Online Craps Guide

Craps is a game of dice. You bet on the outcome of a single roll or a series of rolls of a pair of dice. It’s believed to be derived from the game ‘Hazard’ and imported to Europe by Arabic people in the 12th century. Later, as its fame increased in England, the name ‘Craps’ originated from France.

In recent years, with the emergence of the internet, online craps have gained more popularity in the UK. Online craps is a fun casino game. But due to its unique betting rules, many players find it complicated to play. You can learn to play online crap quickly by using the guide and playing free online craps at some of the best new casino sites in the UK.

Online Craps for Beginners

Craps is a fast and exciting dice game that requires you to study the table layout first before gambling. It has over a dozen possible betting options that form part of its basic rule. But, we’ll make it as simple as possible so that you can get the hang of it quickly.

Note: Remember, it’s not a game that you can jump into on a whim!

Basic Terminologies in Craps

The Shooter – It is the person that throws the dice.

Players – People betting around the crap table on the outcome of the throw.

Come-Out-Roll – It refers to the initial roll of the dice.

Even-Money – It refers to the 1:1 payout term.

Point – It refers to the dice roll when a shooter throws 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10.

Online Craps Table

The craps table is laced with green felt, usually quite large, and features a different bet area. In an online crap table, there’s no box person or base dealer to refer. You click on any point on the layout to place your bets.

Never feel intimidated by the layout of the craps table!

The best way to understand the craps table is to break it into betting rounds as a beginner.

• Pass Line:Thee ‘L’ shaped area on either side of the table is used for the most popular bet of the Come-Out-Roll.

• Don’t Pass Bar / Line:  It is inside next to the pass line area. You use it for betting the odds for the Come-Out-Roll.

• Field: It is another even-money betting area that shows the numbers 2 and 12 in a bold design with the word ‘Field’ next to 3, 4, 9, 10, or 11. In it, 2 or 12 will pay you 2/1 instead of the even-money.

• Come: It’s the section above the field with numbers 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10 to place come bets after a point number is determined.

• Don’t Come Bar: It’s the bar between the ‘Don’t Pass Bar/Line’ and come bet numbers. Both the ‘Don’t Pass Bar/Line’ and ‘Don’t Come Bar’ has the smallest house edge of 1.36%. You can have free odds on your bet in this section.

• Big 6 / 8: You can find them on opposite corners, intersecting the ‘Don’t Pass Bar/Line.’ It is an even-money betting area. The house edge in this area is 1.52%.

• Side section on the craps table: The section for the next roll of the dice in Craps.

• For a payoff of 30-1 – Roll your dice 1:1 or 6:6 in a single bet on 2 or 12.
• For a payoff of 15-1 – You must get 11 or 3, with a 6:5 or 1:2.
• For a payoff of 10-1 – You get it if you score a 3:3, totalling a 6, or a 4:4 for a perfect 8.
• For a payoff of 8-1 –  You must get a perfect-4 made out of 2:2 and a perfect-10 made of 5:5.

You’ll get further clarity about the game as we explain the different bets, mate!

Strategies and Money Management

There are no specific strategies like poker or blackjack to maintain your bankroll. Craps is a fast-paced game, and you can easily lose track of how much you have wagered. Therefore, to manage your money, the only strategy is to maintain your bankroll.

1. Setting aside a sum of money for your casino gaming separately from your essentials.
2. Fixing a budget defining the portion of the amount you want to place on individual wagers.
3. Never exceeding your bankroll.

You might not win jackpots on a low budget, but with this effective bankroll strategy, you can last in the game long enough to hit a few gainful runs.

Basic Game Rules

You play craps with two dice. The Shooter is not the equivalent of the dealer in blackjack or the croupier in roulette in the game. In craps, all players take turns to become the Shooter. But, in online craps, you click on the dice to play the game.

Three Possible Scenarios for Any Dice Roll:

• Natural – It is the scenario when the outcome is a 7 or 11. Everybody gets a payout in it.

