Using the Martingale System in Baccarat – Is It Worth Your Time?

Baccarat has recently experienced a popularity surge thanks to lower betting limits and smaller tables (a.k.a. mini baccarat).

Another reason to love baccarat is that the house edge is only 1.06% when you wager on the banker’s hand. This makes baccarat one of the best bets in the casino.

But as low as the house advantage is, you’re still facing a long-term losing proposition. And therefore, some baccarat players continue to look for different ways to beat the game.

One of the most popular strategies to use is the baccarat Martingale strategy, which is widely used in casino games with even-money bets.

Will the Martingale baccarat strategy improve your chances of winning? Find out as I discuss exactly how this system works, the downsides, and conclude on how successful the Martingale is in baccarat.

If you’re already set with your baccarat strategy – martingale or not – head to the top casinos that offer the game below.

So, can you use the Martingale system in baccarat? Before I answer that, let’s make sure we all know what it is first. The Martingale System is one of the simplest gambling strategies in existence.

All you need to do is double your bet following any loss. You then return to the original stake following a win. Given the simplicity of the baccarat Martingale system, it is commonly used by players of all kinds of experience levels.

Can you use the Martingale system in baccarat? That depends on a few factors, which include luck. To get a quick grasp on the skin and bones of this system, the list below explains how it works.

Using the points above as an example, you won three hands and lost three. This is a common occurrence in baccarat, as it’s almost a 50/50 proposition with the casino.

Using the Martingale strategy in baccarat, as simple as it looks, is not guaranteed to work. But when it does, as with the example above, you end a six-point run with +15 in units.

Even though you won and lost an equal number of hands, you profited by $15, thanks to the Martingale.

And when you win, you also bank a small profit at the end of each losing streak. Does this work when playing live baccarat online, you ask? It does work online, and there’s probably a good amount of people doing it as we speak.

The advantages make it easy to see why the baccarat Martingale strategy is so popular. You could theoretically earn long-term profits with this gambling system.

With that said, you should be aware of some downsides to using this strategy, especially if you plan on using it immediately.

I’d recommend reading our guide to systems and strategies before using the Martingale. It will ensure you’re equipped to deal with every aspect of what can happen when approaching your bets in such a fashion.

The Martingale baccarat strategy is not guaranteed to work. As with any system, you should be looking to ascertain whether it has the potential to work in the long run.

To put it another way, is the martingale system a good baccarat strategy? Or would you better off looking elsewhere?

Anyone familiar with the approach will understand that three broad drawbacks can hinder its long-term viability.

These are as follows:

• You need an infinite amount of money to guarantee the success of the Martingale system in baccarat.
• Many casinos impose table limits that can diminish the strength of the martingale strategy in baccarat.
• The system does not lower the baccarat house edge.

Anyone asking the question of does the martingale system work in baccarat should be aware of how these issues can prevent problems for the player.

As such, I believe it’s worth looking at all three factors independently. Let’s start with the issue surrounding infinite money. Or the lack thereof.

Addressing the first point, anything can happen in gambling. This means that there’s always the chance you could lose a large number of hands in a row.

Unless you have an infinite bankroll, you’ll eventually run into a losing streak that you can’t absorb. Considering that the Martingale is predicated on doubling bets after every loss, you can’t use it to the fullest without an endless supply of money.

Can you win baccarat using the Martingale system? Yes. But you can also lose all you have.

The second major problem is that casinos impose table limits to reduce the short-term effectiveness of the Martingale system in baccarat.

Without table limits, several players would leave the casino with short-term wins again and again. But with betting limits, you only have to lose several bets in a row before you can no longer double the next wager.

Here’s an example:

Some players dismiss this point because they don’t think the odds of losing seven straight hands are very high. But the chances of a 7-hand losing streak increase greatly as you continue playing hands.

Here’s another example to illustrate this point:

It’s hard to get excited about the Martingale when there’s a 50% chance that you’ll lose seven straight hands.

But what if you only sit at the table for one shoe? Even in this case, you have a 19.76% chance of running into the table limit.

The underlying issue with the Martingale system in baccarat is that it doesn’t help you overcome the baccarat house edge.

All you’re doing with this system is manipulating bet sizes and hoping to avoid long losing streaks. You’re not, however, bypassing the 1.06% house edge with this system.

The Martingale isn’t like being a skilled card counter who has a long-term advantage over the casino. Instead, you only have a short-term edge thanks to the ability to win back losses.

This is why the Martingale’s success hinges on having a great deal of luck. You can give yourself a slightly better chance to make a profit if you know the secrets to winning at baccarat.

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Your success in using the Martingale system in baccarat depends upon another three main factors: the minimum bet, the table betting limit, and how long you play.

You’ll usually reach the table limit after 6-7 losses in most types of baccarat games. But some casinos give you more leeway in this department because they have low minimum bets combined with higher table limits.

This is especially the case in Las Vegas, where you’ll find a wide range of baccarat games.

