- Pays
- 6 to 5
- House edge
- 0.00%
- Decided by
- Point or 7
- Can be made
- After the point is set
What the odds bet is, and why it has no house edge
Every other craps bet pays less than its true odds, and that shortfall is the house edge. The odds bet is the exception. A 4 or 10 rolls three ways against the seven’s six, so it loses two times for every win, and it pays 2 to 1. Over thousands of decisions the wins and losses cancel.
Casinos offer it because it cannot stand alone. You need a pass line, don’t pass, come or don’t come bet first, each carrying a small edge. The odds are the reward for making the cheap bet, and they keep players at the table longer. The bet is not marked anywhere on the layout, so many newcomers never notice it exists.
True odds by point: what the craps odds bet pays
| Point | Ways to roll it | Chance it is made | Taking odds pays | Laying odds pays |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 or 10 | 3 | 33.33% | 2 to 1 | 1 to 2 |
| 5 or 9 | 4 | 40.00% | 3 to 2 | 2 to 3 |
| 6 or 8 | 5 | 45.45% | 6 to 5 | 5 to 6 |
The payouts shape the chip amounts you should use. A 3 to 2 payout on the 5 or 9 wants an even amount, so $10 of odds pays $15 cleanly. A 6 to 5 payout on the 6 or 8 works in multiples of $5: $10 of odds returns $12. The full probability sheet is in our craps odds guide.
Get the amount wrong and the dealer will usually round the payout down, not up. That rounding is the only way the house can take anything from the odds, so do the arithmetic. At a $15 table, a flat bet backed by $30 of odds pays cleanly on every point, which is why many players like that pairing.
Taking odds and laying odds
Right-side players take odds: they risk less than they win on a 4 or 10, because the point is the underdog. Dark-side players lay odds behind a Don’t Pass or Don’t Come bet, risking more than they win, because the seven is the favorite. Laying $40 against a 4 wins $20. Both sides are priced at zero edge.
The chips go in different spots. Taking odds on the pass line means placing them directly behind your flat bet, outside the line. Laying odds means setting them next to the don’t bet, offset so the dealer can read them. On come bets and don’t come bets you hand the chips to the dealer, who stacks them for you.
Both kinds can be reduced or removed at any time, unlike the flat bets they support. That freedom is rarely worth using. Pulling a zero-edge bet saves nothing in the long run; it only changes how much you win or lose on this particular point. Leave the odds up unless you genuinely need the chips for something else.
Odds limits from 1x to 100x, and the combined house edge
The table sets the maximum as a multiple of the flat bet, and the dealers will tell you the limit if the placard does not. A 2x table lets a $10 pass line bettor add $20. At 100x the same player could add $1,000, though very few do. The more action rides on the odds, the lower the combined edge.
| Odds allowed | Pass Line + odds taken | Don’t Pass + odds laid |
|---|---|---|
| No odds | 1.414% | 1.364% |
| 1x | 0.848% | 0.682% |
| 2x | 0.606% | 0.455% |
| 3-4-5x | 0.374% | 0.273% |
| 5x | 0.326% | 0.227% |
| 10x | 0.184% | 0.124% |
| 20x | 0.099% | 0.065% |
| 100x | 0.021% | 0.014% |
Returns shrink quickly. Moving from no odds to 1x cuts the pass line cost from 1.41% to 0.85% of money wagered, and 3-4-5x takes it to 0.37%. Beyond 10x each extra step saves less than a tenth of a percent, while the money on the felt keeps multiplying. For most bankrolls the first few multiples do nearly all the work.
How 3-4-5x odds work
The 3-4-5x format is a common limit on the Las Vegas Strip and in Atlantic City. You may take three times the flat bet on a 4 or 10, four times on a 5 or 9 and five times on a 6 or 8. The multiples mean a winning maximum odds bet always pays six times the flat bet.
That design keeps the dealer’s arithmetic simple. On a $10 pass line bet the maximum odds win is $60 whatever the point, so payouts become routine. It also caps the casino’s exposure. A dark-side player at the same table can usually lay enough to win six times the flat bet too, which keeps the two sides level.
Why odds cut the edge per dollar but not per hand
Here is the part the combined-edge tables hide. An odds bet adds money to the wager without adding any expected loss. Your $10 pass line bet costs about 14 cents per decision on average, whether you back it with nothing, with $30 of odds or with $1,000. The percentage drops only because the denominator got bigger.
So odds do not make craps cheaper per hour. A player betting $10 flat with full odds loses the same expected amount per hand as a player betting $10 flat alone. What changes is value per dollar risked. If you want $40 on a hand, $10 flat plus $30 odds beats $40 flat, which costs four times as much.
The calculator prices the flat bets only, because odds cost nothing to keep in action. Set a $10 stake and compare the pass line with a $10 Field bet. The line is the cheaper hour by a wide margin, and any odds you pile on top leave that hourly figure exactly where it was. Try the odds calculator for payouts.
Odds bet volatility: the price of a low edge
Zero edge does not mean low risk. With 5x odds behind a $10 pass line on a 6, you have $60 riding on a number that loses to the seven more often than it wins. A seven costs the whole $60; a 6 pays $70. Over a session most of your result comes from the odds, good or bad.
One practical rule: set the flat bet at the table minimum and pick an odds multiple you could lose five or six hands in a row without flinching. Streaks like that happen at busy tables all the time. Our bankroll management guide works through the numbers for a few common bankroll sizes and table minimums.
Odds bets online and at a live table
Most licensed online craps games in New Jersey, Michigan, Pennsylvania and West Virginia offer odds, and the maximum multiple is set by each game, so check its rules panel before you sit down. The zero-edge math never changes. A computer-dealt table pays 6 to 5 on the 6 exactly as a pit at Caesars Palace does.
At a live table the thing to remember is timing. Pass line odds go down after the point is set and before the next roll, and nobody will remind you. Put the chips behind the line as soon as the puck flips to ON. Then keep your hands off the felt while the stickman sends the dice out.