Blackjack rules

Blackjack is a popular card game played against the dealer. While blackjack rules can vary between variants, both offline and online, generally the aim of the game is to score 21, or as close as possible, with your cards, without busting. A winning hand, under blackjack rules, must also be higher than the dealer’s for a payout to occur. Below we will run you through all aspects of blackjack rules, including the card values, hand-scoring, gameplay, variants of blackjack rules and much more.

Blackjack rules – the aim of blackjack

In general, the idea of most blackjack games is to beat the Dealer’s hand by getting as close to, but without going over, 21, or busting as it is known.

Many blackjack variations, both offline and online, share a common set of basic rules with a few subtle differences. The next few sections describe general blackjack rules and features.

While blackjack rules can vary dramatically, with things like side bets and insurance, common-place in different varieties of this casino classic.

There are however, some things like card values and hand-scoring that remain the same. We will firstly run you through the things you must know about blackjack rules, before playing.

Blackjack card values

Aces count as 1 point or 11 points, whichever yields the highest total score without going bust.
Face cards such as Kings, Queens, Jacks, and the number 10 each count as 10 points.
Each card with a number (i.e. 2 through 9 points) count as their value.

Hand scoring & payout odds

A player has “blackjack” when the first two cards they receive are an Ace and a face card or a 10 (All 10-point cards). In other words a score of 21 points from just two cards.

Blackjack hands pay 3-to-2 immediately, with the one exception being if the dealer also jags blackjack, in which case it’s a push, which means no one wins.

In general, a tied hand is a push. However, a blackjack hand will beat a hand that equals “21” from a hand with 3 or more cards. As an example, an Ace-Jack will beat a King-7-4 hand. Despite both of the hand having the same point value, the all-important blackjack wins.

All other successful hands are paid even money (1-to-1).

A score of 22 or higher is a bust (i.e. a losing hand). When a player’s hand busts, the wager is immediately paid to the house. If all player hands bust, the Dealer wins outright and does not draw any cards, regardless of the Dealer’s hand score.

7-Card Charlie

A player hand that gets seven cards without going over 21 is an automatic winner, regardless of the Dealer hand score. Not all variations of blackjack allow 7 card Charlies.

Blackjack rules – game play

This section of our blackjack rules guide will run you through how a hand will play out. This includes the first phase of betting, which indicates whether you are playing, the deal, what happens if there is a blackjack and showing both the dealer and player’s hands.

Blackjack betting

Players may place wagers in the dedicated area for each hand they wish to play in blackjack, with this also the case in online blackjack. Many blackjack games offer multi-hand play, where players can choose to play from 1 to 3 hands simultaneously against the Dealer, others are single-hand play, when at least one qualifying bet is placed (i.e. your bet on the table meets the minimum bet requirement).

The deal in blackjack

When the deal button (in an online game) is clicked or the game begins, the dealer will deal two face-up cards to each Player hand that has a qualified bet, then one card (in European Blackjack and Single-Deck Blackjack) or two cards (all other rule variations) to the Dealer’s hand. For the Dealer’s hand, the first card is face up and the second, when allowed, is face down.

Checking for Blackjack:

If the Dealer’s hand has two cards with an Ace showing, the Dealer will offer insurance. The Player may decline or accept blackjack insurance for each hand in play by clicking either Pass (decline) or Insure (accept, which places an additional wager equal to half the original wager for that hand).

Then the Dealer will peek at the down card to check for Blackjack. If the Dealer has Blackjack, insurance wagers pay 2-to-1 and all original hand wagers lose (unless the player also has Blackjack, in which case there is no winner and bets are returned).

If the Dealer does not have Blackjack, insurance wagers lose and play starts with the first player hand on the right.

In games where the Dealer starts with only one card, there is no checking for Blackjack and play starts with the first player hand on the right.

Blackjack surrender Option

Some games offer a “surrender” option after the Dealer peeks and does not have Blackjack. If surrender is allowed, a player may concede a hand before playing it, forfeiting just half the wager for that hand.

Finalising the player’s blackjack hand

A Player with a hand not having blackjack and not surrendered may draw more cards to try to total as close to the magical 21 as possible, without busting or scoring 22 for instance. A Player is free to stand at any point total or to ask for another card (a “hit”) at any point total under 21.

A Player may double, split, double-after-splitting or re-split according to the rules variation in play. When all player hands have played out and if at least one player hand stands at a point total of 21 or less, then play proceeds to the Dealer’s hand.

Finalising the dealer’s hand in blackjack

The dealer reveals the face-down card or draws a second card and examines the point score to determine Dealer’s play. A few things the dealer must abide by include hitting on points totals of 16 or less and standing on values of 17 or more. Some rules variations require the Dealer to hit on a “Soft 17” (i.e. a 17 involving an Ace taken as 11 points).

