Craps vs roulette

Craps vs roulette at a glance

Both games are pure chance: no decision you make changes the dice or the ball. The difference lies in how the bets are priced. In roulette every standard bet on a single-zero wheel carries the same 2.70% edge, so your choice only changes how often you win and by how much. In craps each bet has its own price, from zero on the odds bet to 16.67% on Any Seven, so what you bet on matters enormously.

Dice maths against wheel maths

A roulette wheel is simple to analyse because every pocket is equally likely: 1 in 37 on a European wheel. Two dice are different. There are 36 equally likely combinations, but the totals they make are not equally likely. Six combinations make 7, the most common total, while only one makes 2 and one makes 12. That uneven spread is what craps is built around.

Every craps payout can be checked against this table, just as every roulette payout can be checked against the 37 pockets. Our dice probability and craps dice odds pages go further.

Craps vs roulette odds: every main bet ranked

Wizard of Odds' craps house edge table (opens in a new tab) gives the figures below, quoted per bet resolved (ignoring rolls where the bet neither wins nor loses). The roulette figures come from Wizard of Odds' roulette basics (opens in a new tab). Laid out together, they show how far apart a well-chosen and a badly chosen craps bet can be.

Don't pass is 1.36% per bet made and 1.40% per bet resolved. Place, Big 6/8 and hardway figures would look much lower per roll; the per-resolved figures are the fair comparison with roulette.

How the pass line edge is worked out

The pass line is craps' standard bet. On the first roll, the come-out, a 7 or 11 wins straight away and a 2, 3 or 12 loses. Any other total becomes the point, and the shooter keeps rolling until the point comes again (a win) or a 7 arrives (a loss).

• Instant win on the come-out: 8 combinations out of 36 (six 7s and two 11s), or 22.22%.
• Point of 4 or 10: each comes up 3 times in 36, then repeats before a 7 with a chance of 3 in 9.
• Point of 5 or 9: 4 in 36, then 4 in 10 to repeat before a 7.
• Point of 6 or 8: 5 in 36, then 5 in 11 to repeat before a 7.

Adding those up gives a win chance of about 49.29% and a loss chance of about 50.71%. On an even-money bet, that gap is the 1.41% edge. Compare red on a European roulette wheel: 18 wins in 37, or 48.65%, for a 2.70% edge. The pass line is simply a closer-to-fair coin flip.

The odds bet: craps' unique zero-edge wager

Once a point is set, a pass line player can back it with an extra odds bet, which pays true odds: 2 to 1 on 4 or 10, 3 to 2 on 5 or 9 and 6 to 5 on 6 or 8. Those payouts exactly match the chances, so the house edge on that part of the stake is zero. Don't pass players can lay odds the other way at 1 to 2, 2 to 3 and 5 to 6.

The odds bet doesn't make craps a winning game; the pass line bet underneath still carries its 1.41%. What it does is dilute the edge across more money. Take £10 on the pass line plus £10 odds whenever a point is set. A point is set on 24 of 36 come-out rolls (two-thirds of the time), so the average amount at risk per pass decision is £10 + (£10 x 2/3) = £16.67, while the expected loss stays at 14.1p. That is about 0.85% of the total staked.

Only take odds with money you were happy to stake anyway. A lower percentage on a bigger total can still mean a bigger swing in pounds.

The craps bets that cost more than any roulette bet

Craps' centre table is where its reputation for high costs comes from. The one-roll proposition bets look generous, with 30 to 1 on a 2 or 12, but the true odds are 35 to 1, giving a 13.89% edge. Any Seven pays 4 to 1 on a 1 in 6 chance (true odds 5 to 1), a 16.67% edge, more than three times the price of American roulette.

Some mid-table bets are traps too. Big 6 and Big 8 pay even money on the same outcome that Place 6 or 8 pays at 7 to 6, so they cost 9.09% against 1.52%. The field bet costs 5.56% when 2 and 12 both pay 2 to 1, dropping to 2.78% if one of them pays 3 to 1. Check the layout before you bet. Our worst bets page ranks these across the casino.

Speed, pace and swings in each game

Roulette settles everything on each spin. Evolution's live roulette (opens in a new tab) range includes Speed Roulette at about 25 seconds a round, roughly half a standard round. Craps is different: a pass line bet can be decided on one roll or take many, so 'bets per hour' depends on how long each point lasts. That makes hourly cost harder to pin down, but the per-bet figures still tell you the price.

For a like-for-like guide, compare 100 resolved bets of £10 each: about £14.10 expected loss on the pass line, £27.00 on European roulette and £166.70 on Any Seven. On swings, craps line bets behave much like even-money roulette bets; proposition bets and roulette's inside numbers are the high-variance options in each game. The cost per hour guide shows how to estimate your own hourly figure.

Playing craps and roulette online in the UK

Roulette is in almost every UK casino lobby, in RNG, live and auto-wheel formats. Craps is less common. Evolution lists Craps among its First Person (opens in a new tab) RNG games and runs a live craps and dice category, but paytables can differ between versions, so read the game's help screen for the field and proposition payouts. Our live craps page and the answer to can you play craps online in the UK cover availability.

UK rules treat both the same way. Since 17 January 2025, autoplay is banned for all online casino games, non-slot games must allow at least 5 seconds per game cycle and you can't play several games at once. The £5 and £2 online stake limits apply only to slots.

Myths about dice and wheels

• Myth: a number that hasn't rolled for a while is due. Dice and wheels have no memory, as our gambler's fallacy page explains.
• Myth: craps is always the better game. Only its line, odds and Place 6/8 bets beat roulette; its centre bets are far worse.
• Myth: pressing bets after wins or doubling after losses improves the odds. Staking systems leave every bet's edge unchanged.
• Myth: you can control the dice in online craps. RNG results must be acceptably random under UK technical standards, and live games use real dice you don't touch.

How to choose: a sensible craps or roulette strategy

1. Set a budget and a stake per bet before you start.
2. If you'll take the time to learn which bets are cheap, craps' pass or don't pass line with odds is the lowest-cost option of the two games.
3. If you'd rather not think about bet selection, single-zero roulette charges 2.70% whatever you choose.
4. In roulette, look for a French La Partage table if you mainly bet even money.
5. In craps, ignore the centre-table proposition bets, Big 6 and Big 8.
6. Stop at your budget or time limit, whatever the recent rolls or spins.

For other matchups, see sic bo vs craps, baccarat vs craps or the full compare hub.

Where to play craps and roulette with our partners

Our partners' welcome offers are slot offers or matched bonuses with game restrictions, so they won't help you at a craps or roulette table. Table games are often excluded from wagering or count for less; read the full terms first. Coral's app listing names roulette among its games, but none of our partners lists craps in its published game details, so check each casino's game lobby. 18+ and terms apply.

Casumo gives new customers who opt in a 50% bonus up to £100 on a minimum £20 first deposit, wagered 10x within 7 days, with a £5 bet limit while the bonus is live; game, play and payment restrictions apply. 10bet matches a new UK customer's first deposit 100% up to £25 if the casino bonus is picked at sign-up and the deposit made within 7 days; it must be wagered 10x on slots within 3 days, bonus winnings are capped at £1,000, and Skrill and Neteller deposits are excluded. Coral gives new players 100 free spins at 10p each on selected slots after a deposit and £10 or more bet on slots, accepted within 48 hours and used within 7 days, with no wagering on winnings; some payment methods are excluded.

18+. Every casino game has a built-in house edge, so over time you should expect to lose what you stake. Set a budget before you play and stop when it’s gone: safer gambling tools and support. Free, confidential help: National Gambling Helpline 0808 8020 133.