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Blackjack Basic Strategy


Click on one of the links below to view the "Blackjack Strategy Chart" and
Click Here for a full description of the different styles of online Blackjack.

What is Basic Strategy in Blackjack?

It is simply the best possible way for you (the player) to play your blackjack hand, according to the dealer's upcard and by following a particular set of Basic Strategy Rules.

Blackjack is a mathematical game. Given a dealers upcard and a player's hand, there is ALWAYS a right move you can make. Blackjack Basic Strategy advises you of the best move you can make to reduce you chance of losing the hand. Basic Strategy also allows you to minimize the Casino's edge to less than 2%.
Blackjack Basic Strategy is a complete set of rules for any and all situations that can occur in a blackjack game. You can learn Blackjack Basic Strategy and practice it by using detailed Strategy Charts (listed at the top of this page).
Minor adjustments are made to basic strategy depending on certain rule variations that the casinos can choose to use. For example some casinos will allow you to Double Down after Splitting and some don’t. There are also some changes made to basic strategy for single and double deck blackjack games.

Being successful at Blackjack

If you want to be a successful blackjack player and increase your odds of winning by reducing the house edge, you will need to learn Blackjack Basic Strategy.
The best way to learn is to refer to a Basic Strategy Chart (listed above) until you know it so well you can make basic strategy decisions without it. The Blackjack Basic Strategy chart shows you how to play your first two cards based on the dealers up card.


Jacks Hot Tip

In Blackjack, the house gains its edge based on the fact that the player must act first. Since the Basic Strategy chart only deals with the first two cards, you will also need to understand what decisions to make after taking a hit and more importantly, why you are making the choices or decisions that the Blackjack Basic Strategy chart is advising you to...but more on that later.

For now, make yourself familiar with the charts listed above by clicking on the link which best suites your style of blackjack.


Blackjack Descriptions

The descriptions listed below cover the various rules pertaining to the different styles of Blackjack in both online and land-based casinos*. Although all attempts are made to convey accurate information, the game of blackjack can vary quite distinctly depending on which country or state the game is played in and whether the game is played online or in a land-based casino. Blackjack Action always recommends researching and learning the rules of your Blackjack game provider. This will eliminate confusion and ensure a more enjoyable Blackjack experience.



Blackjack Single Deck

'Single Deck Blackjack' as the name implies is played with a single deck of cards rather than the multiple decks used in all the other forms of Blackjack. This single deck form of Blackjack was originally dealt on the 'Las Vegas Strip' and employs rules of the same name. The game of 'Single Deck Blackjack' has fallen out of favour over time due to the advent of card counting but has made a return to popularity recently using 'Atlantic City Blackjack' rules. This new single deck variation pays '6 to 5' for natural Blackjacks and allows the dealer to hit on Soft 17.

The general rules for 'Single Deck Blackjack' are as follows:
Rules Decks Multi-Hand Hole Card Dealer Stands BlackJack Pays Surr-ender Can Double Split Resplit Split Aces After Split
Single
Deck BJ		 1 Yes Yes On hard 17 but hits on soft 17 3 to 2 No 10/11 Yes 4 times No Draw Can Double
  • Insurance pays 2 to 1 and costs half the players original bet.
  • The decks are shuffled after each round of play.
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Blackjack Multi Deck

'Multi Deck Blackjack' covers a broad spectrum of Blackjack variations as most games these days employ more than one deck of cards. For this reason only three of the more popular variations are listed below. When playing 'Multi Deck Blackjack' be sure to check which variation applies to you. The changes in gameplay may be subtle but could spell the difference between a winning and losing hand.

The general rules of 'Multi Deck Blackjack' are as follows:

Rules Decks Multi-Hand Hole Card Dealer Stands BlackJack Pays Surr-ender Can Double Split Resplit Split Aces After Split
Atlantic City BJ 6 No No All 17's 3 to 2 No Any first 2 cards Yes No No Draw Can Double
Vegas Strip BJ 4 No No All 17's 3 to 2 No Any first 2 cards Yes Yes No Draw Can Double
North Nevada BJ 2 - 8 No No On hard 17 but hits on soft 17 3 to 2 No 10/11 Yes Yes No Draw No Double
  • Insurance pays 2 to 1 and costs half the players original bet.
  • When doubling you are dealt only one more card and then your hand stands.



Blackjack European

'European Blackjack' is, quite simply, the European version of its American counterpart. As a result certain differences in its rule structure exist.

