Craps is loud, and the layout is crowded, but the pass-line contract is short. You are betting on a sequence of dice totals with fixed win and loss conditions. The stick, the chatter and the side bets are not required reading for that one contract.

This guide is for adults 18 and older who want the rules. It is not a suggestion to play, and it promises nothing about a session. Dice games are legal in some places and not in others. The math below is about fair dice, not about a ticket you should buy.

The come-out roll

A pass-line bet starts on the come-out roll. Two dice make a total from 2 to 12. There are 36 equally likely pairs if the dice are fair, from 1-1 up to 6-6.

Seven can be made in 6 ways. Eleven can be made in 2 ways. Together that is 8 of 36, so a come-out win on 7 or 11 has probability 8/36, which is 2/9. Two, three and twelve can be made in 1, 2 and 1 ways. That is 4 of 36, so a come-out loss has probability 1/9. The other 24 outcomes set a point: 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10.

Nothing in that list depends on the previous shooter's story. A fair pair of dice does not store a total. The history of dice is long. The next toss is still one toss.

What the point is asking

Once a point is set, the pass line no longer cares about 11 or 12. It wins if the point returns before a 7, and it loses if the 7 returns first. Other totals are ignored. They do not "build" toward anything.

The chance depends on the point, because some totals have more ways than others. A 4 or 10 can be made in 3 ways, and a 7 in 6, so the chance the point arrives first is 3/(3+6), which is 1/3. A 5 or 9 has 4 ways, so the chance is 4/10, or 2/5. A 6 or 8 has 5 ways, so the chance is 5/11. Those are probabilities, not a reason to prefer one point as a bargain. The price of the pass line is already set, and it is not the true odds of this second stage alone.

Don't pass is not a mirror

Don't pass reverses the pass line, with one deliberate exception. On many tables a come-out 12 is a push for don't pass rather than a win. Some layouts bar the 2 instead. The printed layout is the authority. That bar is how the price stays in the house's favor on both sides. A perfect mirror would leave no margin. The game is not built as a perfect mirror.

Side bets, hardways and one-roll propositions sit at different prices. Many of them are the expensive part of the layout. You do not need them to understand the pass line, and a crowded rail of chips does not make those prices kinder. For the general idea of a price that is worse than the chance, see expected value in plain English.

Speed is part of the risk

Craps resolves quickly. A person who meant to risk a small amount can cycle through it while still listening to the table. That is a practical problem, not a mathematical one. Decide the cap and the clock before the first come-out. When either arrives, the shooter can continue without you.

Runs of points happen. They are what independent trials look like in a crowd. They are not a signal that the dice are due to change. Independent events do not settle a debt to the last result. If the game stops being something you can leave, treat that as the important outcome and look for a local support service.

Frequently asked questions

Does a point of 6 pay better than a point of 4 on the pass line? Not on a standard pass-line bet. The pass line pays the same regardless of which point was set. The chance of hitting the point does change. The payout does not rise to match it.

Is don't pass the smart side? It is the other side of a similar contract, usually with one come-out number barred. It is not a method for coming out ahead. Read the bar on the layout and treat either side as a priced game.

Can a hot shooter change the next total? No. A fair toss does not remember the shooter. A long hand is a description of rolls that already happened.

Steps

Read the come-out roll: On the pass line, a 7 or 11 wins at once. A 2, 3 or 12 loses. Any other total becomes the point.
Finish the point or see a seven: After a point is set, the pass line wins if that point appears before a 7, and loses if the 7 appears first.
Check the don't-pass bar: Don't pass is not a perfect mirror. The layout states which come-out number, often 12, is a push rather than a win.
Ignore table chatter about streaks: A fair toss does not store the last total. Treat hot-table stories as noise, not as information about the next roll.
Set a stop before you step up: If you play, decide a money cap and a time cap first. Dice move quickly, which makes an unwritten limit easy to miss.