How to Play Blackjack

Learn the rules and how to play blackjack

BlackJack Screenshot from Tower Gaming

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Blackjack has been a casino table favourite every since it was first introduced and almost everyone knows how to play blackjack. It’s a very simple game to learn how to play and we’re going to look through the rules and some basic strategy throughout this article.

The general idea in blackjack is too be as close to 21 as possible without going over 21. You don’t bet against anyone except for the dealer in blackjack and therefore you’ll need to be closer to 21 then the dealer without going over. When you do go over it’s known as busting and your hand is over. If the dealer busts then as long as you didn’t bust you’ll win the hand.

We’ll now look at the values of each card in the deck so you know exactly what you have.

Ace equals either a 1 or 11 it’s your choice
Cards 2-9 equal exactly what they are
10-K equal 10 every time

You don’t have to call what the ace is going to be it will be whatever fits best in your hand. For instance if you have an A-6 you’d have 17 total if you counted the ace as 11, but if you take a card and get a 10 then the ace would become a 1 value so that you don’t bust.

To start each hand every player sitting at the table will make their bets for that hand and then the dealer will deal two cards to everyone face up. He’ll then go from left to right and everyone will have their chance to either stick or hit. After everyone is done the dealer will make their hand if they need to. If every player busts then the dealer will automatically win. If someone is beating the dealer’s cards then the dealer will need to hit until they reach 17 or bust. The dealer doesn’t have any real choices to make against you and just plays the cards by the rules set for them.

The best possible hand to get is a natural blackjack, which is when the two cards you’re dealt is an ace and a card with the value of 10. A blackjack pays a bit more than a regular win and you’ll be paid 3to2 on your bet. There is also no way to lose when you’re dealt natural blackjack.

The two most common choices you need to make at the blackjack table are whether you’ll hit or stick. Hit means that you’d like another card to increase your hand total to reach closer to 21. Stick means that you’d like to stay and not take any more cards. There is a lot strategy that goes into choosing whether or not to hit in situations, but generally you shouldn’t stick until you have 17+ unless the dealer has a low show card which usually means they have a chance of busting which would mean you win with anything under 21.

Two more options you’ll need to choose between on occasion are whether to double down or split pairs. Doubling down means you’d like to double your bet and take one card more only. You can only do this when you have two cards and you can only get one card when you do this. The best hand to do this with is when your two cards equal 11 as any 10 would give you 21. Splitting pairs is simply splitting up pairs when you have them and playing two hands. You’ll need to add the bet for the split, but you’ll have a chance of winning two bets. It’s best to do this with pairs of anything worth 10, but almost any pair should be split if you have the chips.

That’s all the general rules and strategy that you need to know for blackjack. You’ll be able to play blackjack now and sharpen your skills with practice. We suggest looking at our toplist below to find where you can play online with play money so that you can practice before wagering any money. It’s a fast paced game and money can be won and lost within minutes.