Baccarat Rules

Baccarat is a table game meaning there is a specific area of the casino that you can find this game. The table will allow for up to 12 or 14 individuals to be at the table. Depending on the number of people playing you can have three casino dealers.

In Baccarat there are two principle rules to keep in mind. You are playing the house and not other players at the table. This means you have two very important bets the banker or player bets. The other type of bet you can make is the tie or standoff. Most often you are going to have a Croupier in Baccarat, but some casinos allow the players to rotate as the dealer. When you play the online version of Baccarat you have a virtual Croupier.

Everyone at the table is going to make a bet. Even the player that is dealing will have to choose Punto or Banco which means player or banker. Usually the dealer is going to bet on themselves. The shoe, in which the cards are dealt from, will be next to the Croupier and it will remain with the same person as long as the bank wins. When the player wins the shoe is passed to the next Punto.

When the game begins two hands are dealt from the cards. Then you will bet on the banker, player, or a tie. You have a 1:1 ratio and the payoff is even money, such as you find in Roulette on the black or red even money bets. In a standoff you have 8:1 or 9:1. The different in the player or banker is the commission. In Baccarat if you bet on the bank you owe 5 percent to the bank it is considered a tax instituted by the casino. It is also an advantage as the house is usually the winner. The commission comes from the fact that in an eight deck round the Bank will win three to four hands more than the player.

In this game each hand will have two cards to start and you can have up to three cards at the end. The person dealing will offer two cards face down. The person that has bet the bigger amount on the player will get the other two cards. The player will look at the cards and give them back to the Croupier. Then the dealer will turn the cards over for both hands to see who has won. The Croupier will announce to those watching who has the higher hand.

When a total of 8 or 9 is showed it is a natural hand and no cards will be dealt. If it is not a natural hand then depending on what the total is the dealer can offer a third card. There are certain rules in Baccarat that stipulate when a third can or cannot be dealt.

After the deal is complete the highest hand will be the winner. The dealer will collect the lost bets on the table and pay out the winners.

The Rules of Baccarat

Baccarat is typically played with a six deck or eight deck shoe. All of the face cards and ten cards technically have no value. Some call it ten, but then you drop the 1 in 10, so you still get zero. Those that are less than 10 have their normal face value, and the ace is worth 1 point. Any time you have over 9 the first number is dropped for a single digit number. For example if you have cards totaling 16 then you actually have a value of 6. The suits in the deck have no bearing on the winner.

The player will receive two cards as will the banker. You will then get a chance to place your bet on the player, bank or tie. The higher value cards will win.

The dealer can offer a third card based on certain rules. See the below information for those rules.

Player's third-card-rule

• If the player or bank has a natural hand of either 8 or 9 from the first two cards another card cannot be drawn.
  
  
• When the player's hand has less than or equal to five the player can draw a third card.
  
  
• If the player does not draw a third card then the bank's hand must stand on 6 or more. In other words if they have less than 6 such as a five they must take a third card. When a player takes the third card the Bank must follow another set of rules.

Bank's third-card-rule

• When the bank has 2 or less they must draw a third card whether or not the player wanted a third card.
  
  
• When the bank has 3 or less they must draw a third card, except when the player has an 8.
  
  
• When the bank has 4 they can draw a third card if the player's third card was 0, 1, 8, or 9.
  
  
• When the bank has 5 a third card can be taken only if the player's third card was a 4, 5, 6, or 7.
  
  
• If the player's third card was a 6 or 7 and the dealer has a total of 6 the dealer can get a third card.
  
  
• When the bank has 7 they must stand on that amount, no third card can be taken.

House advantage

Banker (Banco) 1.17%
Player (Punto) 1.36%
Tie (Standoff) 14.12% at 8:1 payout