In standard craps, the point is the number established when the come-out roll is 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10. Once that number becomes the point, Pass Line players want it to roll again before a 7. Don’t Pass players want a 7 to appear before the point repeats.
The point is not a separate wager by itself. It is the game state that determines how the main line bets will be resolved after the come-out roll.
How a number becomes the point
A new craps round begins with a come-out roll. On that roll, some totals settle the Pass Line immediately, while six totals establish a point.
For a standard Pass Line bet:
- 7 or 11 wins on the come-out roll;
- 2, 3, or 12 loses on the come-out roll;
- 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 the corresponding number box. That visual marker tells the crew and players that the table has moved from the come-out phase into the point cycle.
For the full game flow, start with Craps and Come-Out Roll.
The point changes what a 7 means
The biggest beginner confusion in craps is that a 7 changes meaning depending on the phase of the round.
Before a point exists, 7 is a winning come-out result for the Pass Line. After a point has been established, 7 becomes the losing result for the Pass Line. If a 7 appears before the point repeats, the shooter sevens out and the round ends.
That phase change is why the puck matters. It is not decoration. The OFF/ON state tells the table which rules apply to the next roll.
| Table state | What Pass Line wants | What Don’t Pass wants | Meaning of 7 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Come-out, point OFF | 7 or 11 | 2 or 3; 12 is normally a push | Immediate Pass Line win |
| Point ON | Point repeats before 7 | 7 before point repeats | Pass Line loss / Don’t Pass win |
The exact Don’t Pass treatment of 12 is a house-rule detail commonly called a bar number, so players should read the posted rules.
Example: a point of 9
Suppose the shooter makes a come-out roll of 9.
The dealer places the ON puck on 9. The Pass Line bet has not won yet. The shooter keeps rolling until one of two decisive totals appears:
- another 9, which makes the point and wins the Pass Line; or
- a 7, which produces a seven-out and loses the Pass Line.
Rolls of 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11, or 12 do not settle that particular Pass Line decision. They may affect many other bets on the layout, but for the Pass Line they simply extend the race between 9 and 7.
After 9 is made, the puck returns to OFF and the next roll starts a new come-out cycle.
Why each point has different difficulty
The point numbers are not equally easy to repeat because two dice can form some totals in more ways than others.
There are 36 equally likely ordered outcomes with two fair six-sided dice. Seven can be rolled in six ways. The point numbers have fewer combinations:
| Point | Ways to roll it | Ways to roll 7 | Chance point wins the race |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 3 | 6 | 3 / 9 = 1 / 3 |
| 5 | 4 | 6 | 4 / 10 = 2 / 5 |
| 6 | 5 | 6 | 5 / 11 |
| 8 | 5 | 6 | 5 / 11 |
| 9 | 4 | 6 | 2 / 5 |
| 10 | 3 | 6 | 1 / 3 |
This is why 6 and 8 are stronger points for a Pass Line player than 4 and 10. They still lose the race to 7 more often than they win it, but they have more combinations available.
The calculation after a point is established is:
Chance point is made before 7 = Point combinations / (Point combinations + 7 combinations)
For point 6:
5 / (5 + 6) = 5 / 11
The other totals can be ignored for this race because they do not end it.
The point is what makes an odds bet possible
Once a point exists, a player with a Pass Line bet can usually take an Odds Bet behind the line, subject to the table’s odds limit. Don’t Pass players can lay odds.
The odds bet is mathematically different from the base line bet because it is paid at true odds for the point-number race:
| Point | Pass Line odds payoff |
|---|---|
| 4 or 10 | 2 to 1 |
| 5 or 9 | 3 to 2 |
| 6 or 8 | 6 to 5 |
Those payoffs reflect the underlying combinations. A point of 4 has three combinations against six combinations for 7, so the fair payoff is 2 to 1. A point of 6 has five combinations against six for 7, so the fair payoff is 6 to 5.
The base Pass Line bet still carries its normal house edge because the favorable and unfavorable come-out outcomes are part of the full bet. Taking odds does not change the result already attached to the line wager; it adds a separate true-odds component.
