Bankroll Management: Bet Sizing and Limits

Strategy isn't only about which bets to make — it's also about surviving the variance long enough for good bets to pay off. Even the best bet on the table still loses plenty of individual rolls or hands. Bankroll management is what keeps a losing streak from becoming a wipeout, in craps or blackjack alike.

Set a session bankroll before you sit down

Decide how much you're willing to risk for a session, and treat it as gone the moment you sit down — mentally, it's already spent, and anything left over is a bonus. A common guideline is to bring at least 20-40x your typical bet size, since a cold streak can run longer than feels reasonable before the table turns.

Size your bets to your bankroll, not your excitement

A hot streak is exactly when it's tempting to increase bet size — but bet sizing should be planned before the session, not adjusted mid-streak based on emotion. A simple, steady approach (like flat betting the same amount every round, or increasing only after a full win) is easier to sustain than chasing a feeling.

Put extra money where the edge is lowest

If a game gives you a lever with little or no house edge, that's where extra action belongs — not in a bigger flat bet. In craps, Odds bets carry no house edge at all, so a $10 Pass Line with $30 in Odds is a much better-shaped bet than a flat $40 Pass Line with no Odds. See the Pass Line and Odds guide for the mechanics.

How this changes for blackjack

Blackjack doesn't have a zero-edge lever like Odds — basic strategy just keeps the built-in edge small. That makes plain bet sizing carry more of the weight. The bigger risk is variance from doubling down and splitting: both commit more money to a single hand than your flat bet suggests, and a stretch of good double-down and split opportunities can multiply your exposure fast. Size your base unit assuming a run of hands where several of them get doubled or split, not just your average hand.

Know your stop-loss and your walk-away win

Pick both numbers ahead of time: a loss limit where you stop for the session, and a win target where you lock in profit instead of giving it back to variance. Both games on this site can be played close to even — but no bet overcomes a player who doesn't know when to stop.

Use the free craps table or the free blackjack table to practice a fixed bankroll and bet-sizing plan risk-free — set your starting bankroll, pick a strategy, and see how it actually plays out over dozens of rounds.