How baccarat works
Baccarat is the simplest card game on this site to play and the one with the most misunderstood rules. You do not make any decisions after betting. You pick a side, the cards come out, and a fixed set of rules decides whether a third card is drawn. That is the whole game.
Cards count at face value, with aces worth one and tens and courts worth nothing. Totals are taken modulo ten, so a seven and a six make three rather than thirteen. Two cards each are dealt to player and banker. If either shows eight or nine that is a natural and the coup ends immediately.
Otherwise the drawing rules apply. The player draws on a total of zero to five and stands on six or seven. The banker's third card then depends on both its own total and the player's third card, which is the part everyone half-remembers: it draws on zero to two always, on three unless the player drew an eight, on four against a player third card of two to seven, on five against four to seven, on six against six or seven, and stands on seven. Those rules are not house policy, they are the game.
Banker wins slightly more often than player, which is why a winning banker bet pays nineteen to twenty rather than even money. That five percent commission is precisely what stops the better side from being a free lunch.
The odds
| Outcome | Frequency | Pays |
|---|---|---|
| Banker | 45.9% | 19 : 20 |
| Player | 44.6% | 1 : 1 |
| Tie | 9.5% | 8 : 1 |
| Bet | Edge | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| Banker | 1.06% | The best bet on the table |
| Player | 1.24% | Barely worse, and no commission |
| Tie | 14.4% | Avoid |
How to play it sensibly
- Bet banker and stop thinking about it. Banker carries a 1.06% edge against player's 1.24%, even after the commission. Over any meaningful number of coups it is simply the better side, and no pattern reading improves on it.
- Never take the tie. Eight to one sounds generous against a 9.5% event, and it is not: the true price would be about nine and a half to one. The tie bet carries a 14% edge, more than ten times the other two.
- Ignore the scoreboard. Coups are independent. A run of six bankers tells you nothing about the seventh, and the bead plates real casinos provide exist to encourage exactly the mistake you are being tempted into.
- Do not chase a loss with a bigger bet. Doubling after a loss feels like it must work and fails for a simple reason: the run of losses that breaks you is rarer than the small wins, but it is not rare enough, and it costs more than everything it recovered.
- Treat the bank as the score. There is nothing to cash out here. The only thing your chips buy is the distance to a million, so play the side with the best odds and let it run.
Frequently asked questions
Is baccarat a game of skill?
No. After you choose a side you make no further decisions; the drawing rules are fixed and identical every coup. The only choice that affects your result is which bet you place.
Why does banker pay less than even money?
Because banker wins more often. Acting second with knowledge of the player's third card is a real advantage, and the five percent commission is what prices it back to roughly fair.
What are the third card rules?
The player draws on zero to five and stands on six or seven. The banker draws on zero to two, on three unless the player's third card was an eight, on four against a player third card of two to seven, on five against four to seven, on six against six or seven, and stands on seven.
Is any real money involved?
None. There is no payment, no purchase, no prize and no cash-out. Chips are a score, and the only thing they unlock is a visual theme on this site.
Does this share a bank with the other table games?
Yes. Blackjack, baccarat and roulette all draw on one balance, so the million is a single long run across the three rather than three separate ones.