It isn’t often the player has the chance to make a bet with no house advantage. However craps offers a popular opportunity to make a bet with statistically fair odds. To bet on the odds you must first make any line bet: pass, don’t pass, come, and don’t come.

If any point is rolled (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10) you can bet or lay additional money that the point will or will not be rolled before a 7.

Taking the odds that a point will be rolled before a 7 pays 2-1 on the 4 and 10, 3-2 on the 5 and 9, and 6-5 on the 6 and 8. Laying the odds the a 7 will be rolled before the point pays 1-2 on a 4 and 10, 2-3 on the 5 and 9, and 5-6 on the 6 and 8. A frequent mistake made when programming these games is that when laying the odds the amount the may be is proportional to the amount bet on the don?t pass or don?t come. In the land casinos the player may bet in proportion to the possible win. For example if two times odds are allowed and the player bets $10 on the don?t pass and the point is a 4 a land casino would let the player bet $40 on the odds (for a win of $20) but most Internet casinos would only allow a $20 odds bet (for a win of $10).

The more you are allowed to bet on the odds the lower the overall house edge is. Both land and Internet casinos vary from place to place how much they will let you bet or lay on the odds. The rest of this article will show you the rules for taking and laying odds at nine major software brands.

Aqua Online: In case you haven?t heard of Aqua Online it is the software behind a few but large Internet casinos such as Casino Depot, King Soloman?s, and the Geisha Lounge. Aqua Online lets the player bet and lay two times his line bet on the odds. This results in a combined house edge of 0.61% on the pass and come and 0.58% on the don?t pass and don?t come.

Boss Media: Two times odds are allowed but the player may lay odds relative to the win, not the bet. This results in a combined house edge of 0.58% on the pass and come and 0.46% on the don?t pass and don?t come. Boss Media also gives 0.1% cash back on craps wagers.

Cryptologic: Same rules as Aqua Online, two times all line bets. However Cryptologic gives 0.2% cash back on craps wagers.

Microgaming: The player may bet no more than his original line bet whether taking or laying odds. This results in a combined house edge of 0.85% on the pass and come and 0.82% on the don?t pass and don?t come.

Odds On: Same rules as Microgaming.

Playtech: Three times odds are allowed, and always based on the bet amount. This results in a combined house edge of 0.47% on the pass and come and 0.46% on the don?t pass and don?t come.

Random Logic: For those who haven?t heard of Random Logic they do the software for Casino on Net. Three times odds are allowed but the player can bet relative to the win when laying odds. This results in a combined house edge of 0.47% on the pass and come and 0.34% on the don?t pass and don?t come. Casino on Net also offers 0.1% cash back to their regular players, and more to VIP players.

Real Time Gaming: Although the odds multiples are configurable most Real Time Gaming offer what is called ?full double odds? after a pass or come bet. This means the player can bet two times his line bet if the point is a 4, 5, 9, or 10, and 2.5 times if the point is a 6 or 8. The reason is if the line bet is $2 the player can bet $5 on a point of 6 or 8, for an even win of $6. When laying odds the player can bet 2 times his line bet on all points except 6 and 8, in which case the multiple allowed is 2.4 times the line bet. This results in a combined house edge of 0.57% on the pass and come and 0.56% on the don?t pass and don?t come.

World Gaming: Same rules as Playtech.

So who wins the award for the best craps rules? Based only on the math the winner is Random Logic, or Casino on Net if you prefer. The three times odds, laying odds relative to the win, and 0.1% cash back make it the best craps game I have seen online. Considering the cash back for every $100 bet on the don?t pass or don?t come, and laying full odds, you can expect to lose only 24 cents over the long run. Hopefully any bonuses or cash awards will be more than your expected losses.

Until next time, may the odds be with you.

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