Introduction
The house edge is defined as the ratio of the average loss to the initial bet. In some games the beginning wager is not necessarily the ending wager. For example in blackjack, let it ride, and Caribbean stud poker, the player may increase their bet when the odds favor doing so. In these cases the additional money wagered is not figured into the denominator for the purpose of determining the house edge, thus increasing the measure of risk. For games like Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em and Crazy 4 Poker, where there are two required initial wagers, the house edge is based on one of them only. House edge figures are based on optimal or near-optimal player strategy.
The table below shows the house edge of most popular casino games and bets.
A variation of Baccarat and Mini-Baccarat, in Midi-Baccarat, all cards are dealt by one dealer and only 7 players can be seated at one time.
- Egamings offers the widest variety of premium live casino products, including live dealer and online table games. Popular casino game titles, such as Live Roulette, Live Poker, Live Blackjack, Live Baccarat are livestreamed from Evolution Gaming's studios. Live casino games are presented in HD quality and run smoothly by professional live dealers. Our clients can opt for cost-effective generic live tables that allow Live Lobby branding.
- DCBET88 is an online casino platform in Singapore with a wide range of games including live casino, online roulette, online poker, live blackjack, online baccarat, slot online, and sports betting. Combining with the fast processing speed of deposits and withdrawals.
- Here, the roulette game possesses 73 numbers, ranging from zero to 72, as opposed to the usual 37 and 38 number wheels we often see at land-based casinos.
Casino Game House Edge
Game | Bet/Rules | House Edge | Standard Deviation |
---|---|---|---|
Baccarat | Banker | 1.06% | 0.93 |
Player | 1.24% | 0.95 | |
Tie | 14.36% | 2.64 | |
Big Six | $1 | 11.11% | 0.99 |
$2 | 16.67% | 1.34 | |
$5 | 22.22% | 2.02 | |
$10 | 18.52% | 2.88 | |
$20 | 22.22% | 3.97 | |
Joker/Logo | 24.07% | 5.35 | |
Bonus Six | No insurance | 10.42% | 5.79 |
With insurance | 23.83% | 6.51 | |
Blackjacka | Liberal Vegas rules | 0.28% | 1.15 |
Caribbean Stud Poker | 5.22% | 2.24 | |
Casino War | Go to war on ties | 2.88% | 1.05 |
Surrender on ties | 3.70% | 0.94 | |
Bet on tie | 18.65% | 8.32 | |
Catch a Wave | 0.50% | d | |
Craps | Pass/Come | 1.41% | 1.00 |
Don't pass/don't come | 1.36% | 0.99 | |
Odds — 4 or 10 | 0.00% | 1.41 | |
Odds — 5 or 9 | 0.00% | 1.22 | |
Odds — 6 or 8 | 0.00% | 1.10 | |
Field (2:1 on 12) | 5.56% | 1.08 | |
Field (3:1 on 12) | 2.78% | 1.14 | |
Any craps | 11.11% | 2.51 | |
Big 6,8 | 9.09% | 1.00 | |
Hard 4,10 | 11.11% | 2.51 | |
Hard 6,8 | 9.09% | 2.87 | |
Place 6,8 | 1.52% | 1.08 | |
Place 5,9 | 4.00% | 1.18 | |
Place 4,10 | 6.67% | 1.32 | |
Place (to lose) 4,10 | 3.03% | 0.69 | |
2, 12, & all hard hops | 13.89% | 5.09 | |
3, 11, & all easy hops | 11.11% | 3.66 | |
Any seven | 16.67% | 1.86 | |
Crazy 4 Poker | Ante | 3.42%* | 3.13* |
Double Down Stud | 2.67% | 2.97 | |
Heads Up Hold 'Em | Blind pay table #1 (500-50-10-8-5) | 2.36% | 4.56 |
Keno | 25%-29% | 1.30-46.04 | |
Let it Ride | 3.51% | 5.17 | |
Pai Gowc | 1.50% | 0.75 | |
Pai Gow Pokerc | 1.46% | 0.75 | |
Pick 'em Poker | 0% - 10% | 3.87 | |
Red Dog | Six decks | 2.80% | 1.60 |
Roulette | Single Zero | 2.70% | e |
Double Zero | 5.26% | e | |
Sic-Bo | 2.78%-33.33% | e | |
Slot Machines | 2%-15%f | 8.74g | |
Spanish 21 | Dealer hits soft 17 | 0.76% | d |
Dealer stands on soft 17 | 0.40% | d | |
Super Fun 21 | 0.94% | d | |
Three Card Poker | Pairplus | 7.28% | 2.85 |
Ante & play | 3.37% | 1.64 | |
Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em | Ante | 2.19% | 4.94 |
Video Poker | Jacks or Better (Full Pay) | 0.46% | 4.42 |
Wild Hold 'em Fold 'em | 6.86% | d |
Notes
a | Liberal Vegas Strip rules: Dealer stands on soft 17, player may double on any two cards, player may double after splitting, resplit aces, late surrender. |
b | Las Vegas single deck rules are dealer hits on soft 17, player may double on any two cards, player may not double after splitting, one card to split aces, no surrender. |
c | Assuming player plays the house way, playing one on one against dealer, and half of bets made are as banker. |
d | Yet to be determined. |
e | Standard deviation depends on bet made. |
f | Slot machine range is based on available returns from a major manufacturer |
g | Slot machine standard deviation based on just one machine. While this can vary, the standard deviation on slot machines are very high. |
Guide to House Edge
The reason that the house edge is relative to the original wager, not the average wager, is that it makes it easier for the player to estimate how much they will lose. For example if a player knows the house edge in blackjack is 0.6% he can assume that for every $10 wager original wager he makes he will lose 6 cents on the average. Most players are not going to know how much their average wager will be in games like blackjack relative to the original wager, thus any statistic based on the average wager would be difficult to apply to real life questions.
