Not every craps table plays the same game. The layout looks identical from casino to casino, but the rules underneath — how much odds you can take, what the field pays on a 12, whether the casino uses 3-4-5x odds or something different — can shift your expected loss on a session by more than you'd guess from just looking at the felt. The time to learn a casino's house rules is before your first chip hits the layout, not after.

This page covers the variables that matter most and what to look for at any table you walk up to.

Odds Multiples: The Most Important Number at Any Table

The free odds bet — the wager you can make behind your pass line, don't pass, come, or don't come bet once a point is established — carries a 0% house edge. The casino makes nothing on it. Because of this, odds multiples (how much you're allowed to bet in odds relative to your flat bet) are the single most player-friendly variable at a craps table, and they vary significantly by casino.

Common structures:

At a 3-4-5x table with a $10 pass line bet, you can back it with up to $30 in odds on the 4 or 10, $40 on the 5 or 9, and $50 on the 6 or 8. The higher the multiple available, the better the table is for you — everything else being equal, more odds is always better.

Table Minimums and Maximums

The table minimum is posted on a placard at the corner of the layout and tells you the least you can bet on a pass line wager. Minimums at a given casino aren't fixed — they change by time of day, day of week, and how busy the floor is. A table that runs $5 minimums at noon can shift to $25 by Friday evening when every seat fills in.

Table maximums matter less for most players but they're worth knowing if you're playing at higher stakes. Maximums vary by bet type — a pass line maximum of $5,000 may coexist with a $500 cap on place bets or a $100 cap on proposition bets at the same table.

A few things to check before buying in:

Dealers and floor staff will tell you any of these directly — just ask before you exchange cash for chips.

Field Bet Pay Schedules

The field bet is a one-roll wager that wins on 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, and 12, and loses on 5, 6, 7, and 8. Most numbers in the field pay even money, but the 2 and 12 pay a bonus. That bonus is where pay schedules diverge:

The pay schedule for the field is almost always printed on the layout itself — look at the field box and you'll see the bonus payout listed next to the 2 and 12. At any table where both pay 2:1, the field is one of the worse bets on the layout. Where 12 pays 3:1, it becomes considerably more reasonable.

Come-Out Roll Rules for Don't Side Players

Standard craps pushes the don't pass bet on a come-out 12 (the "bar 12" rule). Some casinos bar the 2 instead — it accomplishes the same thing for the house, but the distinction matters if you track don't side statistics or know the math on both. The number that's barred is printed on the layout in the don't pass box: "Bar 12" is far more common in the US; "Bar 2" appears at some offshore or older casinos.

Crapless Craps

Crapless craps is a variant where the come-out roll can never crap out — the 2, 3, and 12 become point numbers instead of losing on the come-out, and 11 becomes a point number instead of winning. This sounds like a player advantage (you can't lose on 2, 3, or 12 on the come-out), but the math doesn't hold up: removing the come-out win on 11 increases the house edge on the pass line from 1.41% to 5.38%. Crapless craps is a significantly worse game for the pass line bettor.

The variant is offered at a handful of casinos and is clearly labeled. If you see "Crapless Craps" or notice that the layout has 2, 3, 11, and 12 as place bet numbers at the top of the layout, you're looking at this variant — factor in the higher edge before you commit a session to it.

Buy Bet Commission Structures

Buy bets let you wager on the place numbers (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10) at true odds, but the casino charges a commission — typically 5% of the bet amount — to compensate. How and when that commission is charged matters:

Ask the dealer before placing a buy bet. "Do you charge vig on wins only?" is a direct enough question that any dealer will answer it clearly.

Proposition Bet Pays

Proposition bets — the one-roll and hardway bets in the center of the layout — are some of the most variable in terms of payout from casino to casino. The "Any 7" bet should pay 4:1 (true odds are 5:1, giving the house 16.67%); some casinos pay 5 for 1, which is the same as 4:1 and isn't as good as it sounds. Hardway bets and hop bets often have multiple pay scales in use at different properties.

The payout for every proposition bet is typically printed on the layout in the center of the table. Compare what's printed to the true odds before betting. The Every Bet Explained page lists true odds for all proposition bets so you have a reference point going in.

What to Ask Before You Play

Before buying in at any table you haven't played before, three questions cover most of what you need:

  1. "What are the odds multiples here?" — Pass line + max odds is your bread and butter. Know what you're allowed.
  2. "What does the field pay on the 12?" — Quick check on the most variable standard bet.
  3. "Is the vig on buy bets charged on wins only?" — If you're planning to play the 4 or 10, this matters.

Dealers handle these questions constantly. A good dealer will answer all three without interrupting the flow of the game. Walk up knowing what you want to know, ask it once, and you'll have everything you need to make a clear-eyed decision about whether to buy in or keep walking.

Related pages
Where to PlayCasino directory with table minimums and odds multiples by property.Every Bet ExplainedEvery craps bet with true odds, payouts, and house edge.Craps StrategyHow common betting systems actually affect your expected loss.