Online Baccarat – Rules, How to Win, Where to Play

Baccarat is one of the most popular card games, both online and at land-based casinos. With the correct baccarat strategy, you can grow your bankroll, increase your winning odds, and enjoy even more thrilling gameplay!

You must have seen baccarat in action in popular media, especially in the James Bond movies! Because baccarat has a relatively low house advantage and is fairly easy to master, this game has become a classic favorite in the casino universe.

Online Baccarat – Rules, How to Win, Where to Play

Regarding odds, baccarat is among the top 4 casino games alongside Blackjack, Jacks or Better (the 9/6 variant), and Craps as the games with the highest return to player (RTP). Even though baccarat is still a game of chance, it does have a few effective tips and strategies that you can use to dramatically improve your odds of winning. Not to mention that it’s a beginner-friendly game, too!

The History of Baccarat

The amazing history of baccarat dates as far back as the 15th century when it was created by an Italian gambler named Felix Falguierein. Baccarat is derived from the Italian word β€œbaccara”, meaning β€œzero”. Zero is used because all face cards and tens have a value of 0.

When this game became popular in France, a French version called Chemin de Fer was born. Between the 18th and 19th centuries, the game of baccarat (and its main variations) expanded quickly across the whole of Europe which then leads to our modern day now where players worldwide can enjoy this simple and lucrative casino game.

The Basics of Baccarat: How to Play

For beginners, baccarat may seem a little intimidating at first. However, it is actually a very uncomplicated card game with only 3 possible outcomes per hand. The best news is that there is almost no skill required to get started.

Much like most table games, baccarat uses 3 to 6 standard 52-card decks that are shuffled and then placed into a dealing machine called the β€œshoe”. The croupier will start dealing out the cards from the shoe. For both online and offline players, here is how to play baccarat:

1 . You make a bet by placing your casino chips in the PLAYER area, BANKER area, or TIE area.

2 . The croupier will then deal out 2 cards to the Player (or Punter) and 2 cards to the Banker, and all cards are facing up. As a bettor, your goal is to guess which hand (Punter or Banker) has a count that’s as close to 9 as possible.

The Basics of Baccarat: How to Play

Here are the baccarat card values:

  • Cards from 2 to 9 carry their face values.
  • Each of the Tens (10s) and Face (J, Q, K) cards has a value equal to zero (0).
  • Every Ace card counts as 1.

Here are the baccarat playing rules:

The values of the 2 cards dealt are added up to determine the worth of each hand. For example, if the Player has 3 and K, then that hand is worth 3 points. If the Banker is dealt 4 and 3, the hand’s value is 7.

If the total of any hand is greater than 9, then the count is adjusted by deducting 10 or by dropping the count’s first digit. Another example, if the hand’s 2 cards are 6 and 9, then the resulting count will not be 15, but rather 5 (because 6 + 9 – 10 = 5).

In baccarat gameplay, each hand can hold up to 3 cards, and usually there are rules specified by the online casino for whether the Player hand or Banker hand will receive a 3rd card.

The Basics of Baccarat: Player and Banker

Here are the baccarat 3rd card rules:

Player Rules

Whether a 3rd card is dealt to the Player depends on the following:

  • The Player side does not take another card if the initial count is 6 or 7.
  • The Player side is dealt a 3rd card if the initial count is between 0 and 5.
  • The Player’s hand requires no additional cards if the points total after the first 2 cards is 8 or 9 (a natural win, or a tie if the Banker’s hand also total 8 or 9 points).

If the Player’s hand remains at 2 cards, the Banker’s hand then follows the same rules as the Player: the Banker will only draw a 3rd card if its hand total is between 0 and 5, and will stand if its hand totals 6 or 7, and 8 or 9 as well.

More complex Banker rules will come into effect if the Player draws a 3rd card. The Banker’s next move is therefore dependent on what the Player’s 3rd card is.

Banker Rules

The following Banker rules apply when the Player has been dealt a 3rd card:

  • If the Player draws a 2 or 3 as a 3rd card, the Banker draws a 3rd card when its 2-card total is between 0 and 4, or the Banker stands with a total of 5 to 7.
  • If the Player draws a 4 or 5 as a 3rd card, the Banker draws a 3rd card when its 2-card total is between 0 and 5, or the Banker stands with a total of 6 or 7.
  • If the Player draws a 6 or 7 as a 3rd card, the Banker draws a 3rd card when its 2-card total is between 0 and 6, or the Banker stands with a total of 7.
  • If the Player draws an 8 as a 3rd card, the Banker draws a 3rd card when its 2-card total is between 0 and 2, or the Banker stands with a total of 3 to 7.
  • Finally, if the Player draws a 9, 10, Face Card or an Ace as a 3rd card, the Banker must draw a 3rd card when its total is between 0 and 3, or the Banker stands with a total of 4 to 7.

