Baccarat Card Values: The Chart, the Counting Rule, and How Often Each Total Shows Up
In baccarat, an ace is worth 1, cards 2 through 9 are worth their face value, and tens, jacks, queens and kings are worth 0. To get a hand total you add the cards and drop the tens digit, so every hand ends up between 0 and 9.
That one rule explains most of what feels strange about baccarat. Below is the chart, a few examples, and the exact odds of each total with 8 decks.
Baccarat card values chart
| Point value | |
|---|---|
| Ace | 1 |
| 2 to 9 | Face value |
| 10, J, Q, K | 0 |
Suits don't matter for the main game. They only matter for a few side bets, like Perfect Pair.
How to count a baccarat hand
Add the cards, then keep only the last digit.
8 and 7 make 15, so the hand is 5. K and 9 make 9, which is the best possible hand. 6 and 4 make 10, so the hand is 0.
You can never bust in baccarat. Going over 9 just wraps back around. That is the biggest difference from blackjack, where cards also have point values but going over 21 loses.
A third card works the same way. A hand of 6 that draws an 8 becomes 14, which counts as 4.
Why 0 is the most common two-card total
With 8 decks there are 416 cards, and 128 of them are tens or face cards. That's almost a third of the shoe worth 0.
Zero also shows up whenever two cards add to exactly 10, like 3 and 7 or 4 and 6. Put those together and 0 is the most common total by a wide margin.
| Probability | |
|---|---|
| 0 | 14.74% |
| 1 | 9.49% |
| 2 | 9.45% |
| 3 | 9.49% |
| 4 | 9.45% |
| 5 | 9.49% |
| 6 | 9.45% |
| 7 | 9.49% |
| 8 | 9.45% |
| 9 | 9.49% |
Every other total lands around 9.5%. That means about 18.9% of two-card hands are a natural 8 or 9. I went deeper on that in baccarat natural 8 or 9.
Card values after the third card
Once the drawing rules run, the picture changes. Low totals usually draw, high totals stand, so final totals pile up at the top.
With 8 decks, the Player hand finishes on 6, 7, 8 or 9 about 13.3% of the time each, and on 0 about 9.4% of the time. The drawing rules push both hands toward high totals. The exact rules for that draw are in baccarat third card rules.
Do card values let you count cards?
In a way, yes. Since a third of the shoe is worth 0, the mix of cards left really does change the odds a little. If the shoe somehow ended with only 0-value cards, the only possible result would be a Tie.
Real shoes are never that lopsided, and the effect on Banker and Player is small. I worked through actual numbers in card counting in baccarat. Odds that move are still odds, and the next hand can go either way.
Watch the remaining card values in Baccarator
Baccarator keeps track of this for you. Enter the cards after each hand, tap Calculate, and the app works out what's left in the shoe and recalculates Banker, Player, Tie and side bet odds.
It's free on the App Store, works with 6 or 8 decks, and uses virtual chips only.
Baccarat card values FAQ
What are the card values in baccarat?
Aces are worth 1, cards 2 through 9 are worth their number, and 10, J, Q and K are worth 0. Only the last digit of the total counts, so a hand is always worth 0 to 9.
What is a face card worth in baccarat?
Jacks, queens and kings are all worth 0, the same as tens. With 8 decks that is 128 of the 416 cards in the shoe.
What happens if a baccarat hand goes over 9?
You drop the tens digit. A 7 and an 8 make 15, which counts as 5. You can't bust in baccarat.
Baccarator is a math tool for education. No real-money gambling. 21+ only.
