Blackjack Basic Strategy

When playing any game of chance, the player’s goal is to create his own winning strategy for that game. Basic Blackjack Strategy has a very interesting feature: each subsequent hand has slightly different chances than the previous one.

For example, if the odds of winning in roulette are static and it all depends mainly on the player’s luck, then playing blackjack requires both luck and skills. In this article, we will talk about the basic strategy of blackjack, which you can use when playing online blackjack for money.

For convenience, we show you the strategy in the tables. The table suggests the best move in a certain scenario. The first table is for playing with one deck of cards, the second one is for playing with several decks. In the tables, the vertical column on the left represents the value of your cards. The horizontal column above shows the value of the dealer card.

The Basic Strategy — Blackjack with One Deck

The Basic Strategy for the Blackjack Game with One Deck
  • H = Hit
  • S = Stand
  • D = Double
  • P = Split
  • H/SU = Surrender if possible, if not Hit
  • S/SU = Surrender if able to, if not Stand

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The Basic Strategy — Blackjack with Multiple Decks

The Basic Strategy for the Blackjack Game with Multiple Decks
  • H = Hit
  • S = Stand
  • D = Double
  • P = Split
  • H/SU = Surrender if possible, if not Hit
  • S/SU = Surrender if able to, if not Stand

How to Use These Tables?

Using these strategies is easier than it might seem at first glance. We look at the left vertical row for the value of our cards. Then, in the upper horizontal row, we look for the value of the dealer card and go down to the row level: the most optimal solution is displayed in the cell on the crossroads.

An example. Suppose you have 16 points, and the dealer has 7. The table gives advice — H (hit! take another card).

Remember, these tables with long-term use give you the best odds to win, but they aren't able to eliminate the casino edge completely because it is impossible. If you want to further reduce the advantage of the casino, you can learn the counting cards technique. But the fact is that the counting cards technique in an online casino is useless because the random card shuffle algorithm is designed so that no one can predict which card is next.

When playing blackjack for money in online casinos, we advise you to use the table for one deck of cards, although the concept of a deck is useless in online blackjack: in the online version, the dealer does not get cards from the deck, instead, the RNG chooses cards randomly.

More Blackjack Strategies

  • How to Count Cards in Blackjack
  • Martingale Strategy
  • See Also

    Online Blackjack Variations