How do Baccarat Betting Odds Work

What makes Baccarat such a hit in South Africa is its remarkably low house edge. In fact, Baccarat boasts the lowest house edge of any casino card game, with the most popular Banker Bet having a mere 1.06% edge.

Baccarat has a few popular variations, all sharing similar core rules but with slight tweaks that can influence the final payout odds. The most widely played version is Punto Banco. In this game, you have three primary betting options: betting on the Banker, the Player, or a Tie. It's from these options, particularly the Banker and Player bets, that Baccarat achieves its low house edge.

Let's dive straight into how Baccarat game odds work and how this favourable low house edge can be a real advantage for players in South Africa.

Understanding Baccarat Odds in South Africa

At its heart, Baccarat is a game of chance, hinging on the card draws for the player and the banker. Understanding the odds is key to getting the most out of the game.

Baccarat odds simply refer to your chances of winning a particular bet. It’s crucial for every South African Baccarat player to be aware of the winning probabilities, house edges, and payouts associated with each of the three main Baccarat bets.

The Banker Bet: Your Best Bet?

Historically, the Banker bet is considered the strongest wager a player can make. Statistical analysis shows Banker bets win approximately 45.86% of the time, with payouts typically at 19:20, meaning you get your stake back plus slightly less than an equal stake. For example, a R100 bet wins R95.

Because it's such a popular and statistically favourable bet, online casinos in South Africa typically apply a small 5% commission on winning Banker bets. Despite this, the house edge remains incredibly low at just 1.06%, one of the best edges you'll find across all casino games.

The Player Bet

The Player bet is the next most common wager in Baccarat. It has a respectable win rate of about 44.62%. While still a good bet from a statistical standpoint, it’s not quite as mathematically favourable as the Banker bet.

It has a 1:1 payout, but there are not any commission fees. As the player's bet is proven to win less than the Banker, the house edge is a little higher, 1.24%.

Tie Bet

The Tie is the least possible outcome that can happen in a game of baccarat, so the payouts are 8:1. The probability of this bet happening is very low, so players should avoid placing the Tie Bet.

The Tie bet has a 9.6% win rate and a 14.44% house edge in a 6-deck baccarat game. For an 8-deck baccarat game, the house edge is a little lower, 14.36%, but it’s still too low to include that bet in a winning strategy.

Overall, the baccarat winning odds that any player should stick to getting are the ones from the Banker’s bet, as they will provide the biggest returns.

The tie bet is recommended to be avoided unless any sequence is spotted by the player, in which case, it is worth putting a few bucks on it.

Baccarat Payout Odds

Baccarat odds are quite simple to understand, but in order to make things even easier for any baccarat player, here are a few examples of how baccarat bets will be paid:

This table clearly shows that payouts for the banker and the player bets are not that impressive, whereas the tie bet can give very good returns. However, the tie bet comes in at just 9.6% of the time, literally making it not worth placing.

Baccarat Side Bets Payouts

Apart from the standard Banker, Player, and Tie bets, there are some side bets in Baccarat that players can place.

Side bets can be seen across any online casino site, but they can be very tricky. Some of them have huge payouts, like 75:1 for the Bellagio Match, which can be placed in a three-card variation of baccarat.

• All the same color - One of the most popular side bets for baccarat is the bet for the same color of cards in either the banker's or player's hand. This bet pays 22:1 for the banker and 24:1 for the player.
• Big and Small - This side bet is on the total number of cards in a round. It’s strongly dependent on whether the player will hit or stand. The payout for this side bet will be 3:2.
• Bellagio Match - Bellagio Match can be played in a Three-Card Baccarat Game. It’s simple to get three cards of the same rank in a single hand, either bankers or players. The payout for this side bet is 75:1 for the player and 68:1 for the Banker.
• Perfect Pair - One of the most widespread side bets in baccarat is the perfect pair bet. This simply requires either the banker's or the player’s hand to be a pair. The payout for this side bet is 5:1. If the pair is of the same color, the payout is increased to 25:1.

Conclusion

Baccarat is a game based on luck, as it features comparing cards, in most cases two. The whole goal of the game is to get a card value as close to 9 as possible. So, any factor that can help players increase their chances of winning should be taken into account.

One of the easiest things to implement in a baccarat betting strategy is to take advantage of the odds system of the game. From today’s article, every player should know that the best bet in baccarat is the banker’s bet, with a house edge of just 1.06%. Statistics show that the bet wins 45.8% of the time, and has a payout of 19:20, due to the 5% commission charged from casinos.

Overall, the odds of winning baccarat feature using the banker bet, which has the highest probability of winning over the other two bets and has the lowest house edge.