Blackjack Rules
How blackjack is actually dealt: card values, the deal, your five options, how the dealer plays, and the payouts. Plus the rule variations that change what the game costs you.
The objective
Beat the dealer’s hand without going over 21. That is not the same as getting close to 21, and the distinction is where most losses come from. Standing on 14 is often correct, not because 14 is a good hand, but because drawing to it is worse.
You are not playing against the other players at the table. Their decisions do not affect your expected result, however strongly the table may feel otherwise after someone “takes the dealer’s bust card”.
Card values
| Card | Value |
|---|---|
| 2 through 10 | Face value |
| Jack, Queen, King | 10 |
| Ace | 1 or 11, whichever helps |
A hand containing an ace counted as 11 is soft — it cannot bust on the next card, because the ace can revert to 1. A,6 is a soft 17. Draw a 9 and it becomes a hard 16, not a bust. Once the ace must count as 1, the hand is hard.
The deal
- You place a bet in the betting circle.
- Each player receives two cards face up. The dealer receives one face up (the upcard) and one face down (the hole card). In European no-hole-card games the dealer takes the second card only after all players have acted.
- If the dealer’s upcard is an ace, insurance is offered. Decline it.
- If the dealer’s upcard is an ace or a ten, the dealer checks for a natural. If they have one, the hand ends immediately: everyone loses except players who also have a natural, who push.
- Players act in turn, clockwise from the dealer’s left.
- The dealer plays their hand by fixed rule.
- Hands are compared and paid.
Your five options
Hit — take another card. Signal by tapping the table. You may hit as many times as you like until you stand or bust.
Stand — take no more cards. Signal by waving a flat hand over your cards.
Double down — double your original bet and receive exactly one more card. Most shoe games allow this on any two cards; some restrict it to totals of 9, 10 and 11, which costs you about 0.09–0.18%. When to double.
Split — with two cards of equal rank, place a second bet equal to the first and play two hands. Most games allow splitting to four hands. Split aces almost always receive one card each with no further action, and a ten on a split ace is a 21, not a natural — it pays even money.
Surrender — forfeit the hand and recover half your bet. Where offered, it is late surrender: available only after the dealer has checked for a natural. It is correct on 16 against 9, 10 or A, and on 15 against 10. Correctly used it saves about 0.08%. Many tables do not offer it and will not mention that they don’t.
How the dealer plays
The dealer has no decisions. They draw to 16 and stand on 17 or higher. The only variable is soft 17:
- S17 — dealer stands on all 17s including soft 17. Better for you.
- H17 — dealer hits soft 17. Costs you about 0.22%.
Which one is in force is printed on the felt. Why it matters.
Payouts
| Outcome | Pays |
|---|---|
| Natural blackjack (ace + ten on first two cards) | 3:2 — or 6:5 at a bad table |
| Winning hand | 1:1 |
| Push (tie) | Bet returned |
| Insurance win | 2:1 on the insurance bet |
| Bust or losing hand | Bet lost |
The single most important line in this article: find the blackjack payout printed on the felt before you sit down. 3:2 pays $15 on a $10 bet. 6:5 pays $12. That one change adds about 1.39% to the house edge — it roughly quadruples the cost of the game, and no amount of correct play recovers it. A 6:5 table is a worse bet than single-zero roulette.
Where the house edge comes from
If both the player and the dealer played by the same fixed rules and were paid the same, the game would be almost exactly even. Three asymmetries create the margin:
- You act first. If you bust, your bet is collected before the dealer plays. About 8% of hands are double busts, and the house wins every one of them. On its own this is worth roughly 8% to the house.
- You get paid 3:2 for a natural, the dealer does not. This returns about 2.3%.
- You have choices — hitting, standing, doubling, splitting — and the dealer does not. Played optimally, those choices are worth roughly 5.3%.
Net: about 0.43% against you at a good table. Played badly, points 2 and 3 shrink and the edge climbs toward 2%.
Rule variations to check
| Rule | Effect on house edge |
|---|---|
| Blackjack pays 6:5 | +1.39% — avoid |
| Dealer hits soft 17 | +0.22% |
| 8 decks instead of 2 | +0.19% |
| Double restricted to 10–11 | +0.18% |
| No double after split | +0.14% |
| No resplitting aces | +0.08% |
| Late surrender offered | −0.08% |
| Double on any number of cards | −0.24% |
Full table with more variations: house edge by rule.
Etiquette that keeps you out of trouble
- Use hand signals, not words. The cameras record gestures, not conversation.
- Do not touch your cards in a face-up shoe game. In a hand-held game, one hand only.
- Do not touch your bet once the deal begins.
- Place a split or double bet beside the original, never on top of it.
- Buying in: place cash on the felt, not into the dealer’s hand.
Next
- Basic strategy chart — the complete chart, every hand
- Why insurance is always wrong
- When to double down