• Craps – It’s the scenario if the outcome is 2 (snake eyes), 3, or 12. Then nobody gets a payout. However, if you roll 12, it is a push. Even though you get no payout, you are permitted to keep your bet.

• Point – It’s the third scenario with the outcome – 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10. In this case, the Shooter has to roll the dice until it lands on the point number again to get a payoff. But, if you roll dice a ‘7’, as a shooter, you ‘crap out.’ Other players with you will get a payout (if they had placed a bet on any number other than the point), and the next player becomes the Shooter.

 

Different Bets in Craps

Understanding the betting options is the most significant part of the carps game.

Line Bets

These are single-roll bets in which a player has to predict whether the dice in Come-Out-Roll will land on a Natural, Craps, or a Point when rolled.

• Pass Line:  It is one of the most fundamental bets in the game. You place your bets before the Shooter rolls the dice for Come-Out-Roll. It leads to three possible turnouts.

• 7 or 11: The Pass Line bet wins, and the game finishes.
• 2, 3, or 12: The Pass Line bet loses, and the game finishes.
• 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10: It is a Point with the Pass Line bet, and the game continues. The Shooter rolls the dice again. If the point number rolls before a 7, the Pass Line bet wins. But, if the 7 rolls before the specific point number, the Pass Line bet loses.

• Don’t Pass Line: It’s the opposite betting to Pass Line bet. Just like Pass Line bets, you place your bets before the Shooter rolls the dice for Come-Out-Roll, but it has four outcomes.

• 7 or 11: The Don’t Pass bet loses, and the game concludes.
• 2 or 3: The Don’t Pass bet wins, and the game concludes too.
• 12: In the Don’t Pass bet, it is called a Push. The game ends, and the players get their bet amount back.
• 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10: It is a Point, similar to earlier, and the game continues. If number 7 turns up on a roll before the point number in the ‘Don’t Pass’ bet, the player wins, and the game ends. If the point number rolls instead before the number 7, the player loses in the ‘Don’t Pass’ bet, and the game ends.

Odds and Come Bets

Online casinos always have a house advantage over their games, but in craps, it allows free odd bets that eliminate the house edge.

• Pass Line Odds: If you are playing Pass Line bets and a certain point number rolls, it allows you to place odds bets on the Pass Line. In it, you can bet up to 3X the original bet. To win, all you need is to get the specific point number to show up before a 7-gets rolled again.

• Come Bet: Like the ‘Pass Line Odd’ bet, you can place this bet after a point number rolls up. You place bets right away and can win if a 7 or 11 gets rolled. You lose if 2, 3, or 12 show up. If any other point number rolls, your bet moves to that number and turns into a Point Bet. You win the Point Bet if that number shows before a 7.

• Don’t Come: It is the opposite of the ‘Come’ bet. You place this bet also after a point number turns up. But you win if 2 or 3 shows up and lose if 7 or 11 comes. Like the Don’t Pass Line bet, it also has a Push if 12 rolls up. It becomes a Point Bet if another point number rolls up. You win if 7-gets rolled before the point number.

• Come Odds: If you have placed the ‘Come’ bet on a point number, it allows you to place another bet behind it. You lose if 7-rolls up. But it pays out the best odds if the Come Point Number shows up again before 7.

Multi-Roll Bets

Multi roll bets in craps are like side bets in roulette. Sometimes, in the game, the bet wins/loss occurs only after several dice rolls. You play these bets for such cases.

• Place Bets: After a point number rolls up, you can choose to wager on a Place bet instead of Come/Don’t Come bets. You either bet on Place Win or Place Lose.

• You win the ‘Place Win’ bet if that point number shows up before 7.
• You win the ‘Place Lose’ bet if 7 rolls before that point number.

• Buy Bets: It is a bet depending on a point number. You wager on a specific point number to land before 7. It has a higher payout than Place Win bets, but you need to pay a 5% commission to the house.

• Lay Bets: It is like the Place Lose bets but only with higher odds. It also requires paying a 5% commission. You wager on the landing 7before Shooter lands on a specific number.

