Baccarat (Punto Banco)
- Basic casino rules
- Variants and differences
- Payout cheat sheet
- Dealer glossary
- Test yourself
- In the Croupier Assistant trainer
The game
Casino baccarat is Punto Banco. Two hands are dealt: Player (Punto) and Banker (Banco). The names are just labels: guests do not play the hands, they only bet on the outcome.
You can bet on Player to win, Banker to win or a Tie. All cards are dealt by fixed rules, and nobody makes any decisions during the coup.
The hand with the higher total wins. The highest possible total is 9.
Cards and points
The game is usually dealt from an 8-deck shoe (sometimes 6). Suits do not matter.
| Card | Points |
|---|---|
| Ace | 1 |
| 2–9 | Face value |
| 10, jack, queen, king | 0 |
A hand's total is the last digit of the sum of its cards (the tens are dropped). A hand therefore cannot bust: the total is always 0 to 9.
5 points
8 points
Bets and payouts
| Bet | Payout |
|---|---|
| Player | 1:1 |
| Banker | 1:1 less 5% commission (19:20) |
| Tie | 8:1 |
| Player Pair (side bet) | 11:1 |
| Banker Pair (side bet) | 11:1 |
The 5% commission is taken only from a winning Banker bet: the win is 19/20 of the bet. A bet of 100 wins 95 (commission 5), 200 wins 190, 40 wins 38.
On a tie, Player and Banker bets do not lose; they are returned (push). Only the Tie bet wins.
Pay tables vary between casinos: the Tie sometimes pays 9:1, and there are no-commission tables with special rules for a Banker win on 6. The typical table, used in the trainer: Player 1:1, Banker 1:1 less 5%, Tie 8:1.
Pairs are side bets that the first two cards of the Player (or Banker) hand are of the same rank, for example two sevens. The usual payout is 11:1 (sometimes 10:1). Pairs are not calculated in the trainer.
How a coup is dealt
- Once bets are placed, the dealer deals two cards each: the first and third to Player, the second and fourth to Banker. All cards are turned face up.
- If either Player or Banker has 8 or 9 on two cards, it is a natural. Both hands stand, no third cards are drawn and the winner is decided at once.
- With no natural, the Player hand acts first: on 0–5 Player draws a third card, on 6–7 Player stands.
- Then the Banker hand. If Player stood (drew no third card), Banker draws on 0–5 and stands on 6–7.
- If Player drew a third card, Banker acts according to the table below, based on Banker's total and the value of Player's third card.
- Each hand receives at most one extra card, so no more than three cards in total.
Banker drawing rules
Used when Player has drawn a third card. Player's third card is counted in baccarat points (ten and face cards = 0, ace = 1).
| Banker total | Draws when Player's third card is | Stands when Player's third card is |
|---|---|---|
| 0, 1, 2 | Any | — |
| 3 | 0–7, 9 | 8 |
| 4 | 2–7 | 0, 1, 8, 9 |
| 5 | 4–7 | 0–3, 8, 9 |
| 6 | 6, 7 | 0–5, 8, 9 |
| 7 | — | Any |
| 8, 9 | Natural, no cards drawn | — |
| Player total on two cards | Player action |
|---|---|
| 0–5 | Draws a third card |
| 6, 7 | Stands |
| 8, 9 | Natural, stands and the coup ends |
Example 1: a natural and a pair
Banker
Player wins 8 to 7. A 100 bet on Player wins 100. A bet on Banker loses. Player's first two cards are a pair of nines, so a 100 Player Pair side bet wins 11:1, which is 1100.
Example 2: Banker draws
Banker
Banker wins 8 to 1. A 100 bet on Banker wins 95 (1:1 less 5% commission). The Player bet loses.
Example 3: Banker stands on 3 against an eight
Banker
Banker wins 3 to 2. A 200 bet on Banker wins 190. A 100 bet on Banker wins 95.
Example 4: a tie
Banker
It is a 7–7 tie. A 100 Tie bet wins 8:1, which is 800. Player and Banker bets are returned with no win and no commission.
Rules and pay tables are checked against wizardofodds.com. Casinos may differ — see Variants and differences.
Variants and differences
| Rule | Common version | Where it differs |
|---|---|---|
| Banker win | 1:1 minus 5% commission (0.95:1) | No commission: EZ Baccarat — a three-card banker 7 pushes; Super 6 — a banker win with 6 pays 1:2 |
| Tie | 8:1 | 9:1 in some casinos |
| Player and banker pairs | 11:1 | Side bet tables depend on the casino |
| Decks | 8 decks | 6 decks |
| Third-card rule | The same everywhere | — |
Payout cheat sheet
| Bet | Banker 0.95:1 | Player 1:1 | Tie 8:1 | Pair 11:1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | 19 | 20 | 160 | 220 |
| 50 | 47.5 | 50 | 400 | 550 |
| 100 | 95 | 100 | 800 | 1,100 |
| 150 | 142.5 | 150 | 1,200 | 1,650 |
| 200 | 190 | 200 | 1,600 | 2,200 |
| 500 | 475 | 500 | 4,000 | 5,500 |
On a tie, bets on player and banker are returned.
Dealer glossary
- Punto
- Player — one of the two hands you bet on.
- Banco
- Banker — the other hand.
- Natural
- 8 or 9 points on two cards — no more cards are drawn.
- Tableau
- The banker's third-card drawing table.
- Commission
- The 5% the casino takes from a banker win.
- Squeeze
- Slowly revealing cards by the player at high-limit tables.
- Shoe
- A box holding several decks.
Test yourself
Three payout questions. Answer with the net win or the amount asked for, not including the bet itself.
Trainer modes for this game: what you calculate and how your answer is checked.
- Baccarat: PointsTwo hands play: Player and Banker. Ace is 1, 2–9 count at face value, tens and picture cards count 0.
- Baccarat: Full RoundTwo hands play: Player and Banker. Ace is 1, 2–9 count at face value, tens and picture cards count 0.
- Baccarat: CommissionA winning Banker bet pays 19/20 of the bet: divide the bet by 20 and multiply by 19. A bet of 400 wins 380, the commission is 20.