Online Craps Guide 2026 — How to Play, Best Bets & Top Craps Casinos
Craps looks intimidating but has some of the best odds in the casino. This guide demystifies the craps table, explains the Pass Line, Don't Pass, and Odds bets, and recommends the best online craps sites for 2026.
Craps Basics: The Come-Out Roll
Craps is played with two dice. The round begins with the come-out roll. If the shooter rolls 7 or 11 on the come-out, Pass Line bets win. If they roll 2, 3, or 12 (craps), Pass Line bets lose. Any other number (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10) becomes the 'point.' The shooter then keeps rolling until they either hit the point again (Pass Line wins) or roll a 7 (Pass Line loses — called 'sevening out'). The Don't Pass bet is the opposite — it wins when the Pass Line loses and loses when it wins (with 12 on come-out being a push for Don't Pass bettors).
The Odds Bet: Zero House Edge
The Odds bet is unique in the casino — it carries zero house edge, paying exactly at true mathematical odds. After a point is established, Pass Line bettors can 'take odds' by placing an additional bet behind their Pass Line wager. This Odds bet pays 2:1 if the point is 4 or 10, pays 3:2 if the point is 5 or 9, and pays 6:5 if the point is 6 or 8. Most casinos allow 3x–5x odds (you can bet 3–5 times your Pass Line bet as Odds). By combining a Pass Line bet (1.41% house edge) with maximum Odds, the effective house edge on the combined wager drops dramatically. Taking maximum odds is always the right play.
Come and Don't Come Bets
Come and Don't Come bets work identically to Pass Line and Don't Pass bets but can be placed after the point is established. A Come bet is placed on the next roll — if the roller hits 7 or 11, the Come bet wins; 2, 3, or 12 loses; any other number becomes the Come bet's personal 'point.' Odds can be placed on Come bets too. Come bets allow players to have multiple points working simultaneously. Don't Come is the mirror image — wins when Come loses, loses when Come wins. Come bets (1.41% house edge with Odds) are among the best bets on the craps table.
Place Bets and Other Common Wagers
Place bets let you bet that a specific number (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10) will roll before a 7. Place 6 and Place 8 pay 7:6 with a 1.52% house edge — excellent bets. Place 5 and Place 9 pay 7:5 with a 4% house edge. Place 4 and Place 10 pay 9:5 with a 6.67% house edge — avoid. The Big 6 and Big 8 bets pay even money on numbers that should pay 7:6, dramatically worsening the edge — never make these. Field bets cover 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, and 12 in a single roll; they look appealing but carry 5.5% house edge depending on payout structure.
Proposition Bets: The Traps
Proposition (prop) bets are the high-risk single-roll bets in the centre of the craps layout. Any Seven pays 4:1 but has a 16.67% house edge — one of the worst bets in the casino. Hardways (rolling a pair to make a number — hard 6 = 3+3) pay 9:1 or 7:1 but carry 9–11% house edges. Yo (11) pays 15:1 with a 11.11% house edge. Hop bets on specific dice combinations carry even worse edges. Prop bets are entertaining in small doses but should never constitute a significant portion of your craps wagering. Stick to Pass Line + Odds + Come + Place 6/8 for optimal play.
Best Online Craps Casinos
Top sites for online craps include BetMGM Casino (NJ/PA/MI, best US-licensed with live shooter craps option), bet365 (widest variety of RNG craps variants), Ignition Casino (crypto-friendly, best US-facing non-state option), and 888casino (classic and advanced craps variants). For the live dice experience, some operators including Hard Rock Online offer live-streamed craps tables with real dice — much rarer than live roulette or blackjack but growing in availability. Most online craps uses RNG, which is fully fair and statistically equivalent to a physical table.