Baccarat Side Bets

There are a number of optional side bets available at Mini Baccarat tables everywhere and like any side wager, all of them exist to increase the house edge. Nevertheless Players are attracted to them because of the hefty winning payouts. Here are some of the popular ones.

Baccarat Dragon Bonus

For this option the bettor may wager on the Player or Banker side that the hand will win by a natural or by 4 or more points. The bet must be made before the hand is dealt. The greater the number that the hand wins by, the greater the payout:

Bet on Player Win                                 Payout

Win by:      9                                           30/1

                  8                                           10/1

                  7                                           6/1

                  6                                           4/1

                  5                                           2/1

                  4                                           1/1

                  Natural                                  1/1

The house edge for this bet is 2.7%.

The payouts are the same for a bet on the Bank when betting dragon bonus however the house edge jumps to 9.7% if you choose it.

4-5-6

This is a side wager that the total number of combined cards to complete the Player and Banker hand will be 4, 5, or 6.

Total Cards             Payout              House Edge          

         4                       1.5/1                        5.3%

         5                       2/1                          8.9%

          6                      2/1                           4.7%

3 Card Six

This is a bet for a winning 3 card six. If player and banker have a 3 card six, the wager pays 100/1. If there is only one three card six, the bettor wins 8/1. The house edge is a whopping 13.4%!

Royal Match

Wagering that the player or banker hand will have a king and queen on the first two cards drawn, called the Royal Match. The bet pays 75/1 for a suited king & queen, and 30/1 for an unsuited royal match. The house edge has been calculated at about 2.1%.

Dragon 7

Dragon 7 is an optional side bet found in EZ Baccarat, which is played the same as the Mini-version except the game has a commission free bank hand with one exception: A winning bank hand with a three card total of seven will push instead of paying even money. A player may wager on that outcome for which the winning payout is 40/1. The house edge is about 7.6%.

Panda 8

The Panda 8 side bet is sometimes found in the EZ games. The wager pays 25/1 if a player hand has a three card total of eight. As for the house edge, it’s 10.2%.


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