casino instant play. Those are the bets you can place.

You should avoid the bets in the center section, which are the bets that the stickman will encourage you to make. I'll explain the center section later, but for now, I want to focus on the section where you'll be making the most bets if you're a smart player.

The self-service bets – the bets you're allowed to place for yourself – include the following bets:

1. Pass
2. Don't Pass
3. Come
4. Don't Come
5. Field
6. Big 6
7. Big 8

These are the most basic bets in craps, and they have the lowest house edge – although Big 6 and Big 8 are the worst in this batch. (On some tables, those aren't even in the self-service area at all.)

When one of these bets wins, the dealer puts your winnings on the table next to your bet. If you leave that money on the table, it goes back into action.

The other area in the side section is the dealer's area. Here, you need to get the dealer to place your bet for you. This area includes the point boxes:

• 4
• 5
• Six
• 8
• Nine
• 10

You'll notice that I spelled out 6 and 9. That's how they'll appear on the table so that players don't get confused about which is which.

When a shooter sets a point, the dealer puts a puck in the appropriate box to signify the point for that game. These spots serve a 2nd purpose, too – you can ask the dealer to place Buy, Lay, and Place bets for you in those spots.

Come and Don't Come are still self-service bets, but the odds bet for those must be handled by the dealer. The dealer uses the chips you bet on Come or Don't Come to mark the number in those numbered boxes, and they put the odds bet next to the appropriate number, too.

The Center Section Is for Prop Bets, Which You Should NEVER Make

You'll notice that the stickman, who's running the center section of the craps table, acts like a carnival barker or one of those loud pitchmen you sometimes run into at a flea market. That's because his job is to sell the worst bets on the craps table to the players.

The reason these are the worst bets on the table is because the house edge for ALL these bets is insanely high.

The house edge is a statistically expected loss that you'll see over the long run with a specific kind of bet.

Craps Betting 101

The pass line bet has a house edge of 1.41%, which is relatively low for a casino game. In fact, it's one of the best bets in the casino.

But the house edge on the bets in the center of the table is 9% or higher.

Nonetheless, here you can place bets in this section if you want to.

To do so, you toss your chips to the center of the table to the stickman and announce what bet you want to place. Try to use some skill and deftness when you do this – you don't want to knock someone else's chips over, for example.

When you win one of these proposition bets, the chips are paid directly to you rather than just being placed on the table next to your original bet.

Examples of Proposition Bets and Their House Edge

The hard way bets are bets on totals like 4, 6, 8, or 10.

But they only pay off if the shooter rolls that total 'the hard way.'

This means that a total of 4 must be a pair of deuces, a 6 must be a roll with of both 3s, an 8 must consist of a couple of 4s, and a 10 must be made up of 5s.

The payout for a hard 6 or hard 8 is 9 to 1, and the payout for a hard 4 or 10 is 7 to 1.

The house edge for the hard 6 or hard 8 bet is 9.09%. Mobile casino expert.

The house edge for the hard 4 or hard 10 bet is 11.11%.

I often suggest that many gambling writers make too much of a fuss about the house edge on casino games, but this is one instance where it's a big deal.

You're looking at a statistical advantage for the casino that's 10 times as great on one bet over the other bet.

You should pay attention to that, for sure.

Just skip the proposition bets.

You'll have just as much fun at the craps table, you'll probably stay in action longer, and you'll have a better chance of going home from the craps table a winner.

How to Get Used to the Craps Layout

The best way to get used to the game of craps is to play at an online casino, like those recommended on this site. All the casinos listed here offer free-to-play versions of their casino games. You play for 'play-money' chips.

The big advantage of doing this is that you're not risking any real money when you're playing these free craps games.

It's much better to learn without risking money if you can.

Conclusion

You need to know how the craps table and its layout work if you want to stand a chance at winning when shooting dice.

The best way to do that is to practice on a free game after reading through this quick tutorial.

The most important advice I offer in this post, though, is to stay away from those bets in the middle of the table. The house edge is just too high on those.

One of the biggest turn-offs, and often times the factor that causes many players to give up in their quest to learn how to play Craps, is how complicated and intimidating the Craps table layout seems to be. Each part of the layout consists of a different bet that a player can make or lets players know the odds of a certain roll; both of which might as well be in a foreign language.

However, once a player dedicates a few minutes to understanding the layout and odds of Craps, they will realize that the game is quite simple and there is nothing complicated or intimidating about the table layout or the odds associated with the bets at all.

Before We Break it All Down

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Craps Table Layout & Odds

When a player first looks at a Craps table, their mouth drops and they quickly tell themselves that there is just too much going on at once and that they cannot soak up all this information.

What we have done below to help with that is provide a picture of a Craps table and place numbers by all the most common bets that a player will make, explain what these bets mean, and tell you the odds and house edge that is associated with them.

1. Pass Line: The Pass Line bet is the first bet that newcomers should learn and is the easiest to grasp. When a player places a Pass Line bet, they are making a ‘contract' bet which means that the bet stays until it wins or loses. On the ‘come out' roll, if a 7 or 11 is rolled the player will win their wager back including a match from the casino. For example, a $5 bet would return $10 if won. If a point is established then a player will only win the Pass Line bet if the point is rolled before a 7.

