How to Play Baccarat

Baccarat has an air of velvet ropes and high stakes, yet it is one of the simplest games on a casino floor. You do not play a hand in the way you would in blackjack or poker. You choose one of three bets, the cards are dealt by fixed rules, and the result is settled. The version found in most casinos and online lobbies is called punto banco, and that is the game described here. As always on this site, the guide is for adults aged 18 or over.

The three bets

Two hands are dealt each round, one labelled Player and one labelled Banker. Despite the names, you are not the player and the casino is not the banker; they are simply two hands. Before the deal, you bet on one of three outcomes:

• Player — the Player hand finishes closer to 9.
• Banker — the Banker hand finishes closer to 9.
• Tie — both hands finish on the same total.

That choice, and the size of your stake, is the only decision you make.

How the cards are counted

• Aces count as 1.
• Cards 2 to 9 count at face value.
• Tens, jacks, queens and kings count as 0.

Only the last digit of a total counts. A seven and an eight make 15, which is read as 5. A nine and a king make 9. No hand can go bust, and the highest possible total is 9.

How a round unfolds

1. Bets are placed on Player, Banker or Tie.
2. Two cards are dealt to each hand.
3. If either hand totals 8 or 9 on its first two cards, that is a natural. Both hands stand and the result is settled immediately.
4. Otherwise, the drawing rules decide whether either hand gets a third card. No hand ever receives more than three.
5. The hand closer to 9 wins. Equal totals produce a tie.

The third-card rules

These rules look fiddly, but the dealer or software applies them for you. Knowing them simply helps the game make sense.

The Player hand

With a total of 0 to 5, the Player hand draws a third card. With 6 or 7, it stands.

The Banker hand

If the Player hand stood, the Banker follows the same pattern: draw on 0 to 5, stand on 6 or 7. If the Player hand drew a third card, the Banker's move depends on its own total and on the value of that third card:

Payouts and commission

The commission exists because the Banker hand, thanks to the drawing rules, wins slightly more often than the Player hand. Some tables advertise "no commission" baccarat; they recover the difference another way, often by paying only half on a Banker win with a total of 6. Read the table rules rather than assuming a no-commission game is cheaper.

The house edge on each bet

For the standard eight-deck game with a 5% Banker commission, the house edge is roughly 1.06% on Banker and 1.24% on Player. Those are among the lower figures you will find in a casino. The Tie bet is a different story: at 8 to 1 its edge is over 14%, which is why the generous-looking payout is less attractive than it seems. These are long-run averages. A single session can go well or badly regardless, and nothing in the cards that have already appeared changes the chances on the next round.

Scorecards and patterns

Many tables show a record of past results, sometimes in elaborate grids. They can be fun to look at, but each round is independent, and a long run of Banker wins does not make a Player win "due". Systems that raise the stake after a loss do not alter the house edge; they only make losing sessions more expensive. If you want a calmer approach to stakes, our piece on what bankroll management means is a better place to start.

Is baccarat right for you?

If you like a quick game with few decisions, baccarat suits that taste. If you would rather have choices that shape the result, blackjack gives you more to think about. Either way, decide on a spending limit before the first hand, ignore the Tie bet unless you accept its price, and leave the table once your budget for the day has gone.