Blackjack House Edge

Determining the House Advantage

Have you ever wondered exactly what the house edge was for blackjack games with different rules?

I’ve put together an explanation of the most common rules variations including how each changes the house edge, for or against the player.

You’ll also find the total house edge for a few common rules combinations.

I find it easier to start with a set of rules and then add or subtract the house edge changes as rules are adjusted.

Once you get a solid understanding of the favorable and unfavorable rules you’ll quickly be able to tell a good table from a poor one. Most single rules don’t make a huge difference, but when you add three or four rules in one direction they can start adding up quickly.

Blackjack Rule Variations

Number of Decks

The number of decks used changes the house edge. Though this may not seem like it should matter, the mathematicians have run the numbers over and over and it’s true.

A single deck game decreases the house edge by almost a half percent over an 8 deck game. The reduction is much smaller for a two deck game, coming in at just under .2%.

Four, five, and six deck games are only slightly better than 8 deck games, decreasing the house edge by .02 to .06%.

Dealer Hits or Stands on Soft 17

In games where the dealer hits on soft 17, the house edge is around .22% higher than when the dealer stands on a soft 7.

Player Can Double After Split

Whether or not you can double after splitting a pair is worth almost .15% for or against the house edge.

Player Can Split to Four Hands

It’s common for players to be allowed to split up to four hands. If you can only split to two hands it increases the house edge by .1%.

Player Can Re-split Aces

When you get another ace on one of your hands after splitting aces some tables let you split the aces again. If you’re allowed to re-split aces it reduces the house edge around .08%

Player Can Hit Split Aces

In games where you can draw to split aces it reduces the house edge by just under .2%.

Surrender

Surrender isn’t a common rule, but if you can find games that offer it you can reduce the edge. You can find two different types of surrender; early and late.

Early surrender is the ability to fold your hand to receive half you bet back before the dealer checks for a blackjack. This reduces the house edge by almost .4%.

Late surrender is the other option which allows you to fold for half your wager after the dealer checks for blackjack and reduces the house edge by around .07%.

3 to 2 vs 6 to 5 vs 7 to 5 vs 1 to 1

Blackjack pays 3 to 2 on most tables. The difference in pay out percentage for other options is listed below, but I just ignore any tables that don’t pay at least 3 to 2.

Occasionally a casino will run a special or offer a coupon that offers a better pay out than 3 to 2 for a blackjack for a short time or for a single hand. If you ever have the opportunity to play a hand at 2 to 1, you should do so. When blackjack pays 2 to 1 it reduces the house edge by over 2.25%, making even the worst games profitable for the player.

6 to 5 is the next most common payout for blackjack and it increases the house edge by almost 1.4%.

7 to 5 increase the house edge by around .45%.

1 to 1 is the worst and usually is only found on variations of blackjack that have a wide range of different rules. I don’t remember ever seeing a blackjack table only paying 1 to 1 for blackjacks. If a table only pays 1 to 1 it increases the house edge by over 2.25%.

Conclusion

Finding games with the best rules is one of the two big things every blackjack player needs to do in order to reduce the house edge as much as possible. Use the information above to learn how to determine if games offer a good pay back percentage or not.

Once you find games offering good rules, combine them with basic strategy and you’ll give yourself the best chance to win and extend your bankroll as long as possible.

Blackjack FAQs

You can absolutely try, but it's much more difficult to count cards in online blackjack games. Online casinos use a random number generator to deal cards. This system means every hand is being played with a new deck. A user could count cards, but there would be no value in doing so.

Nope. Insurance can be viewed as a sucker bet that, in the long-run, benefits the casino by boosting the house edge. The pit boss will be happy every time you take insurance and perfect strategy requires avoiding it at all costs.

No, plenty of casinos make their games available to play for free. Indeed, you'll find a free blackjack game you can play on this very page! Playing for free is a great way for new players to get used to the mechanics of online blackjack gambling. For experienced blackjack players, playing for free allows them to experiment with betting strategies and techniques without risking any real money.

No, card counting is different than basic strategy. Each will lower the house edge and benefit the player, but basic strategy is making the right choices based on the odds of each hand, without accounting for the cards remaining in the shoe. However, basic strategy is allowed in all casinos while card counting is not.

Yes! Basic strategy is applicable to both online blackjack and playing at a table in a casino. You may even be more comfortable practicing basic strategy online while using a physical strategy chart. Using the chart for online play can help you memorize it for both online and in-person betting.

Practice makes perfect, so the more you employ basic strategy, the easier it will get to remember the rules. To start, consider focusing on major rules like always splitting 8's or doubling down on 11.