The Pass Line bet — the foundation of craps.
If you learn exactly one bet, learn this one. The Pass Line is the default, low-edge way into a craps round, and it's the only bet besides Don't Pass that unlocks the 0% free odds bet. Here's precisely how it resolves and where its famous 1.41% edge comes from.
1 · How the Pass Line resolves
Two ways to win, two ways to loseYou place the Pass Line bet before the come-out roll. Then:
On the come-out:
• 7 or 11 → win even money, immediately.
• 2, 3, or 12 → lose, immediately.
• 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10 → sets the point; the bet stays up.
After a point is set:
• Point repeats before a 7 → win even money.
• 7 rolls first ("seven-out") → lose.
That asymmetry is the whole game: on the come-out, sevens are your friend (8 of 36 rolls win, only 4 lose). After a point, the same 7 becomes your enemy. The full round context is on the how-to-play-craps page.
2 · Where the 1.41% edge comes from
The exact arithmetic, no hand-wavingThe Pass Line's win probability is exactly 244 / 495 ≈ 49.29%. Here's how that number is built:
- Come-out wins: 8/36 (7 or 11).
- Come-out losses: 4/36 (2, 3, 12).
- Point set, then made: for each point, the chance of repeating it before a 7. E.g. a point of 6 has 5 winning combos vs. 6 sevens → 5/11 chance to be made.
Summing every path gives a win probability of 244/495. Because the bet pays even money, the player's expected return per dollar is 2 × (244/495) − 1 ≈ −0.0141 — a 1.41% house edge. It is one of the two lowest standalone edges on the table (only Don't Pass, at 1.36%, is fractionally lower). The probability skeleton behind all of this is the 36-combination grid.
3 · Always add free odds
This is what makes the Pass Line eliteThe Pass Line on its own is a 1.41% bet. Its real power is that once a point is set you can add a free odds bet behind it — paid at true odds, 0% house edge. Loading maximum odds (3-4-5×) blends your overall edge down dramatically:
| Free odds taken | Blended house edge* |
|---|---|
| No odds | 1.41% |
| 1× odds | 0.85% |
| 2× odds | 0.61% |
| 3-4-5× odds | 0.37% |
Rule: always take the maximum free odds you can afford. It is free expected value, every single time.
4 · Pass Line vs. Don't Pass
The 0.05% questionDon't Pass is the mirror bet — you win when the shooter loses. Its edge is 1.36%, fractionally lower than Pass's 1.41%, because of the single rule that a come-out 12 is a push instead of a win.
So is Don't Pass "better"? Mathematically, by a hair. In practice the gap is 0.05% — five cents per $100 — and Don't Pass means betting against everyone else at the table. For a beginner, Pass Line with max odds is the right call: it's simpler, social, and the odds bet matters far more than the 0.05% line difference. See the disciplined approach in craps strategy basics.
5 · Common mistakes
What beginners get wrong- Skipping the odds bet. The single biggest beginner error — it's the only 0% bet on the table and most people leave it on the felt.
- Removing a Pass Line bet after the point. You can't legally take down a Pass Line bet once a point is set (the contract is locked) — and you wouldn't want to; the come-out already paid its risk.
- Confusing Pass with Come. They're the same math; Come just starts its own come-out mid-round. See the Come bet.
- Chasing the center. Any 7 / hardways / props alongside a Pass Line bet quietly erase the low edge you came for.
6 · FAQ
Pass Line questionsHow does the Pass Line bet work?
What is the Pass Line house edge?
Is the Pass Line a good bet?
Can I take down a Pass Line bet?
Play the Pass Line where the dice are real.
Reading about 1.41% is one thing; watching a point get made is another. On LiveRoll the Pass Line plays exactly as above — free, no signup, no real money — except every roll is a live MLB pitch, not an RNG.
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