Pass Line vs. Don't Pass in Craps
Last reviewed: June 2026
The Pass Line and Don’t Pass are craps’ two foundational bets — together they account for most of the action at any table, and both carry a house edge under 1.5%, making them among the best bets in the casino.
If you’ve ever stood at a craps table and wondered which side of the line you should be on, this article walks through the exact math of each wager, explains why the “Don’t Pass is mathematically better” claim is technically true but practically irrelevant, and clears up the come-out/point-phase confusion that trips up new players.
How the Come-Out Roll Works
Every craps round begins with a come-out roll — the shooter’s first roll before a point has been established. The Pass Line and Don’t Pass bets are both live at this stage, and they resolve immediately on certain numbers:
| Come-Out Result | Pass Line | Don’t Pass |
|---|---|---|
| 7 or 11 (natural) | Win | Lose |
| 2 or 3 (craps) | Lose | Win |
| 12 (craps) | Lose | Push (bar) |
| 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10 | Point set — game continues | Point set — game continues |
The bar-12 rule is what keeps Don’t Pass from being a pure mirror of the Pass Line. On the come-out, a 12 loses the Pass Line but only pushes (ties) the Don’t Pass. Without this rule, Don’t Pass would actually have a player edge, which no casino would offer. The bar converts the bet into a slight house win.
The Point Phase
When the come-out roll lands on 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10, that number becomes the point. The puck flips to “ON,” and the real tug-of-war begins:
- Pass Line wins if the shooter rolls the point again before a 7. Loses if a 7 comes first.
- Don’t Pass wins if a 7 appears before the point repeats. Loses if the point repeats first.
This is where the two bets are pure opposites — one side cheers for the point, the other roots for the seven-out. The probability split depends entirely on which point was established. A point of 6 or 8 has six ways to roll versus six ways to roll a 7, making it a near coin-flip in the point phase. A point of 4 or 10 has only three ways to make it versus six ways to seven-out, putting the point-phase odds heavily against the Pass Line bettor.
For a deeper breakdown of how many ways each number can appear on two dice, see Craps Dice Probability.
House Edge Numbers
Averaging across all possible come-out outcomes and all possible points, the long-run edges work out as follows:
| Bet | House Edge | Exact fraction |
|---|---|---|
| Pass Line | 1.41% | 7/495 per initial wager |
| Don’t Pass | 1.36% | 27/1980 per initial wager |
The Don’t Pass edge is slightly lower because the bar-12 push is counted in the denominator — it’s a resolved action (the shooter rolled a 12) that costs the house nothing and costs the player nothing, but it still dilutes the house’s advantage across the total number of come-out rolls.
In plain terms: for every $100 in Pass Line action, the house expects to keep about $1.41. For every $100 in Don’t Pass action, it keeps about $1.36. The gap is five cents per hundred dollars wagered. Over a typical session of a few hundred dollars, that difference is statistically invisible against normal variance.
”Don’t Pass Is Better” — True, But Tiny
You’ll sometimes hear experienced players say that betting the “dark side” (Don’t Pass) is smarter because of the lower edge. They’re not wrong, but the practical impact is negligible. Both bets are excellent by casino standards — for comparison, a Place bet on 5 or 9 carries a 4.00% edge, and many slot machines run north of 6%.
The more meaningful way to reduce the house’s bite is to back either bet with Free Odds once a point is set. The Odds bet pays at true probability with zero house edge, which drags the combined edge of your flat bet plus Odds down substantially. At the standard 3-4-5× odds cap offered by most casinos, the combined edge on total action drops to roughly 0.37% — one of the lowest figures available anywhere in a casino. See Craps Odds Bets for the full breakdown.
Which Bet Should You Choose?
There is no “lucky” or “unlucky” side of the line — only math. A few practical considerations:
Choose Pass Line if: You want to bet with the majority of the table. Most shooters are Pass Line bettors, so you’ll be cheering alongside everyone else when the point hits. The social experience at a craps table is often built around collective excitement over making the point.
Choose Don’t Pass if: You’re comfortable betting against the shooter (and the crowd), you’d rather root for a seven-out, and you want to squeeze out that extra 0.05% edge over a very long run. Don’t Pass bettors do sometimes get dirty looks from superstitious players, though mathematically there is no basis for any of that.
Either way, both bets put you in excellent position compared to nearly any other wager on the table. Avoid the proposition bets in the center of the layout — they carry edges from 5% to 16% — and stick to Pass/Don’t Pass plus Odds for the most favorable long-run math.
For a full picture of how the two phases interact with the dice, read Craps Phases: Come-Out and Point. If you’re new to the game entirely, How to Play Craps covers the table layout and betting sequence from scratch.
Frequently Asked
Does Don’t Pass “fade” the other players? Not exactly. Don’t Pass bettors win when seven-outs happen, which is the same outcome that ends the Pass Line bettors’ round. But every player makes independent bets against the house — you are not betting against the other players at the table. The house is always the counterparty.
What is the bar-12 rule and why does it exist? Without barring 12 (or sometimes 2, depending on casino rules), the Don’t Pass bet would have a mathematical edge over the house on the come-out roll. The bar converts that extra winning outcome into a push, restoring a small house advantage. The specific number barred can vary by casino, but bar-12 is by far the most common.
Can I take Odds on Don’t Pass? Yes. Once a point is set, Don’t Pass bettors can lay Odds — betting that the 7 will appear before the point. Laid Odds pay at true probability just like taken Odds, carrying zero house edge. The combined edge of Don’t Pass plus laid Odds falls to the same ultralow figures as Pass plus taken Odds.
Is craps the best-odds game in the casino? Pass/Don’t Pass plus maximum Odds is one of the lowest combined edges available, rivaling blackjack with basic strategy. Whether craps is “best” depends on how you count — blackjack’s ~0.5% edge on the flat bet is lower than craps’ flat 1.41%, but craps lets you dilute that edge more aggressively with large Odds bets. See Lowest House Edge Bets for a cross-game comparison.
Sources & Further Reading
- Wizard of Odds — Craps: complete probability tables and edge calculations for all craps bets.
- Craps Dice Probability — how many ways each number rolls on two dice, and how that shapes every bet on the table.
- Craps Odds Bets — why the Free Odds wager is the only zero-edge bet in a standard casino and how to use it.
Educational explanation only. No real-money gambling happens on LearnTheOdds.
Responsible gambling: Play for entertainment, not income — the math favors the house over time. Set limits, never chase losses, and if it stops being fun, take a break. 21+. Need help? Call 1-800-MY-RESET (1800myreset.org).