The conventional definition can be helpful for players determine how much it will cost them to play, given the information they already know. However the statistic is very biased as a measure of risk. In Caribbean stud poker, for example, the house edge is 5.22%, which is close to that of double zero roulette at 5.26%. However the ratio of average money lost to average money wagered in Caribbean stud is only 2.56%. The player only looking at the house edge may be indifferent between roulette and Caribbean stud poker, based only the house edge. If one wants to compare one game against another I believe it is better to look at the ratio of money lost to money wagered, which would show Caribbean stud poker to be a much better gamble than roulette.
Many other sources do not count ties in the house edge calculation, especially for the Don't Pass bet in craps and the banker and player bets in baccarat. The rationale is that if a bet isn't resolved then it should be ignored. I personally opt to include ties although I respect the other definition.
Element of Risk
For purposes of comparing one game to another I would like to propose a different measurement of risk, which I call the 'element of risk.' This measurement is defined as the average loss divided by total money bet. For bets in which the initial bet is always the final bet there would be no difference between this statistic and the house edge. Bets in which there is a difference are listed below.
Element of Risk
Game | Bet | House Edge | Element of Risk |
---|---|---|---|
Blackjack | Atlantic City rules | 0.43% | 0.38% |
Bonus 6 | No insurance | 10.42% | 5.41% |
Bonus 6 | With insurance | 23.83% | 6.42% |
Caribbean Stud Poker | 5.22% | 2.56% | |
Casino War | Go to war on ties | 2.88% | 2.68% |
Crazy 4 Poker | Standard rules | 3.42%* | 1.09% |
Heads Up Hold 'Em | Pay Table #1 (500-50-10-8-5) | 2.36% | 0.64% |
Double Down Stud | 2.67% | 2.13% | |
Let it Ride | 3.51% | 2.85% | |
Spanish 21 | Dealer hits soft 17 | 0.76% | 0.65% |
Spanish 21 | Dealer stands on soft 17 | 0.40% | 0.30% |
Three Card Poker | Ante & play | 3.37% | 2.01% |
Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em | 2.19%* | 0.53% | |
Wild Hold 'em Fold 'em | 6.86% | 3.23% |
Standard Deviation
The standard deviation is a measure of how volatile your bankroll will be playing a given game. This statistic is commonly used to calculate the probability that the end result of a session of a defined number of bets will be within certain bounds.
The standard deviation of the final result over n bets is the product of the standard deviation for one bet (see table) and the square root of the number of initial bets made in the session. This assumes that all bets made are of equal size. The probability that the session outcome will be within one standard deviation is 68.26%. The probability that the session outcome will be within two standard deviations is 95.46%. The probability that the session outcome will be within three standard deviations is 99.74%. The following table shows the probability that a session outcome will come within various numbers of standard deviations.
I realize that this explanation may not make much sense to someone who is not well versed in the basics of statistics. If this is the case I would recommend enriching yourself with a good introductory statistics book.