After all cards have been dealt, the winning hand is determined by which total is closest to 9. Then all bets are paid out, and the dealing begins again.

Baccarat Payouts

Baccarat Payouts

Player Hand Bets: You win if the Player hand is closer to 9 than the Banker hand. It pays double or evens (1:1). This means that a winning bet of $20 on the Player hand will pay you $20, bringing your total payout to $40.

Banker Hand Bets: If you bet on a Banker hand and it wins, you will be paid evens minus 5% house commission. This means that a winning bet of $20 on the Banker hand will pay you $19, bringing your total payout to $39 with $1 going to the house.

Tie Bets: When you make a Tie bet, you are essentially wagering that the Banker hand and the Player hand will have an equal count. A successful Tie bet pays out at 8:1. For instance, if you bet $20 on Tie and a tie does happen, you will get $160 in winnings as well as your original bet amount of $20.

The One Baccarat Bet to Always Avoid

Baccarat is considered a very fair game for betting, but experienced players know to avoid the Tie bet at all costs because it will drain your wallet like crazy.

Why?

The Tie bet may have the biggest payout (paying 8 to 1), but it also has the worst odds of winning. The house advantage for this type of wager is a massive 14.36%! This means that if you make a hundred bets of $1, you will only win back $85.64.

Nobody should ever want to lose $14.36 out of every $100. After all, the main goal of gambling is to increase your bankroll, not to lose money to the house!

By comparison, bets on a Banker win (paying 1 to 1) come with a very low house edge of just 1.06%. On the other hand, bets on a Player win come with a marginally higher house advantage of 1.24%.

As you can see, the conclusion is that a Tie bet should not be a part of any professional baccarat strategy.

Betting With the Banker: The Simplest Baccarat Strategy

Betting with the Banker is not only the easiest but also the safest baccarat strategy. The reason is because of basic math.

Firstly, the theoretical house edge for betting on the Banker, as mentioned earlier, is 1.06%. Conversely, the return to player (RTP) is therefore a very high 98.94%.

However, the reason for betting on the Banker goes beyond the house edge and RTP. We need to take a closer look at the mathematics behind the Banker betting baccarat strategy below.

Assuming that:

  • The casino is using 8 standard 52-card decks
  • Tie bets pay 8:1
  • Banker bets pay evens (1:1) minus 5% commission
  • Player bets pay 1:1

Then, over the long term:

  • Player hand loses 45.87%, wins 44.63%, and ties 9.51%.
  • Banker hand loses 44.65%, wins 45.87%, and ties 9.51%.

Further, if we remove all Ties from the statistics, then:

  • The Banker hand loses 49.32%, and wins 50.68% of the time.
  • The Player hand wins 49.32%, and loses 50.68% of the time.

It’s clear that Banker hand bets are more likely to win! However, to adjust for this, the casino charges a 5% commission on all winning Banker bets.

But even if you include the 5% fee and also remove all Tie hands, in the end, the Banker hand’s house advantage is still only 1.17%. That means that for every $100, Banker hand bets will only result in a loss of $1.17, while Player hand bets will result in a greater loss of $1.36 for the average baccarat player.

There you go, the numbers don’t lie. You will surely win more with the Banker!

Different Versions of Baccarat

There are usually many variants of baccarat available at online casinos, but the most popular versions are Chemin de Fer, Punto Banco, and Mini Baccarat. Let’s take a quick look at each.

Punto Banco

Also called American Baccarat, Punto Banco is the most popular version of baccarat. This variant is almost always available at land-based casinos in Macau, Australia, North America, and more places. And of course, Punto Banco is always available on gambling sites.

Punto Banco Baccarat

What makes Punto Banco different is the following characteristics:

  • Both the Banker and Player hands are executed according to fixed house rules.
  • A 5% commission is charged on all winning Banker bets.
  • Drawing a 3rd card is decided by the casino and not the player.

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Chemin de Fer

The name β€œChemin de Fer” in French means β€œrailway” or β€œrailroad.” This version of baccarat is mostly played in French and European casinos.

Chemin de Fer’s rules are almost the same as Punto Banco, except for only two differences:

  • Bettors have the option of becoming the Banker, so they can be in charge of the hand.
  • Bettors can decide whether the Player hand or the Banker hand should draw a 3rd card.

For Chemin de Fer, usually 6 standard 52-card decks are shuffled together. Then, one player is chosen to be Banker, with the possibility of all players taking turns to be the Banker.

Chemin de Fer Baccarat

The designated Banker will decide how much he/she is willing to wager, and then all players will take turns to say the amount of money they are willing to bet. The bettor calling the highest bet will be designated the Player.

