Proposition Bets Explained
What this guide covers
Proposition bets occupy the dense, colorful center of every craps table, offering large payouts on specific single-roll outcomes at correspondingly high house edges. This guide covers the full menu honestly, so you know exactly what you're paying for that big-payout excitement. For where proposition bets fit in the broader betting landscape, see craps betting guide; for the full house-edge comparison, see craps house edge explained.
What makes a bet a "proposition" bet
Proposition bets are managed by the stickman in the table's center and are almost all one-roll wagers — placed fresh before any single roll and resolved immediately based on that roll's outcome, regardless of whether the table is in come-out or point phase. This distinguishes them from line, come, and standing number bets, which persist across multiple rolls.
Any craps
Any craps wins if the next roll is 2, 3, or 12 — the same three numbers that resolve a come-out pass line bet as a loss — paying 7:1. With three winning combinations out of 36 possible dice combinations, true odds would be roughly 11:1, making the 7:1 payout carry a substantial house edge around 11.1%.
Any seven
Any seven wins only if the next roll is a 7, paying 4:1. Since 7 is the single most probable total (six ways to make it out of 36 combinations), true odds would be 5:1, making the 4:1 payout carry a steep 16.67% house edge — among the worst bets available anywhere at the table.
Individual number bets (2, 3, 11, 12)
Each of these numbers can be bet individually as a one-roll proposition: 2 and 12 ("aces" and "boxcars") each have only one winning combination out of 36 and typically pay 30:1, for a house edge around 13.9%. 3 and 11 ("ace-deuce" and "yo") each have two winning combinations and typically pay 15:1, for a house edge around 11.1%.
Horn bets
A horn bet splits your stake evenly across four numbers simultaneously — 2, 3, 11, and 12 — paying out according to whichever one hits while losing the rest of the combined wager. It's essentially four individual proposition bets bundled into one wager, carrying a similarly high combined house edge to its individual components.
The C&E bet
C&E combines "any craps" and "eleven" into a single wager split evenly across both, functioning similarly to a horn bet in spirit — a single bet covering multiple long-shot outcomes at once, with a comparably high combined house edge.
Hardway bets
Hardways wager that a specific total (4, 6, 8, or 10) is rolled as two matching dice (a "hard" way — hard 8 is 4-4) before that same total is rolled any other way or before a 7 appears. Unlike most proposition bets, hardways persist across multiple rolls until resolved. Hard 4 and hard 10 pay 7:1 (house edge 11.1%); hard 6 and hard 8 pay 9:1 (house edge 9.09%).
Hop bets
A hop bet wagers on one specific exact dice combination on the very next roll — betting that the dice land showing precisely, say, a 2 and a 5, rather than any combination totaling 7. Hop bets on a "hard" (matching) combination typically pay 30:1; hop bets on an "easy" (non-matching) combination typically pay 15:1. These carry some of the highest house edges of any bet at the table.
Full proposition bet reference table
| Bet | Payout | House edge |
|---|---|---|
| Any craps | 7:1 | 11.1% |
| Any seven | 4:1 | 16.67% |
| 2 or 12 | 30:1 | 13.9% |
| 3 or 11 | 15:1 | 11.1% |
| Hard 6 or 8 | 9:1 | 9.09% |
| Hard 4 or 10 | 7:1 | 11.1% |
| Hop (easy) | 15:1 | ~11.1% |
| Hop (hard) | 30:1 | ~13.9% |
Why proposition bets exist despite the poor math
Every bet on this list carries a considerably higher house edge than pass line, odds, or even place bets on 6 and 8 — yet proposition bets remain popular specifically for their large payout-to-stake ratio and the genuine excitement of a big one-roll win. This isn't irrational as long as it's a deliberate, understood trade-off rather than a misunderstanding of the actual math involved.
Using proposition bets deliberately
If proposition bets appeal to you, a sensible approach is capping them at a small, predetermined portion of your overall session budget — treating them as a specific "excitement allocation" alongside a primary strategy built on better-value bets like pass line and odds, rather than letting them dominate your overall action. See craps strategy guide for how this balance fits into a broader session plan.
Proposition bets and pacing
Because most proposition bets resolve on a single roll, they create a much faster win/loss cadence than line or place bets — if you enjoy frequent, rapid resolution over the slower anticipation of a persisting point bet, proposition bets (despite their cost) offer a genuinely different pacing experience worth considering as part of what you value in a session, separate from pure expected-value optimization.
Frequently asked questions
Which proposition bet has the worst house edge? Any seven, at 16.67% — among the worst bets available anywhere at a craps table.
Do proposition bets resolve on every roll? Most do (one-roll bets), with hardways as the main exception, since they persist across multiple rolls until their specific hard combination or a 7 appears.
Is a horn bet the same as betting each number individually? Functionally similar — it splits a single wager evenly across 2, 3, 11, and 12, paying out according to whichever hits, similar to placing four smaller individual proposition bets at once.
Are hop bets worth the risk? They carry some of the highest house edges at the table and are best treated as a deliberate, small long-shot bet rather than a value-focused choice.
Why do proposition bets pay so much more than line bets? Their payouts reflect the genuinely lower probability of hitting a single specific roll outcome, but the payout ratios are set below true odds, building in a considerably higher house edge than line bets.
Should I avoid proposition bets entirely? Not necessarily — they're a legitimate way to add variance and excitement to a session, as long as you understand and accept their considerably higher cost compared to the table's better-value bets.
