What is street craps?

Before the felt, the puck and the prop boxes, craps was two dice and a wall. Street craps is the shooter's game in its purest form - the version the casino game was built on top of.

Quick answer: Street craps is craps with everything stripped away except the dice: just pass or don't pass at even money, using the classic rules - 7 or 11 wins the come-out, 2, 3 or 12 loses, then point before 7. No table, no layout, no props. Pass wins about 49.3% of decisions.

How street craps works

Two bets exist: Pass and Don't Pass, both even money. The come-out follows classic rules - 7 or 11 wins the pass side, 2, 3 or 12 loses it (the don't side wins on 2 and 3, and bars the 12 as a push). Any box number sets a point, and it's point before 7 from there. No odds, no field, no place bets - the purest form of the game.

Nearly a coin flip

The pass bet wins about 49.3% of decisions - closer to a fair coin than almost any casino wager - which is exactly why the game thrived on sidewalks and in barracks with no house taking a cut. Between players, it's essentially even; the standard casino table adds the layout, the props and the edge. Learning street craps first makes the full table make sense.

The history in the name

Street craps is the missing link in the game's story: it's how the New Orleans version spread through America in the 1800s and 1900s, rolled against curbs and stoops by anyone with two dice - one theory even traces the name 'craps' to the French crapaud (toad), for the crouch of street players. Our Street Craps table re-creates it with free chips and honest dice.

Play Street Craps

Related questions

Where does craps come from?

Craps descends from Hazard, an English dice game played since the 14th century - Chaucer mentions it. Bernard de Marigny brought the game to New Orleans around 1805 and simplified it, and John H. Winn added the don't pass option and the modern layout around 1907.

What is Hazard, the dice game?

Hazard is the medieval English dice game that craps descends from, played in taverns since the 14th century and mentioned by Chaucer. You call a 'main' from 5 to 9, then roll: hitting the main wins instantly, 2 or 3 loses, and other totals set a 'chance' you must repeat before the main.

How do you play craps?

Place a bet on the pass line and roll two dice. On that first roll a 7 or 11 wins, a 2, 3 or 12 loses, and any other total becomes your point. Then keep rolling: make the point before a 7 and you win; roll a 7 first and the round is lost.