Online Blackjack Game Guide
★ Use strategy to improve your odds
★ Simple payout structure
★ Huge range of tables and games
Blackjack’s popularity and associations with gambling mean it would be a difficult task to find a casino in the world that doesn’t offer it.
With one of the lowest house edges of any casino game, playing the game at blackjack crypto casinos can be a profitable game for disciplined players.
Enjoy our complete guide to the famous card game and start playing for real money or fun today at the best blackjack crypto casinos!
How to play blackjack
Blackjack uses regular 52-card decks. Face cards are worth 10 points, aces are worth 1 or 11 (player chooses), and the other cards represent their numbers.
The goal is to beat the dealer’s score without going over 21. Up to seven players can play at a blackjack table. The game goes like this:
- Players and the dealer are dealt two cards to start with – one of the dealer’s cards is dealt face down
- If you are dealt an ace and a 10 you have blackjack and win
- If you don’t have blackjack, you can then ‘hit’ (get dealt another card) or ‘stand’ (receive no more cards)
- If you hit, and your new total is over 21, you go ‘bust’ and lose
- You can keep hitting until you decide to stand on your new total, hit 21, or go bust
- When you stand, the dealer will then turn over his hidden card, and it’s their turn to play
- The dealer must hit until their total is 17 or higher. For example, if they had an ace and a five to start with (total 16), they would be obliged to ‘hit’, even if you had stood on 15
- The winner of the hand is the player who has the points total closest to 21 without going bust
Blackjack payouts
Typically bets are settled at these odds:
Player wins: 1/1
Player has blackjack: 3/2
In the event of a tie, stakes are returned. This is a push.
Example: if you were betting 10 ADA a hand you would win 10 ADA for each hand you won. You would win 15 ADA if you hit blackjack.
One advantage the casino has is that you always play your hand first. If you go bust, the dealer wins, even if they go bust on the same hand.
More rules
Splitting a pair – if you are dealt a pair, you can split your hand into two hands. As you now have two hands, you must double your wager.
These two hands are treated separately. You hit or stand as normal until you are happy with your total for each hand (or go bust).
Splitting a pair of aces – this is such a strong position mathematically that most online casinos will limit a player to just one more card dealt for each ace.
Doubling down – you can double your bet after seeing your first two cards. If you choose to do this, you will only be allowed one more card. This is not usually revealed until the dealer has played their hand.
Insurance – if you see the dealer has an ace, you have the option to take out insurance against the dealer making blackjack. For half of your original wager, you will get paid odds of 2:1 if the dealer’s next card is a 10. Taking out insurance is a poor long-term approach.
Dealer rules – the dealer does not have the option to split pairs, double down, or buy insurance. If the dealer has an ace, they must count it as an 11 if that means their total is 17 or higher (as long as it’s not over 21).
For example, a player with an ace, a 4 and a 2 could either have a total of 7 or 17. If the dealer had that hand, they must treat the ace as an 11 and stand.
Blackjack strategy
Blackjack generally has the lowest house edge of any casino table game. That means it offers the best chance to win money – if you use strategy.
So, you want to win money? Don’t just rely on luck.
The key to winning is to always look at the dealer’s up card:
- If the dealer’s card is a 7, 8, 9, 10 or ace, then keep hitting until you are on 17 or more
- If the dealer has 4, 5 or 6, they are vulnerable to going bust. In this case, you should stop hitting as soon as you have 12 or higher. The thinking here is simple – do not risk going bust when the dealer has a good chance of going bust
- If the dealer’s up card is an ace, 2 or 3, you should stand with a 13 or higher
- If you are dealt an ace, keep hitting until you have a score of at least 18
Advanced blackjack strategy
Doubling down – if you are dealt 11, you should always double down (double your bet). Double down if you also have a total of 10 – unless the dealer has a 10 or an ace.
Don’t double down with a total of 9, unless the dealer’s card is an average one (2-6).
Splitting – you should always split a pair of aces and a pair of 8s.
Don’t split a pair of 10s, face cards or a pair of 5s. In the case of a pair of 5s, a total of 10 is a strong hand to hit on – but 5s on their own are poor hands to hit on.
For the same reason, a pair of 4s shouldn’t be split. In general, 2s, 3s, or 7s can be split but think twice if the dealer has an 8, 9, 10, or ace. And don’t split 6s unless the dealer’s card is poor (2-6).
History of blackjack
No one is entirely sure of the exact roots of blackjack, with the ancient Romans, the Italians, the Spanish, the French, and the Americans all playing a role in the game we enjoy today.
Blackjack took its name in the 1930s as its popularity spread in Nevada casinos. Players making the magic 21 with the ace of spades would get paid out at 10/1 on their wager.
Game terminology
| Blackjack – getting 21 with your first two cards. Also known as a natural | |
| Double down – choose to double your bet after seeing you first two cards. You will allowed be only one more card | |
| Hit – take another card. Also known as twist | |
| Push – when the player and dealer have the same value hand but neither are bust. Stake is returned. Also known as a tie | |
| Split – player can choose to split a pair, double their wager, and effectively play two hands | |
| Bust – having a total over 21 | |
| Face card – a jack, queen or king card. Also known as picture cards | |
| Hole card – the dealer’s face down card, hidden until it’s their turn | |
| Shoe – a device dealers use to hold the decks of cards. One card is drawn at a time from the shoe | |
| Stand – take no more cards. Also known as stick | |
| Bust card – the card that takes you over 21 | |
| Hard hand – hand in which there is a chance the player will bust on a hit. Also known as a stiff | |
| Insurance – Option to place a bet as insurance against the dealer hitting blackjack if their up card is a 10 or ace | |
| Soft hand – hand in which there is an ace that is counted as an 11 | |
| Up card – the dealer’s card that you can see |
Playing blackjack at crypto casinos
You can play blackjack at every online casino. Be aware there are many different variants, so it’s always worth checking the rules as they may vary slightly from the ones listed here. Many casinos have exciting games with special bonuses – find your favourite today! Popular blackjack games include Live Blackjack, Multi-hand Blackjack, Surrender Blackjack, and American Blackjack.
Does blackjack card counting work in online casinos?
The best players use a method known as card counting. Used effectively, this can give a significant advantage. Players keep a running score in their head of the cards that have been dealt.
Low cards favour the dealer as it makes it harder for him to bust, while high cards favour the player as it gives them a higher score. This is based on real statistical evidence.
At a basic level, card counters will bet more when they expect a high concentration of high cards to be dealt and will bet less when they foresee low cards being dealt.
However, land-based casinos ban players they suspect of card counting and employ more decks and more regular shuffles to erode any advantage.
Online blackjack crypto casinos typically use between six and eight decks of cards for blackjack. That means up to 416 cards are in play for every hand.
Combined with frequent automatic shuffles, this makes card counting largely redundant at blackjack crypto casinos unless you play Single Deck Blackjack.