Side bets looks fun, But what do they really cost?

[zhephoi]

**Disclosure:** I’m sharing this because I was looking into side bets recently and thought the math was pretty interesting. Feel free to check out the blog i referenced: https://blog.chips.gg/post/side-bets-explained-what-the-extra-wager-costs-you. This isn’t a review or an endorsement of gambling.

One thing I’ve noticed with casino games is that the side bets can look a lot more attractive than the main bet. You see something like **25:1, 50:1, or even higher**, and it’s easy to think, “Why not throw a little on it?”

The catch is that the bigger payout usually comes with a much higher house edge.
Take blackjack. Under good rules, the main game can have a house edge around **0.5%** with basic strategy.

But some common side bets are much more expensive.

For example:

* **21+3:** roughly 6–9% depending on the rules
* **Perfect Pairs:** around 10%+
* **Lucky Ladies:** can get close to 25%
* **Baccarat Tie:** around 14%

That's a pretty big difference.

And the funny thing is, you don't really notice it from one hand. If you put $5 on a side bet and lose, it's just $5. But do that over 100 or 200 hands and the math starts working against you pretty quickly. I think that's the part people sometimes miss. The big payout isn't necessarily the problem. It's the **probability behind that payout**. So whenever I see a side bet now, I basically ask three things:

**What's the payout?
How often does it actually hit?
What's the house edge?**

That third one is probably the most important.


Curious what everyone else does with side bets. Do you usually ignore them, throw a little on occasionally, or actually check the house edge first?

[Darker45]

I love betting on side bets when playing various card games with friends and neighbors. Side bets usually include first three, black pair, couple, highest club. The good thing with side bets in this setup is that it could end in a draw, and there's no house edge.

With blackjack side bets on online casinos, however, the house edge itself is discouraging. I don't waste money on them, perhaps except insurance. I'm not attracted at bigger payouts. It simply means it's hard to win. In other words, it's just throwing money away. Side bets could easily drain your funds much faster than your main bets.

Side bets are just the casino's way of eagerly wanting to empty your wallet.   

[Dave1]

Curious what everyone else does with side bets. Do you usually ignore them, throw a little on occasionally, or actually check the house edge first?

With regards to baccarat:

I will just throw a little bit, minimum bet on pairs both banker and player or the tie. For pairs the payout is 11:1, while the tie is 8:1, there could be some variations though of this side bet. Really hard to time this, and even if there is so called pattern that players are looking, I don't think it's a guarantee.

So it's base on luck although if I recall it, I have like 5 out 6 in the pairs. I don't know, probably my gut feeling says that I should bet on it with just minimum amount to make it more fun and I hit that often.

[Sandra_hakeem]

With blackjack side bets on online casinos, however, the house edge itself is discouraging. I don't waste money on them, perhaps except insurance. I'm not attracted at bigger payouts. It simply means it's hard to win. In other words, it's just throwing money away. Side bets could easily drain your funds much faster than your main bets.

Side bets are just the casino's way of eagerly wanting to empty your wallet.  

Everything is being set up that way for a reason, it's never a mistake. You are the target. It was made so you can chose to fall into what clearly seems to be a trap or move on to something smaller. Some can't ignore that big payout, what exactly are they on it for? Their faith strongly holds a belief that there's always a possibility to win, just like when you decide to wager on bigger odds on virtual games, but how?

Really hard to time this, and even if there is so called pattern that players are looking, I don't think it's a guarantee.

With how fast it can drain your bankroll, is there a pattern to it or is it just another strategy that works in most cases? Neither.

[Alvin_talk]

Curious what everyone else does with side bets. Do you usually ignore them, throw a little on occasionally, or actually check the house edge first?

I only play side bets occasionally so this doesn't have much effect on me. I treat it like a charity to a casinos on the event that I had a big win for the day. In other words, I have already prepared my mind for a potential lose.

Sure, it is true that side bets have higher house edge when compared to main bets but we shouldn't forget that variance might just fall in your favour and you might win on your first try of the day. I think side bets becomes more of a problem if you include it in every game or most games you play for the day. But including side bets ones in a while for entertainment purpose is not a bad idea in my opinion. So long as you  understand the odd and do not expect it to be a profitable strategy, it is perfectly fine to try it out.

[L E G E N D A R Y]

I believe side bets are one of the safest ways people can bet and increase the intensity of the fun, but just like every other form of gambling, it still requires moderation, self control and of course discipline. Because even though side bets may not appear to be much of a big deal, it could still end up being the undoing of some persons who lack discipline.

I like to go on side bets with friends and I really haven’t experienced any serious costs, except for sometimes, some of friends, after they lose, may refuse to honor their own part of the agreement by giving you what won, because most of the times, the outside bets we do may not include making the money readily available at that time, it could just be a quick one that the loser would get to pay the winner later on.

