Casino Table Etiquette: Buying In, Hand Signals and Touching Cards

Buying in: how to join a table

Joining a table starts before you sit down. Look for the sign at each table showing the minimum and maximum bet, and pick one where the minimum fits your budget. At the lowest minimum blackjack tables, bets usually start around $5 to $15, which is where most new players begin⁶. If the table is full, stand behind the seated players and wait for a seat rather than squeezing in.

When a seat opens, sit down and wait for the dealer to notice you. Then buy in. The rule is the same at almost every table in every country: place your cash flat on the table in front of you, and the dealer will exchange it for chips¹. Never hand money directly to the dealer. Placing it on the table lets the dealer and the cameras see exactly what changed hands, which protects both of you.

A few practical points:

• Buy in for an amount you are comfortable losing, and enough to cover several bets at the table minimum.
• Ask the dealer for the chip denominations you want if it is not obvious.
• In some places, chips can only be bought at the table or at a main cash desk, and credit cards are not accepted for gambling transactions⁷.
• In Monaco, chips and plaques are the only things that can represent a bet on the table, and cash is changed by the croupier on the spot⁸.

If you are playing a game where players take turns in a role, joining mid-shoe is usually fine, but the dealer will tell you when to wait. At Pai Gow, for example, the dealer offers the banker role around the table before rounds, so a new player simply joins the rotation when their turn comes⁹.

Hand signals at the card tables

At blackjack and most other card tables, you tell the dealer what you want with your hands, not your voice. This is not a quirk. The dealer needs a clear, visible signal, and the cameras above the table need to see it too. A spoken "hit me" can be misheard over the noise of a busy floor.

The two signals you will use most:

• Hit: tap your finger on the table behind your cards².
• Stand: wave your hand over the cards, palm down².

Two more you will need sooner or later:

• Double down: place a chip next to your original bet. You can only double after your first two cards and before drawing another card².
• Split: show the dealer a splitting gesture with your index and ring finger².

The object of blackjack is to beat the dealer, not the other players, by getting a higher total up to 21 without going over⁶. If your total ends up the same as the dealer's, that is a push and your bet comes back². If the dealer's up card is a ten or an ace, she checks her face-down card for blackjack; if she has it, the round ends and everyone loses unless they also have blackjack, in which case they keep their original bet².

In Macau, blackjack tables seat six or more players, and up to three players may bet on one spot, with the seated player deciding¹⁰.

Card values are standard.

Touching cards and chips: what is allowed

This is the question that trips up most first-timers, and the answer depends entirely on the game.

Baccarat: in most games you never touch a card. No matter how many players are seated, only two hands are dealt, the Player's and the Banker's, and the dealer handles everything¹¹. In many Mini-Baccarat games players do not get a chance to touch the cards at all, though some casinos allow it, often in higher limit areas¹². Where touching is allowed, the players with the highest wagers on the Player and Banker hands get the cards to squeeze or hold¹². The house decides whether players may hold the cards; if allowed, the seated player with the largest bet holds them, must not leave the table to view them, and may not view the drawn card together with the first two cards³.

Chips: chips are the only thing that really belongs on the table¹. Keep your phone, drink, wallet and bag off the felt. At the Pai Gow Poker table, players should keep wallets, handbags and other personal items tucked away, and drinks in the holders to avoid spills¹³.

Two chip rules that carry real consequences:

• Do not pass chips to another player or accept chips from one. In Japan, transferring or receiving chips between customers is prohibited, except between relatives living together¹⁴.
• Do not walk chips out of the gaming area. Taking chips outside the casino gaming area is prohibited in Japan¹⁴, and the same restriction appears in the country's casino regulations¹⁵.

If you want to move money to a friend, cash out and hand over the cash outside, or buy them in at their own seat.

Tipping the dealer: how customs differ

Tipping is optional everywhere. No casino requires it, and no dealer will ask. Customs differ by country and by property, so the simplest approach is to watch what the players around you do and follow the room.

If you do want to tip, place the chip on the table rather than pressing it into the dealer's hand. The same logic as buying in applies: anything that changes hands should be visible on the felt. Some players tip after a good win, some tip a chip when they leave, and many never tip at all. None of these is wrong.

