How to play Craps

Craps is played with two dice and chips or points to bet with. Two to eight players is a comfortable number at home. You want a table or floor with a wall or ledge to throw against, so the dice bounce before they land.

Craps is a casino game at heart, traditionally played for money. At home it works just as well with chips: deal everyone the same stack and you are ready to start.

One player is the shooter and rolls both dice. The role rotates, so everyone gets a turn. Before each come-out roll, all players place their bets (see the next section).

The first roll of a round is called the come-out roll, and the total decides everything:

• 7 or 11: the shooter wins straight away.
• 2, 3 or 12: this is called craps, and the shooter loses straight away.
• 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10: the total becomes the shooter's point.

Once a point is set, the shooter keeps rolling. If the point comes up again before a 7, the shooter wins the round. If a 7 comes first, the round is lost and the dice pass to the next player.

The simplest way to bet is with the two basic casino wagers:

• Pass: you bet that the shooter wins the round. If so, you get your stake back plus the same amount.
• Don't pass: you bet that the shooter loses. If the shooter loses, you win the same way. If the come-out roll is 12, don't pass is a push and you simply get your stake back.

These two bets are all you need at home. Have everyone place their stake before the come-out roll and settle up as soon as the round is decided.

Craps has no natural end, so agree in advance how long to play. A fair setup is to let everyone be the shooter the same number of times, for example three rounds each. Whoever holds the most chips at the end wins.

Two simplified versions work well at home:

Simplified Craps is decided in a single roll. You win on 2, 3, 4, 10, 11 or 12 and lose on 5, 6, 7, 8 or 9. Because there are more ways to lose, the rare totals pay better: 2 pays three times your stake, 12 pays five times, 10 and 11 pay double, while 3 and 4 pay even money.

High Point Craps also opens with a single roll. A 2 or 3 is ignored and rerolled, while 11 and 12 win on the spot. Any other total becomes your point, and you get one more roll: beat the point and you win, tie it or roll lower and you lose.

If you are curious about where craps came from, read about its ancestor Hazard. If the betting is the part you enjoy, Sic Bo is a related game with three dice.

Yes. All you need is two dice, something to bet with and an edge to throw against. Draw two fields marked pass and don't pass on a sheet of paper to keep the bets tidy. The rules above are written exactly for that kind of kitchen-table game.

Craps grew out of the old English game hazard, which was hugely popular in the 17th and 18th centuries. The game reached the USA through New Orleans in the early 1800s, was simplified along the way, and eventually became the best known dice game in any casino. The core idea of a come-out roll and a point has stayed the same throughout.