Note: It depends on the casino site rules when to deduct the Buy and Lay Bet commission. They can take it as soon as you place your bet or when the wager is successful.

• Put Bet: It is a bet on the pass line on the next roll after the Come-Out-Roll. You win if the Shooter rolls your selected number before crapping out. It is a less risky bet than the pass line as you lose out on the 2:1 advantage of pass line bets.

Note: A Put Bet gives you an even-money payout.

Payouts for other following roll dice numbers in craps

Roll 2: It means you are betting on two 1s. You win at odds of 30/1.

Roll 3 or 11: If the next roll is a total of 3, you win at odds of 15/1.

Roll 12: If you bet on double 6 and roll, you win at odds of 30/1.

Roll 7: Any roll with 7, and you win at odds of 4/1.

The Field:  If 3, 4, 9, 10, or 11 rolls up, you get paid even-money, but you get 2/1 payout if 2 or 12 shows.

Other Bets

• Hard Way Bets:   It is a bet where you choose either numbers 4, 6, 8, or 10 to show up in the next roll, the ‘Hard Way’ before the ‘Easy Way.’

E.g., If a 4 and a 4 are rolled on both the dice, it is a ‘Hard Way.’ If it rolls with any other combination, it is an ‘Easy Way.’ You lose all your Hard Way bets if 7 rolls before it.

• Big 6 / Big 8 Bets: It is the easiest bet in the game. If either of the numbers shows up before 7, you win with an even-money payout.

The Best Bets for Beginners

As a beginner, place your bets before or after the Come-Out-Roll with different payouts.

• Use the ‘Pass Line’ and ‘Don’t Pass Bar/ Line’ bets before the Come-Out-Roll. Bet on 7 or 11 to be rolled (or not to be rolled) to win.

• Also, use the ‘Come’ bets as it pays 1/1 if the next roll is 7 or 11.

• Look for house edges too. The ‘Pass’ and ‘Come’ bets have a house edge of 1.41%, and ‘Don’t Pass’ and ‘Don’t Come’ bets have a house edge of 1.36%.

Quick Tip: Always choose the best casinos with top security, great software, and amazing bonuses to play craps and earn more.  

 

How to Play Craps

Once you understand the rules and the betting options, playing craps becomes easy.

• Get registered with the best casino sites that offer online craps from top developers like Playtech, Microgaming, and RTG.
• Read the terms and conditions carefully, especially for withdrawals.
• Check for bonus offers and their wagering requirements on the casino sites.
• Begin the game by placing a wager on the table on the pass line.
• Place your bets.
• Press the dice button to roll dices and check the result.

Probable Results

• If you placed the wager on the Pass Line and rolled the dice 7 or 11, you win. If you rolled 2, 3, or 12, you lose.

• If you rolled dice with any other numbers ( 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10), it becomes the ‘Point.’

• If you have placed the wager on the Don’t Pass Line, your bet stays in place.

• You can see the ‘Point’ marked with ‘ON’ written on it in online craps. To get a payout, you have to roll the dice until it lands on the point number again.

• If in your next dice roll you get ‘7’, you lose your turn as well as your bet.

 

Tips for Playing Online Craps

If you love playing craps offline, you will enjoy playing it more online. Here are some tips for the game.

• Practice by playing free craps games online.
• Use the ‘Odds’ bets to exploit the house edge advantage.
• Look for the best online casino that offers welcome bonuses for playing craps. It enables you to boost your bankroll for greater winning chances.
• Always check wagering requirements before you sign in with a casino site for their bonuses.
• Set a budget to maintain your bankroll management plan.
• Always practice responsible gambling.
• If you are a novice, avoid ‘Big 6 or Big 8’ and ‘Hard Way’ bets in craps.
• Play only at UKGC licensed and regulated online casinos to avoid wonky situations.

 

Conclusion

Craps demand some understanding of the game rules to win. When playing craps, you can bet as low as £5 or less. But, ultimately, it is the game of chance, so unless you fully understand the rules and betting styles, stick to playing online craps for free.