Cee-lo dice game: how the banker bet works

Cee-lo is a dice game where a banker takes bets against the other players. Under the standard banker rules, the banker keeps about 2.5 cents of every dollar bet. On $40 that is about $1 of expected edge for the banker. Below: which rolls decide a round and where the edge comes from.

This guide covers one version: banker against players, three ordinary six-sided dice, even-money payouts and no commission. Casino versions with other payouts are not covered.

What is cee-lo, and who is the banker?

Cee-lo is a dice game in which you bet against the banker, not against the other players. The banker accepts the bets and rolls first. If the banker role passes to another player, the edge passes with it.

At even money, a win earns a net profit equal to your bet; a loss costs you your bet. The banker's roll can settle the round immediately. Otherwise, the banker sets a point and each player rolls to settle their own bet against it.

The rules used here are attributed to Wizard of Odds, Cee Lo page, updated August 3, 2026. Wikipedia’s Cee-lo article gives about 2.7%; that figure rests on a third-party script, while the exact enumeration gives 2.469%.

Which rolls win or lose instantly?

An instant win is a roll that immediately wins for the person rolling: three of a kind, 4-5-6, or a pair plus a separate die showing 6. An instant loss immediately loses for the person rolling: 1-2-3, or a pair plus a separate die showing 1.

• Three of a kind: all three dice show the same value.
• Pair plus 6: two matching dice and a separate 6, such as 3-3-6.
• Pair plus 1: two matching dice and a separate 1, such as 4-4-1.

The order of the dice does not change the result: 4-5-6 counts in any order.

If the banker rolls an instant result, it settles the bets immediately. If a player gets a turn after the banker sets a point, that player's instant result settles their bet against the banker.

What is a point, and when do you re-roll?

A point is a pair plus one separate die showing 2–5; the separate die determines the point's value. A re-roll means rolling all three dice again because the result is neither an instant win, an instant loss nor a point.

For example, 3-3-4 sets a point of 4. The pair's value does not determine how strong the point is. A roll of 2-4-6 requires a re-roll.

After the banker sets a point, you roll until you get a decisive result. If you also set a point, the higher point wins.

Diagram: cee-lo rolls that win, lose, set a point or re-rollStudy diagram. Of 216 rolls, 108 decide the round or set a point; the other 108 are re-rolls.

Who wins when the points are equal?

Neither side wins: equal points produce a tie (push), meaning your bet is returned without a net profit.

Compare the points, not the pairs. For example, 2-2-4 and 5-5-4 both have a point of 4, so the bet is returned.

How big is the banker's edge really?

Under these rules, the banker edge is 2.47% per dollar bet; the unrounded figure is 2.469%. The biggest influence is the tie rule: if the banker wins equal points, the edge is +10.19%; if the player wins them, it is −5.25%.

This is house edge in the mathematical sense: the average share of the stake retained by the side accepting the bet, here the banker. The 2.47% is an edge you can recompute from win and loss probabilities, the same calculation principle used by the house edge calculator.

Of 216 possible ordered rolls, 108 produce an instant result or a point, while 108 require a re-roll. The decisive-result probabilities below therefore use 108 as their denominator.

After accounting for the player's turn, the banker wins 47.38%, loses 44.91%, and ties 7.72% of rounds. At even money, with ties returning the bet:

47.38% − 44.91% = 2.47% banker edge.

Edge is not the same as the chance to win a round. The banker wins 47.38% of rounds, loses 44.91%, and ties 7.72%: edge counts money, not how often you win.

For the opening $40 example, assuming even money, no commission and ties returned, the calculation using the unrounded edge of 2.469% is $40 × 2.469% ≈ $0.99, rounded to the nearest cent—about $1 of expected edge. This is a long-run average, not a promised result for a round or session; the session bankroll calculator addresses session bankroll planning rather than treating that average as a guaranteed return.

Changing one rule can change both the size of the edge and which side it favors. Each alternative below changes only the stated rule.

Here, “pair plus 6” and “pair plus 1” mean the separate die shows that value, not that the matching dice do. Positive edges favor the banker; negative edges favor the player. Under the stated rules, the banker has the edge; that conclusion does not automatically apply to another version.

All displayed percentages are rounded, so totals may differ slightly from 100%.

Where does the banker's edge come from?

In this model, the entire banker edge comes from instant wins on three of a kind. If three of a kind instead requires a re-roll, the edge becomes 0.00%.

The banker has 27 instant-win rolls:

• Three of a kind: 6.
• 4-5-6: 6.
• A pair plus a separate 6: 15.

There are 21 instant-loss rolls:

• 1-2-3: 6.
• A pair plus a separate 1: 15.

Three of a kind accounts for the difference between 27 and 21. The banker rolls first, so an instant win ends the round before the player can respond.

Craps is a different dice game, but the same edge logic applies: account for outcome probabilities and payouts. See how to play craps for that game's rules.

How can you check the calculation yourself?

You can check it by enumerating all 216 ordered rolls, then accounting for the player's turn whenever the banker sets a point. Different arrangements of the same dice values count separately in this enumeration.

1. List every ordered combination of the three dice.
2. Classify each as an instant win, instant loss, point or re-roll.
3. Check the totals: 27 instant wins, 21 instant losses, 60 points and 108 re-rolls.
4. Exclude re-rolls when forming the distribution of decisive results, leaving 108 outcomes.
5. For each banker point, account for the player's results, including repeated rolls and the returned bet on equal points.
6. Compare the final banker win, loss and tie probabilities, then apply the even-money payout.

As a cross-check, the branch in which the banker sets a point contributes these probabilities to the whole round:

These are not conditional probabilities within the player's turn: they already include the probability that the banker first sets a point.

The same enumeration method works for craps; the craps payout calculator applies that game's own rules, so cee-lo numbers do not carry over.