Online baccarat
Baccarat has some of the simplest rules on any casino floor. You back whichever side you think finishes closest to nine, with no decisions to make once the hand begins. This page covers scoring, bets and payouts in full.
The basics
Each round deals two hands — Player and Banker. You do not hold cards; you choose which side to back. Whichever finishes closest to nine wins.
Scoring
Only the units digit counts. If a total exceeds nine, drop the tens digit.
| Card | Value |
|---|---|
| Ace | 1 |
| 2 to 9 | Face value |
| 10, J, Q, K | 0 |
So 7 and 8 total 15, which scores 5. A king and a nine score 9, the highest possible total, because face cards are worth zero.
Bets and payouts
A standard table offers three main options. The house edge figures below are the standard values for an eight-deck shoe.
| Bet | Pays | House edge |
|---|---|---|
| Banker | 1 to 1 less 5% commission | about 1.06% |
| Player | 1 to 1 | about 1.24% |
| Tie at 8 to 1 | 8 to 1 | about 14.4% |
| Tie at 9 to 1 | 9 to 1 | about 4.8% |
The 5% commission deducted from Banker wins exists to offset that side's structural advantage. Without it, Banker would be so favourable that the game would not balance.
What house edge actually means A 1.06% edge means that across 10,000 staked, the expected loss is about 106 over the long run. It is not a prediction about any single hand, and not a guarantee you will lose exactly that.
The third-card rule
When neither opening hand ends the round outright, the system decides whether a third card is dealt, following a fixed rule no one can override.
- If either side totals 8 or 9 from its first two cards, the round ends immediately.
- Otherwise the Player hand draws on 0 to 5 and stands on 6 or 7.
- The Banker hand's decision depends on its own total together with the Player's third card.
You never need to know this to play — the full table is in our baccarat rules guide for anyone who wants to follow the logic.
On reading the result grid
Baccarat tables display a history of past results, which many players use to hunt for patterns. The cards are shuffled and each round is independent, so those grids record what has happened rather than indicate what will.
Equally, betting patterns that increase stakes after consecutive losses do not reduce the house edge. What they reliably do is raise the chance of exhausting a budget within a handful of rounds.
Every game carries a built-in house edge. Set a budget before you start — see responsible gaming.
FAQ
Common questions
Is Banker really the better bet?
Mathematically it carries a slightly lower house edge — roughly 1.06% against about 1.24% for Player — even after the 5% commission. The gap is small, and it does not make any individual hand more likely to win.
Why is the Tie bet generally avoided?
Because the payout does not compensate for how rarely it lands. At 8 to 1 the house edge is roughly 14.4%, many times that of the main bets. Some tables pay 9 to 1, which brings it to about 4.8% — still the worst of the three.
Do I need to memorise the third-card rule?
No. It is applied automatically and no one can choose otherwise. Knowing it only helps you follow why some hands receive a third card and others do not.
Do baccarat systems work?
No betting pattern changes the house edge, because hands are independent. Systems promising certain profit generally rely on increasing stakes after a loss, which raises the risk of exhausting a budget quickly rather than the chance of winning.