What is the house edge on the craps pass line bet?

1.41% on its own. Adding an odds bet behind it doesn't change the pass line's edge, but since the odds portion carries zero house edge, the combined edge on your total stake drops well below 1%.

Why does the odds bet in craps have no house edge?

The odds bet pays out at the true mathematical probability of the point number repeating before a 7 — 2:1 on a point of 4 or 10, 3:2 on 5 or 9, and 6:5 on 6 or 8 — with no margin built in on top. It's the one bet on a standard casino floor priced purely on the math, with zero house advantage.

What's the simplest way to play craps well?

Stick to the pass line bet plus the maximum odds bet your table allows. That combination carries one of the lowest house edges in the casino; most other bets on the craps layout carry a noticeably higher edge.

Craps basic strategy explained (pass line, odds bets, house edge)

Last updated: 2026-07-29 · Written by Priya Nair

Craps has a reputation for being complicated, but the entire table reduces to one simple bet with an optional add-on that happens to be the best value in the casino. Learn the pass line bet and the odds bet behind it, and you're playing craps close to optimally — everything else on the layout is either a variation on this or a worse bet.

The pass line bet: the foundation of the game

You place a pass line bet before the come-out roll — the first roll of a new round. Roll a 7 or 11 and you win immediately; roll a 2, 3 or 12 ("craps") and you lose immediately. Any other number (4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10) becomes the point: the shooter keeps rolling, and your bet wins if the point number comes up again before a 7 does, or loses if a 7 shows first. The pass line pays even money and carries a house edge of 1.41% — a solid baseline, better than most slots or roulette, and the entry point for everything else at the table.

The odds bet: the only zero-edge bet in the casino

Once the point is set, you can back your pass line bet with an odds bet — extra chips placed behind the line, paid at the true mathematical odds of the point number repeating before a 7. A point of 4 or 10 pays 2:1 on the odds portion, 5 or 9 pays 3:2, and 6 or 8 pays 6:5 — and critically, the house takes zero edge on this specific bet. It's genuinely the only wager on a standard casino floor priced with no house advantage at all.

Why the combined house edge drops so low

The pass line's 1.41% edge applies only to your original stake; the odds bet you add carries no edge at all. Blend the two together and the combined house edge on your total money at risk falls well below 1% — down to roughly 0.37% with generous odds limits (commonly quoted as 3x-4x-5x odds, meaning the maximum odds multiple allowed scales with the point number). That's among the lowest house edges available anywhere in a casino, table games or slots included — the trade-off is that it takes a bit more table knowledge to use than dropping a coin into a slot.

Keeping it simple: pass line plus max odds

You don't need to learn every proposition bet on the layout to play craps well. Pass line plus the maximum odds bet your table allows covers the strong majority of the value available at the table — everything else on the craps layout (field bets, hardways, any-seven) carries a meaningfully higher house edge and exists mostly to give the table more betting options, not better ones. See house edge explained for how craps compares to other casino games overall.

Payment speed doesn't change the maths of gambling — only bet what you can afford to lose; gambling should be entertainment, never a way to make money. Set limits and get help here.

FAQ

What is the house edge on the craps pass line bet? 1.41% on its own. Adding an odds bet behind it doesn't change the pass line's edge, but since the odds portion carries zero house edge, the combined edge on your total stake drops well below 1%.
Why does the odds bet in craps have no house edge? The odds bet pays out at the true mathematical probability of the point number repeating before a 7 — 2:1 on a point of 4 or 10, 3:2 on 5 or 9, and 6:5 on 6 or 8 — with no margin built in on top. It's the one bet on a standard casino floor priced purely on the math, with zero house advantage.
What's the simplest way to play craps well? Stick to the pass line bet plus the maximum odds bet your table allows. That combination carries one of the lowest house edges in the casino; most other bets on the craps layout carry a noticeably higher edge.

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