How to Play Blackjack for Beginners
This is everything you ever needed to know about how to play Blackjack like a pro - even if you are a total novice.
Bryce Carlson, Edward O. Thorp, Arnold Snyder, Russ Hamilton, Don Johnson.
If these names don't ring any bells, then you're probably in the right place! This is because this guide provides blackjack strategy for beginners and basic strategy doesn’t require knowing who these Blackjack legends are.
That’s not to say you won’t learn quickly, or you won’t learn to play well. Even a basic blackjack strategy can see you beating your buddies round the kitchen table or cleaning up in online casinos.
And who knows?
Maybe in time, you'll visit Las Vegas and sit at the big shots' table making some serious dough.
In our Beginners' Guide to Blackjack you will find:
There will also be some brilliant blackjack tips and more!
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The Basics of Blackjack
Since this is a guide on demand – made especially for rookies without any real experience or proper Blackjack skills – I'll start by introducing the game.
Blackjack might not be the easiest way to spend your free time, but it is a good choice when you play Casino games and can potentially be very rewarding. Personally, I think it's the best card game on the Casino floor.
You can play Blackjack in that shiny new brick-and-mortar casino just around the corner or join millions of thrill-seekers who've replaced traditional tables for exciting online lobbies.
However, whatever your choice, you'll need a solid knowledge the basics of Blackjack, of the blackjack rules, and of the best blackjack strategy to play and to increase your winning odds.
Prefer watching a video to reading an article? Check out our Beginners Guide to Blackjack below with professional card player Tiffany Michelle!
How to Play Blackjack
Like you cannot learn a language before you study its alphabet, you need to start with basic blackjack rules and basic blackjack strategy if you really want to learn how to play Blackjack.
I'm going to call this 'first lesson' How to Play Blackjack and What the Cards Mean.
This may be the last chance for you to clear any confusion surrounding card symbols and to finally learn to read them right.
Don't miss it.
Let's start with a classic deck of French cards because that's what you need to play Blackjack. In total, the deck features 52 cards divided into four different suits:
- Clubs (♧)
- Diamonds (♢)
- Hearts (♥)
- Spades (♤)
Spades and clubs are colored black, while diamonds and hearts are colored red. A traditional deck has 13 ranks, and each suit has one card per rank.
The first card is the Ace (A), but it's not exactly the equivalent of a 1. In fact, this card can also be the highest-ranking card of the deck in Blackjack worth 11.
The following ten cards form a string from Two (2) to Ten (10/T), while the last three are the Jack (J), Queen (Q), and King (K). These last three cards are called the face cards.
Learn the Blackjack Hands and Odds
But "I just want to learn how to play Blackjack", you say?
No problem, let's jump in and look at what the different Blackjack hands and odds are worth.
Firstly, it is important to note suits are of value only in some variants of this game.
Since there are four suits, and each suit has one card of each rank, the math says that there are only four cards of each rank in the deck, right?
Scoring in Blackjack depends on the ranks a player holds in his or her hand and his or her ability as a card counter (according to the rules):
- Each ace is worth either 1 or 11 points.
- For all cards that belong to the two-to-ten string, the rule is the same – their rank equals their point value. If you hold a 5, for example, you hold exactly 5 points.
- Every face card, be it a Jack, a Queen, or a King, is worth 10 points.
Practice by picking up any two cards.
Translate the ranks of cards you hold to their point value and add it all up. It's really as easy as that. Your score in Blackjack is the sum of the value of your cards - not one point less than that.
Winning a Blackjack Hand
When you play a game of Blackjack, you always play against the dealer.
Don't think about the other players at the table. Regardless of how many of you sit to play at the same time, there are always only two hands in play – the player's hand versus the dealer's hand.
And the winning hand in Blackjack is, you guessed it, the higher hand. Which, if you are lucky enough to get it, is also the one that gives its name to the game: a Blackjack.
A Blackjack is a hand 2-card hand that totals 21 points.
This is not an easy one to get; be sure of that. But it is also the one you'll be always hoping to receive. Every. Single. Time. You play.
Losing a Blackjack Hand
The losing hand, the dead hand, or the bust is every hand with a total sum of 22 or higher.
That's because as soon as you go over the 21-point limit, you are out of the game. Regardless of the dealer's score.
Unfortunately, that's not the only losing hand on the Blackjack tables. Because each hand that is one point short compared to the dealer's score…it's a losing one.
