Andar Bahar Rules: How the Card Game Works

Andar Bahar is about as simple as the app gets. The dealer flips one card, the joker, then lays cards one at a time onto the Andar (inside) and Bahar (outside) piles until a card matches the joker’s rank.

The detail that quietly shifts the payouts

Andar Bahar looks like pure chance, and for the most part it is — yet the small print matters. Many tables shave the payout on one side when the first card is dealt there, balancing out the head start that side enjoys.

Check the payout on each side before your first bet. After that it is as simple as a game gets: pick a side, watch the deal, and hold your stake steady round to round. Our Andar Bahar odds page works out the exact chance of each bet and what a given payout really costs you.

How a round of Andar Bahar plays out

Put your bet on Andar or Bahar before any card is dealt.
The dealer turns the joker card face up in the centre.
Cards go down one at a time, alternating between the two sides.
Whichever side lands a card matching the joker’s rank takes the round.

What Andar and Bahar mean

Both names are Hindi: andar is inside and bahar is outside, and they label the two piles that build up on either side of the joker in the middle. Across parts of South India you will hear the same game called Katti.

The joker's rank is the only thing that counts. If it lands as a 7, then the first 7 to appear closes the round, no matter its suit or colour.

A round, card by card

Suppose the joker is the 7♣ and your money is on Bahar. The dealer drops the K♦ on Andar, the 3♠ on Bahar, then the 9♥ back on Andar. The fourth card, the 7♦, falls on Bahar — Bahar takes it, and the round wraps up in just four cards.

Plenty of rounds run longer. With three 7s still buried in the remaining 51 cards, roughly half of all rounds are still going after ten cards have been dealt.

Payouts and side bets

Whichever side is dealt the first card enjoys a slight edge, winning somewhere around 51.5% of rounds. To even things up, one common setup pays 0.9 to 1 on that side and a full 1 to 1 on the other. Which side goes first varies by table, so check the info screen before you place a bet.

Andar Bahar odds chart: the side that gets the first card wins 51.5% of rounds, the other side 48.5%, and how many cards most rounds take — Andar Bahar at a glance: who wins more often and how soon a round ends.

A few tables also add side bets on how many cards will come out before the match lands. These pay more precisely because they hit less often, and over time they tend to cost you more. Our Andar Bahar odds page breaks down the house edge on each common payout.