In the game of Chemin de Fer, the Player typically:

  • stands on 6 and 7
  • draws on 2, 3 and 4
  • either stands or draws on 5

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Mini Baccarat

Mini Baccarat is a simplified and low-limit version of the regular Punto Banco (also called Big Baccarat). Unlike Big Baccarat which features 2 or more Bankers, Mini Baccarat has only one dealer. In addition, regular players are not allowed to be the Banker. Because of these rules, Mini Baccarat games are usually quicker than Punto Banco, and therefore very popular. Normally, the same baccarat rules and strategies can also be applied to Mini Baccarat.

Mini Baccarat

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Baccarat Betting Strategies

In addition to not using the Tie bet and always betting with the Banker hand, many advanced betting systems can also work effectively with your baccarat strategy. Let’s take a look at a few popular strategies!

The Martingale System

Made popular in France in the 18th century, the Martingale System is a system of progressively adjusting your bets in casino games, and is therefore also often used for roulette, blackjack, craps, and many more.

How does it work? For the game of baccarat, Martingale assumes that the payout will get as close to the bet’s RTP in the long-run. In simple terms, this means that a particular hand is bound to win at some point. Therefore, the traditional Martingale System says that you should double down on the next wager if your last bet lost.

The Martingale System Baccarat

For example, if you place a $10 bet on the Banker hand and it loses, then you should put a $20 wager next on the same hand. And you should continue doubling down until you win. Therefore, if you lose a bet of $20, then you should put in $40 for the next bet, and so on.

The main idea behind this Martingale System is that the player will win the biggest bet of the whole sequence. As you can see, if the player wins $40 with an original stake of $40, then the player will get paid a total of $80 that includes $10 in profit ($10 + $20 + $40 + $10)!

The Fibonacci System

The Fibonacci baccarat strategy is a betting system where your bet amount after a loss is dictated by the famous Fibonacci sequence. Fibonacci states that the next number in a sequence is determined by the sum of the previous two numbers, namely:

1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, etc.

Meaning that your betting cycle should look like this:

$10, $20, $30, $50, $80, $130, $210, $340, $550, etc.

Basically, the goal is that for every bet that you lose, you should increase it on the next wager, and this cycle continues until you get a win. The idea is that if you keep making a subsequently bigger bet despite your previous losses, you will still end up winning back your last 2 losing bets at some point.

The Fibonacci System Baccarat

Finally, this system states that when you win (no matter what stage within the sequence), you should always restart your betting with the original $10.

The Paroli System

The Paroli baccarat strategy is the exact opposite of the Martingale System. In fact, many gamblers refer to it as the Reverse Martingale System, and it is highly effective for baccarat, roulette, and other games including Pai Gow, Sic Bo, and Craps.

The Paroli System simply says that you should double your bet every time after a win, until you finally lose a bet. The main goal of this system is to gain 3 wins in a row.

The Paroli System Baccarat

Let’s use an example to show the idea behind Paroli:

Step #1: Bet $10 on the Player hand until you win. After a win, double your bet to $20.

If you lose, return to Step #1. Or else, go to Step #2.

Step #2: Bet $20 until you win. After a win, double your bet to $40.

If you lose, go back to Step #1. If you win, double your bet once more to $80.

Step #3: Keep betting $80 until you win.

Return to Step #1 if you lose. At the same time, even if you win, also go back to Step #1.

This process goes on and on until you lose, or until you win 3 times in a row, and then the circle begins anew.

How to Manage Your Bankroll When Playing Baccarat?

Effectively managing money is a skill that every gambler should master, but playing baccarat actually requires you to be even more strict with your bankroll. No matter which baccarat strategy you choose, there are effective tips that you can use to increase your bankroll and improve your odds of winning.

Tip #1 – Set Win/Loss Limits

No matter how hard you worked, a winning streak will always come to an end. That’s why it is super important to set win limits when you play baccarat. Because all bets come with a house advantage, theoretically every gambler will lose in the long run. Because of this, you should lock up your currenty profits to protect your bankroll.

The same is true for your baccarat losses. Please set a loss limit and abide by your own rules.

Tip #2 – Avoid All-In Bets

Without a doubt, you should never gamble all your funds in 1 single bet. Great players will successfully manage their emotions without any pressure to go β€œall-in”. Even if your bankroll is small, you should play slowly until you see a small profit.

Don’t let Hollywood films fool you, because betting all your money on a single baccarat hand is suicide. Yes, you will feel ecstatic if you win, but when you lose, the feeling of guilt is oftentimes unbearable!

Tip #3 – Use the Right Baccarat Strategy

The Martingale System may be a good fit for high-roller players with huge bankrolls. However, if you only have a bankroll of $100, then another strategy may be best. It all depends on your personal preference and whether you want to win short-term or long-term.

Where to Play the Best Online Baccarat Games?

Every casino introduced on our website will have at least 30 baccarat games (and all the major variations) for you to choose from. Some casinos even have over 150 baccarat titles available, meaning you will never be short of choices!

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