Baccarat is the favorite game of high rollers worldwide—and for good reason. It's simple to play, requires no skill decisions, and offers one of the lowest house edges of any casino game. You simply bet on Player, Banker, or Tie, and watch the cards reveal.

How Baccarat Works

Two hands are dealt: Player and Banker. Each hand receives 2-3 cards. The goal is to bet on which hand will total closest to 9.

Card Values

• 2-9 = Face value
• 10, J, Q, K = 0 points
• Ace = 1 point

If a hand totals more than 9, only the last digit counts. Example: 7 + 8 = 15, which counts as 5.

The Three Bets

Why Banker Is Best

The Simple Strategy

Optimal baccarat strategy is remarkably simple:

1. Bet on Banker every hand
2. Never bet on Tie
3. That's it

There's no skill, no counting, no strategy adjustments. The game is pure luck with fixed odds on every hand.

Scorecard Patterns

Casinos provide scorecards showing past results. Common patterns like "Big Road" and "Big Eye Boy" are tracking systems players use.

Side Bets to Avoid

Most baccarat tables offer side bets with high payouts:

• Player/Banker Pair – House edge ~10%
• Perfect Pair – House edge ~25%
• Lucky 6 – House edge varies, usually 10%+
• Dragon Bonus – House edge ~2-10%

All side bets have significantly worse odds than the main game.

Worked Example: A Typical Shoe

Say you sit down at an eight-deck mini-baccarat table with a $100 bankroll and flat-bet $10 on Banker every hand. A typical shoe dealt at a live table produces around 70 to 80 hands. Over 80 hands, your expected loss is roughly 80 times $10 times 1.06 percent, or about $8.50. Variance is substantial, meaning you might be up $60 or down $40 at any point during the shoe, but the long-run math is clear. The same 80 hands on Tie at the same stake would carry an expected loss of about $115 — more than your entire bankroll. That is how quickly a 14.4 percent edge destroys a session.

Common Mistakes Players Make

• Switching bets based on the scoreboard. Banker hitting five times in a row does not make Player more likely next hand. The shoe has no memory once the cards are shuffled.
• Accepting "no commission" baccarat without checking the rules. Some variants pay Banker 6 at 0.5 to 1 instead of 1 to 1, which pushes the house edge above 1.46 percent — worse than the commission version.
• Playing mini-baccarat faster than big baccarat. Mini-baccarat can run 150+ hands per hour. Flat-betting $25 at that pace costs about $40 per hour in expected loss versus $20 at a slower big table.
• Tipping dealers with Tie bets. A common casino ritual, but it is effectively donating at 14.4 percent. Tip directly with chips instead.