No-Commission Baccarat: Where the 5% Actually Went
Last reviewed: August 2026
“No commission!” reads like a discount: classic baccarat skims 5% off every winning Banker bet, and this table doesn’t. But casinos don’t hold charity events on the gaming floor. The commission didn’t disappear; it moved somewhere harder to see, and it got slightly bigger on the way.
The swap
Standard baccarat: Banker wins pay even money minus a 5% commission: net edge 1.06%, the best mainstream bet in the pit.
No-commission baccarat (often branded Super 6 or EZ Baccarat variants): Banker wins pay full even money… except when Banker wins with a total of six, which pays only half (1 to 2). That’s the whole trick.
The exact math
Banker wins with a six on about 5.4% of all hands. Losing half your payout on those hands costs more than the 5% skim on every win used to:
| Version | Banker house edge |
|---|---|
| Classic (5% commission) | 1.06% |
| No-commission (six pays 1:2) | 1.46% |
The “free” version charges about 40% more. It’s well disguised: winning a Banker bet with a six feels like a win with a technicality, not like paying a fee, which is precisely why the format spread.
Why casinos love it anyway
To be fair, it isn’t purely a hustle: no-commission tables deal faster (no commission tracking), simplify payouts, and remove the end-of-shoe commission settling that annoys everyone. Speed itself also serves the house: more hands per hour at a slightly higher edge compounds nicely.
What to do
Nothing complicated: 1.46% is still a decent bet, better than double-zero roulette and every baccarat side bet. But if a classic commission table sits twenty feet away, that one is simply cheaper. Banker at 1.06% remains the best pure no-decision bet in the casino.
See the six-pays-half rule bite in real time, deal both versions mentally against the simulator and watch how often Banker sixes arrive.