Blackjack Perfect Strategy House Edge
If you want to lower that edge, then your best bet are the different blackjack charts found below. The house edge in Blackjack is 8%. If you’re an active player that number will add up over time. The best (and only correct) mathematical strategy for achieving optimal play is to use a blackjack chart. The house edge in craps varies considerably, from nothing at all, to a whopping 13.9% and how much you'll forfeit to the house over time all boils down to the bets you place.
- Blackjack Perfect Strategy Practice
- Perfect Blackjack Chart
- Strategy For Blackjack
- Blackjack Perfect Strategy Chart
- Blackjack Perfect Strategy
House edge means the percentage of the player's bet the casino wins on average. This is worth figuring out since the size of house edge has everything to do with how likely you're to win. Educated players always find the games with the least house edge possible and therefore win the most - or at least lose the least.
For example, if house edge is 1.89%, the player loses $1.89 on average out of every $100 bet he makes. Obviously the player doesn't lose that amount on every single bet; you might win two hands and then lose six hands in a row but in the long run the loss will be about $1.89 per bet. One of the goals of Gaming the Odds is to teach you all about perfect blackjack strategy and to minimize the house edge. You can find several house edge percentages for blackjack game variations below in order to help you to find the best games.
The Amount of Decks
Firstly, what kind of an effect the amount decks has on casino's advantage? The table below displays the house edge for a standard blackjack game: blackjack pays 3:2, the dealer stands on soft 17, doubling is allowed for any two cards and splitting to four hands is allowed.
| Number of Decks | House Edge |
|---|---|
| Single Deck | -0.03% |
| Two Decks | +0.25% |
| Four Decks | +0.38% |
| Six Decks | +0.42% |
| Eight Decks | +0.44% |
Under those rules it would actually be profitable to play according to basic strategy with a single deck. It's always optimal to play according to basic strategy but in the vast majority of cases you're still going to have negative expectation.
Game and Rule Variations
Blackjack Games
Let's move on to the next table, which features other blackjack game variations and their house edges. In order to make it easier to compare these games, all the house edge percentages are for six-deck gamesunless otherwise stated.
| Game | House Edge |
|---|---|
| Atlantic City Blackjack | +0.42% |
| Blackjack Switch | +0.58% |
| Double Attack Blackjack * | +0.61% |
| Double Exposure Blackjack | +0.67% |
| European Blackjack | +0.62% |
| Multiple Action Blackjack ** | +0.42% |
| Pontoon Blackjack | +0.45% |
| Spanish 21 | +0.37% |
| Super Fun 21 | +1.40% |
| Three Card Blackjack | +2.10% |
| Vegas Downtown Blackjack | +0.62% |
| Vegas Strip Blackjack | +0.53% |
* Played with a specific amount of decks (which isn't six).
** Multiple hands played but probability equal to standard blackjack.
The table above was made to give you some idea of which games are better to play than others. It's also important to remember that some casinos may operate with slightly different rules which either increase or decrease the house advantage of the game.
Blackjack Rule Variations
What about other rule variations, then? I'm going to list some of the more common blackjack rule variations and their house edges. The tables below consists of changes made to standard blackjack rules:
| Dealer Hits Soft 17 | |
|---|---|
| # of Decks | House Edge |
| Single Deck | +0.15% |
| Two Decks | +0.45% |
| Four Decks | +0.59% |
| Six Decks | +0.63% |
| Eight Decks | +0.66% |
| Player Can Only Double 9-11 | |
| # of Decks | House Edge |
| Single Deck | +0.11% |
| Two Decks | +0.36% |
| Four Decks | +0.48% |
| Six Decks | +0.52% |
| Eight Decks | +0.54% |
| Player Can Only Double 10-11 | |
| # of Decks | House Edge |
| Single Deck | +0.26% |
| Two Decks | +0.48% |
| Four Decks | +0.58% |
| Six Decks | +0.61% |
| Eight Decks | +0.63% |
| Dealer Doubles on 17 | |
| # of Decks | House Edge |
| Single Deck | -0.03% |
| Two Decks | +0.25% |
| Four Decks | +0.38% |
| Six Decks | +0.42% |
| Eight Decks | +0.44% |
| Player Can Resplit Aces | |
| # of Decks | House Edge |
| Single Deck | -0.06% |
| Two Decks | +0.20% |
| Four Decks | +0.32% |
| Six Decks | +0.35% |
| Eight Decks | +0.37% |
| Blackjack Pays 6:5 | |
| # of Decks | House Edge |
| Single Deck | +1.36% |
| Two Decks | +1.62% |
| Four Decks | +1.75% |
| Six Decks | +1.78% |
| Eight Decks | +1.80% |
A couple of conclusions: first of all, the last section ('Blackjack Pays 6:5') shows you how unprofitable it is to play those games. Never play a game where blackjack pays 6:5.
Secondly, games where the player can resplit aces are preferable for the player. Try to find those games. It's also good for the player when the dealer doubles 17.
Blackjack Side Bets
And finally, blackjack side bets and house edges for them.
| Side Bet | House Edge |
|---|---|
| 21+3 Blackjack | +3.20% |
| 21 Madness | +23.00% |
| Bonus Blackjack | +24.00% |
| Match the Dealer | +3.10% |
| Perfect Pairs Blackjack | +4.10% |
| Royal Match Blackjack | +6.50% |
| Super Match Blackjack | +2.60% |
| Super Sevens Blackjack | +11.70% |
| Bust It Blackjack | +7.00% |
No, casinos didn't include the 'side bet' option just to give players a better chance of winning. As you can see, side bets are good for the casino and bad for the player even if they might make the game a bit more exciting.
