Best Baccarat Betting Strategies: Banker, Player and Tie Explained

Baccarat: A Guide to the Different Types of Bets

Baccarat has been one of the most popular casino games for hundreds of years now. During that time players have developed certain strategies to increase their chances of winning. Some are more complex, like the Martingale or the Fibonacci systems while others are much easier for players to learn.

Throughout this article, we’ll be covering the basics, highlighting the traditional betting options and explaining what they are and how they work. So, continue reading to discover how you can improve your chances whenever you take a seat at the table.

The Banker

Statistically, the Banker has a slightly higher chance of winning any given round. As such, it awards a lower payout of 0.95:1 as opposed to winning Player bets that return 1:1. So, essentially, the strategy is very simple – bet on the Banker every hand. By doing this, you’ll maximise your chances of winning and, theoretically, see greater returns over the long run.

The Player

Siding with the Player bet is slightly more risky but it does generate larger payouts during successful streaks. In this case, you’ll receive an even-money return on winning hands. If you decide to go with this strategy, we highly recommend having a firm grasp of the basics. That means knowing how the card values work and how they’re counted, as well as having an understanding of when the third card rule comes into play. 

The Tie

The Tie, also known as the ‘standoff’ is the most volatile bet you can play in Baccarat. With this type of bet, you’re predicting that both the Player’s and the Banker’s hand will have the same value at the end of the hand. Overall, this doesn’t happen very often, occurring roughly 9% of the time. Due to that though, the payout odds are much higher, usually sitting at 8:1 or 9:1. Of course, the potential rewards can be very enticing. However, you should also bear in mind that your chances of winning are significantly lower than if you chose the Banker (45.85%) or the Player (44.642%).

Possible Side Bets

Given the number of different versions of online Baccarat, it should come as no surprise that you may come across various side bets depending on the game you play. While they can be seriously exciting and offer some potentially huge payouts, they’re not optimised for a strategy-based approach. They’re very much a risk versus reward scenario, and you’ll have to decide whether you think they’re worth it given your available bankroll.