Baccarat is a casino game that has captivated audiences from sticky-floor California card rooms to the tuxedo-laden casinos of Monaco. The game has a low house edge and is relatively easy to learn, so it’s no wonder that many players have adopted it as their favorite casino table game. It’s also one of the few games that is popular in both land-based and online gambling sites.

The game of baccarat is played using six, seven, or eight standard decks of cards with 52 cards in each. A player’s objective is to correctly predict which hand will win—the Banker’s, the Player’s, or a tie. Two cards are dealt to each hand, and whichever is closest to nine wins the round. The values of each card are determined by their number, with a 9 equaling nine points, a 10 equaling six points, and the ace equaling one point.

While it’s impossible to determine if any particular card will be a winner, there are some betting systems that can improve a player’s long-term odds of winning. One of these is the use of edge sorting, which involves examining the edges of each card to determine whether it’s high or low. It’s not a foolproof method, however, and should be used in conjunction with other strategies.

In a live game, players will take turns dealing the cards. However, since baccarat is not considered a skill-based game, it’s very unlikely that a player will be able to deal the cards themselves. Generally, casinos have the dealer or croupier handle the cards in order to reduce cheating and ensure that each hand is dealt fairly. When playing baccarat online, the rules are slightly different, as the game is mostly automated.

A player will be seated at a designated place around the table and will have an area to place their chips on Player, Banker, or Tie bets. They will then watch the action unfold, although baccarat etiquette dictates that players should not move their chips while a game is in session. If they need to leave, they should ask permission before doing so.

Once a player decides to “go bank,” they will announce their initial betting amount in counterclockwise order, and the other players will either match or exceed it. A player may add more bets at any time as long as the total doesn’t exceed the banker’s initial bet. Baccarat also has two additional bets, the Super Six and the Pair Bet. A player can win the Super Six bet if the Banker’s hand scores six points, and a player can win a Pair Bet if they have a pair of matching cards in their initial hand. Both of these bets pay out 1:1.