Baccarat looks formal, but it’s one of the simplest casino games to play. You don’t make any decisions once the cards are dealt. You just choose which hand to back.
It also has one of the lowest house edges in the casino, as long as you stick to the right bets. Here are the rules, the odds and the bets to avoid.
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1The aim of the game
Two hands are dealt: the Player and the Banker. Despite the names, you aren’t either of them. You bet on which hand will finish closer to 9, or on a Tie.
2Card values
- Aces count as 1.
- Cards 2 to 9 count as their face value.
- 10s, Jacks, Queens and Kings count as 0.
Only the last digit of the total counts. A 7 and an 8 make 15, which counts as 5. So the highest possible total is 9.
3How the third card works
Each hand gets two cards. If either hand totals 8 or 9 (a “natural”), both hands stand. Otherwise, fixed rules decide whether a third card is drawn. In short, the Player draws on 0 to 5 and stands on 6 or 7; the Banker’s draw depends on its own total and the Player’s third card.
You don’t need to learn these rules. The dealer or the software applies them automatically, and you can’t change them.
4The bets and their odds
| Bet | Pays | House edge |
|---|---|---|
| Banker | 1:1, minus 5% commission | 1.06% |
| Player | 1:1 | 1.24% |
| Tie | 8:1 | about 14.4% |
| Player or Banker pair (side bet) | usually 11:1 | about 11% |
The Banker wins slightly more often than the Player because of the drawing rules. That’s why the casino takes 5% commission on Banker wins. Even with the commission, Banker is the cheapest bet on the table.
5No-commission baccarat
Many online tables offer “no commission” baccarat. Instead of taking 5% from every Banker win, they pay only half your stake when the Banker wins with a total of 6. The Banker edge rises to about 1.46%. It’s still a reasonable bet, but slightly worse than standard baccarat.
6Scorecards and patterns
Live baccarat tables show scorecards, sometimes called roads, with the results of previous hands. They look like they reveal trends, but each hand is dealt from a shuffled shoe and past results don’t predict the next one. Following streaks is a version of the gambler’s fallacy.
7Our baccarat tips
- Back the Banker or the Player. Both have edges close to 1%.
- Avoid the Tie bet. The 8:1 payout looks generous, but it costs over 14% on average.
- Treat side bets as extras. Most carry edges above 10%.
- Watch the pace. Digital baccarat deals very fast, so your hourly cost adds up quickly.
Like most table games, baccarat usually counts little towards wagering requirements, so check the offer terms before you play with bonus funds.