Let’s use SLS Las Vegas as an example:

The chances of losing eight straight hands over three shoes (180 hands) are 21.17%. This is a little better than the chances of losing seven consecutive hands (50.41%).

You stand a 15.67% chance of losing nine straight hands. If you can win the ninth bet at $5,120, you’ll get nearly all your money back.

But remember that a $10 minimum bet and $10k max wager are the best conditions you’ll find for using the Martingale.

The only thing that would be better is a high-stakes baccarat table with no limits. But the drawback here is that you must place higher minimum bets, and you’ll need massive amounts of money to make this work.

Here’s an example:

The chances of losing 14 consecutive hands within three shoes are 0.51% or around 200:1 odds.

Most players would take these odds if they could make a few thousand dollars in profits.

But the question is if you’d have the nerve to continue betting when you’ve lost the 11th bet ($102,400), 12th bet ($204,800), and 13th bet ($409,600). Even most millionaires wouldn’t feel comfortable making the 11th wager at $102.4k.

Back to the original question: Does the martingale system work in baccarat? Yes, if you have a huge bankroll and are on a table with no betting limits.

But this isn’t realistic for over 99.9% of baccarat players.

With all being said and done, you shouldn’t be targeting strategies and systems until you have grasped the fundamentals of the game. Have you even checked out our guide to baccarat? If not, get on it. Now!

Once you’ve covered the basics of using the martingale system in baccarat, there is much more to unpack.

For instance, there are also variations of this system that you can employ while playing the game. I’ll cover these strategies below, explaining how they work and why they can be used as viable alternatives to the main Martingale system.

Naturally, you should approach any strategy with respect and a sense of caution. Learn how they work, and don’t deviate too far from the formula.

In other words, don’t go trying to use a monkey wrench when a teaspoon would have sufficed.

The Anti Martingale (a.k.a. Reverse Martingale) is the opposite of the Martingale. Instead of doubling wagers after losses, you double bets after wins.

Here’s a sequence to illustrate this:

The Anti Martingale is safer than the Martingale because you’re only increasing wagers following wins. Therefore, you don’t pile up big losses while continually doubling bets.

This system is fun for anybody who likes capitalizing on winning streaks. But like the Martingale, it doesn’t do anything to overcome the house edge.

Another problem is that you put all of your winnings at risk by doubling up over and over.

This is why many players put a cap on their winning streaks (e.g., 3 wins) and start over when they reach this point.

The Grand Martingale calls on you to not only double bets after losses but also add an additional unit. This means that you win a larger profit following any losing streak.

You need to develop a base unit to start with (e.g., $10 = 1). Once you have your base unit, you can proceed to use the Grand Martingale.

Here’s an example:

As you can see, you’re always doubling the bet and adding 1 extra unit. And this boosts your profit to 4 units following a 3-hand losing streak.

If you merely used the baccarat Martingale strategy in this situation, you’d only win 1 unit at the end of the losing streak.

Obviously, the larger profits are nice with the Grand Martingale. But this system is even riskier than the Martingale and will have you hitting the table limit sooner, too.

This strategy requires setting a limit to the number of times you double wagers after losses. For example, you might return to the original bet if you lose four straight baccarat hands.

The advantage is that you eventually cut your losses before they grow too high. Here’s an example of the Mini Martingale:

The big downside to the Mini Martingale is that you’ll sometimes have to start your betting sequence over before winning back losses. In the example above, you’ve lost $150 and must now return to the original bet based on the system.

But the good news is that you at least minimize what could otherwise be catastrophic losses. Furthermore, you can always set your loss cap lower than what would make you hit the table maximum.

If your cap is four losses, you start over well before reaching the max bet, which would be around 6-8 losses.

At this point, you might be thinking, should I use the baccarat Martingale strategy?

What it all comes down to is what you think might work for you. A little awareness of your situation will help you come to the right conclusion when you are looking to gamble for real money online.

Let’s be clear about one thing: no gambling system can beat the house edge in any casino game. This includes the baccarat Martingale strategy. And any of the other variants that we covered above.

But that does not mean that these strategies are completely useless. On the contrary, they can work. It’s just that there are limits to how far you can go without running out of money. Furthermore, you’re going to need a lot of luck.

Although systems sound exciting, the effort of learning them quite often takes up too much time. Typically, the juice is not worth the squeeze, so to speak.

Does Martingale work with baccarat? It 100% can, but it’s not something you can rely on every time. That’s just not how gambling works, in general. Stick to more reliable wagers, and you’ll have a better chance of making money.

For example, if you only bet on the banker’s hand at baccarat, you have a solid opportunity to make some money. The house edge is low at 1.06 percent, which is certainly nothing to be scoffed at!

Who knows? Maybe you’ll end up with one of the biggest baccarat wins of all-time by betting on the banker, or the Martingale strategy.

Failing that, you could check out our mini baccarat guide and get working on perfecting your knowledge of the game!

Footnote:

• Types of games are courtesy of BaccaratSystem.org.