[danherbias07]

Side bets are fun. It's not something that you will bet on 100 times in one sitting. You do it rarely and try your luck, and if it doesn't work out in maybe 3 to 4 rounds, then the gambler should probably walk away.

I know the house edge is different from the normal game, but if you can hit even just 1 time in the early phase of playing, you could be profitable. But the requirement for that to happen is quitting after winning it early. Truly, one who would choose to place side bets more often will be prone to getting their wallets empty in a shorter run, but it could be the other way around if you get lucky and win as early as possible.
Again, it's not something that should be played over a long period, unlike the normal way we play casino games.

[Cointxz]

Curious what everyone else does with side bets. Do you usually ignore them, throw a little on occasionally, or actually check the house edge first?

I love side bet especially on blackjack since it gives you a chance win a huge payout at one go if got lucky on your bet. It’s indeed have a high house edge but I only put small amount of money while I place most of my money on my main bet.

Side bet add a little bit spice in your game so that you have something in addition to look forward and avoid being bored on repetitive game over and over again.

What I don’t recommend doing on side bet is increasing the bet amount more than or equal to the main bet. Normally, I only put 10% or below of my main bet to side bet. The higher my bet is the lower the percentage.

[Elainebue]

yeah i think the $5 is what makes side bets so easy to ignore. it's not much on its own, but when you're making a bunch of hands it adds up pretty fast. i usually just stick to the main bet unless the side bet actually has decent odds, otherwise the bigger payout is kinda bait lol.

[vincentixz]

i used to look at the payout first too, but the house edge is probably the thing that matters most. a 20x payout sounds nice until you realize how rarely it actually hits. for side bets i’d rather keep the extra money on the main bet most of the time.

[Outhue]

With blackjack side bets on online casinos, however, the house edge itself is discouraging. I don't waste money on them, perhaps except insurance. I'm not attracted at bigger payouts. It simply means it's hard to win. In other words, it's just throwing money away. Side bets could easily drain your funds much faster than your main bets.

Side bets are just the casino's way of eagerly wanting to empty your wallet.  

Everything is being set up that way for a reason, it's never a mistake. You are the target. It was made so you can chose to fall into what clearly seems to be a trap or move on to something smaller. Some can't ignore that big payout, what exactly are they on it for? Their faith strongly holds a belief that there's always a possibility to win, just like when you decide to wager on bigger odds on virtual games, but how?

Really hard to time this, and even if there is so called pattern that players are looking, I don't think it's a guarantee.

With how fast it can drain your bankroll, is there a pattern to it or is it just another strategy that works in most cases? Neither.

Lol, exactly my thoughts too, side bets are finished math that needed no strategy, it's already against the gambler, I don't know why people don't see things this way, something was already designed to put you in an unfair place and you think you are going to fight your way out, it's not you on the ring throwing hands where you can outperform, the system is already against the gamblers and it's why I don't think about making some money via gambling. If I am doing it then I am doing it with what I can afford to lose.

[Donk1]

Well to me I think that is why it's advised to always check the odds first before placing your money in the game. Because as much as it sounds a 25:1 payout is good until you find out how uncommon the combination actually is, which means there is no telling if it would be profitable or not. And once you have seen the numbers, it becomes hard to justify it at your end. That's if the rules or a big payout makes it all worth it basically, it's easy to say that you will be betting on chances though. Still most bettors aren't always okay with side bets, that's just how it is... that's all......

[Brizi5000]

Side bets for me is what I used to recover some of my losses from my main bets. As a matter of fact I tend to win more from my side bets than the main bet because it usually offers more chances to place bets  on a different outcome which are not always included on the main bets. Sometimes this outcome are usually generated by me when playing the side bets with a friend and one thing about most of this side bet is that even before the game ends or before full time one has already won or lost as the case may be. But the danger in this side bet is that it involves taking an additional risk that can lead to higher losses and most times it usually ends in a caos with friends who refuse to accept the outcome of the bet.

[POPOLUV]

I believe side bets are one of the safest ways people can bet and increase the intensity of the fun, but just like every other form of gambling, it still requires moderation, self control and of course discipline. Because even though side bets may not appear to be much of a big deal, it could still end up being the undoing of some persons who lack discipline.

I like to go on side bets with friends and I really haven’t experienced any serious costs, except for sometimes, some of friends, after they lose, may refuse to honor their own part of the agreement by giving you what won, because most of the times, the outside bets we do may not include making the money readily available at that time, it could just be a quick one that the loser would get to pay the winner later on.

