In craps, a point is an active target number. The word usually means the official table point established for the Pass Line and Don’t Pass, but it can also mean the number assigned to a Come or Don’t Come bet. The valid point numbers are 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10.
The essential rule is a race: after a point exists, that number and 7 are the deciding totals. Repeating the point first wins the positive line-style wager; rolling 7 first loses it.
Three meanings that sound alike
| Phrase heard at the table | Exact meaning | Bet affected |
|---|---|---|
| “The point is 8” | The official table point, shown by the puck | Pass Line and Don’t Pass |
| “My Come point is 5” | The number assigned to one player’s Come Bet | That Come Bet and its odds |
| “I have the 6” | Often casual shorthand for a Place, Buy, or other number bet | Only the specified wager |
Only one official table point can be active. Multiple Come and Don’t Come bets can simultaneously have their own numbers. A player can therefore have a Come point of 5 while the table point is 8 and a Place Bet is working on 6.
That distinction is not vocabulary trivia. Each stack is a separate contract with different settlement and payout rules.
How the table point is established
A new Pass Line cycle begins with a come-out roll:
- 7 or 11 wins the Pass Line immediately;
- 2, 3, or 12 loses the Pass Line under standard rules;
- 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10 becomes the point.
When a point is established, the dealer turns the puck to ON and places it on that number. The shooter continues rolling until either:
- the point repeats, called a point made; or
- 7 appears first, called a seven-out.
After either decision, the puck returns to OFF and the next roll begins a new come-out cycle.
Why some points are easier to make
Two fair dice have 36 equally likely ordered combinations. A 7 has six combinations. The point numbers have fewer:
| Point | Ways to roll it | Chance point arrives before 7 | True odds against making it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 or 10 | 3 | 3 ÷ (3 + 6) = 1/3 | 2 to 1 |
| 5 or 9 | 4 | 4 ÷ (4 + 6) = 2/5 | 3 to 2 |
| 6 or 8 | 5 | 5 ÷ (5 + 6) = 5/11 | 6 to 5 |
Other totals can roll between the point and 7, but they do not change this two-outcome race. Ignoring those neutral rolls is mathematically valid because the contest ends only when one of the two deciding totals appears.
This is also why odds wagers differ by point. A fair odds payout must reflect the number’s actual combination count: 2:1 behind 4 or 10, 3:2 behind 5 or 9, and 6:5 behind 6 or 8. See true odds versus casino payouts for the distinction between fair odds and ordinary table payoffs.
Come points create a second layer
A Come Bet starts like a new Pass Line bet after the table already has a point. If its first deciding roll is 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10, the dealer moves that wager to the corresponding number. That number becomes the bettor’s Come point.
Consider this sequence:
- The table point is 8.
- A player places a $10 Come Bet.
- The next roll is 5, so the bet travels to 5.
- A later 8 makes the table point, but it does not settle the Come Bet on 5.
- The new come-out roll can begin while the Come Bet remains on 5, subject to the table’s working rules.
The official point and the Come point may therefore be decided on different rolls. A crowded layout can show several point-like positions at once, which is why dealer calls and puck position matter.
A point number is not automatically a point bet
The six point numbers also host Place Bets, Buy Bets, Lay Bets, Come bets, Don’t Come bets, and odds. Chips on 6 do not tell you the wager type by themselves. Position, dealer placement, lammers, and the original transaction establish what the chips mean.
For example, a Place 6 generally wins when 6 rolls before 7 and pays a posted casino payoff. A Come Bet on 6 also wins when 6 rolls before 7, but it began in the Come box, moved under dealer control, and can carry a separate odds wager. Similar outcome condition, different contract.
What the puck proves—and what it does not
The puck gives a visible record of the table state:
- OFF: no official point is active;
- ON over a number: that number is the official point.
It does not identify each player’s personal Come point, prove that a Place Bet is working, or show whether odds are attached to a specific stack. Those facts come from chip position and dealer procedure.
During a dispute, useful evidence includes the puck location, previous roll, chip position before the roll, dealer calls, table limits, and surveillance footage. “That was my point” is incomplete unless the wager type and location are also clear.
Common point errors
- Calling every number wager a point bet.
- Believing 6 and 8 are certain because they are easier to make than 4 and 10.
- Assuming a table-point winner also settles every Come Bet.
- Forgetting that a 7 can have different effects during the come-out and point-on phases.
- Adding odds to a stack without understanding which point and contract the odds belong to.
- Reading a recent sequence as evidence that a point is due.
The dice have no memory. Once a point is active, its probability comes from the fixed combination race against 7, not from how long the shooter has been rolling.
Don’t-side points reverse the desired race
The target number is the same for a Don’t Pass or Don’t Come contract, but the player’s preferred result reverses. After the point is established, a Don’t-side wager generally wins if 7 arrives before the point and loses if the point repeats first.
That produces the same underlying combination race viewed from the other side. For point 4:
- point 4 has three combinations;
- 7 has six combinations;
- 7 is twice as likely as 4 to be the first deciding total.
This does not mean every Don’t-side rule is simply the mirror image of Pass. The come-out treatment of 12 and table-specific odds limits create differences. Use the actual Don’t Pass rules rather than reversing every Pass Line statement mechanically.
Working and off status can change settlement
A point or number can remain physically occupied by chips while a wager is not working for a particular roll. The most familiar example occurs on a come-out roll after the previous point has been decided. Some number bets are off by default unless the player asks to keep them working; Come odds and Don’t Come odds can follow separate house procedures.
Therefore, three facts may be needed to settle a roll correctly:
- Which number belongs to the wager?
- What wager type is represented by the stack?
- Was that wager working on this roll?
The puck answers only the first question for the official table point. Dealer calls, table procedures, and prior instructions answer the others.
Point made, seven-out, and a neutral roll
The terms describe different effects:
- Point made: the official point repeats before 7. Pass wins, Don’t Pass loses, and the puck turns off.
- Seven-out: 7 rolls while a point is on. Pass loses, Don’t Pass wins, and the shooter’s hand ends.
- Neutral roll for that contract: another total appears. The point remains active and the same race continues.
A roll can be neutral for the Pass Line while settling another wager. For example, with table point 8, a roll of 5 does not decide the Pass Line, but it can win a Place 5 or move a Come Bet. Craps sounds complicated because one physical event can be decisive for one contract and irrelevant to another.
The official Massachusetts craps rules define the come-out cycle, point numbers, line-bet settlement, Come and Don’t Come movement, and true-odds wagers. House procedures can vary in details such as whether certain bets work on a come-out roll, so the table rule controls when ambiguity remains.
The practical definition
When someone says “point,” ask one clarifying question: which wager’s target? If the answer is the table point, look at the puck. If it is a Come or Don’t Come point, locate the player’s moved wager. If it is merely a Place or Buy number, use that wager’s own rules rather than line-bet rules.
Continue with The Point for the main round, Pass Line and Don’t Pass for opposite settlement, and Odds Bet for the fair-payout addition after a point exists.