Standard Deviation
Number | Probability |
---|---|
0.25 | 0.1974 |
0.50 | 0.3830 |
0.75 | 0.5468 |
1.00 | 0.6826 |
1.25 | 0.7888 |
1.50 | 0.8664 |
1.75 | 0.9198 |
2.00 | 0.9546 |
2.25 | 0.9756 |
2.50 | 0.9876 |
2.75 | 0.9940 |
3.00 | 0.9974 |
3.25 | 0.9988 |
3.50 | 0.9996 |
3.75 | 0.9998 |
Poker Baccarat Roulette Games
Hold
Although I do not mention hold percentages on my site the term is worth defining because it comes up a lot. The hold percentage is the ratio of chips the casino keeps to the total chips sold. This is generally measured over an entire shift. For example if blackjack table x takes in $1000 in the drop box and of the $1000 in chips sold the table keeps $300 of them (players walked away with the other $700) then the game's hold is 30%. If every player loses their entire purchase of chips then the hold will be 100%. It is possible for the hold to exceed 100% if players carry to the table chips purchased at another table. A mathematician alone can not determine the hold because it depends on how long the player will sit at the table and the same money circulates back and forth. There is a lot of confusion between the house edge and hold, especially among casino personnel.
Hands per Hour, House Edge for Comp Purposes
The following table shows the average hands per hour and the house edge for comp purposes various games. The house edge figures are higher than those above, because the above figures assume optimal strategy, and those below reflect player errors and average type of bet made. This table was given to me anonymously by an executive with a major Strip casino and is used for rating players.
Hands per Hour and Average House Edge
Games | Hands/Hour | House Edge |
---|---|---|
Baccarat | 72 | 1.2% |
Blackjack | 70 | 0.75% |
Big Six | 10 | 15.53% |
Craps | 48 | 1.58% |
Car. Stud | 50 | 1.46% |
Let It Ride | 52 | 2.4% |
Mini-Baccarat | 72 | 1.2% |
Midi-Baccarat | 72 | 1.2% |
Pai Gow | 30 | 1.65% |
Pai Pow Poker | 34 | 1.96% |
Roulette | 38 | 5.26% |
Single 0 Roulette | 35 | 2.59% |
Casino War | 65 | 2.87% |
Spanish 21 | 75 | 2.2% |
Sic Bo | 45 | 8% |
3 Way Action | 70 | 2.2% |
Poker Baccarat Roulette Rules
Footnotes
* — House edge based on Ante bet only as opposed to all mandatory wagers (for example the Blind in Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em and the Super Bonus in Crazy 4 Poker.
Translation
A Spanish translation of this page is available at www.eldropbox.com.
Written by: Michael Shackleford
When it comes to the casino there are a few games that people are drawn to over others - whether you go to your local brick and mortar or you're a regular at Betfair Casino, there's going to be a game you're more drawn to than others. If you're the kind of gambler who values skill, strategy and calculated deployment then you're probably going to be drawn to Blackjack where you can apply the most strategy - if you're the type who just wants to be entertained then slots is likely going to be your game of choice. But what if you were after something more? What if you were looking for a game of pure chance? Well, your best bets are going to be Roulette or Baccarat. Both offer you an approximately 50:50 chance of victory if you bet a certain way. But which is better?
Roulette
Roulette is a casino classic, a game of pure chance where your fate is in the hands of lady luck with every spin. If we're doing a comparison to Blackjack, then we need to look at just the red/black or odds/evens bets as the comparable point to Baccarat's dealer or player bet. Unfortunately, before we can properly answer this, we have to know which game it is that we're playing as the odds are different depending on if you're playing European or American roulette. If American then you have two zero spaces available for the House Edge which lowers your odds to a 47.4% chance of winning for either red or black. If you're playing European, however, the odds are 48.6% in your favour, a pretty sizeable difference.
The pay-out is the same for both, 1 to 1. Roulette offers a wide variety of betting options however, and it's possible to use that to your advantage by betting on more than on outcome. Baccarat by comparison has fewer betting options - but how do the odds look?
Baccarat
Baccarat is actually a little different from roulette as it isn't really an even chance game. The probability of winning a banker's bet is about 45.8% and the probability of winning a player's bet is about 44.6% with the remaining 9.5% reserved for draws. The odds of winning if you bet on the banker's hand are actually higher than the odds of winning if you bet on the player which sounds ideal, right? Well, the casino has to have an edge somewhere, and that edge is found in the Vig, or Vigorish, a small commission on the winnings which makes the pay-out 95% of the stake instead of 100% as it is with the player bet (and an impressive 8 times the stake if you bet on the unlikely event of a tie).
With the vig in place, the odds are now returned to approximately 50:50 (not accounting for house edge) as they are for roulette.
So which is better?
Well, it's a hard question to answer – whichever game appeals to you most is the one that you should be looking to play. Both rely on pure luck so it really is just down to fate. Good luck!