The general rules of 'European Blackjack' are as follows:
Rules Decks Multi-Hand Hole Card Dealer Stands BlackJack Pays Surr-ender Can Double Split Resplit Split Aces After Split
Euro BJ 2 No No All 17's 3 to 2 No 9/10/11 Yes No Can Draw No Double
  • If you split a pair of aces and next card drawn has a denomination of 10, this is not Blackjack, but has a value of 21.

  • When doubling you are dealt only one more card and then your hand stands.

  • Insurance costs half your original bet and only applies to your original hand.
    • Insurance pays 2 to 1.



Blackjack Cryptologic

'Cryptologic' is a Toronto-based company providing downloadable online casino software. The Blackjack rules for Cryptologic are the same as standard in 'Atlantic City Blackjack' rules except that re-splitting after splitting is not permitted.

The General Rules for 'Cryptologic Blackjack' are as follows:

Rules Decks Multi-Hand Hole Card Dealer Stands BlackJack Pays Surr-ender Can Double Split Resplit Split Aces After Split
Crypto BJ 8 Yes Yes All 17's 3 to 2 No 9/10/11 Yes No No Draw Can Double
  • The decks are shuffled after each round of play.
  • When doubling you are dealt only one more card and then your hand stands.

  • Insurance costs half your original bet and only applies to your original hand. Insurance pays 2 to 1.



Blackjack Playtech

'Playtech', like 'Cryptologic', also develop casino software. The rules employed in 'Playtech Blackjack' are similar to the ones used in standard 'Las Vegas Strip' Blackjack but with a few variations. Recently 'Playtech' has incorporated a new version of Blackjack called 'Blackjack Surrender'. This new version of their classic game allows the dealer a 'hole card' and gives the player an option for 'surrender'. The details for both versions are listed below.

The General Rules for 'Playtech Blackjack' are as follows:
Rules Decks Multi-Hand Hole Card Dealer Stands BlackJack Pays Surr-ender Can Double Split Resplit Split Aces After Split
Play-tech
BJ		 6 No No All 17's 3 to 2 No Any first 2 cards Yes No No Draw Can Double
BJ Surr-
ender 		6 No Yes All 17's 3 to 2 Yes Any first 2 cards Yes No No Draw Can Double
  • The decks are shuffled after each round of play.

    •
  • If the player has doubled or split and the dealer gets Blackjack then the player only loses their initial bet unless the player also has Blackjack in which case the hand is a 'Push'.

    •
  • In 'Playtech Blackjack Surrender' the dealer checks for blackjack when the dealer's up card is an ace and insurance is available. Insurance pays 2 to 1.

    •
  • Playtech employs a rule called '10 Card Charlie'. If a Player draw 10 cards without going bust the player’s hand automatically wins unless the dealer has Blackjack.

    •



Blackjack Microgaming

'Microgaming Blackjack' represents the series of Blackjack games designed by the Microgaming Company - one of the world's leading developers of Internet gaming systems.

The rules for the different variations are as follows:
Rules European BJ Multi-Hand BJ Spanish BJ Vegas Strip BJ Atlantic City BJ Vegas Downtown BJ Triple7's BJ
Decks 2 5 8 special 4 8 2 5
Multi-Hand No Yes No No No No No
Hole Card No No Yes Yes Yes Yes No
Dealer Stands All 17 All 17 Soft 17 All 17 All 17 Soft 17 All 17
BlackJack Pays 3 to 2 3 to 2 3 to 2 3 to 2 3 to 2 3 to 2 3 to 2
Surrender No No Yes No Yes No No
Can Double 9/10/11 9/10/11 Any first 2 cards Any first 2 cards Any first 2 cards Any first 2 cards 9/10/11
Split Yes Once Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Resplit No -- 2 Times 2 Times 2 Times 2 Times No
Split Aces Can Draw Can Draw Draw No Draw No Draw No Draw Can Draw
After Split No Double No Double Can Double Can Double Can Double Can Double No Double
    All 'Microgaming Blackjack' games are powered by 'Viper Software'.




Blackjack RTG

The term RTG stands for 'Realtime Gaming' and employs the Blackjack software created by the company of the same name.

The general rules for 'RTG Blackjack' are as follows:
Rules Decks Multi-Hand Hole Card Dealer Stands BlackJack Pays Surr-ender Can Double Split Resplit Split Aces After Split
RTG
BJ		 Config-urable Yes Yes On hard 17 but hits on soft 17 3 to 2 No Any first 2 cards Yes 2 times No Draw Can Double
  • Insurance pays 2 to 1.



Blackjack Switch

In 'Switch Blackjack' a player is dealt 2 separate hands with 2 identical bets - the player is allowed to switch the top two cards around. For example, if a player is dealt A, 8 in the first hand and a 9, 10 in the second hand, the player can switch the 10 in the second hand with the 8 in