Baccarat Strategy Guide

Baccarat is the simplest game in the casino to play: you place one of three bets — Player, Banker, or Tie — and the cards play themselves out by fixed rules. There is nothing to decide once the cards are dealt.

Despite its high-roller reputation, baccarat has one of the lowest house edges of any game, provided you stick to the Banker or Player bet and leave the Tie alone.

How to Play

• Bet on Player, Banker, or Tie before the cards are dealt. Two cards go to each hand.
• Card values: aces are 1, tens and face cards are 0, everything else is face value. Only the last digit of the total counts, so an 8 and a 7 (15) make 5.
• A first-two-card total of 8 or 9 is a 'natural' — both hands stand. Otherwise fixed rules decide whether each hand draws a third card; you never choose.
• The higher total wins. Player pays 1:1, Banker pays 1:1 minus a 5% commission, and a Tie pays 8:1 while pushing the Player and Banker bets.

Pay Tables

Strategy

• Bet Banker. It wins slightly more often than Player, giving it the lowest house edge (about 1.06%) even after the 5% commission.
• Player (about 1.24%) is a fine second choice with no commission to track.
• Never bet the Tie — its 8:1 payout hides a ~14% house edge, one of the worst bets in the casino.
• There is no skill in the drawing, so the only 'strategy' is bet selection and bankroll discipline; ignore trend-tracking scorecards.

House Edge

The Banker bet has the lowest house edge at about 1.06% (even after the 5% commission on wins), Player is about 1.24%, and the Tie is a sucker bet at roughly 14.4%. Over the long run Banker costs you the least.

Tips

• Default to the Banker bet — it wins more often than Player and carries the lowest edge.
• Player is a perfectly good alternative if you'd rather skip the commission math.
• Skip the Tie and any pair side bets; their eye-catching payouts come with huge house edges.
• Card values only count the last digit, and a natural 8 or 9 ends the hand immediately.