What is a lay in craps?

A lay bet is a craps bet used at online casinos to get 'true odds' on a seven being rolled before a specific number being rolled. Generally, your lay bet will get placed after the point number is rolled. You can place a lay bet on the opening roll, but it's ill advised.

To understand craps lay bets, it is best to compare them to craps buy bets. Craps lay bets are the exact opposite of craps buy bets.

Perhaps the best way to explain what the craps lay bets are is to compare them to the craps buy bets.  When a player bets on a buy bet, they are betting that a specific number will be thrown by the shooter before a 7 is thrown.  In the care of the craps buy bets, the possible numbers that can be chosen are the following: 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10.

Having explained what craps buy bets are, the player should note that the craps lay bets are the exact opposite to the craps buy bets.  When betting on a craps lay bet, the player is betting that their chosen number will be thrown by the shooter after a 7 is thrown.  The possible numbers to choose from are the same numbers as the craps buy bets:  4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10.

Winning Bet: - The player places a lay bet on the number 8. - The shooter rolls the following dice (in this order):  3, 4, 10, 7, 9, 8.- The player has won their bet because the 8 was rolled after the 7 appeared.

Losing Bet: - The player places a lay bet on the number 8. - The shooter rolls the following dice (in this order):  5, 10, 4, 6, 8, 2, 7, 4. - The player has lost their bet because the 8 was rolled before the 7.  The bet is lost immediately the 8 is rolled if the number 7 has not yet appeared.

The payout for craps lay bets work according to true odds.  The player actually bets more money than they can win in one bet.  For example the 1:2 odds means that you win one unit for every two units bet (for $10, the winning player would win $5).  These odds differ according to which numbers are bet on.

Because the bettor will only win half of what they have bet (and take their original bet back on winning), the house commission is based on the bet that has been won, not on the total amount.  The original money placed on the bet is not charged a commission.  For example, if the bettor placed a bet of $30 on a number that carries 1:2 true odds, the win will be $15.  The commission is taken only from the $15, and not from the original $30.

The following is a list of the true odds for each of the numbers available to bet on in the craps lay bet:

4 - 1:2 5 - 2:3 6 - 5:6 8 - 5:6 9 - 2:3 10 - 1:2

The game of craps seems very complex and confusing to the novices but once they learn just a few basic bets, they can easily start playing and making money. Along with the Pass and Don’t Pass bet, where players bet on the dice winning or losing, i.e. when 7/11 or craps numbers are thrown, they can place wagers on various other outcomes. Such wagers are part of more advanced craps strategies and in order to be able to use them correctly, players need to learn all their basics, their payout, and built-in house advantage.

The Lay bet is a relatively simple bet that can be placed at any time. The interesting thing about it is that it may take multiple throws of the dice to be resolved. When you place this wager, you bet that the 7 will be rolled before a specific number. Another important thing is that unlike most bets in this game, the winning Lay bets pay true odds. At the same time, there is a 5% commission on the payout that needs to be considered.

The Lay bet is an easy-to-understand, straightforward way to place wagers in craps and comes with some great advantages. It is often described as the opposite of the Buy wager where you bet that a specific number will be rolled before 7. With the Lay bet, players may lay the numbers 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10, but they can choose to lay as many numbers as they wish.

If 5 is laid, for instance, this means that you bet that the shooter will throw 7 before 5. You win if the dice land on 7 before they show 5. If 5 is rolled first, however, the wager loses. The great thing about this wager is that the payout is based on the true odds but to compensate that, casinos have introduced a 5% commission that needs to be paid on the winnings. While the fee is really low, apparently, it is enough to turn the odds in favor of the house.

Interestingly enough, when placing a Lay bet, you lay more to win less. For instance, if your bet is $10, the potential payout without the commission will be $5. The reason for this is simple – 7 is more likely to be rolled than any of the numbers that can be laid. If you find that concept hard to understand, you should continue reading through the following sections.

