Baccarat by Pragmatic Play: discover the elegance of a casino classic

Baccarat by Pragmatic Play brings one of the most iconic casino classics to your screen, in an RNG version with no live dealer. You set the pace: each round starts only when you click the Deal button, with stakes from 1 to 100 euros. It is an accessible way into one of the best-known table games, where you play not against other players but against the maths of the game. This guide runs through the rules, the different bets and the technical details.

Why Baccarat has stayed a timeless classic

Few card games carry such a reputation for simplicity and elegance. You need no complex strategy and no card counting: the only decision you make is what to bet on. That accessibility, paired with one of the lowest house edges you will find in a casino, is exactly why the game has stayed popular at tables around the world for generations. The RNG version keeps that core intact and adds the comfort of playing entirely at your own pace.

The aim and rules of Baccarat

The game sets two hands against each other: the Player hand and the Banker hand. Your goal is to bet on whichever hand finishes closest to nine. Each round has three possible outcomes: a Player win, a Banker win, or a Tie between the two hands. Play uses eight decks, and the cards are dealt automatically once your bet is confirmed — all face up, with every value visible straight away. Because the outcome is decided entirely by the cards, you make no decisions during the round itself: you simply choose where to place your bet.

Card values and the third card in Baccarat

The scoring is simple, but it differs from what you know from other card games. Cards from 2 to 9 count their face value. Aces are worth one point. Tens and picture cards — ten, jack, queen and king — count as zero. If a hand adds up to more than nine, only the final digit counts: a hand of 7 and 8, totalling 15, is therefore worth five. The third card follows fixed, automatic rules. The Player draws a third card on a hand value of 0 to 5 and stands on 6 or 7. Whether the Banker draws a third card depends on its own value and on any third card the Player received, following the game's standard table. A hand of 8 or 9 on the first two cards is a natural: no third card is dealt. Those drawing rules run fully automatically, so there is no room for hesitation or mistakes — the game applies them the same way every time.

The three bets in Baccarat

There are three ways to place your stake. Betting on the Player pays 1 to 1 on a win — the simplest wager in the game. Betting on the Banker pays 0.95 to 1, that is 1 to 1 with an automatic 5 per cent commission deducted. That commission exists because the Banker holds a slight mathematical edge through the third-card drawing rules; even so, it remains the bet with the lowest house edge. Betting on a Tie pays 8 to 1, but it is the least frequent outcome and the one with the highest house edge.

RTP and house edge in Baccarat

The return varies sharply depending on the bet you choose. The Banker bet reaches an RTP of 98.94 per cent, which works out to a house edge of 1.06 per cent. The Player bet sits just below it at 98.76 per cent RTP and a 1.24 per cent house edge. The Tie bet falls away steeply: 85.64 per cent RTP, and therefore a house edge of a hefty 14.36 per cent. Those figures apply to the standard rules with eight decks, a 5 per cent commission on the Banker and a Tie payout of 8 to 1. Stakes run from 1 to 100 euros per round. In practice, a lower house edge means your stake erodes more slowly on average, which makes the Banker and Player bets far more appealing over the long run than the Tie.

The features of Baccarat

Where a live table imposes the dealer's rhythm on you, this RNG version hands you full control of the tempo. The Deal button starts each round only when you are ready, so you can play slower or faster to suit yourself. On the right of the interface, a history panel shows the results of the last twenty rounds, handy for tracking recent trends without leaving the game screen. And if you would rather press on, the Turbo mode speeds up the dealing animations and lets the rounds follow one another more quickly.

Tips for playing Baccarat

Statistically, the Banker bet is the smartest choice: despite the 5 per cent commission, it carries the lowest house edge of the three. The Player bet follows close behind and is just as simple to play. Many players simply alternate between Banker and Player, precisely because the gap in house edge between the two is small. The Tie bet tempts with its 8 to 1 payout, but the high house edge makes it by far the least favourable choice over the long run — fun now and then, less so as a fixed strategy. Beyond that, it remains a game of chance: every round stands apart from the last, so split your budget into set portions and decide on a win and loss limit in advance. The history of recent rounds is above all a tool for keeping your own rhythm in check, not for predicting outcomes.

What to remember about Baccarat

Baccarat by Pragmatic Play is a classic eight-deck version with three bets (Player 1:1, Banker 0.95:1, Tie 8:1), a history of the last twenty rounds and a Turbo mode. With stakes from 1 to 100 euros, full control over the start of each round and an RTP of up to 98.94 per cent on the Banker bet, the studio delivers an accessible RNG experience with no live dealer. You will find the game from Pragmatic Play, playable at Loco Casino, the legal online casino in Belgium.