Understanding Blackjack Payouts
Your typical casino Blackjack table has enough space for seven players plus a dealer and includes the following phrases and/or signs:
- Blackjack plays x to y
- Dealer must draw to 16 and stand on all 17s
- Pays 2 to 1
- The table limits (min / max bet allowed)
Remember how a Blackjack – which is a hand with 2 cards that total 21, and is higher than the dealer's – automatically wins the game?
Well, that's almost true.
If the dealer also holds a 21, then the result is a so-called Push, meaning that your initial bet is returned to you and you neither win nor lose.
Blackjack pays 3 to 2, or in some online casinos, Blackjack pays 6 to 5, which refers to payoffs and odds.
An Insurance side bet pays 2 to 1, and you're offered to put an additional bet on whether or not your dealer will get a Blackjack.
Your hand can lose against the dealer's hand, but then you might cover your lost bet with a win on an insurance bet. Word to the wise, you can lose them both.
A good guide on how to play Blackjack online should provide some advice on one of the hardest parts of the game - knowing when to hit and when to stand. So, let's take a look at this crucial aspect of basic blackjack strategy now.
Blackjack - Should I Hit or Should I Stand?
Blackjack begins after all players have exchanged their money for chips and placed them on the designated spot on the table as their bets.
The dealer then deals the cards – two of them for each player, including himself.
The cards can be dealt either face down or face up, apart from the dealer's own two cards, of which one is always dealt face up and another face down.
The dealer then peeks to check if he's been dealt a Blackjack.
If not, the players are invited to hit or stand, though there are three more options to choose from – splitting, doubling down, or surrendering.
How you play your hand depends on the cards both you and the dealer have.
- When you go for hitting, you're dealt one additional card.
- If you choose to stand instead, you're keeping the cards you have.
- To qualify for splitting, you need to have two cards of the same rank.
You'll receive two cards more, one for each of the cards you've originally been dealt, pay a side bet, and then start playing with two independent hands. Both the stakes and their payoffs are independent, too.
When you double down, you need to place an additional bet, after which you'll receive one more card to add to your original hand.
Blackjack rules for surrendering vary from one online casino to another, in the sense that some offer an early surrender option – to drop out of the hand before the dealer checks his cards for a Blackjack – and others a later surrender option, in which you must wait until after he's done that.
Either way, you agree to half your bet and are free to walk away with the rest.
How to Use a Basic Blackjack Strategy
The basic Blackjack strategy for beginners relies on knowing how to discern a hard hand from a soft one. The simplest way? Look for the aces!
If there's no ace in it, or if that ace counts not as 11 but as 1, then you've got yourself a hard one, and you don't have much wiggle room.
Hard hands cannot count on aces to lower the total down and can be dangerously close to surpassing the limit of 22, which automatically makes them bust. Hitting is here quite a risk.
In a soft hand, however, you can count an ace either as a 1 or 11. It means that if another card is, say, a 9, you have either a total of 10, which makes you eligible for hitting or a total of 20, which could make your hand a bust if you choose to hit and receive anything but another ace.
Follow these simple Blackjack tips for beginners and you can't go wrong:
Always check the dealer's face up card before you take action.
If it's anything between 2 and 6, there's a good chance the dealer's hand will go bust, so don't take unnecessary risks. If it's 7 through ace, take your chances and play the hand aggressively.
Skip placing the side bet for insurance pays 2 to 1.
Experts calculate that this bet gives the house the advantage of almost 6% over the player. It's dumb because even if you score a Blackjack, your hand will pay off only the original bet.
Be smart enough to take your time and don't get burned.
The dealer might be rushing, so avoid the first base chair. Also, start small and give yourself a moment to assess the situation. Blackjack is only fun if you know how and when to move on.
Oh, and take a primer from a Blackjack expert.
When asked how to play Blackjack for beginners, gambling expert John Marchell spilt the following pearls of wisdom:
When your hand is 12-16 and the dealer shows 2-6, stand. In the same situation, hit only if the dealer has 7-ace. Always split aces and 8s and double 11 versus the dealer's 2-10, and hit or double aces-6.
That's how Bryce Carlson, Edward O. Thorp, Arnold Snyder, Russ Hamilton, and Don Johnson began counting cards, after all.
Where to Play Blackjack Online?
Now, to the million-dollar question:
What's the best online Blackjack site for a beginner?
If you are a low-stakes player who is trying to understand how to play Blackjack and would like to get into some easy Blackjack action, make sure you check out this Blackjack site.
This online casino is p-e-r-f-e-c-t for beginners, as that's precisely the type of players it is for.
From the interactivity to the promotions and the easy casino games on tap, this is a great casino site to learn how to play Blackjack online and become an expert.
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This article was first published in March 2019. Last updated: October 26th, 2023.