The Lay bet is sometimes referred to by players as a “No” bet – when they lay a number, they bet that it will not show up before 7 is rolled. Similarly to many other wagers in craps, the Lay bet is not a self-service bet and players are not allowed to place the chips for it on the table. Instead, they are required to leave them on the Come bet area of the layout and ask the dealers for assistance. After the chips have been positioned on the table, they will be topped with a Lay button indicating the type of wager. Online players can easily place their Lay bet by placing chips on the corresponding box of the layout.

As mentioned above, an unlimited number of these wagers can be placed at any time during the game. Players can lay one or more of the following numbers – 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 and 10. Once they pick a number to place their Lay bet on, they hope that the 7 will appear before that number in the following rolls of the dice. If the shooter throws a 7 before the laid number, the bet wins and the player receives a 1:2 payout. If the laid number shows first, the bet loses.

This bet remains independent of the original throw of the dice and it is not resolved until either the 7 or the laid number is rolled. This wager is often preferred by players who notice temporary trends in the game and wish to make the most of them, although in the long-term, the variance will eventually correct itself and such trends are not to be relied upon. For example, you can lay 9 if you have not seen a 9 to be rolled in a while and believe it would not come out in the following few rolls.

An interesting aspect of this type of wager is that it can be turned on or off at any time by the player. Once you decide you do not want a Lay bet on the 9 anymore, you can tell the dealer to turn it off and an “Off button” will be placed on top of your chips. In online craps, you can remove or place your Lay bet once again even more easily. This option allows players to remove their wager before it is resolved.

The Lay bet is one of the very few wagers in craps where the payout is based on true odds. This means that the potential winnings of placing such a bet are equal to the risk, which is very rare in casino games. And here comes the above-mentioned 5% commission on winnings. It is used by casinos to guarantee their profits and can reduce players’ earnings over the long term.

It is important to note that any of the numbers you choose to lay is less likely to be rolled in each following throw of the dice than 7. This is number that has the highest probability to be rolled simply because it has the largest number of possible combinations. It is fairly easy to throw a 7 as there are 6 possible ways to do that – the sides of the two dice can be 1-6, 6-1, 2-5, 5-2, 3-4, and 4-3. In contrast, there is only one possible combination for 2, for example, and that is when each die lands on 1.

The possible ways to roll any of the numbers that can be laid are fewer than the combinations for 7. There are three ways to throw 4 and 10, four ways to throw 5 and 9, and five possible ways to roll 6 and 8. All this is important to understand when looking at the payouts for each winning Lay bet as this is typically how the casinos gain a built-in advantage over their patrons. With the Lay bets, things are different, however.

The odds for this wager on each different number can be easily calculated. As there are three ways to roll 4 and 10, the odds against rolling a 7 could be expressed as 3 to 6, or 3:6, which is 1:2. Similarly, the odds of 5 or 9 are 4:6, equal to 2:3, while the odds for 6 and 10 are 5:6. All these show that the probability of rolling a 7 is higher than for any other number. In other words, when placing a Lay bet, players are more likely to win than to lose.

As mentioned above, the payouts for winning Lay bets are based on the true odds and, therefore, depend on the number players place their wager on. When 4 or 10 are laid, the payout is 1:2. If 5 or 9 are laid, the payout will be 2:3, while the winning Lay bet on 6 or 8 pays 5:6. However, as 7 is more likely to be rolled, players need to bet more money to win less. This concept may be difficult to understand at first, but it is quite straightforward.

For example, you hope that the 9 will not be rolled in the next few throws of the dice and decide to lay it for $9. Two rolls after that, the 7 appears and you win. But how much will you receive if the payout is 2:3? If you replace the 3 here with $9, the 2 will equal $6, which is the size of the payout. In this case, you should receive $6 along with your wager of $9, or $15.

Many players avoid placing this bet because they find it difficult to calculate their potential winnings. But this is quite simple, in fact. If your Lay bet on 9 is $100, you can have the payout when you divide the $100 bet by 3, which is $33.3 and multiply that by 2 – you will have $66.6. However, the casino will not pay you the entire sum and instead, it will charge your winnings a small commission fee.

