Why Baccarat Player Bets Are Superior to Roulette Even-Money Bets

Written by Stephen Tabone for Global Casino Games. Last reviewed: 05 July 2026.

Baccarat Player and roulette even-money bets look similar at first glance.

They are simple, familiar and usually pay 1 to 1. They also appeal to players who want a clean casino decision without stepping into the side-bet circus or chasing long-shot payouts.

When I compare the maths, though, the two bets are not equal.

The Baccarat Player bet has a house edge of about 1.24%. Standard European roulette even-money bets, such as red/black, odd/even and high/low, carry a 2.70% house edge.

That means Baccarat Player is less than half the long-term cost of standard European roulette even-money betting.

But there is a twist.

French roulette with La Partage or En Prison can reduce the house edge on even-money bets to about 1.35%. That brings French roulette much closer to Baccarat Player.

So the real question is not just “baccarat or roulette?” The sharper question is: does Baccarat Player still beat French roulette when the half-back rule applies?

Is Baccarat Player Better Than Roulette Even-Money Bets?

Against standard European roulette, yes.

Baccarat Player is the better mathematical bet because it has a lower house edge and because the Tie outcome normally pushes the Player bet.

In roulette, zero is the problem. If you bet red and the ball lands on zero, you lose. If you bet odd and zero lands, you lose. If you bet high and zero lands, you lose.

In baccarat, the Tie works differently. If you bet Player and the hand ends in a Tie, the Player bet normally pushes. You do not win, but you do not lose your stake either.

From where I sit, that is the key difference. Roulette zero punishes the even-money bettor. Baccarat Tie does not punish the Player bettor in the same way.

That does not make Baccarat Player a guaranteed winner. It does not mean Player will beat Banker in the next hand or dominate the next shoe. But it does give Player a cleaner mathematical structure than standard roulette outside chances.

What Is the House Edge on Baccarat Player Compared With Roulette?

Here is the basic side-by-side comparison.

This is where the phrase “even money” can mislead players.

Even money only describes the payout. It does not mean the bet is fair, equal or truly 50/50.

European roulette red/black wins 18 out of 37 spins, which is about 48.65%. The missing part is zero. That one green pocket is enough to create the 2.70% house edge.

Baccarat Player wins less often if you count all hands, but the Tie usually returns the stake. That push structure is why the house edge is lower.

Why Is the Baccarat Tie Not the Same as Roulette Zero?

The baccarat Tie and roulette zero both sit outside the main two-sided decision, but they do not behave the same way.

If you back Player in baccarat, you lose when Banker wins. If Player wins, you are paid 1 to 1. If the hand ties, the bet pushes.

If you back red in European roulette, you win if red lands. You lose if black lands. You also lose if zero lands.

That makes roulette even-money betting more expensive than it looks.

To my eye, standard roulette even-money betting is one of the clearest examples of a clean-looking bet with a hidden tax. The bet feels simple, but the zero does the damage.

For a wider breakdown of how even-money casino games work across baccarat, roulette and blackjack, read my Global Casino Games guide to even-money casino games.

Does French Roulette With La Partage Beat Baccarat Player?

French roulette makes the comparison much closer.

With La Partage, if zero lands on an even-money bet, the player usually loses only half the stake. With En Prison, the stake may be held for another spin under the table rules. Either way, the effect can reduce the house edge on even-money bets to about 1.35%.

That is excellent by roulette standards.

But Baccarat Player still has the slightly lower house edge at about 1.24%.

So, on pure maths, Baccarat Player still wins.

The difference is small, though. It would be wrong to pretend Baccarat Player destroys French roulette with La Partage. It does not. French roulette with the half-back rule is one of the best roulette options available.

My takeaway is simple: Baccarat Player is clearly better than standard European roulette, while French roulette with La Partage is the only roulette version that gets close enough to make the comparison serious.

Does French Roulette Give You Too Many Even-Money Choices?

There is another point here that is not just mathematical.

When you compare Baccarat Player with French roulette, you also have to look at the decision pressure.

With Baccarat Player, the side is already chosen. You are studying the Player side. That does not mean you must bet every hand. You can still wait, use no-bet triggers, stop-loss triggers, bet-again triggers or whatever session structure you prefer.

But the side itself is clean.