A few things that are not tipping and are not allowed:

• Do not place a bet on behalf of someone who is not at the table. In Singapore, wagers placed on behalf of a patron who is not present in person at the table, including by communication device, are prohibited¹⁶.
• Do not ask another player to place your bet at a different spot. At Fortune 3 Card Poker, each player may bet only at their own seat and not through others at more than one position¹⁷.
• Do not hand cash to a dealer for chips. Place it on the table¹.

Baccarat etiquette in Macau

Baccarat is the game most visitors to Macau end up playing, and its etiquette is the most hands-off of any table game. The table has a dealing shoe, cutting cards, a shuffling machine and seven or more seats³. There are only two sides, Banker and Player, and you bet on one or the other³.

The dealing is quick and entirely dealer-controlled. Two cards are dealt alternately to each side starting from the Player, and the Player reveals first³. With an automatic shuffling machine, cards are dealt face up and returned to the machine after each coup³. You do not touch anything.

If you are seated at a squeeze table, the rules change slightly. The biggest bettor on each hand gets the cards to squeeze, and the house decides whether holding is allowed at all¹². If you are allowed to hold the cards, stay seated, do not leave the table to look at them, and do not view the drawn card together with your first two cards³.

Two practical notes for Macau:

• Phones: using a mobile phone or other communication device at a gaming table, or within three meters of one, is banned, as is recording images or sound anywhere in the casino, unless the gaming regulator's director gives permission⁴. This is enforced, so leave the phone away.
• Multiple positions: at Three Card Baccarat, players may bet on multiple positions, but during play you may not change position, leave the table holding cards, or hold another position's cards¹⁸.

If you want to understand the bets themselves before you sit down, the baccarat odds page covers Banker, Player and Tie, and baccarat side bets explains pairs and bonus bets.

Craps etiquette: what the Okada Manila tables expect

Craps has more moving parts than any other table game, and the etiquette reflects that. The floor at Okada Manila runs about 400 table games across the main gaming hall and VIP clubs, covering baccarat, roulette, blackjack, poker, Sic Bo, Pai Gow Poker, Texas Hold'em Bonus Poker, craps and three card poker¹⁹. The VIP club side has 35 baccarat and roulette tables in seven high-limit rooms, some with private bars and beds¹⁹.

The single most important craps rule for a newcomer: to take a turn as the shooter, you are obligated to place a Pass or Don't Pass bet before the come-out roll²⁰. You cannot roll without a bet on the line. If you would rather just watch, stand back from the table and keep your hands off the rail.

Other craps etiquette that regulars expect:

• Do not touch the dice with both hands, and do not handle them once the shooter has them.
• Keep your hands off the table once the dice are in motion.
• Place your bets before the roll, not during it.
• If you are not betting, step back so the players behind you can reach the layout.

If you want the mechanics before you arrive, craps rules walks through the come-out roll, the point, and Pass and Come bets, and craps odds covers payouts.

Leaving the table and cashing out

Leaving is easier than joining, but a few habits keep it clean.

Collect your winnings before the next round starts. At Sic Bo, players are told to collect winnings from the table before the next round begins, or they could end up placing a bet they did not intend⁵. The same applies at every table: once the dealer starts the next hand, your chips on the felt are in play.

Do not leave mid-round. At Fortune 3 Card Poker, leaving the table mid-round is prohibited, along with recording results, predicting or devising betting strategies, and revealing your cards¹⁷. If you want to stop, finish the hand, then stand up.

Cash out at the cage, not the table. When you are done, take your chips to the cashier. In Japan, chips cannot be taken outside the casino gaming area¹⁴, so cash out before you leave the floor. In Mauritius, chips can be bought at a live game table, but currency, a player card or a debit card are handled at a main cash desk, and credit cards are not accepted at a casino at all⁷.

Mind your personal items. Keep wallets and bags tucked away and drinks in the holders¹³. A spilled drink or a bag on the felt slows the game and annoys everyone around you.

Be ready when it is your turn. At Sic Bo, players are asked to respect other players' time by acting in a timely fashion when betting¹. The same courtesy applies everywhere: know your decision before the dealer reaches you.

If you are still deciding which game suits you, casino table games explains the rules, odds and house edge across the main games, and live dealer vs casino floor covers how the in-person experience differs from playing online.