Lay bets are an excellent choice for players because they pay out based on the true odds. Casinos, however, cannot accept that because, in its essence, it means that on average they will lose more than they will win. Offering these bets on craps would, then, make no sense for them. This is why the true odds in Lay bets come at a cost – a commission of 5% of the intended winnings. The commission is also called a “vig” (from vigorish) or a juice and it is always a percentage of the win amount.

Using the example above, we can see that a winning Lay bet of $100 on 9 will not bring a payout of $66.6. When we add the 5% commission, the actual payout is reduced to around $63. The commission is $3.33 so your winnings should be around $63.3. Since land-based casinos would round that up, however, you will probably receive $63. This way, you may lose a little bit of money with each of your winning Lay bets. Online casinos, on the other hand, however, tend to pay out the exact amounts, which is why they are a better alternative.

When the commission is taken only on winning bets, however, the house edge for a Lay 4/10 is 1.67%, for a Lay bet on 5/9 it is 2%, and for a Lay bet on 6/8, it is 2.27%. The house edge refers to the share of the bet that casinos take on average. If your wagers total $100, for example, and the house edge is 1.67%, you can expect to lose an average of $1.67. When the house edge is higher, the expected loss increases, too – if the edge is 4%, it is $4 per $100 wagered.

Lay bets are not the most popular wagers in craps and many players are confused when they wish to place them. For many of them, the payouts are particularly strange as the potential winnings are lower than the amount they need to wager. Still, these bets are among the easiest to place as you can place them at any time – even before the come-out roll at the beginning of a new round. As explained above, Lay bets are completely independent of the come-out roll and everything else that happens on the craps table.

Another great option is that players can not only place their Lay bets whenever they want but they can also remove them at any time without paying the commission. Most brick-and-mortar casinos allow players to turn Lay bets on and off easily and with no charge. Players would rarely take advantage of this option, however, considering that this type of wager comes with no built-in house edge. Casinos gain advantage artificially by taking 5% commission on every winning Lay Bet.

Overall, this wager is a good addition to every craps strategy because the player is always more likely to win than to lose. The 7 is the most easily rolled dice combination, as we have already seen. Players can lay different numbers while placing other bets such as Pass/Don’t Pass or Come/Don’t Come bets. These wagers also come with a low house edge, especially when they are supported by Odds bets. It is 1.41% for the Pass Line and the Don’t Pass wagers, while for the Come and Don’t Come bets, it is 1.36%. Buy bets and Place 6/8 also come with lower house advantage.

Different combinations of these wagers are possible but there is one very important thing players should know before they start playing craps for real money. They cannot eliminate the house advantage, so in the long term, they are expected to lose. Placing good bets, however, is key to reducing the losses and increasing your chances of leaving the craps table with some profit.

Craps is a fun, exciting game, which could be very rewarding for those who have at least a basic understanding of how it works. It revolves around the number 7, as it is the easiest to be rolled. And while some bets seem to be covering most numbers but are still advantageous to the casino, Lay bets capitalize on the power of the 7 and have a very low house edge. With these wagers, players bet on the most likely outcome and can, therefore, expect to generate good winnings.

It is important for players to understand that in order to win a certain amount with a Lay bet, they need to wager a larger amount of money. This is one of the essential aspects of these wagers, along with the addition of a 5% commission. This is a small fee casinos charge the intended payout of a winning Lay bet so they can compensate for the lack of a built-in house edge. Even after paying the commission, players will find the Lay bets a better option than the proposition bets, for instance, which can also be placed at any time. These bets, however, are resolved with a single roll of the dice and are associated with a much higher house edge.

T he Lay bet is basically opposite of the Buy bet.  You bet that a 7 will appear before one of the point numbers (i.e., 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10).  For example, suppose you notice a temporary trend where the number 5 hasn’t appeared in the last 30 minutes.

You have a gut feeling that the trend will continue a little longer so you Lay the 5 (i.e., you bet that a 7 will appear before a 5).  The payoff is based on true odds.  Let’s review the true odds for each point number against the 7.