Favourable Blackjack Rule Variations for the Player
Here's a list of blackjack rule variations favourable for the player:
- The less decks the better. (Games with one deck are the best.)
- Double down on any 2 cards.
- Blackjack pays 3:2.
- Resplitting aces allowed.
- Dealer stands on a 17.
- Early/late surrender.
- Low deck penetration (for card counters).
- Insurance (for card counters).
Favourable Blackjack Rule Variations for the Casino
- Side bets.
- Double down on 10 and 11 only.
- Dealer hits a soft 17.
- The more decks the better.
- Blackjack pays 6:5
- Low deck penetration (against card counters).
- No doubling down after splitting.
- Not allowed to resplit aces.
I suggest trying to memorize these lists and look for games with beneficial blackjack rule variations for the player. Rule variations in favor of the casino should obviously be avoided.
Blackjack House Edge: FAQ
Blackjack Perfect Strategy Practice
Do bet sizes impact house edge in blackjack?
Perfect Blackjack Chart
It makes no difference whether you bet $10 or $10,000 - the house advantage stays the same. The amount you lose or win per bet changes, of course, depending on how big of an edge either you or the casino's got.
Which blackjack game has the smallest casino edge?
Suggesting all games are played with six decks - which is a common size for a blackjack shoe - Spanish 21 has the best house edge for the player according to the blackjack house edge table on top of this page. Standard 21 Blackjack is good too since you can actually have the edge by playing perfect basic strategy with a single deck.
How big is the house edge if I count cards?
This depends on many variables, such as which blackjack card counting systems you're going to use. In case you're using a highly complicated system, play perfectly and manage to find a good game to play, you may have a significant edge (even 3% or 4%).
Additional Resources:
Strategy For Blackjack
Perfect Pairs is one of the most common side bets in blackjack and its variants. It is popular across Australia, Macau and London, and is offered in the majority of online casinos. The side bet is also featured in other cards games, such as baccarat. The wager is very simple to understand and thoroughly entertaining, especially for players who enjoy spicing up their blackjack hand.
Best online casinos for Perfect Pairs
What is Perfect Pairs?
Perfect Pairs is a wager placed on whether your first two cards are going to be a pair and there are three types of pairs that warrant a payout: a perfect pair, a coloured pair and a mixed pair. Obviously, the odds off achieving any type of pair on the first two cards dealt are considerably lower than not being dealt a pair, but that is the essence of the majority of side bets; that the high risk offers a high reward.
Perfect Pairs is available in most standard games of online blackjack, with the most respected casinos boasting a strong range of 21 games. Most of these online casinos will also have an option to play for free.
Perfect Pairs rules and objective
In order to put forward a Perfect Pairs wager, we must bet prior to being dealt our cards in the appropriate box. In blackjack games which offer this side bet, there will be two betting areas on the table to separate the normal wagers from such side wagers. The Perfect Pairs bet needs to be placed in the side bet zone.
Blackjack Perfect Strategy Chart
A Perfect Pairs bet does not have to match the amount of our regular bets, but it must be at least the minimum wager of the table. In Blackjack Plus at Melbourne’s Crown Casino, the Perfect Pairs wager can be half of the table minimum, but this is rare. If playing with others, online or offline, the side bet is able to be placed on a hand that is not your own.
Blackjack games which implement this side bet are usually based on European blackjack rules and played with eight decks, though this can vary. In theory, the perfect pairs side bet can be added to any game of blackjack by altering the rules slightly.
Remember, a Perfect Pairs side wager is for the initial two cards dealt, and nothing else; the dealer’s cards have no bearing on the outcome. Once all initial two cards are dealt, any Perfect Pair wagers are settled immediately, before we proceed to make any moves, according to the standard payout chart (below). The main game of blackjack continues on as normal thereafter.
The Perfect Pairs side bet will be paid out if any of the following three possibilities show up:
- A mixed pair or red/black pair: The two initial cards drawn are exactly alike in face value, except for suit and colour. An example of a mixed pair would be a Nine of Hearts and a Nine of Clubs.
- A coloured pair: The two initial cards drawn are exactly alike in face value and colour, except for suit. An example of a coloured pair would be an Ace of Clubs and an Ace of Spades.
- A perfect pair: The two initial cards drawn are exactly alike (face value, colour and suit). An example of a perfect pair would be two Queens of Diamonds. Obviously, games played with a single deck do not lend themselves to such an outcome, so the perfect pairs side bet would be unavailable.
Perfect Pairs payout, probability & house edge
Blackjack Perfect Strategy
Perfect Pairs is entirely based on chance, like all blackjack side bets, and those chances are slim. In a standard eight-deck game, where we have the best odds available, we have just a 1.7% chance of drawing a perfect pair and being paid out 25:1, with slightly better chances of drawing a coloured or mixed pair, at 1.9% and 3.9%, respectively. With a 92.5% chance of not drawing a pair, and significantly high house edges on each type of pair, don’t expect to make a profit in the long run with such a bet (as with any side bet), but to play it for the thrill and excitement, in the hope of getting lucky every now and then, certainly provides some additional fun.