Determining the winner of a blackjack hand

If Dealer busts, then any player still in the game wins and are paid 1-to-1 on the wager. If Dealer stands on a point total, then Dealer point total is compared to each standing player hand, starting on the right, and all outstanding bets are resolved as either win, lose or push.

Blackjack varieties and types available online

Blackjack types that you will commonly find at online casinos are various, with this one of the biggest benefits of playing real money games online. The variety in blackjack games can include:

Caribbean 21: The biggest difference between Caribbean 21 and other formats of blackjack is that the Ace is only worth one point, rather than the soft 1 or 11. This makes the cards with a value of 10 the best in your quest to get closest to 21. The top hand in Caribbean 21 is eponymous.
Super Fun 21: Puts several cool twists on you standard blackjack games, including the ability to split up to four times, a player’s blackjack beats a dealer’s blackjack and you can double down at any time, not matter how many cards you have been dealt. Super Fun 21 is definitely a blackjack game worth checking out.
Pontoon: Another hugely popular variation of blackjack is Pontoon. While there are other subtle rule differences to blackjack, the main one, is that the 10s (not face cards) have been removed from the game.
Las Vegas blackjack: With this game popularised in the early 20th century in Nevada, Las Vegas Blackjack rules are often given as an example of the standard game. One thing that is not always copied to other variants of blackjack, that is a mainstay in Las Vegas blackjack, is the ability to double down.
Spanish Blackjack: This is another variation of blackjack that removes the 10s from the deck. Spanish Blackjack is essentially Pontoon, however we have seen small rule changes over the years, which differentiate them.

The evolution of blackjack rules

Blackjack is by far the most popular card game in modern casinos across Europe and North America. Like many well-established games, its origins are not well documented. Most scholars consider blackjack to have some roots in a popular card game found at casino tables in 17th Century France, which was called Vingt-et-Un (which translates to 20 and 1), and obviously a precursor to the game 21 that we play today. There are candidates predating Vingt-et-Un, but most are poorly documented.

Soon, blackjack migrated to North America, where it gained a wide audience in the 18th Century among the colonists and then spread west through the 19th Century with the migration of pioneers. When Nevada legalised gambling in the early 20th Century, Blackjack was a mainstay of Las Vegas casinos. Since then it has evolved into many variations, as different casinos and different geographic regions adopted their own particular sets of rules.

Online blackjack rules

Online blackjack rules, as a general statement, are much the same as the retail version of this game. However, because online blackjack has much cheaper overheads, because of the natural of digital gambling, you will find more variations than ever before.

Often, these variants of blackjack will not suit the player, and will be sneaky way to change the rules to increase the house edge. The World Gambling List has written articles on many blackjack variants rules, which includes details about the house edge associated with each title.

So in summary, if you are playing a standard blackjack table online, the rules of blackjack are likely to be much the same as you would find in a casino. Just do your homework, before committing real money to any online casino.

Common blackjack terms in gameplay

Bet: When the player places chips in their square or virtual circle to indicate they are playing this hand.
Re-bet: Common term you will find online, where it allows you to place the same bet that you played on the previous hand, on the next hand.
Deal: The deal is when the person running the game begins. Often in online RNG games you will have a ‘deal’ button to kick off proceedings. Live dealer blackjack games will have a time limit countdown and the game will begin then.
Hit: Once you have received your cards you can choose to receive another.
Stand: This simply means you are happy with your hand and you won’t receive another.
Split: For starters, to split you must have enough bank to match your original wager, you then split your hand into two different ones. Both hands will get another card automatically as per the rules of the game, before you then play the hand out. Blackjack rules surrounding splitting can vary, depending on which version of the game you are playing.
You are only allowed to split pairs, such as 10s, or Aces or eights, and most types of blackjack will only allow the one split, meaning you can’t split again for instance. Although some online versions will differ in this regard. Some games will also not allow you to split aces.
Double: Doubling down in blackjack means you double your bet. You will then receive one more card and your hand is completed. For instance if the dealer has an upcard 6 and you have an Ace it could be a good move to double down your bet, essentially giving you the chance to double your wager.
Insure: A player gets the opportunity to buy insurance when the dealer has an upcard Ace. This allows the player to place down an amount of half of their original bet. This means if the dealer has a 10 face down card your insurance bet wins paying 2 to 1. If the dealer does not have a 10 the insurance bet loses and you carry on playing the hand.
Surrender:This allows the player to bail out on a hand halfway through, forfeiting half the bet. Is not seen very often these days.