A side bet is an optional wager placed next to your main bet and settled on its own rules: a pair in your first two cards, a poker hand with the dealer's upcard, a tie in Dragon Tiger. It can win when your main hand loses, and lose when it wins. This guide puts exact numbers on the most common side bets in live blackjack, baccarat and Dragon Tiger, so you can weigh what they add against what they cost.
How side bets work
- Optional. You can play every hand without them. The exception is Lightning Blackjack, where a 100% Lightning Fee is added to each initial bet and pays for the game's multipliers.
- Tied to a main bet. At most tables you need a main bet in play to place one.
- Settled separately. The side bet result does not change the main hand, and the main hand does not change the side bet.
- Paytable decides the cost. The same bet can carry different payouts at different tables. The help screen lists them, often with the RTP.
Common side bets and their house edge
| Bet | Game | Pays | Chance to win | House edge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21+3 (100/40/30/10/5 paytable) | Blackjack | 5:1 to 100:1 | 9.73% | 3.70% |
| Insurance (dealer shows an ace) | Blackjack | 2:1 | 30.8% | 7.47% |
| Player Pair or Banker Pair | Baccarat | 11:1 | 7.47% | 10.36% |
| Tie | Dragon Tiger | 11:1 | 7.47% | 10.36% |
| Suited Tie | Dragon Tiger | 50:1 | 1.69% | 13.98% |
For comparison, the main games are much cheaper. Live Blackjack is listed at 99.29% on this site, a 0.71% edge with correct play, and Live Baccarat at 98.94%, a 1.06% edge. A pair bet at 11:1 costs about 15 times as much per dollar as blackjack's main bet.
Deck count changes the odds. The same 21+3 paytable has a 4.62% edge on six decks, because suited three of a kind becomes rarer. Our guide to TriLux and Lightning Blackjack side bets shows the full three-card table. Insurance is covered in our live blackjack insurance guide.
The good
- Large payouts from small stakes. A $5 side bet that hits a 100:1 hand pays $500, a result the main blackjack bet cannot produce.
- A second chance in the round. Because the side bet is settled separately, it can pay on a hand where the main bet loses.
- Some are close to the main game. A well-paying 21+3 table on eight decks costs 3.70%, less than many game shows and not far from single-zero roulette's 2.70%.
The bad
- Higher cost per dollar. Every side bet in the table above costs between 5 and 20 times as much per dollar as live blackjack played correctly.
- Frequent losses. A three-card bet loses about 9 rounds in 10, and a pair bet more than 92 in 100. Long losing runs are normal.
- Hidden cost. Side bet losses mix with main game results in the same round, so the cost is easy to miss unless you track it.
- Paytables vary. A table that cuts one payout can raise the edge sharply. You only see this in the help screen.
| Bet at $5 a round | House edge | Expected cost of 100 rounds |
|---|---|---|
| Blackjack main bet, correct play | 0.71% | $3.55 |
| Baccarat main bet | 1.06% | $5.30 |
| 21+3, eight decks | 3.70% | $18.50 |
| Insurance, eight decks | 7.47% | $37.35 |
| Pair 11:1, eight decks | 10.36% | $51.80 |
How to use side bets without overspending
- Read the paytable first. Check the payouts and the RTP in the help screen before the first side bet.
- Set a separate side bet budget. Decide how much goes to side bets before the session, and stop when it is gone.
- Keep side stakes small and flat. Raising them after a losing run does not make a win more likely; each round is independent.
- Leave the main game strategy alone. A side bet never changes the correct blackjack play.
- Skip rounds. You do not need a side bet on every hand to enjoy one now and then.
Licensed casinos let you set deposit, loss and session limits in your account. If gambling stops being fun, see our responsible gaming page or our gambling addiction help page.