As we mentioned above, the Pass Line bet pays true odds and has the least house advantage at 1.4%.

2. Don't Pass: The Don't Pass bet is basically the opposite of the Pass Line bet. Players who bet this are betting against the shooter and will win on the ‘come out' roll if the shooter rolls a 2, 3 and will push (tie) if a 12 is rolled. If a point is established, then a Don't Pass bet will win if a 7 is rolled before the point is repeated.

Don't Pass bets are not ‘contract' bets which means that players can pick these up at any time. These bets also pay true odds and have a house advantage of 1.4%.

3. Come: A ‘come' bet is a bet that can only be made after the ‘come out' roll. It is much easier to think of the ‘come' bet as a bet waiting in queue as it become a wager for whatever number is rolled next. For example, if a player were to make a ‘come' bet and the shooter rolled a 2-3 (5), then the ‘come' bet would then become a wager for a 5 to be rolled. Once the dice has been rolled, the ‘come' bet becomes a wager and it is up to the player to make another ‘come' bet if they so wish.

The ‘come' bet will pay even money if a 7 is rolled but will lose to Craps, 2, 3, 12, and the odds and house advantage will be based on the number that is rolled.

4. Don't Come: The Don't Come bet is similar to the Don't Pass bet or it can be looked at as the opposite of a ‘come' bet. This bet will lose on the first roll if it is a 7 or 11 and will win if it is a 2, 3, or 12. Once a point has been established, the Don't Come bet will win if a 7 is rolled before the number that the Don't Come bet is behind.

5. Points/Place: This is where players can place bets on the number of their choice. When a bet is placed, it will only lose if a 7 is rolled and is not affected by any other rolls. Place bets also do not work, meaning they have no plus or negative effect, on the ‘come out' roll and can also be turned on or off at any time during play.

It is important to know that when placing points bet that it will pay ‘house' odds as opposed to ‘true' odds.

6. Field: The Field bet is a one time bet that pays even money when a 3, 4, 9, 10, or a 11 is rolled and double money if a 2 or 12 is rolled. As lucrative as this bet may seem, the math will tell you that this is a losing be in the long run as the odds are against you 5 to 1.

7. 6 or 8: This is just what it looks like; players can place a bet on 6 or 8. However, the difference between placing a bet here verses a place bet on a 6 or 8 is that the odds are much worse at over 9% in comparison to a little over 1.5% on a place bet.

8. Hardway Bets: When a player places a Hardway bet they are wagering on a pair of 2's, 3's, 4, or 5's being rolled. Odds will vary, but commonly a pair of 2's and 5's will pay 7 to 1 and 3's and 4's will pay 9 to 1. These bets will stay up until a 7 is rolled, which will happen more often than rolling any ‘hard' number.

Craps C And E Bet Explained

9. Proposition Bets: Proposition bets are similar to Hardway bets except that proposition bets are a one-roll bet only. These bets have the highest odds of anything else at the table which of course attracts many gamblers. Players can make a proposition bet on a pair of 6's, a 5-6, snake eyes (1-1), and a 1-2.

A Brief Explanation of Odds

It is very important to have a good understanding of odds while playing Craps since odds determine the likelihood that your desired number is rolled. Not only that, but odds will also determine what you are investing in comparison to what you will get in return should your wager win.

For example, if you were tossing a quarter with a friend and you made a bet that it would land on ‘heads' next, you would be facing odds of 1:1. What this would mean is that in the long run for every 2 times that the quarter was flipped (1 +1) you would win 1 time out of 2, or 50%.

In terms of Craps, if someone were paying you true odds on this wager, you would be given odds of 1:1.

Now, if the odds are say, 6 to 5 in favor of the house, this would mean that every 11 times (6+5) that a specific number was attempted, the house would win 6 times and the player would win 5 times. If broken down, this would actually look like this: 1.2 to 1. Since that is too much to write, many places will make it as close to a whole number (common denominators) as possible. This also shows that the house edge is minimal at best.

In the case above, if the house were paying true odds at a minimum of a $5 bet, they would actually win $6 in return for a $1 profit.

House odds are used in the same way but are inflated versions of the ‘true' odds and will vary from casino to casino. These odds normally require players to gamble since these odds often pay less and require the same amount of gambling which in the end, gives the house a bigger edge.

A player can gain a bigger edge if they take the time to understand odds and how it affects them so they can place bets in such a manner that decreases the house's edge as much as possible so that the player's can be profitable at Craps.

Craps Layout & Odds

It should be obvious to see that the Craps table and Craps odds are not as difficult as it may initially seem. Each part of ‘real estate,' as each piece of the table is referred to, allows players to make different kinds of bets that will either allow them to have a bit of an advantage against the house, slight disadvantage, or allow them to gamble a little bit if they wish. When a player takes the time to understand the layout of a Craps table and the odds of the bets that they are placing, they are ensuring that the first time that they go to play Craps that they are successful.