Honestly, finding a blackjack strategy that fits your needs as a player can prove to be somewhat of a challenge. There are many different strategies to choose from. So how do you know which one fits you best? There are time-tested strategies that repeatedly work as you try using them in different blackjack games. Those are the ones that you need to pay closer attention to if you wish to achieve better results when playing for real money!
Let’s take a look at the best blackjack betting strategies. We’ll be going over basic strategies, different tips, and recommended actions based on the current cards in your hand. Our strategy guide is created with the purpose of giving players, like yourself, inspiration, and a helping hand. We hope that you’ll find our guide useful. Let’s dive in!
Why Use a Blackjack Betting Strategy?
Certainly, we’ve all been there before – looking for the best and most effective strategy to win any type of online casino game. It is, of course, no different when it comes to blackjack. With the right blackjack strategy, you’ll possibly be able to increase your chances of winning since blackjack isn’t up to luck, like roulette or slots.
If you follow the basic blackjack betting strategy and learn how to use the information at your disposal, you’ll be able to give yourself the best chances to win in the game.
Many professional players have worked extremely hard trying to 'solve' the game of blackjack and figure out how to play each hand to get the best winning odds. They analyze the number of decks in play and how they affect your chances of winning. Then, they make the best decision based on the cards they see on the table. This type of strategy is known as the basic blackjack strategy. It’s basically a list of dos and don’ts that will help you determine how to play the hands that you’re dealt. This particular strategy is arguably the best strategy when it comes to a game of Blackjack.
The purpose of the blackjack basic strategy is to help maximize your chances of winning and minimize your losses. The strategy won’t be able to assure you a safe win every time since it’s impossible to win every single game of blackjack. But it’s still extremely useful.
Basic Blackjack Strategies
Firstly, it’s important to familiarize yourself with how a blackjack table works. Once you’ve done that, you’ll benefit from picking a game version that is played with fewer decks. 4 and 8-deck blackjack is very popular, and every basic blackjack strategy can be applied to this type of game.
The basic strategy will serve you well, no matter if you’re a beginner or experienced in the game of blackjack. Below, we’ve created a guide that will consider several scenarios, including where the dealer hits and stands. Basically, the guide will tell you when to surrender, split, double, and hit and stand.
Surrender
You should surrender a hard 16 but never a pair of 8’s versus dealer’s 9, 10, or Ace
You should surrender a hard 15 against a dealer’s 10
Split
Split your Aces and 8’s
Don’t split 5’s and 10’s
Split 2’s and 3’s against the dealer’s 4, 5, 6, or 7
Split 6’s against the dealer’s 3, 4, 5, or 6
Split 7’s against the dealer’s 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7
Split 9’s against the dealer’s 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 8, 9, but not 7
There are a few smaller modifications to this blackjack betting strategy. If Double After Split is allowed, you can consider a few other moves, including:
Split 2’s and 3’s against the dealer’s 2 and 3
Split 6’s against dealer’s 2
Split 4’s against dealer’s 2
Double
Double hard 9’s vs. the dealer’s 3, 4, 5 or 6
Double hard 10 except vs. the dealer’s 10 or Ace
Double hard 11 except vs. the dealer’s Ace
Double soft 13 or 14 vs. the dealer’s 5 or 6
Double soft 15 or 16 vs. the dealer’s 4 or 6
Double soft 17 vs. 18 vs. the dealer’s 3 or 6
Hit and Stand
Hit on hard 11 or less
Stand on hard 12 vs. the dealer’s 4, 5, or 6 - otherwise hit
Stand on hard 13, 14, 15, and 16 vs. the dealer’s 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 - otherwise hit
Stand on hard 17 or greater
Stand on soft 18 but hit vs. the dealer’s 9, 10, Ace
Stand on soft 19 or greater
Blackjack Strategy Additional Rules
There are actually some additional adjustments to the basic strategy that you may want to consider if you’re playing a blackjack game where the dealer hits on soft 17. You could call them additional rules. You should factor in the following changes if the dealer hits on soft 17:
Double 11 vs. dealer’s Ace
Double soft 18 vs. dealer’s 2
Double soft 19 vs. dealer’s 6
Surrender 15, 8’s, and 17 vs. dealer’s Ace
Blackjack Strategy for Beginners
A very good piece of advice for beginners is to not play high-stakes games unless you feel ready for them, and you have enough money to spend on online casino games. If you’re reading our strategy guide and are a beginner, you should stay away from high-stake games. You risk getting the opposite of what you want when spending too much money on your games. You may want to play to have fun and have the best possible chances of winning, but you end up being both broke and frustrated. Therefore, it’s important that you don’t engage in any high-stake games before you feel that you’ve got the hang of it.