The puck tells the crew which procedure is active
From the casino side, the point is a procedural anchor. Craps can have dozens of active wagers spread across the layout. Dealers need a clear shared state so they know which bets are working, which calls apply, and whether line-bet odds are available.
The puck helps communicate that state at a glance:
- OFF means there is no active point for the main line-bet cycle;
- ON on 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10 means that number is the active point.
A point being ON can also affect optional bets whose working status depends on house rules or player instructions. That is one reason experienced crews use precise calls and physical marker placement rather than relying on memory.
For the protection and procedure side, see Table Game Protection.
Point number, place number, and point are not interchangeable ideas
New players often hear the same numbers used in different ways and assume the bets are identical.
A number such as 6 can be:
- the active point for the Pass Line;
- a separate Place bet on 6;
- a Come-bet point for an individual Come wager;
- part of another proposition or combination bet.
The number is the same, but the wager, payoff, working rules, and resolution can be different. The phrase the point normally refers to the active target for the main Pass Line/Don’t Pass round unless the conversation clearly refers to a Come bet’s individual point.
Making the point does not end the shooter’s turn
Another common misunderstanding is that a shooter stops after making the point. In standard craps, making the point ends that round, not the shooter’s hand.
After the point is made:
- Pass Line bets win and Don’t Pass bets lose.
- The puck returns to OFF.
- The same shooter starts a new come-out roll.
- The shooter continues until eventually rolling a seven-out after a point has been established.
This is why a shooter can make several points during one hand.
A long roll does not make the point “due”
The point defines a condition; it does not create memory in the dice.
If the point is 8 and the shooter has rolled twelve times without an 8 or 7, the next roll is not forced toward 8. Assuming fair independent dice, the probabilities on the next roll remain based on the same combinations. The previous non-resolving rolls have not used up any outcomes.
The same warning applies to a table that has missed a point repeatedly. Past sequences can look meaningful, but the physical game does not owe the table a particular total.
The point tells you what result matters now. It does not tell you what result is about to happen.
Standard craps and crapless craps use different point rules
In standard craps, only 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10 become points. Variants can change that structure.
Crapless craps, for example, may allow additional come-out totals to become points instead of losing immediately in the same way as standard craps. That changes the player’s exposure and the underlying math. This glossary definition therefore applies to standard craps unless a variant is specifically identified.
The practical rule is simple: do not carry a standard-craps assumption onto a table with a different posted game name or rule set.
What the main point terms mean at a glance
Point established: a come-out roll of 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10 has created the target for the round.
Point ON: the puck is showing the active point cycle.
Point made: the shooter rolled the active point again before 7; Pass Line wins.
Seven out: a 7 appeared after the point was established; Pass Line loses and the shooter’s hand ends.
Take odds: a Pass Line player adds a true-odds wager behind the line after the point exists.
Lay odds: a Don’t Pass player adds a true-odds wager backing 7 against the point.
Why understanding the point unlocks the rest of craps
Craps looks chaotic because many wagers can be active at once, but the main game becomes much easier once the player understands the two-state structure: come-out first, point cycle second.
The point is the bridge between those phases. It changes the meaning of 7, determines the target for Pass Line and Don’t Pass, creates the opportunity for line-bet odds, and gives the crew a visible operating state.
Start with Craps for the complete game flow, then read Come-Out Roll, Pass Line, Don’t Pass, Odds Bet, and Seven Out.
Table point, Come point, and point bet are different ideas
In ordinary craps conversation, the point usually means the table point established by the come-out roll. But the word also appears in related phrases that should not be collapsed into one concept.
A Come point belongs to an individual Come bet after that wager travels to 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10. Several Come points can exist while the table itself has one main point. A point number simply refers to one of the numbers that can serve in that role. And a player saying “my point” may be referring to the number attached to a particular wager, not necessarily the puck-marked table point.
Likewise, a point number is not automatically a special “point bet.” The bet type and the number it is working on are separate pieces of information. Keeping those meanings apart prevents many settlement and communication errors at the table.