Players
2 or more
Equipment
3 six-sided dice
Length
Rounds last under a minute
How to play, step by step
- Pick a banker. One player banks the game. The banker covers every other player's bet, so they need the biggest stack at the table.
- Players place bets. Everyone else puts up a stake against the banker. The banker can cap the total they are willing to cover.
- Banker rolls first. The banker throws all three dice against a wall or into a bowl. The roll must be clean — dice that land cocked or leave the area are re-thrown.
- Read the result. If the roll is a scoring combination, it stands. If not, the same player rolls again until a scoring combination appears.
- Each player rolls in turn. Every bettor throws until they hit a scoring combination, then compares it to the banker's.
- Settle the bets. Higher rank beats lower rank. Identical rolls push and the stake is returned.
Cee-Lo ranking, strongest to weakest
| 4-5-6 | Instant win — beats everything |
| Trips (1-1-1 through 6-6-6) | Instant win; higher trips beat lower trips |
| Pair + a point die | The odd die is your 'point' — 6 is best, 1 is worst |
| 1-2-3 | Instant loss — beats nothing |
| Anything else | No score — roll again |
The ranking order in plain English
There are only four things a Cee-Lo roll can be: an automatic win, an automatic loss, a point, or nothing at all. 4-5-6 wins instantly. Three of a kind wins instantly and beats every point. A pair plus a fifth die gives you that odd die as your point — a pair of twos plus a six is 'point six', which is the best point available. 1-2-3 loses instantly. Everything else is a non-roll and you throw again.
Banker rules that stop arguments
- Set the maximum the banker will cover before the first throw, not after someone wins big.
- The bank usually passes after the banker loses, or rotates every fixed number of rounds — agree which before you start.
- A banker who rolls 4-5-6 or trips normally sweeps the whole table at once.
- A banker who rolls 1-2-3 pays everyone, regardless of what the bettors were holding.
The odds nobody at the table has actually worked out
There are 216 equally likely outcomes with three dice. Six of them are 4-5-6 (2.78%). Six are trips (2.78%). Six are 1-2-3 (2.78%). Ninety are a pair with an odd die (41.67%). The remaining 108 — exactly half of all rolls — are nothing and get re-thrown. That is why Cee-Lo feels fast but stalls constantly: half the throws are dead.
Because point rolls dominate, most Cee-Lo money moves on whether your odd die beat theirs. Point 6 wins about 5 in 6 point-vs-point matchups; point 1 loses about 5 in 6.
Why banking is the profitable seat
The banker wins ties in some house rule sets, sweeps the table on an instant win, and covers many small bets rather than one large one — which means variance works in their favour over a long session. If you are new, take a bettor's seat first. If you are the deepest stack at the table, bank.
Common variants
- Ties push in most games, but some tables let the banker take ties — a huge edge, so ask first.
- Some sets rank 4-5-6 below trips. Both are common; agree before money moves.
- Point 6 sometimes pays double, and 1-2-3 sometimes pays double against you.
Frequently asked questions
Is Cee-Lo a game of skill?
Barely. The only decisions are how much to bet and whether to take the bank. The rolls themselves are pure chance.
What beats 4-5-6 in Cee-Lo?
Nothing. In the standard rule set 4-5-6 is the highest roll in the game and an instant win.
How many dice do you need for Cee-Lo?
Three standard six-sided dice, thrown together.
Keep playing
Run the three-dice odds yourself, or browse the full dice game rules library and our free dice tools.