How to Find a Good Blackjack Variation

As previously mentioned, there are plenty of rules variants that can be tweaked to produce hundreds of custom blackjack games at different online casinos. In some cases, you’ll even find different rules in operation at tables operated by the same online site! An informed player is a happy player, so you should investigate which of the following rules apply at casinos you’re interested in:

Non-Standard Blackjack Payouts

Almost every blackjack game pays out for a blackjack (that is, an Ace and a 10 or face card on the first two cards) at 3:2 odds. However, some other pay-tables are sometimes used, such as paying out blackjack at only 6:5. In almost every case, these altered payouts are much worse for the player than the standard 3:2 odds. Indeed, we’ve only listed games using the original 3:2 odds as any lowering of this payout represents one of the worst rule variants for the player. Occasionally, you may find changed odds on the insurance option as well, but this should have no effect on your decision to play because insurance is a sucker’s bet, which is best avoided.

Decks Used

Blackjack hands are typically dealt from a multi-deck shoe of 6 or 8 decks. However, some casinos offer games using only 2 decks or sometimes just a single deck. The fewer the number of decks, the better the game is for the player.

Soft 17

Traditionally, dealers always stand on any 17 and hit to any total lower than 17. In recent years, it has become common for the dealer to hit a soft 17 (a 17 containing an Ace valued at 11 points). This rule variant is bad for the player. It’s better for you if you can find a casino where the dealer stands on soft 17.

Double After Split

In some games, your option to double down is removed after you’ve split your hand. It’s far better for you if you can keep doubling to a split hand.

Surrender

There are only a few casinos offering the surrender option, but if you find one, it’s definitely something in which you should be interested. You’ll then have the ability to sacrifice half a bet when you receive a bad starting hand and be able to end the game immediately rather than having to play it out to its probable undesirable conclusion.

Resplit Hands Allowed

Some casinos only allow you to split your starting hand once. After that, you must play out the two hands without splitting again. At other casinos, you can keep splitting until you have a certain number of hands active, usually 3 or 4. The more times you can split, the better it is for your bottom-line.

Double on Any Total

Some casinos restrict your ability to double to point totals of 10 or 11 only. This increases the house edge, so it’s preferable to find a table that allows you to double on any point total.

The Rules Matter

The particular rule variations employed will determine how much of an edge the casino has in the blackjack game being spread. Some of these rules are quite important, like the amount of the blackjack payout, while others are trivial, such as the number of resplits allowed. Fortunately, we’ve come up with a formula that allows us to plug in the rules used in any blackjack game and calculate what the house advantage is. We’ve presented some of the best games on the Internet in the chart above so that you needn’t worry about doing the tedious number-crunching yourself.

Blackjack Basic Strategy and Trainer

Unlike many games of chance, you can significantly improve your expected return in Blackjack by using the right strategy. Depending upon your point total and the dealer’s upcard, there is a single, correct move to make at all times. These optimal plays are known as “Basic Strategy.” All the numbers we’ve calculated as to the most advantageous blackjack games depend upon the correct usage of basic strategy by the player. This basic strategy changes slightly depending upon the house rules.

Fortunately, we’ve created a Blackjack Basic Strategy Trainer right on this website. In fact, that’s the main purpose of the site!

This will enable you to learn the perfect play to make in any situation. Once you choose the rules that are active, our tool will deal out simulated hands of blackjack for you to play. It will alert you whenever you deviate from proper basic strategy. By practicing for free with the trainer, you’ll be in a good position to improve your strategy for when you play with real money.

Beware Blackjack Side Bets

It has become increasingly common, both online and in land-based casinos, for the player to have the option to place a side bet on an unlikely event occurring. For instance, you may be able to wager on whether or not you’ll make a pair on your initial two cards or if your first card will be a 7. In almost every case, these side bets are horrible for the player and pay out nowhere near the true odds of the event in question. Fortunately, side bets are almost never mandatory, and we recommend that you studiously avoid placing them.

Blackjack Bonuses

There are many online casinos that offer deposit bonuses for new members. This means you will be given a bonus based on your deposit, usually matched, up to a certain amount. For example, you may be offered 100% up to $200. This means if you deposit any amount, it will be matched up to $200. So a $100 deposit will give you a $100 bonus, $300 deposit will net you a $200 bonus, etc.

This bonus money must then be cleared by wagering in the casino. Just like we pointed out that not every Blackjack variation is equal, it’s the same with bonuses. Some casinos only require a 40x wager requirement, where you may see others as high as 500x. It’s important to look at the details because the lower the wager requirement, the better the bonus is for you.

The combination of choosing the best variation with the best bonus offer is another way experienced blackjack players make money playing blackjack online.

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