I know that everyone has it own ways of betting but for me i do channel anything that concern betting to sports betting and sometimes i do try my luck on casino games, what i don't encourage in my life, is bargaining with friends to agree on side betting because this is part of the gambling that is so dealing and the reason why i tag it as a dealing gambling, is because as you said that your friends agreed to place a side betting and one of your friends refuse to compile, i know that some friends can't fight each others  because of not sticking to the agreement but let us  just assume that you do side betting with someone you are not friend with and it happens that you guys agree to do side betting on a huge amount and between the two person, one refused to stick with the agreement and before you could know it, the both parties will start fighting, before you will know it police will be involved in that incase.

[Yablee0]

Lol, exactly my thoughts too, side bets are finished math that needed no strategy, it's already against the gambler, I don't know why people don't see things this way, something was already designed to put you in an unfair place and you think you are going to fight your way out, it's not you on the ring throwing hands where you can outperform, the system is already against the gamblers and it's why I don't think about making some money via gambling. If I am doing it then I am doing it with what I can afford to lose.

Indeed this is just the way forward and the best thing to do as a gambler. No matter which angle you're coming from, thinking is the easy way of manipulating your way in, the house edge is always two or more steps ahead of us so it's important we understand this. Side bet is sometimes cool but I can barely pay attention to it especially when I am trying to be strict on my bankroll. Moreover, i only gamble for fun and it has been cool all the way.

[Iranus]

One thing I’ve noticed with casino games is that the side bets can look a lot more attractive than the main bet. You see something like **25:1, 50:1, or even higher**, and it’s easy to think, “Why not throw a little on it?”

Hmm, in case of side bet, just looking at 25:1 or 50:1 payout can sometime seem attractive.
However, I would not view house edge number you have given as fixed figure.
It would be better to view them as typical range.
Side bets with same name also vary a lot depending on casino and number of deck.

For example, edge of 21+3 is around 3% in some rule, but if you change paytable then it could go up to 7 to 9%.
Same problem applies to Perfect Pairs. If you assume any fixed percentage then it will be misleading.

[L E G E N D A R Y]

I know that everyone has it own ways of betting but for me i do channel anything that concern betting to sports betting and sometimes i do try my luck on casino games, what i don't encourage in my life, is bargaining with friends to agree on side betting because this is part of the gambling that is so dealing and the reason why i tag it as a dealing gambling, is because as you said that your friends agreed to place a side betting and one of your friends refuse to compile, i know that some friends can't fight each others  because of not sticking to the agreement but let us  just assume that you do side betting with someone you are not friend with and it happens that you guys agree to do side betting on a huge amount and between the two person, one refused to stick with the agreement and before you could know it, the both parties will start fighting, before you will know it police will be involved in that incase.

Just like you rightly said, everyone has their own individual preferences. The reason I like to do this sometimes is basically to prove a point, you know what they say, put your money where your mouth is. There are some arguments that I’ll engage with my friends, and the best way to settle such disputes is to go on an outside bet, and for me, I do find this type of bets very interesting and entertaining, not more than the normal sports betting though, but it’s all still part of the thrill.

[DanWalker]

And the funny thing is, you don't really notice it from one hand. If you put $5 on a side bet and lose, it's just $5. But do that over 100 or 200 hands and the math starts working against you pretty quickly. I think that's the part people sometimes miss. The big payout isn't necessarily the problem. It's the **probability behind that payout**. So whenever I see a side bet now, I basically ask three things:

I really appreciate your point about the math starts to work after 100-200 hands.

Suppose a $5 side bet has house edge of 10% and we play it every time for 200 hands, what will happen? Then your theoretical expected loss will be $100, although your actual result will of course be much higher or lower due to variance.

So the house edge does nott mean, I'm guaranteed to lose this much money, in reality. Because it is a long-run average cost.

[Alex077]

Curious what everyone else does with side bets. Do you usually ignore them, throw a little on occasionally, or actually check the house edge first?

I only play side bets occasionally so this doesn't have much effect on me. I treat it like a charity to a casinos on the event that I had a big win for the day. In other words, I have already prepared my mind for a potential lose...

I think this is probably the most sensible approach to side bets - see them as something you do for fun, not as a way to increase your profits.
And I’d even say that the size of the bet matters more here than how often you win. If you have a good gambling session and put a small part of your profit on a side bet just for fun, losing it probably won’t have much impact on your overall result. But if you regularly put a significant part of every main bet on side bets, they can quietly eat up a pretty large part of your bankroll.
So I don’t see much of a problem with trying them from time to time just for fun either.

[Dr.Bitcoin_Strange]

I literally ignore those side bets because I do feel it's just a way the casino wants to attract some players who will easily get fooled by the thought of a big payout. For someone that decides to take such bet occasionally with smaller amount, before they luckily win, they must have lost so much money and the amount they end up winning could be less than the amount they have lost. The house edge is already designed to favour the casino in all their games and offered options, so this side bet is even worse.