Field Bets in Craps: How They Work

A field bet is a one-roll bet on the next throw. You put chips in the field box, the next roll happens, and if it's one of the field numbers you win, otherwise you lose. The bet doesn't carry over; win or lose, it's settled on a single throw.

The numbers in the field are 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11 and 12, seven different numbers, more than half of the totals you can roll. Looking at it, you'd think you must win more often than you lose: seven winners versus four losers (5, 6, 7 and 8). That's the trap. The numbers that win the field are mostly the rare ones, and the numbers that lose are the common ones. The seven field numbers don't actually cover the majority of rolls, even though they cover the majority of possible totals.

The field numbers (2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, 12) have 1, 2, 3, 4, 3, 2 and 1 ways to roll respectively, adding up to 16 ways out of 36. The non-field numbers (5, 6, 7, 8) have 4, 5, 6 and 5 ways, adding up to 20 out of 36. So out of 36 possible rolls, 16 win the field and 20 lose it. The field loses 4 more times than it wins out of every 36 rolls, about an 11 percent gap on raw probability.

The casino offsets some of this with the bonus payouts, but the math doesn't catch up. If your casino pays 2 to 1 on both the 2 and 12, the house edge is 5.56 percent, worse than the pass line at 1.41 percent, worse than the place bet on the 6 and 8 at 1.52 percent, even worse than the place bet on the 5 and 9 at 4 percent. If your casino pays 3 to 1 on the 12 (more common in Vegas these days), the edge drops to 2.78 percent, still much worse than the pass line.

The field bet is a masterpiece of casino game design, set up to feel like you're winning more than you are.

• It's one roll. The result comes immediately, every single throw. That fast resolution feels like action even when it's going against you.
• It covers seven numbers. The box is huge and filled with numbers, so your eye sees lots of winners. That those winners are the rare numbers doesn't register the way the visual count of seven does.
• The 2 and 12 bonuses feel like a jackpot. When you hit one, you collect double or triple. But they only come up once every 36 rolls each, and the bonuses aren't enough to overcome losing more often than you win.
• Wins are visible, losses are invisible. When you win, the dealer pays you in chips you see coming back. When you lose, the dealer just takes your chip and moves on. Over a session, your brain remembers the wins and forgets the losses.

This is why people who bet the field consistently underestimate how much they're losing on it. They feel like they break even or come out ahead. The math says they don't, and it wins over hundreds of rolls.

The 2 and 12 each have one combination out of 36, coming up about once every 36 rolls. The 2 is snake eyes (two ones), the 12 is boxcars (two sixes), the rarest rolls. If your casino pays 2 to 1 on both, a $5 field bet that hits the 2 or 12 wins $10 instead of $5, an extra $5 each time.

The bonus sounds like it should make up the gap. It doesn't; it reduces the gap without eliminating it. Over 36 $5 field bets you wager $180, and at a 5.56 percent house edge you expect to lose about $10 over those bets, ending with roughly $170. The wins and losses don't cancel out: the casino takes its cut and you grind down slowly. Even with triple-pay on one number, the field still has a worse edge than most other bets at the table.

Casinos offer slightly different field rules, mostly around what the 2 and 12 pay. The standard version pays 2 to 1 on both, for a 5.56 percent edge. An improved version pays 3 to 1 on either the 2 or 12 (typically the 12) and 2 to 1 on the other, dropping the edge to 2.78 percent. Some Vegas casinos pay 3 to 1 on both, which makes the edge 0 percent, a fair bet. Those tables are rare, mostly at smaller downtown casinos or specific Strip casinos using the better rules as a marketing draw.

Online, the rules vary by software, so check before you play. The difference between 5.56 percent and 2.78 percent is significant if you're going to make this bet. For this article I'm assuming the standard 2-to-1 version, since that's what you're most likely to find.

Knowing all this, why do so many players keep making field bets? Psychology. The field is fast, covers a lot of numbers visually, and gives you the occasional big hit. The math is bad, but the experience is engaging.

People also treat the field as a hedge against pass line bets during the come out roll, since the two together cover most come out outcomes. But it's not really a good hedge: you're paying for the field's bad math to slightly reduce variance on your pass line bet, and the long-term cost adds up to more than the variance protection saves you. The other reason is excitement, a result on every throw. If you want fast action, running multiple come bets gives it to you with much better math.

One strategy that uses the field is the iron cross: combining field bets with place bets on the 5, 6 and 8 to win on every roll except a 7. Place $5 on the 5, $6 on the 6, $6 on the 8, and $5 in the field, about $22 total. Out of 11 possible totals, only the 7 produces a complete loss; every other roll wins something. This sounds amazing, the bet that wins on every roll.

The math is bad. The combined house edge on the iron cross is around 2.5 percent, worse than just betting the pass line and place bets. On most non-7 rolls you win small amounts while losing some of your other bets at the same time, the field wins partially offset by losing field bets on the place-bet hits, and the 7 wipes out everything, with the wipeouts adding up faster than the small wins compound. It looks like a guaranteed winner because of the framing. It isn't. Smart craps strategy is built around low-edge bets, not gimmicks. Avoid it.

Honestly, mostly no. The field has a worse edge than the bets you should be making, and there's no scenario where it's the optimal play. The exceptions are narrow: if your casino offers the 3-to-1-on-both version, the field is a fair bet you can play; if you're using it as a one-time hedge in a specific situation; or if you just want fast action and accept the higher edge. For most players most of the time, skip it. Bet your pass line, take odds, make come bets, place the 6 and 8 if you want. The field is not part of a winning craps strategy.

The field is self-service: you drop your own chips in the field box, which is large and clearly marked in the middle of your end of the table. The bet is good for one roll only. If you win, the dealer pushes your winnings next to your bet; pick up everything or leave the original chip for another go. If you lose, the dealer takes the chip. Online, click the field box and your chip denomination, same as a live table but faster.

The field bet is the most successful trap on the craps table. It looks like a great bet, pays out often enough to feel good, and the bonus payouts give you the occasional big hit, and the math is just bad enough that you'll lose money slowly without ever realizing how much. The standard field bet has a 5.56 percent house edge, multiple times worse than every bet recommended in the previous articles. Even the best version, with 3 to 1 on both 2 and 12, only matches the pass line, and that version is rare. Skip it, or play it sparingly when you're bored, but don't build a strategy around it. The next article moves into the practical side of being at the table: what to do when the dice come to you and you become the shooter.