If you’re new to blackjack, it’s a great idea to start with what we call a more conservative approach. It’s extremely important to find the right way to handle betting. It’s the key to having fun while playing.
Many blackjack strategies suggest that you should increase the stakes only when things go well and any potential losses are compensated by the money you have already won, not the money you might win if you get lucky. In other words, you should raise your bet every time you win. Many players believe that both winning and losing may come in streaks. But that is, of course, not true. There’s nothing that says you will have as many winning streaks as losing streaks. Unpredictability is a big part of online gambling. Blackjack is a game where there are no patterns for you to exploit or streaks that you can use to win more money.
There are, however, some betting strategies like the basic blackjack strategy that can help you increase the chances of a victory. With that in mind, a more conservative blackjack strategy that is very useful to beginners would work like this:
Start from the lowest bet (e.g., $1)
Increase your bet by 1 unit only after you win
Go back to the original bet after you lose
When you use this blackjack strategy, you need to go back to the original bet as soon as you lose one hand. This is the best way to be in control of your budget.
All you have to do is make the right choices (use the basic strategy) and raise your stakes little by little - but only when you win.
How to Win More Often at Blackjack
Of course, we all want to win every single time we play any type of online casino game, but we also know that it’s not possible. However, it’s possible to maximize your chances of winning and getting better winning odds when you play blackjack online. All you need is a few simple tips. Below, we’ve listed a few tips that you can follow if you wish to increase your chances of winning. These tips are just as important as the best betting strategies. You can also see them as blackjack strategies to win rather than tips. It depends on your perspective. Nonetheless, they’re blackjack strategies that work.
Don't spend money on 'insurance'. It may seem like a great idea, but it’s actually not! An insurance bet is a money-draining option that was created in order to confuse beginners and inexperienced players. It won’t really help you in any significant way.
Think about the house edge. As mentioned previously, you can't expect to win every single time you play. Like with all other online casino games, the house edge is what makes sure that the casino has an advantage over the players in the long run.
Set a budget and stick to it. It’s important that you set both a losing and a winning limit before you start playing. Then, stop playing as soon as you hit one of them. If you lose and hit your lower limit, take a break and end your session. If you win and hit your highest limit, collect your winnings and leave the table. Limits are set in order to make sure that you don’t bet more than you can afford to lose. Online gambling can become a slippery slope if you don’t set some ground rules for yourself.
Make sure to know the rules of the game. There are extremely many blackjack variations out there. All of them are based on the same core gameplay — but adopt rules that may differ from what you’re used to. If you’re unaware of such rule changes, it could break you and make you lose lots of money. One of the best parts of playing at an online casino is that the rules are always available. If you’re not sure you know everything about the game you want to play, click on the 'info' icon, and read the rules thoroughly.
Choose 3:2 over 6:5 payout. Online casinos have different payout policies. Not all of them might work in your favour. Make sure that you read the rules for payouts before you start playing for real money. You should always choose the 'regular' 3:2 payout. It’s a much smarter choice compared to the 6:5 payout blackjack games you find at some online casinos.
If you’re interested in playing blackjack using betting strategies, but you’re unsure of which one to use, try them out in free demo versions of the game. That way, you can test out all of the strategies without having to bet any money. Sounds pretty good, right? Why not try it out now? You can find many different demo versions at different online casinos. Find your favourite online casino on Casino Cupid’s website!
