Learn Baccarat: the free course

24 short lessons that take Baccarat (Punto Banco) from zero to perfect strategy: how a hand is counted, when each side draws, what every bet really costs, and why no betting system or scoreboard pattern changes the house edge.

Start the course in baccaratton — free, play money

Foundations

Three bets, two hands, and how to count a baccarat hand.

1. Welcome to baccarat (4 min)
Two hands, three bets, no decisions after you bet.
2. Counting a hand: only the last digit (4 min)
Tens are zero, and you drop the tens digit.

The third-card rule

When each hand draws. The only rule you need to master, and the dealer applies it for you.

3. Naturals, and when the Player draws (5 min)
8 or 9: everyone stops. Otherwise the Player draws on 0–5.
4. The Banker's turn, part 1: when the Player stood (4 min)
If the Player stood, the Banker copies the Player's rule.
5. The Banker's turn, part 2: the table (8 min)
When the Player drew, the Banker reads the Player's third card.
6. Calling the hand like a dealer (6 min)
Mixed practice, then meet the Drill tab.

EV basics

How bets are paid, what each one costs, and why Banker is the best of the three.

7. Who gets paid: commission, ties and pushes (5 min)
Banker pays 95¢ on the dollar, ties push, and Tie pays 8 to 1.
8. EV and the house edge, in plain English (7 min)
What a bet is worth on average, and how the EV sheet shows it.
9. Why the Banker wins more often (6 min)
Acting last is worth 1.24%, and the commission takes it back and a bit more.
10. The Tie bet: 8 to 1 isn't enough (5 min)
Ties come about 1 hand in 10.5, so 8 to 1 is short.

Perfect strategy I: lowest edge

The cheapest bet at the cheapest table: 1.06% or less.

11. Perfect strategy I: the lowest edge (5 min)
Bet Banker, flat, every hand. That's the whole optimum.
12. Choosing a table: commission, EZ and Super 6 (7 min)
No-commission tables, 4% tables, 6 decks and 9:1 ties: which is cheapest.
13. Checkpoint: rules and the best bet (8 min)
The third-card rule and the lowest-edge bet, all together.

Perfect strategy II: practical

Bankroll, sessions, scoreboards and counting, and what really matters.

14. House edge, per hand and per hour (6 min)
Edge × bet × hands per hour: the number that matters to your wallet.
15. Swings, sessions and bankroll (8 min)
In an hour, luck is ten times bigger than the edge.
16. Scoreboards, streaks and the gambler's fallacy (8 min)
The scoreboards record the past. They can't predict the next hand.
17. Can you count cards at baccarat? (9 min)
In theory yes; in practice the main bets barely move. Dragon 7 is the famous exception.
18. Perfect strategy II: a plan you can follow (6 min)
Pick the table, the bet size, the session length, and stick to them.

Perfect strategy III: fun per dollar

Betting systems and side bets, priced per hour.

19. Martingale, Paroli and friends: what they really cost (10 min)
No system changes the edge. Most raise your average bet, and with it the hourly cost.
20. Pairs and the Dragon Bonus (7 min)
Pairs pay 11:1 but cost 10%. Dragon Bonus on Player is the cheapest side bet.
21. Dragon 7, Panda 8 and the rest of the side bets (7 min)
The EZ table's two famous bets, plus a tour of side bets you'll meet elsewhere.
22. Perfect strategy III: the most fun per dollar (7 min)
Spend your budget where the thrills are cheapest.

The real casino

Table types, the squeeze, commission, etiquette and the final exam.

23. Playing at a real table (7 min)
Mini, midi and big tables, the squeeze, the commission box and the manners.
24. Final exam (10 min)
Everything, from card values to fun per dollar.

Reference: Banker vs Player vs Tie odds · third card rule chart · bets and house edges · betting systems · glossary