How to Play and Win at Baccarat: Basic Strategy Guide for UK Players and Beginners

We’ve previously detailed the baccarat basics and how to play if you are unsure of how the game works. 

This guide will take a closer look at betting systems before revealing the best baccarat strategy for beginners.

Understanding the Baccarat House Edge: The Foundation of Strategy

You can’t change the cards as you can in blackjack, but your control comes from the bets that you place. This is what makes baccarat strategy essential. 

In the table below, you can see the house edge for each different bet type.

Bet Type	House Edge
Banker	1.06%
Player	1.24%
Tie	14.36%

• The Banker’s Advantage: Why the 1.06% house edge is your best friend.

The Banker bet has the lowest house edge, meaning this bet is your best move mathematically. Statistically, this type of bet wins most regularly – around 45.8% of the time.

• The Player Bet: A solid alternative at 1.24%.

The Player bet still has a low house edge of 1.24% but does not win as often as the Banker bet. It has around a 44.6% win rate. While it is still a solid option, the maths says the Banker's bet still has the advantage.

• The Tie Bet Trap: Why the 14.36% edge is a sucker bet.

With a sizeable advantage to the house with a 14.36% edge, you should avoid betting on the Tie. While a typical payout between 8/1 and 9/1 is a tempting bet to make, it’s that size for a reason: You most likely won’t win!

Essential Baccarat Betting Systems

Baccarat strategy requires you to learn about the essential betting systems in place. Learning these systems can help increase your chances of winning and help you find the edge over the casino.

We’ll start with high-risk systems, which require careful bankroll management. However, there are more conservative and safer systems you can utilise, which are more appropriate for beginners.

Negative Progression Systems (High Risk)

These systems are high risk as you are increasing your bet size after a loss. After a win, you reduce your stake. This means long losing streaks can quickly deplete your bankroll, but can help you recover losses and turn a profit if you win.

There is only one negative progression system that is suitable for beginners. We’ll show you how to use it below. If you want to learn more about these types of betting systems, we’ll explain them in more detail in our advanced guide.

• The D’Alembert: A safer, incremental approach to losses.

The D’Alembert system requires you to increase your stake incrementally after a loss and decrease your bet size by a small amount after a win. It is a slower progression system compared to the Martingale system. Instead of doubling your stake like with the Martingale system, you only increase your stake by one unit.

Positive Progression Systems (Conservative)

Positive progression systems require you to increase your bet size after a win and decrease them after a loss, instead of increasing your stake after a loss like with negative progression systems. This makes them less risky, since it protects your bankroll when you hit a losing streak.

• The Paroli (Reverse Martingale): Capitalising on winning streaks.

The Paroli system is known as the reverse Martingale system as you are doubling your stake after a win instead of a loss. If you lose, you return to your base bet. This helps you capitalise on winning streaks. However, you stop doubling your stakes after three consecutive wins and return to the base bet.

• The 1-3-2-6 System: Managing chips through a four-hand cycle.

This system requires you to follow a set sequence to determine your bet size, similar to the Fibonacci system. If your bet wins, you move along the next number in the sequence. If your bet loses, you revert back to the start of the sequence.

• The 1-3-2-4 Strategy: A low-risk variation for UK players.

The 1-3-2-4 strategy works in the same way as the 1-3-2-6 system but just changes the last number in the sequence. This means that it is a lower-risk version but you cannot profit as much as you can with the 1-3-2-6 system.

Flat Betting: The Professional’s Choice

Flat betting is the most sustainable long-term strategy for playing any type of casino game. Still, there are plenty of betting strategies you can follow, and it’s up to you which one you choose, especially if you are in a position to take a bigger risk.

The professionals of the baccarat strategy will most likely go for the consistent betting approach.

Here’s why:

• Losses are predictable

• Stabilises bankroll and extends gameplay

• Eradicates emotional betting

• Steady profit potential

Tips for Beginners: Bankroll Management

Understanding basic baccarat winning strategy will get you started in the right direction. Utilising a betting system can be effective and you can adjust pretty much any of the above systems to fit any size bankroll if needed. 

Regardless of the system you decide to use, smart bankroll management is essential when it comes to baccarat card game strategy and it should take priority over any system.

The Best Way to Play Baccarat for Beginners

There’s no possible way to always win at baccarat and there’s never a sure bet. However, understanding baccarat rules and strategy can greatly increase your chances. We’ve summarised the top strategies and systems below.

Strategy/System	Suitable For Beginners
Banker bet	✅
Player bet	✅ (Not optimal)
Tie	❌
Side bets	❌
Martingale System	❌
Fibonacci System	❌
Labouchere System	❌
D’Alembert system	✅
Positive Progression Systems	✅
Flat betting	✅

CasinoTopsOnline's Final Thoughts for Best Baccarat Strategy

If you’re just getting started with baccarat, CasinoTopsOnline recommends focusing on making Banker bets. This will give you the best chance of winning. Avoiding the tie and any side bets is key.

If you want to use a betting system, most of the negative progressive systems are too risky. However, the D’Alembert system is the best approach if you want to use one of those systems. Positive progression systems can be used as they are conservative approaches that aim to mitigate losses.

All in all, the best system to use is a flat betting strategy. This is due to its simplicity, low-risk approach and focus on simple bankroll management.

Once you feel confident in the basic baccarat strategy and approach, you can consider more advanced techniques and systems.