How to play blackjack: rules, every decision and what each one pays

Blackjack is played against the dealer, not the other players. You win if your hand totals closer to 21 than the dealer's without exceeding it, or if the dealer goes over 21 and you don't. This guide from the blackjack academy covers card values, how a hand runs from bet to payout, each option you can take and when it's available, the rules the dealer must follow, and how online and live tables differ.

Card values and hand totals

Suits are irrelevant. A hand's total is the sum of its cards. A hand containing an ace that can be counted as 11 without busting is a soft hand (A-6 is "soft 17"); it cannot bust on the next card because the ace drops to 1 if needed. Any other hand is hard (10-7 is "hard 17", as is A-6-10). The distinction matters because soft hands are played more aggressively.

An ace plus any ten-value card as your first two cards is a blackjack or natural. It beats every other hand, including a dealer's three-card 21, and pays 3 to 2 at a proper table. In a six-deck game you will be dealt one about 4.75% of the time — once every 21 hands.

How a hand of blackjack plays out

1. 1

   Place your bet

   Put chips in the betting circle before the deal. Table minimums and maximums are posted on a placard. Online, choose a chip value and click the circle; the bet is locked when you press deal.

2. 2

   Cards are dealt

   Each player receives two cards, usually face up. The dealer receives one card face up (the up-card) and, in US-style games, one face down (the hole card). In European no-hole-card games the dealer's second card arrives only after all players have acted.

3. 3

   Dealer checks for blackjack

   If the up-card is an ace, insurance is offered before anything else. If the up-card is an ace or a ten, the dealer peeks at the hole card (where the rules allow). A dealer blackjack ends the hand immediately: every player without a blackjack loses their bet; players with a blackjack push.

4. 4

   Players act in turn

   Starting from the dealer's left, each player chooses to hit, stand, double down, split or surrender. You can keep hitting until you stand or bust. A bust (over 21) loses immediately, before the dealer plays — this is where the house edge comes from.

5. 5

   Dealer plays by fixed rules

   The dealer reveals the hole card and must hit on 16 or less and stand on 17 or more. The only variation is soft 17: "S17" tables stand on it, "H17" tables hit it. The dealer never doubles, splits or makes decisions.

6. 6

   Hands are settled

   If the dealer busts, every remaining player hand wins. Otherwise each hand is compared with the dealer's: higher wins even money, equal pushes (bet returned), lower loses. A player blackjack that wasn't matched pays 3 to 2.

Your options explained

Hit

Take another card. Signal at a physical table by tapping the felt or beckoning with a finger; online, click Hit. You can hit as many times as you like until you stand or bust. Hitting is right whenever standing would lose more often than the risk of busting costs — for example on any hard total of 11 or less, and on 12–16 against a dealer 7 or higher.

Stand

Take no more cards. Signal by waving a flat hand over your cards. Always stand on hard 17 or higher and on soft 19 or higher; stand on 12–16 against a dealer 2–6 (with the exception of 12 against 2 or 3), because the dealer is likely to bust.

Double down

Double your bet and receive exactly one more card, then stand automatically. You are paying for the right to bet more in a spot where you are a favourite — hard 11 against anything but an ace, hard 10 against 2–9, and many soft hands against a weak dealer card. Most tables let you double on any first two cards; some restrict it to 9–11 or 10–11, which costs you about 0.1–0.2%. Double after split (DAS) means you can also double a hand created by splitting. Doubling for less than the full bet is allowed but is almost never correct.

Split

If your first two cards have the same value, you may place a second bet equal to the first and play them as two separate hands, each receiving a new second card. Always split aces and eights; never split tens or fives. Split aces usually receive only one card each and a ten on a split ace counts as 21, not blackjack. Most tables allow resplitting to three or four hands; some do not allow resplitting aces (RSA), which costs around 0.07%.

Surrender

Give up your hand and lose half your bet instead of playing it. Late surrender (after the dealer has checked for blackjack) is the common form and is worth about 0.08% to a basic strategy player; it is correct on hard 16 against a 9, 10 or ace and hard 15 against a 10 (S17 rules). Early surrender (before the dealer checks) is rare and worth far more. Say "surrender" or draw a horizontal line behind your bet; online, click the button before taking any other action.

Insurance and even money

When the dealer shows an ace you may bet up to half your original stake that the hole card is a ten. Insurance pays 2 to 1. The true odds against a ten in a six-deck shoe are about 2.23 to 1, so the bet loses roughly 7% of its value on average. Even money — taking a 1:1 payout on your own blackjack against a dealer ace instead of risking a push — is the same bet in disguise and has the same negative value. The blackjack strategy guide shows the full calculation.

Dealer rules and why they matter

The dealer has no choices: hit to 16, stand on 17. Because the dealer acts last, you can bust before the dealer does — and when both bust, you have already lost. That ordering is the entire house edge; if you simply mimic the dealer's rules, you lose about 5.5% per hand. Basic strategy repairs most of that by standing when the dealer is likely to bust and pressing bets when you are the favourite.

The pattern drives every row of the strategy chart: against 2–6 ("bust cards") the dealer breaks roughly four times in ten, so you stand on weak hands and double or split aggressively; against 7–A the dealer makes a hand three times in four, so you hit your stiff totals and take fewer risks with extra money. The blackjack chance calculator gives these probabilities for any specific hand.

Payouts

The 3:2 payout on a natural is worth about 2.3% of your action; halving it to 6:5 gives back 1.39% of that. No other single rule comes close, which is why the payout is the first thing to check on any table.

Table etiquette

• Buy in between hands by placing cash on the felt, not in the dealer's hand. Say the denominations you want.
• In face-up games, never touch your cards. In face-down single- and double-deck games, hold them with one hand only.
• Use hand signals — tap for hit, wave for stand, place extra chips beside (not on) the bet for a double or split. Cameras need to see the decision.
• Don't touch your bet once the first card is dealt.
• Don't give other players unsolicited advice. Their play does not change your expected result, however it feels.
• Toke the dealer if you like by placing a chip in front of your bet ("for the dealer") or betting it for them.
• Wait for a shuffle to join a shoe game if the table displays "no mid-shoe entry".

Online blackjack vs live dealer blackjack

Two online-specific points. First, bet behind lets you wager on another seated player's hand at a full live table; you inherit their decisions, so only back a player who follows basic strategy. Second, side bets such as Perfect Pairs and 21+3 are offered on almost every online table and carry edges of 3% to over 10%. They are separate wagers and do not affect your main bet, but they are the most expensive thing on the table per euro staked.

What to read next