Online craps: How to win at craps

Craps is a standard presence among casino games, though it is also one of the most complex options available. For those new to the world of online craps, the game can seem overwhelmingly difficult to grasp, and is often avoided in favour of simpler games such as blackjack. However, with a little guidance, picking up the rules of craps can allow you to make the most of both existing and new casinos who offer this game, and enhance your overall gaming experience in the process.

Superficially, craps is incredibly simple: players bet on the outcome of two rolled dice. It’s helpful to remember this simplistic definition when contemplating trying craps for the first time; sure, it looks a lot more complicated, but the base facts are easy to grasp.

Brief overview of the game and rules

So, with that basic background in mind, let’s move onto how the game tends to work at the best online casinos. Here’s how the players are organised:

• The game starts with Player A, who is able to shoot the dice
• If Player A shoots and wins, they can continue to shoot
• If Player A shoots and loses, then the next person around the table clockwise takes their turn to shoot
• Player A also has the option of refusing to shoot the dice whenever they wish
• A new shooter must bet the craps table minimum

So, that’s the setup, now a little terminology check-in:

• Come Out roll: the first, starting roll
• Hard way refers to rolling a four, six, eight, or 10 by having both dice show the same number. So, for example, if Dice 1 rolls a two and Dice 2 rolls a two, that’s a Hard 4.
• Easy way refers to the opposite way of obtaining the numbers as described above, so if Dice 1 rolls a 3 and Dice 2 rolls a 1, that’s an Easy 4.
  

Right, that’s the key lingo established, now let’s move onto the reason you’re looking for the best online casinos to play craps in: the bets. We will now talk about best craps bets for you. There are two key types of bets you need to know about:

• The Pass Line bet – the simplest in the game. You place this bet prior to the Come Out roll. If this roll is a 7 or 11, then the pass line bet wins. However, if the shooter rolls a 2, 3, or 12, then the pass line bet loses.
• The Don’t Pass Line bet – the opposite of the above. If the Come Out roll is a 7 or 11, then this type of bet loses, but it wins if the roll is a 2, 3, or 12. Players who use this type of bet are known as “wrong bettors”, as they’re essentially rooting against the shooter.

The above two bets are the basics, but you’ll probably have noticed they only produce results (either positive or negative) on a small selection of numbers. What happens if the roll doesn’t produce a 7, 11, 2, 3, or 12? Simple: a point is set. It’s at this stage your bet choices get a little tougher to grasp, but all the more interesting.

• Place win bets. You can place this kind of bet on numbers four through six inclusive, eight, nine, or ten. The bet wins if the number you have chosen is rolled before a seven is rolled.
• Place lose bets. Unsurprisingly, this is pretty much the opposite story: you place your bet on the same numbers (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10), but the bet wins if a seven is rolled before the number you have chosen.

• Come bets. Identical to the Pass Line bet in terms of the numbers that it pays out on, but made at any time. This type of bet is sometimes known as an odds bet.
• Don’t come bets. Identical to the Don’t Pass Line bet in terms of the numbers that it pays out on, but again, made at any time. Unsurprisingly, this type of bet is also known as a don’t come odds bet.

There are a few other options, but we’ll be talking about these below, as we move into our tips for making the most of your time spent playing craps at the best online casinos.

How can I win at craps?

Like most table games, craps is a game of chance – but that doesn’t mean you don’t have an element of control over what happens during the game. Below, we’ve provided the tips that you need to make the most of your craps betting experience.

#1 – Use the pass line bet

The pass line bet, as described above, is far and away your best choice. The house edge for the pass line bet is just 1.41%, so be sure to incorporate this bet when playing online craps.

#2 – Look out for multiples of £6

An odd one, but a statistically relevant one: if you are playing in multiples of £6 (so £6, £12, £24… you get the idea), place the six or eight place-to-win bet. Why? The house edge is a miniscule 1.52% for multiples of six.

#3 – Avoid proposition bets

Remember how we said we were going to talk about other types of bets in this section? Well, here we are, talking about proposition bets… and strongly cautioning against their use. Proposition bets are a type of bet that relies on a single roll of the dice, but they are seriously bad news for your overall craps strategy. The reason? Simple: the house edge is eye-wateringly high, so if you’re new to craps, then avoid this at all costs.

#4 – Avoid some hard bets

One of the intricacies of craps is that some numbers have a far higher house edge than others, so it makes sense to avoid placing bets on these. Two such numbers are Hard 4 and Hard 10, both of which have a house edge of over 10%. Considering that some bets – such as pass line bets – have a house edge of literally a tenth of that, Hard 4 and Hard 10 are definitely to be avoided.

#5 – Consider two come bets along with a pass line bet

This is a highly popular strategy, and it works as follows: you place a pass line bet, as normal, prior to the Come Out Roll. You then place two bets following that. This means you have three numbers working in your favour, and if you achieve a winning bet, you can add another to ensure you always have three options on the table.

Sign up for a top online casino bonus offer

Whether you are looking for a superb welcome package or looking to sign up to a new casino, we have done all the work, so you don’t have to search high and low for the best online casino offers.

Check out the below deals or click on the below button to see the full collection of casino bonuses available.