Baccarat is one of the easiest casino games to learn and has a reputation for glamour & excitement. It’s also the casino game with the lowest house edge, which means it costs you less in the long run. Nevertheless, the game can seem intimidating to new players as it has several rules & regulations that should be understood before betting real money.

In baccarat, you bet on either the Player hand or the Banker hand, and hope that the hand will have a total value closest to 9. Each hand is dealt two cards and the hand with the highest value wins the round. Note that the value of a hand is calculated by adding up all the cards, but only the rightmost digit counts (so a 6 + 2 is worth six points). When both the player and banker hands have a total of 9, it’s called a tie.

The payouts for a winning bet vary, depending on the table. If you wager on the Banker hand, it has a low house edge and pays out at 95% of your stake, while the Player bet offers a more attractive 1:1 payout. You can also place a Tie bet, which is higher risk but has a much better chance of winning. Score sheets are available at live baccarat tables to help you keep track of your bankroll and win/loss ratio.

Before you begin playing baccarat, it’s important to have a plan for how much you’re willing to spend and to stick to it. It’s also a good idea to decide how many rounds you want to play and set your losses limit.