Baccarat rules

Baccarat rules in brief

The version played in UK casinos and online is punto banco. The house acts as the bank, every decision about drawing cards is fixed in advance, and the only skill involved is choosing where to place your chips. Here is the whole game in six lines.

• Bet on Player, Banker or Tie before any cards are dealt; side bets are optional.
• Two cards are dealt to Player and two to Banker.
• Count each hand: aces 1, 2 to 9 at face value, tens and picture cards 0, keeping only the last digit.
• If either hand has 8 or 9, the round ends.
• Otherwise Player and then Banker may receive one more card under fixed drawing rules.
• The hand closer to 9 wins; equal totals are a tie.

If you want the bigger picture first, such as which online formats exist and how to choose a table, see our online baccarat UK guide. This page concentrates on the rules themselves. For other card games, the games hub lists them all.

Baccarat card values and how totals are counted

A hand can never bust, which is the main difference from blackjack. The highest possible total is 9 and the lowest is 0, sometimes called baccarat, which is where the game gets its name. Our comparison of blackjack vs baccarat explains how the two games differ in decisions and odds.

The order of the deal, step by step

1. Bets close at the end of the countdown (online) or when the dealer calls no more bets (in a venue).
2. The dealer burns cards from the shoe according to the house procedure; the burn card rules vary by table.
3. Cards are dealt alternately: first to Player, then to Banker, then a second to each.
4. Both two-card totals are announced. If either is 8 or 9, the round stops and bets are settled.
5. If neither hand is a natural, the Player rule is applied and Player draws or stands.
6. The Banker rule is then applied, using Banker’s total and, if Player drew, the value of Player’s third card.
7. Totals are compared and all bets are paid, collected or returned.

Neither the dealer nor the players choose whether to draw. Online, the software or the dealer follows the same table every time, so two games with identical rules will always produce the same result from the same cards.

Naturals: when the hand ends on two cards

A natural is a two-card total of 8 or 9. When either hand has one, no more cards are drawn by either side. A natural 9 beats a natural 8. If both hands have the same natural, the result is a tie. Naturals turn up in roughly one hand in three, which is one reason baccarat rounds are short.

A three-card 9 is not a natural. It still wins against a lower total, but naturals only count on the first two cards.

Baccarat third-card rule for the Player hand

The Player hand follows the simpler rule, and it always acts first.

That’s the whole Player rule. The only thing that matters next is whether Player took a card and, if so, what that card was.

Baccarat third-card rule for the Banker hand

If Player stood on 6 or 7, Banker uses the same pattern: draw on 0 to 5, stand on 6 or 7. If Player drew a third card, Banker follows this table, often called the tableau.

Here a “0” third card means a ten or a picture card. This extra information is what gives the banker bet its slight advantage: Banker gets to react to Player’s draw. That advantage is why winning Banker bets pay commission.

Worked baccarat hands using the rules

Hand 1: a natural ends it

Player is dealt 9 and King, a natural 9. Banker has 3 and 4 for 7. No cards are drawn. Player wins. A £10 Player bet returns £20 (your stake plus £10).

Hand 2: Player stands, Banker draws

Player has 4 and 3 for 7 and stands. Banker has King and 5 for 5. Because Player stood, Banker draws on 5 and receives a 2, making 7. The hand is a tie at 7–7: Banker and Player bets are returned, and a £5 Tie bet at 8:1 wins £40.

Hand 3: both hands draw

Player has 2 and ace for 3, so draws, and gets a 6 for 9. Banker has 6 and 7, which is 13, counting as 3. Player’s third card was a 6, and Banker on 3 draws unless that card is an 8, so Banker draws a 5 and makes 8. Player’s 9 beats Banker’s 8.

Hand 4: Banker stands on the tableau

Player has 5 and Queen for 5, draws a 9 and finishes on 14, counting as 4. Banker has 2 and 4 for 6. Player’s third card was a 9, and Banker on 6 draws only when that card is 6 or 7, so Banker stands. Banker wins 6 to 4. A £10 Banker bet pays £9.50 after 5% commission.

