Baccarat. It’s a game that a few players will look askance at when it comes up. Unlike poker, blackjack, and the other staples of the casino, baccarat can feel alien, uncomfortable, unfamiliar. Maybe that’s because it spent decades as a game reserved mostly for the high-rollers… but in 2025 and beyond, that shouldn’t stop you from exploring it.
Whatever you may hear about it, baccarat is a comfort game. It’s a title you can turn to when you want a bit of solidity, a bit of calm. Why? Well, let’s find out.
Is getting dressed up and going out to the casino feeling a bit high-energy for the kind of relaxing night you want? That’s no longer the issue it used to be; most good online platforms now host at least one variant of baccarat, sometimes more - offering options for players everywhere.
Let’s say you want to play online baccarat in Australia. All you need to do is find a platform that offers the game, sign up, and click on the title that appeals. Thanks to the fact that there aren’t all that many variants, this should be a very simple process! Australians no longer have to head out into the heat, deal with parking, or bother with a commute to access their baccarat fun; it’s readily available at all the high-end Australian platforms.
You may even have the option to enjoy a live dealer version of the game, bumping up the immersion tenfold. It’s got all the glamour of playing in person, with none of the headaches. You’ll have a professional, trained dealer with high-quality streaming equipment, ready to take your bet and deal out the cards, just as they would if you headed out to a physical casino. That’s going to appeal to a lot of players!
If you’ve never played baccarat, you may not realize just how simple this title is. It wipes the floor with poker and blackjack alike, offering an experience that is ultra-straightforward. Baccarat is easy to play because really, it comes down to nothing but luck and a couple of simple decisions made by you, which can be guided by the game’s odds.
When you play online baccarat, you’ll usually be faced with a very simple set of options for placing your bets. You can bet on the Banker, you can bet on the Player, or you can bet on a Tie. Don’t assume that betting on the player is in your favor simply because you are the player! Similarly, don’t assume that a tie will spread your odds and give you an advantage (ties are actually the least likely outcome).
Once bets have been placed, the dealer will deal out two cards to each hand (one to the Player, one to the Banker). If one or the other hand has a value of 8 or 9, the round ends, with the appropriate hand winning. If both hands are below 8, the dealer can draw another card for one or both of them (depending slightly on the rules of the variant you’re playing). The results are tallied again, and a winner gets determined.
If you’re thinking, “Wow, that’s simple”... yes, it is! Therein lies the beauty of baccarat. No messing around with numbers. No bluffing or reading of body language. No trying to count cards. This is a game with simplicity at its core, waiting to be explored. Perhaps Da Vinci said it best: “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” Baccarat, always a game played by the sophisticated of society, certainly embodies that. If you’re looking for a low-effort evening where you can just kick back and leave your outcomes in the hands of fate, this is it.
And there is still plenty of fun to be had! Because you’ve got different betting options, such as the Tie bet, you can mix it up and explore. Baccarat has remained a staple of the casino for that reason: it’s low-decision, but not “no-decision,” providing an excellent option.
Furthermore, you’ll never have to deal with this sort of situation, where you’re fed up with the dealer, even though you know it’s not your fault. The cards dealt to the “Player” don’t matter - all that matters is your bet!
One of the other advantages of playing this game online? Demo mode. Although the game is simple, it’s totally understandable that some players want to try it for themselves first, so they can get a direct feeling for the layout and the way dealing and betting work. Some things, after all, are much easier to learn when we try them hands-on!
Fortunately, most good online platforms will have demo modes available for you to try, and this is another edge they have over the physical casinos (which may not have the space to run demo tables).
This also makes it feasible to try a few different variants if they’re on offer, or to experiment with different betting strategies. Want to see how often the Tie bet really wins? Have a go in the demo mode first, and you’ll then know whether you want to give this a go in a real-money game.