For the 4 and 10, the true odds are 1:2 (there are 3 ways to make a 4 or 10 versus 6 ways to make a 7, so 3:6 = 1:2).

For the 5 and 9, the true odds are 2:3 (there are 4 ways to make a 5 or 9 versus 6 ways to make a 7, so 4:6 = 2:3).

For the 6 and 8, the true odds are 5:6 (there are 5 ways to make a 6 or 8 versus 6 ways to make a 7, so 5:6).

As noted, with the Lay bet, you hope a 7 appears before the number you bet against.  There are more ways to make a 7 than any of the point numbers, so like the Don’t Pass Odds bet, you have to Lay more than you expect to win.  The amount you Lay is based on true odds.  For example, suppose you haven’t seen a 9 in an hour.  The distribution variance took a wild turn and hasn’t shown a 9 in forever (but rest assured, the variance will eventually correct itself and when it does, it’ll seem like a 9 appears every other roll).  You decide to take a chance that the wild variance will continue a little longer, so you Lay the 9 (i.e., you bet that a 7 will show before a 9).  The true odds for the 7 against the 9 are 6:4, or 3:2.  You can see from the odds that you must bet a multiple of $3.  Let’s see if you’re paying attention and if you remember the material our other lessons.  Suppose you Lay the 9 for $9.  If a 7 shows before a 9, how much do you win?  Very good!  Yes, $6.  You’re getting good at this!  The true odds are 3:2, so do the little math trick to figure out how much you win.  Divide your $9 bet by 3 = $3, and then multiply the $3 by 2 = $6.  Remember, with the Lay bet against the 9, you have the advantage because there are more ways to roll a 7 and win than ways to roll a 9 and lose, so you have to bet your fair share, which in this case is that you Lay $9 to win $6.

As noted, the payoff for the Lay bet is based on true odds, which means there’s no built-in house advantage.  The house isn’t going to let you get away with that!  So, as with the Buy bet, you have to pay a vig for the privilege of getting true odds (review our article on the Buy bet to understand ”vig” and how the casino rounds it up or down to the next higher or lower whole dollar amount).  The vig for the Lay bet is the same as for the Buy bet.  Let’s look at an example where you want to Lay a bet on the 8 for $60.  If a 7 appears before an 8, you win $50 (i.e., the true odds are 6:5, so a winning $60 payoff is $50).  Calculate the vig based on the $50 win amount.  $50 x 5% = $2.50, which the casino rounds to only $2.  So, when the dealer pays you your winning $50, he says, “Drop me two dollars, please, sir.”  You pick up your two green $25 chips and then drop two white $1 chips in the apron for the dealer.  The cost of you getting true odds on that winning bet is $2.

You need the dealer’s help to make a Lay bet (i.e., the Lay bet is not a self-service bet).  When you have the dealer’s attention, put your chips inside the Come area in front of you and tell one of the crew members what number you want to Lay.  The dealer picks up your chips and puts them in the proper point box corresponding to your position at the table.  Then, the dealer puts a “LAY” button on top of your chips to show the boxman and camera that you have a working Lay bet.

Sometimes you’ll hear a player refer to a Lay bet as a “No” bet.  Suppose the guy next to you puts two pretty black $100 chips in the Come box and says, “Gimme a No four.”  The dealer knows he wants a Lay bet so he moves the chips to the 4 point box and puts a LAY button on them.  The guy’s hunch was right; the 4 doesn’t appear and a 7 appears for a 7-out on the next roll.  How much does the guy win for his $200 Lay bet, and how much is the vig?  Do the little math trick.  True odds for the 7 against the 4 are 2:1, so divide the $200 bet by 2 = $100, and then multiply the $100 by 1 = $100.  The vig is based on the $100 win amount, so $100 x 5% = $100 x 0.05 = $5, which is a whole dollar amount, so it isn’t rounded.  In this case, the guy wins $100 and the cost for getting true odds is $5.

