Bet on whether the Player or Banker hand will land closer to nine - or on a Tie. The dealer draws the cards by fixed rules; your only job is choosing the bet. Banker is the smartest pick, with the lowest house edge.
What baccarat actually is
Baccarat is a guessing game, not a skill game. Two hands are dealt - one called Player, one called Banker - and you simply bet on which will finish with a total closer to nine. You are not "the player"; you are backing one of the two hands, exactly like betting on which of two horses will win. That is the whole game, and it is why it takes minutes to learn.
Card values
Totals are worked out from card values that are slightly different from most card games:
If a hand totals more than nine, you drop the first digit. A 7 and an 8 make 15, which becomes 5. A 9 and a 6 make 15 too - again 5. The closer to nine, the better.
The three bets
Before any cards are dealt you choose one of three bets:
Banker
Player
Tie
If you take one thing from this guide: back the Banker, and treat the Tie as a trap. Our house-edge calculator shows exactly why.
How a hand plays out
- You place your bet on Player, Banker or Tie.
- Two cards are dealt to each hand, face up.
- If either hand totals 8 or 9, that is a "natural" - the hand stands and the round ends.
- Otherwise, a third card may be drawn under the fixed drawing rules (the dealer does this for you).
- The hand closest to nine wins. Winning Player/Banker bets pay even money; a tie pushes those bets.
The third-card rule (in plain English)
- You never decide the third card - the dealer follows fixed rules.
- Player draws on 0-5, stands on 6-7. Simple.
- Banker acts second, so it draws with more information - a small permanent edge.
- That edge is why Banker is usually the best bet, and why it pays commission.
You never have to apply this yourself, but it explains the game. The Player hand is simple: it draws a third card on a total of 0-5 and stands on 6-7. The Banker hand is more complex - whether it draws depends on its own total and on the Player's third card. Because Banker acts second, with that extra information, it wins slightly more often. That small, permanent advantage is exactly why the casino charges commission on Banker wins. Read the full baccarat rules for the complete drawing table.
A worked example
Say the Player hand is dealt a 9 and a 4 - that totals 13, which becomes 3. The Banker hand gets a 7 and a 2 - that is 9, a natural. The round ends immediately: Banker wins, no third card is drawn, and any Banker bet pays out. Try a few rounds yourself in the free trainer and the pattern clicks fast.
Common beginner mistakes
- Chasing the Tie for its big payout - it is mathematically the worst bet on the table.
- Trusting "systems" like Martingale - they never beat the house edge. Our simulator proves it.
- Reading streaks as patterns - each hand is effectively independent.
- Ignoring the commission - it is small, but it is why Banker, not the headline payout, is the value bet.