How to Play Baccarat: The Three Bets and Why Only Two Are Sensible
Baccarat has three main bets and the maths on them is settled. On an eight-deck shoe the Banker bet carries a house edge of about 1.06%, the Player bet about 1.24%, and the Tie bet — paying 8 to 1 — about 14.4%. Bet Banker, accept the 5% commission, and never bet the Tie.
Baccarat looks intimidating and is one of the simplest games in the casino. You are not dealt a hand and you make no decisions about how it plays. You choose which of two hands will win, and the rules do the rest.
The rules #
Two hands are dealt: Player and Banker. Despite the names, neither belongs to you — they are just labels for the two sides, and you may bet on either.
Card values: number cards count face value, tens and picture cards count zero, aces count one. Hand totals are taken modulo ten, meaning only the last digit counts. A 7 and an 8 make 15, which is a hand worth 5. The highest possible total is 9.
Both hands receive two cards. If either totals 8 or 9, that is a “natural” and the hand ends immediately. Otherwise, fixed drawing rules decide whether a third card is dealt — first to Player, then to Banker, depending on what Player drew. Those rules are not optional and not yours to influence; the dealer applies them.
This is the point most new players miss: there is no strategy in baccarat beyond choosing which bet to place. Once your stake is down, the hand plays itself.
The three bets #
| Bet | Pays | House edge | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Banker | 1 to 1 less 5% commission | ~1.06% | The best bet in the game |
| Player | 1 to 1 | ~1.24% | Fine. Marginally worse |
| Tie | 8 to 1 | ~14.4% | Avoid entirely |
Figures are for a standard eight-deck shoe; a different deck count moves them slightly.
Why Banker wins more, and why it is taxed for it
The drawing rules are asymmetric. Banker acts after seeing whether Player drew a third card and what it was, which is a genuine informational advantage. Banker therefore wins slightly more than half of all decided hands.
The casino cannot offer a bet that wins more than half at even money, so it charges 5% commission on winning Banker bets. A £10 Banker win returns £9.50 profit rather than £10. That commission is precisely what converts a player-favourable bet into a 1.06% house edge — and even after it, Banker remains the better of the two.
People avoid Banker because the commission feels like a penalty. It is the opposite: the commission exists because the bet is good.
The Tie bet
A tie happens roughly once in ten hands. Paying 8 to 1 on a roughly 1-in-10 event is a substantial shortfall, producing a house edge around 14.4% — more than thirteen times the Banker bet. Some tables pay 9 to 1, which improves it to roughly 4.8%, still by far the worst bet available.
It is offered because it is the one bet on the table with a large payout, and large payouts sell.
Commission-free baccarat #
Some tables advertise no commission on Banker. The 5% is not waived — it is relocated. Typically a winning Banker hand totalling 6 pays only half, and that single change costs more than the commission it replaced, pushing the edge above the standard game’s 1.06%.
If a table offers no commission, find the rule that pays for it before you sit down. There always is one.
Roads, patterns and why they do nothing #
Baccarat carries more ritual around pattern-tracking than any other casino game. Live tables display scoreboards — the big road, bead plate, and others — recording every result in the shoe. Players watch them intently for streaks, alternations and “trends”.
None of it predicts anything. Each hand is dealt from a shuffled shoe and previous results do not change the composition of what remains in any way a player can exploit. A run of nine Banker wins does not make Player “due”, and it does not make Banker “hot”. Both statements are the same error, and it is the gambler’s fallacy in a formal costume.
The scoreboards are provided because they increase engagement and time at the table. They are decoration presented as data.
Side bets #
Perfect Pairs, Dragon Bonus, Either Pair and similar side bets sit alongside the main game with house edges typically in the mid single figures to well above ten per cent — many times the 1.06% you came for. Adding one to every hand means you are no longer playing a low-edge game, whatever the main bet says.
What baccarat costs #
Betting Banker flat is one of the cheapest ways to spend time in a casino: about £1.06 per £100 staked. A live table dealing perhaps 40 hands an hour at £10 a hand exposes £400, for an expected cost around £4.20 an hour.
That is still a loss. There is no version of baccarat with a positive expectation for the player, no bet selection that produces one, and no pattern that changes it. What you can control is which bet you place and how long you sit there.
- Bet Banker. Accept the commission.
- Never bet the Tie, and skip the side bets.
- Check whether a “no commission” table pays 6 at half.
- Ignore the roads entirely.
- Set a loss limit before you start.
If it stops being entertainment, the support listed on our safer gambling page is free and open 24 hours a day.
The third-card rules in full #
You never apply these yourself — the dealer does — but knowing them removes the impression that something arbitrary is happening, and it explains why Banker has the edge.
Player hand. Stands on 6 or 7. Draws a third card on 0 to 5. Either hand totalling 8 or 9 on the first two cards is a natural and both hands stand.
Banker hand. If Player stood, Banker simply draws on 0 to 5 and stands on 6 or 7. If Player drew a third card, Banker’s action depends on both its own total and the card Player drew:
| Banker total | Banker draws when Player’s third card is |
|---|---|
| 0, 1, 2 | Always draws |
| 3 | Anything except 8 |
| 4 | 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7 |
| 5 | 4, 5, 6 or 7 |
| 6 | 6 or 7 |
| 7 | Always stands |
Read the table and the asymmetry is obvious: Banker decides after seeing what Player drew. That single piece of information is the whole reason Banker wins more often, and the whole reason it is taxed 5%.
Table formats #
- Punto banco is the standard form online and in most casinos — the house deals and no player choice exists beyond the bet.
- Mini baccarat is the same game on a smaller table with a faster dealer and lower minimums. Faster means more hands per hour, which means more total stake exposed to the edge.
- Squeeze formats slow the reveal deliberately, with the cards turned over gradually. It is theatre, and it is also the cheapest version to play per hour simply because so few hands are dealt.
The edge is identical across all three. Pace is the only variable, and slower is cheaper for a fixed session length.
Which baccarat bet is best?
Banker, at roughly 1.06% house edge on an eight-deck shoe, even after the 5% commission. Player is close behind at about 1.24%. The Tie, at about 14.4%, is the worst bet on the table.
Why is there a commission on Banker bets?
Because the Banker hand acts last and therefore wins slightly more than half of decided hands. Without the 5% charge the bet would favour the player, so the commission is what makes it profitable for the casino — and it is still the best bet available.
Do the scoreboards help predict the next hand?
No. The big road, bead plate and the rest record history and predict nothing. Each hand is independent for practical purposes, and no pattern of past results changes what comes next.
Is commission-free baccarat better value?
Usually worse. The commission is normally replaced by paying winning Banker hands of 6 at half, which typically costs more than the 5% it removed. Check the rule before sitting down.
Can I count cards in baccarat?
In theory the shoe composition shifts slightly as cards are dealt, but the effect is far too small and too rare to overcome the edge in practice. Baccarat is not a countable game in any useful sense.
Does bet size affect the odds?
No. The house edge is a percentage, so staking more scales your expected loss proportionally. It changes the size of the swings, never their direction.