These bets usually are automatically left on for a come-out of the next game (i.e., the opposite of Buy bets, which are automatically off on the come-out).  But you’re able to make them on or off anytime you choose (and increase or decrease them anytime you choose).  For example, suppose you’re in the middle of a game and the point is 10.  The shooter has rolled lots of numbers except the 5.  You make a No 5 bet (i.e., you Lay the 5).  The very next roll, the shooter rolls a 10 to make her point and end the game.  Your Lay bet is automatically on and working for the come-out roll of the next game, but you decide to turn it off so you tell the dealer, “My No 5 is off.”  The dealer puts an “OFF” button on top of your chips.  On the come-out roll, the shooter rolls a 5 as the new point for the next game.  Wow!  Great call to turn off that Lay bet on the 5.  Since a 5 appeared before a 7, your Lay 5 would normally have lost, but you told the dealer, “My 5 is off,” so the bet was not working when the shooter rolled a 5.  Therefore, you don’t lose and your bet stays up.  When you decide to turn it back on so it’s working again, simply tell the dealer, “Turn my No 5 on so it’s working.”

Players usually keep their Lay bets on and working for the come-out roll because of the advantage they hold over the casino.  Remember, there are always more ways to make a 7 and win than ways to make any of the point numbers and lose.  If you have the advantage with the Lay bet, why would you ever turn it off?  You wouldn’t.  That’s why you seldom hear someone turn off their Lay bet.

You can now go to the page that we list the craps bets or  You can now head over to the table of contents to find more great content. Practice at Sun Palace, Casino Max, or Slots Plus to later play craps for real money. Here you will learn how to play craps, find the best craps strategy and also how to win at craps

Don’t bettors can choose their number with lay bets. Lay bets in craps are the opposite of place bets for the “right” bettors who bet with the shooter. Before the explanation, one aside: Don’t let the “Dark Side Craps” and “Wrong Craps” nicknames get to you. Yes, there are wrong bets in craps, but there’s nothing wrong with betting the shooter will roll a 7 before the number that would win for “right” bettors. The house edge is even slightly lower at 1.36 percent on don’t pass/don’t come than the 1.41 percent on pass/come.

There are six craps lay bets available to dark siders. You can lay the 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10. Those are the same numbers that become points if the shooter rolls them on the comeout, and the same numbers available to right bettors as place bets.In each case, you win the bet if the shooter rolls a 7 before rolling your number, and you lose if the shooter rolls your number first. No numbers matter other than 7 and the number you lay. Let’s say you lay the 6. That means you win only if the shooter rolls a 7 before the next 6. If the next few rolls are 11, 5, 9, 3 and so on, nothing happens to your bet. Those numbers don’t matter.  At any point, if a 7 turns up, you win, or if the roll is 6, you lose.

There are 36 possible combinations of two six-sided dice in craps lay bets. Six of those combinations total 7, while 5 total 6, five total 8, four each total 5 and 9 and three each total 4 and 10. That means you’ll win six times for every five times you lose if you lay 6 or 8, win six times per four losses on 5 or 9 and win six times per three losses on 4 or 10. The odds in favor or your winning lay bets are 6-5 on 6 or 8, 3-2 on 5 or 9 or 2-1 on 4 or 10.

Because you win more often than you lose, the house charges a commission in order to gain an edge. Payoffs are commensurate with true odds. If you bet $6 on 6 or 8, a winner will bring you $5. If you bet $3 on 5 or 9, a winner will bring you $2, and if you bet $2 on 4 or 10, a winner will bring you $1. The commission amounts to 5 percent of the amount you would win if the shooter rolls a 7. Let’s set our bet sizes all to amounts that would win $20 to make an easy comparison.

Some casinos charge the commission only if your bet wins. That makes a difference in the house edge, as we’ll see below.

The best deal on lay bets is on 4 or 10, where the commission represents the smallest proportion of your bet. Let’s start with casinos where you must pay the commission on all lay bets, win or lose.

What if the house charges the commission only on winning bets? Then the house edge is reduced on all numbers.