Baccarat optimal strategy is almost embarrassingly simple: bet Banker on every hand. Here is the complete mathematical proof.
The three bets and their house edges
Banker bet: 1.06% house edge. Wins 50.68% of the time.
Player bet: 1.24% house edge. Wins 49.32% of the time.
Tie bet: 14.36% house edge. Never bet this.
Why Banker wins more
Baccarat rules give Banker a slight statistical advantage due to drawing rules. The casino charges 5% commission on winning Banker bets — after commission Banker still has lower house edge (1.06%) than Player (1.24%). Always bet Banker.
The 1.06% house edge for Banker already includes the 5% commission. Paying commission does not make Banker worse than Player.
Road reading — does it work?
No. Each hand is completely independent. The shoe has no memory. Pattern recognition applied to random outcomes has zero predictive value.
Bankroll management
Bring at least 50 times your base bet. Stop-loss at 30% of session bankroll. Win target at 20%. Play live baccarat at Stake or BC.Game.