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Baccarat odds: banker, player and tie compared
Baccarat odds and house edge for banker, player and tie bets in the standard eight-deck game, with commission-free variants and side bets explained.
- Banker has a 1.06% house edge after the 5% commission; player has 1.24%. Both are among the lowest in the casino.
- The tie bet paid 8 to 1 carries a 14.36% edge.
- There are no playing decisions. Drawing rules are fixed, so the only choice is which bet to make.
How a round is decided
Two hands are dealt, called player and banker. Cards count at face value, tens and pictures count zero, and only the last digit of the total matters, so 7 + 8 is 5. The hand closer to 9 wins. Whether either hand takes a third card is set by fixed rules, not by anyone at the table.
Odds for the three main bets
| Bet | Pays | Chance of winning | House edge |
|---|---|---|---|
| Banker | 1 to 1 less 5% commission | 45.86% | 1.06% |
| Player | 1 to 1 | 44.62% | 1.24% |
| Tie | 8 to 1 | 9.52% | 14.36% |
Banker wins slightly more often because it acts second under the drawing rules. The commission exists to keep that advantage from becoming a player edge. When a round is tied, banker and player bets are returned.
Commission-free tables
Some tables drop the 5% commission and instead pay banker wins at half when the banker wins with a total of 6. The house edge on banker rises to about 1.46%, so “no commission” is the more expensive version of the bet.
Tie and side bets
A tie paid 9 to 1 has an edge of about 4.84%, far better than 8 to 1 but still four times the banker bet. Pair bets and other side wagers generally cost around 10% or more. They are optional and settle separately from the main hand.
Scorecards and patterns
Baccarat tables display “roads” that track past results. They are a record, not a forecast. In a shoe game the composition changes slightly as cards are dealt, but the effect on the odds is too small to exploit, and in most online games the shoe is shuffled every round.
Common questions
Is banker or player the better bet in baccarat?
Banker, by a small margin: 1.06% house edge after commission against 1.24% for player.
Why is the tie bet so bad?
Ties occur about 9.5% of the time, which would justify a payout of roughly 9.5 to 1. At 8 to 1 the shortfall produces a 14.36% house edge.
Can you use strategy in baccarat?
There are no decisions during the hand. The only strategy is bet selection: banker or player, and avoiding the tie and side bets.
Sources
Checked 11 November 2026. Rules and published figures change; confirm against the current official page before relying on them.
Publication byline. Prepared with AI assistance and checked against the linked sources; see our editorial standards. This page is information, not advice, and contains no affiliate links.