Vigorish, often shortened to the vig, is a commission the house charges on certain bets, usually as a percentage taken from winnings. In UK casinos you meet it most on the baccarat Banker bet, which pays even money less 5%, and on craps buy bets. The vig is how the house earns its edge on bets that would otherwise favour the player.
Vigorish is a commission: in casino games it is usually 5% of a winning bet.
A £20 Banker win in baccarat pays £19 because of the 5% vig.
Without the vig the Banker bet would favour the player; with it the house edge is 1.06%.
Commission-free versions don't remove the cost, they move it: Super 6 Banker carries 1.46%.
Meaning
A commission the house takes on some bets
Baccarat Banker
Pays 19 to 20 (even money less 5%)
Banker house edge, 8 decks
1.06%
Craps buy bet, vig on wins only
1.67% to 2.27%
Craps buy bet, vig always paid
4.76%
Vigorish meaning in casino games
The vigorish is a fee built into how a bet is paid. Most casino bets earn the house its margin through the payout itself: a roulette straight-up bet pays 35 to 1 when true odds are 36 to 1. A few bets would be roughly fair or even favour the player at their natural payout, so the casino adds a commission instead. That commission is the vig.
Bookmakers use the same word for the margin built into their prices, and you may also hear it called juice. This page sticks to casino games, where it nearly always means a stated percentage, typically 5%, taken from a winning bet. The vig is one way a game creates its house edge.
Paid at even money, a £1 Banker bet would return 0.458597 − 0.446247 = about +1.2p per bet to the player. The casino can't allow that, so winning Banker bets pay 19 to 20: even money less a 5% commission. Now the sum is 0.458597 × 0.95 − 0.446247 = about −1.06p per £1, a house edge of 1.06%.
What the 5% vig does to Banker wins
Stake
Win at even money
Vig (5%)
You receive (profit)
£10
£10
50p
£9.50
£20
£20
£1
£19
£50
£50
£2.50
£47.50
£100
£100
£5
£95
Even after the vig, Banker at 1.06% is cheaper than Player at 1.24% and far cheaper than the Tie at 14.36% paying 8 to 1. Our baccarat commission page covers how live tables show and collect it.
Commission-free games: where the vig goes
Many live and RNG tables advertise no commission. The cost is still there, just moved. In the most common version (Wizard of Odds calls it Super 6), Banker wins pay even money except a Banker win on 6, which pays 1 to 2. That rule gives the Banker bet a 1.46% edge with eight decks, higher than the 1.06% you pay with the classic 5% vig. In EZ Baccarat a Banker win with a three-card 7 pushes instead, for a 1.02% edge.
So "no commission" is a label, not a discount. Compare the figures on our no-commission baccarat and EZ Baccarat pages before assuming one is cheaper.
Vigorish in craps and pai gow poker
In craps, a buy bet pays the true odds on a point number, and the house charges a 5% commission instead. When the vig is taken only on wins, the edges are 2.27% on 6 or 8, 2.00% on 5 or 9 and 1.67% on 4 or 10 per bet resolved. If the commission is charged up front whether you win or lose, each buy bet costs 4.76%. The figures come from the Wizard of Odds craps house edge table (opens in a new tab).
Vig-based bets compared
Bet
How the vig works
House edge
Baccarat Banker (8 decks)
5% off winnings
1.06%
Super 6 Banker (8 decks)
Banker 6 pays 1 to 2
1.46%
Craps buy 4 or 10
5% on wins only
1.67%
Craps buy 6 or 8
5% on wins only
2.27%
Any craps buy bet
5% always paid
4.76%
Pai gow poker also uses a 5% commission on winning hands, and its edge against the dealer is about 2.5%. Ask or check the help screen for how a table charges commission, because that alone can more than double the cost of a craps buy bet.
Worked example: the vig over an hour of baccarat
Assume £10 on Banker each hand and 60 hands an hour.
Total staked: 60 × £10 = £600.
Expected loss: £600 × 1.06% = about £6.36 an hour.
On Super 6 Banker at 1.46%, the same play costs about £8.76 an hour.
These are long-run averages. A single hour can end well up or well down, but the vig is collected every time Banker wins. Our cost per hour guide repeats this for other games.
Related terms
Even money: a 1 to 1 payout, which the vig trims to 19 to 20.
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Frequently asked questions
What does vigorish mean?
Vigorish means a commission the house takes on a bet, usually as a percentage of winnings. In casino games the best-known example is the 5% charged on winning baccarat Banker bets, so a £20 win pays £19 profit. The vig exists on bets that would otherwise be close to fair, and it is what gives those bets their house edge. Our guide to how casinos make money puts it alongside other methods.
Why is there a commission on the Banker bet?
Because Banker wins more often than Player under the drawing rules, so at even money it would favour the player by about 1.2%. The 5% commission turns that into a 1.06% house edge with eight decks. It is still one of the cheapest bets in the casino. Read our answer on why casinos charge commission on banker bets for the full breakdown.
Is no-commission baccarat better value?
Usually not on the Banker bet. In the common Super 6 version, a Banker win on 6 pays only 1 to 2, which pushes the Banker edge up to 1.46% with eight decks, against 1.06% with the normal 5% commission. Player and Tie bets are unchanged. Payouts are simpler, but the cost per hand is higher. See our baccarat house edge page for every version side by side.
What is the vig in craps?
In craps the vig is a 5% commission on buy bets, which pay true odds on point numbers. Charged only on wins, buy bets on 4 or 10 carry a 1.67% edge; charged whether you win or lose, every buy bet costs 4.76%. Live and online tables set their own rules, so check the help screen. Our craps place bets page compares buying with placing.
Is vigorish the same as the house edge?
Not quite. The vig is the commission itself, while the house edge is the average percentage of each stake the house keeps once everything is counted. A 5% vig on Banker produces a 1.06% house edge, because the commission is only paid on wins and ties push. Most casino bets have a house edge with no vig at all. Our house edge table lists the figures by game.
Can you avoid paying the vig?
You can choose bets without one, but you can't avoid paying for the game. Player bets in baccarat carry no commission yet cost 1.24%, more than Banker with its vig. Commission-free tables replace the vig with a reduced payout. Every option keeps an edge for the house, which is why losses are likely over time. Our page on games with the lowest house edge shows the cheapest choices.
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