Casino & Table Games

Punto banco

Also called

Baccarat³

House edge (Player bet)

1.24%¹

House edge (Banker bet)

1.06% after 5% commission¹

Target total

9 points, or as close as possible²

Key points

• The casino, not the players, follows fixed drawing rules (the tableau) to complete the hands.¹
• Banker wins are paid at even money minus a 5% commission, which produces the 1.06% house edge.¹⁴
• A coup ends as a Player win, Banker win, or tie; the bettor simply chooses which hand will win.¹
• Punto banco is the modern house-banked form of baccarat, distinct from earlier versions where players dealt to each other.¹²

How a hand of punto banco is played

1. Two hands are dealt: Player (punto) and Banker (banco).¹
2. Bettors place chips on the hand they think will come closest to 9 points.²
3. Cards are valued: Ace = 1, 2–9 = face value, 10 and face cards = 0. If the total exceeds 9, only the second digit counts (e.g. 7+6=13 → 3).
4. The casino applies the fixed tableau rules to decide whether a third card is drawn for either hand.¹
5. The hand with the higher total wins; a tie pushes all bets except the Tie bet.

House edge and commission

The Banker bet carries a house edge of 1.06%, making it the most favourable wager in the game.¹ This low edge is achieved by charging a 5% commission on all winning Banker bets.¹⁴

The Player bet has a slightly higher house edge of 1.24% and pays even money with no commission.¹ A Tie bet, which pays 8-to-1 or 9-to-1 depending on the casino, carries a much larger house edge of around 14.4% and is generally not recommended for serious players.

Game flow and betting

Each round, called a coup, begins with players placing their bets on the Player, Banker, or Tie area of the layout.¹ The dealer then deals two cards each to the Player and Banker positions. If either hand totals 8 or 9, that is a natural and no further cards are drawn.

When neither hand has a natural, the tableau rules determine whether a third card is drawn. The Player hand acts first: it draws on totals of 0–5 and stands on 6–7. The Banker hand then draws according to a more complex set of rules that depend on both its own total and the Player's third card, if any.¹

Where this term is used

• Baccarat

Not the same as

• Punto banco vs baccarat — a comparison page that explains the historical and regional differences between the two terms

Related terms

Sources

1. Baccarat - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org Provides the definition, house-edge figures, and description of the fixed drawing rules.
2. Definitions of terms - Gambling Commission gamblingcommission.gov.uk Confirms the term's application to modern house-banked baccarat and the target total of 9.
3. Online Baccarat Guide with Basics, Odds, How To Play & ... wizardofodds.com States that baccarat is also known as punto banco.
4. 百家樂 wizardofodds.com Supports the 5% commission on Banker wins.

Sources are drawn from regulators, universities and published research, and each one is labelled with what it actually is — a preprint is not called a paper. Bookmaker and affiliate pages are never cited here, because a page that sells betting is not a neutral authority on it.