Baccarat Strategies

What are the Different Online Baccarat Variants?

Punto Banco

Punto Banco is one of the most common ways to play baccarat, so most players already know how to play it.

In punto banco, players try to make a hand that is as close to 9 as possible and is higher than the banker's hand without going bust or going over 9. In punto banco, just like in classic baccarat, face cards are worth nothing, and Aces are worth one point. All other cards are worth what they say on the card.

In this version, players can choose to bet on the punto (player), the banco (banker), or the egalite (tie) (tie). In punto banco, winning bets payout at the following rates: 1:1 for punto banco and 1:1 for banco. The house takes a 5% commission from banco bets and pays 8:1 on egalite bets.

Chemin de Fer

Popular in Europe, especially in France, this variant is one of the oldest recorded versions of baccarat. This version is increasingly popular among players who do not want the bank in play.

Chemin de Fer is a multi-player version that does not allow players to bet on the banker. The ability to be the banker rotates around the table, like the honor of shooting the dice in craps. The variant is played on a large table that can seat about 14 players, and one of its attractions for Pennsylvania online casinos is that it allows the house to take a fee from each player’s winning while they bet against each other.

Mini Baccarat

Most people probably play mini-baccarat more than any other type of baccarat. As the name "mini" suggests, the game is played on a small table that can fit about seven people. Due to the small size of the table and the fact that the dealer does almost all of the work, the game moves quickly. There can be up to 200 rounds per hour at some mini-baccarat tables.

Most of the time, the bets at mini-baccarat tables are smaller than those at regular baccarat tables. This makes mini-baccarat great for people who are just learning how to play or on a tight budget.

European Baccarat

The main difference between European Baccarat and Punto Banco, is that the banker decides whether or not to draw a third card, and players can choose to stand or draw another card up to a value of 5. Only the banker's hand is covered by the casino in European Baccarat. Once the value of the banker's bet has been covered by player bets, the other players can no longer place bets.

Baccarat Banque

This baccarat variation was developed as a popular alternative to the original Chemin de Fer. The version gives players the option to play with a dedicated banker. Baccarat Banque is played with just 3 decks of cards, unlike most other variants that use 6 or 8 decks of cards (e.g., Punto Banco and Chemin de Fer).

Besides the fact that players do not play against one another, the gameplay is quite similar to Chemin de Fer. Instead, they take turns building a hand to beat the banker. In addition, the player designated as the banker is not forced to cover all other players’ bets.

American Baccarat

This version dates back to the 16th century, but it has gained popularity since then. American Baccarat is quite popular in US casinos and often involves higher betting limits. In land-based casinos, the gambling table can take up to 14 players.

Live Dealer Baccarat

Dubbed as one of the latest and most demanded baccarat types, live dealer baccarat is hosted by a professional dealer rather than computer-generated gameplay. The results are determined by random number generator (RNG) software. In this version, there is a baccarat table and a card shoe, just like in a real casino. Also, players can watch all the action on a high-quality video feed and talk to the dealer through a chat feature. Most players prefer this version because the game is run by a person (the dealer) instead of the RNG software.

3 Card Baccarat

Three card baccarat games can be found in many Macau (autonomous region off China’s mainland coast) casinos. This baccarat variant is played with a single deck of cards. Like the normal baccarat, face cards are worth 0 points, and the rest are worth their face value on the card. Every time, the dealer deals 3 cards to both the player and dealer hands.

The best hand is made up of 3 face cards. The hands are then scored as usual, and the winner is the hand with the most points. If both hands have the same number of points, the winner will be the hand with the most face cards. If both hands have the same number of face cards and points, the hands will tie.

No Commission Baccarat

As the name implies, this version of Live Baccarat gets rid of the casino's 5% cut of winning Banker bets. But when the Banker gets a 6, the Banker bet only pays 0.5:1. In this version of the game, you can make side bets like Super 6, Player and Banker Pair, Perfect Pair, and Player and Banker Bonus.

When the Banker or the Player is dealt two identical cards, the Perfect Pair pays 25:1. If a player makes this bet and both the Banker and the Player are dealt two pairs, they will win a huge 200:1 payout. If the Banker wins with a hand of six cards, players who made the Super 6 bet will get 15:1 on their money.

Dragon Tiger

This is a variant of baccarat that newcomers to the game can jump on. It is a simplified version, devised as a two-card version of the classic baccarat. However, it does not mean two cards being dealt to the banker and the player. Instead, one card is dealt to the “dragon” and another card to the “tiger.” It is up to the players to decide whether the dragon or the tiger has the highest-value card.

The game is believed to have originated in the Far East. A winning bet on dragon or tiger pays out 1:1, with a house edge of 3.73%. Tie bets payout at odds of 8:1 but has an uninteresting edge of 32.77%. Additional bets can be placed on the possibility of a Suited Tie at odds of 50:1 or whether a card will be Big or Small (i.e., worth over or below 7).