French roulette with La Partage or En Prison is different. The half-back rule can apply to the even-money outside chances, but that still leaves you with six possible choices: red, black, odd, even, high and low.

That choice can feel useful, but it can also create overthinking.

You may start on red, then wonder whether to switch to black. You may leave colours and move to odd/even. You may decide high/low looks cleaner. Then, if the bet loses, the mind can start blaming the decision rather than accepting the normal randomness of the game.

That is where choice paralysis can creep in.

From where I sit, this is one quiet advantage of Baccarat Player. You remove some of the roulette-side switching. You are not constantly choosing between six outside chances. You are looking at one baccarat side, then deciding whether the hand is worth betting or whether it is better to wait.

That does not make Player a guaranteed winner. It does not mean Player should be bet blindly. But it can make the decision process cleaner.

Sometimes the advantage is not only the house edge. Sometimes the advantage is reducing the number of ways you can talk yourself into a bad decision.

Why Not Just Bet Baccarat Banker Instead?

Banker is still the best main baccarat bet on house edge.

Banker sits around 1.06%, while Player is around 1.24%.

Banker’s small mathematical advantage originates in the fixed drawing procedure. My baccarat third-card rules guide explains how Player acts first and how the Banker tableau responds to the Player hand and any third card drawn.

But Banker normally pays 0.95 to 1 because of the usual 5% commission on winning Banker bets. That 1.06% figure already includes the commission, so Banker is still mathematically better.

For the complete comparison, my Baccarat Banker bet guide explains the standard 5% commission, the difference between Banker and Player house edges, and how no-commission payout rules can affect the wager.

The reason I am focusing on Player here is different.

Some players dislike commission. They prefer a cleaner 1 to 1 payout. If they increase their stake and win on Banker, the 5% commission feels more noticeable in real chip terms.

That does not make Banker worse mathematically. It simply explains why Player appeals to some players.

If you want the lowest baccarat house edge, Banker remains the answer. If you want a clean 1 to 1 baccarat bet to compare against roulette even money, Player is the better comparison.

Are Roulette Even-Money Bets Really 50/50?

No.

This is one of the biggest myths around roulette.

A European roulette red/black bet pays 1 to 1, but it does not win 50% of the time. It wins 18 out of 37 spins. The other 19 outcomes are the opposite colour plus zero.

That is why the house edge is 2.70%.

With double-zero roulette, the position gets worse. Red or black wins 18 out of 38 outcomes, and the house edge rises to 5.26%.

With triple-zero roulette, it gets worse again.

This is why I am careful with roulette even-money betting systems. The payout may look balanced, but the wheel is not giving you a true 50/50 proposition.

Should Betting Systems Use Baccarat Player Instead of Roulette?

If someone is determined to compare even-money-style betting systems, Baccarat Player is mathematically stronger than standard European roulette.

But that does not mean a betting system can beat baccarat.

A lower house edge helps. It does not remove variance, losing streaks, bankroll pressure, table limits or emotional overbetting.

When I look at progression systems, my first instinct is to ask what happens when the losing sequence arrives. A lower house edge may reduce the long-term cost, but it does not stop a player from increasing stakes into a bad run.

So the honest position is this: Baccarat Player is a better base bet than European roulette even money, but no staking system turns it into a guaranteed profit route.

Baccarat Player vs Roulette Even Money: Which Is Better?

Here is the clean ranking from best to worst on house edge:

1. Baccarat Player: about 1.24%
2. French roulette with La Partage or En Prison: about 1.35%
3. European roulette even-money bets: 2.70%
4. Double-zero roulette even-money bets: 5.26%
5. Triple-zero roulette even-money bets: 7.69%

That is the mathematical order.

Baccarat Player is not the best baccarat bet. Banker is still lower on house edge.

But Baccarat Player is superior to standard roulette even-money bets because it has a lower house edge and because the Tie normally pushes instead of taking the stake.

French roulette with La Partage is the serious challenger. If you love roulette and can find that rule, it is a strong option.

But if the question is Baccarat Player versus standard European roulette red/black, odd/even or high/low, my Global Casino Games answer is simple:

Baccarat Player is the better mathematical bet.

If you want to compare more casino games by the numbers, my Casino House Edge Comparison goes deeper into blackjack, baccarat, roulette, slots, RTP and player risk.