How baccarat bets are paid

In older land-based games commission was tracked and paid at the end of a shoe; online, it is simply deducted from each winning Banker bet. Pairs side bets win when the first two cards of the chosen hand are a pair. The tie bet and player bet glossary entries give short definitions, and the Wizard of Odds baccarat pages (opens in a new tab) show the full probability tables behind these figures.

How baccarat rules change between variants

The drawing rules above stay the same in nearly every online version. What changes is how bets are paid, how fast cards appear or whether a fee is added.

• No Commission baccarat. Banker wins pay 1:1, except a Banker win with a total of 6, which pays 0.5:1. That one exception pushes the Banker house edge to roughly 1.46% on eight decks.
• Speed Baccarat. Same rules, cards dealt face up and faster rounds. See our Speed Baccarat page.
• Lightning Baccarat. Same drawing rules, but a 20% fee is added to your bet and random multipliers attach to certain cards. See Lightning Baccarat.
• Squeeze and Peek tables. The reveal is slower or partly in your hands, but the cards and rules are unchanged unless a fee is stated.
• Chemin de fer and baccarat banque. Older versions where players can act as banker and make some drawing choices. These are rarely offered online in the UK.

Why the rules give the house its edge

Baccarat has no player decisions, so the edge comes entirely from the payouts. Banker wins around 45.86% of all hands, Player around 44.62% and Tie about 9.52%. If Player paid even money and ties returned stakes, Player would lose slightly over time because it wins less often than Banker. Banker would hand the player an edge without commission, so 5% is taken. The Tie pays 8:1 on an event that happens about once in 10.5 hands, which is short of fair odds of roughly 9.5:1.

This is the same principle explained in our house edge and casino odds guides: the house edge is the gap between true odds and the payout. Nothing about bet sizing or timing changes it, which is why systems sold for baccarat fail; our page on betting systems runs the numbers.

Baccarat rules and UK online regulation

The card rules are the same everywhere, but online baccarat in Great Britain also follows the Gambling Commission’s design standards. Since 17 January 2025, non-slot casino games must allow at least 5 seconds between the start of one game cycle and the next, autoplay is banned, and the game must show your net position and how long you have been playing. These requirements are summarised in the Commission’s Remote gambling and software technical standards (opens in a new tab). Our game design rules page explains each one in plain English.

You must be 18 or over, and the casino must verify your age and identity before you play, even in demo mode. Card deposits must be by debit card, since credit card gambling has been banned since 14 April 2020.

Common baccarat rule misunderstandings

• “I can ask for a card.” You can’t. The drawing rules are automatic in punto banco.
• “A tie loses my Banker bet.” It doesn’t. Banker and Player stakes are returned on a tie.
• “Commission makes Banker a bad bet.” Even after commission, Banker has the lowest standard house edge of the three main bets.
• “Face cards are worth 10.” In baccarat they are worth 0.
• “The highest total is 18.” Only the last digit counts, so the maximum is 9.

Where to play baccarat under UK rules

Play only at casinos holding a Gambling Commission licence, which you can confirm on the public register of gambling businesses (opens in a new tab). We don’t confirm the baccarat tables in each partner’s lobby at any given time, so search the live and table game sections and read the rules panel; the PlayOJO live casino page describes that lobby. Set a deposit limit before you start.

Below are welcome offers, not baccarat promotions; 18+ and terms apply. Casumo: a 50% bonus up to £100 on a first deposit of at least £20, opt-in required, with the bonus wagered 10x in 7 days and a £5 limit per bet while it is active; game and payment restrictions apply. PlayOJO: 80 free spins at 10p each on Big Bass Bonanza with a first deposit of £10 or more, no wagering on winnings, excluding Northern Ireland and only via the offer link. Coral: bet £10 on slots after a qualifying deposit to get 100 free spins at 10p on selected games, with 48 hours to accept, 7 days to use them and no wagering on winnings; PayPal, Skrill, Neteller, Paysafe and prepaid card deposits don’t qualify.

18+. Gambling should be entertainment that costs money, not a way to make it. Set a deposit limit before you play: how to set deposit limits. Free, confidential help: National Gambling Helpline 0808 8020 133.