Basic Blackjack Strategy

 
      
  

Because blackjack, unlike other games, has an element of player choice, players can actually reduce the casino advantage to a small percentage by playing what is known as basic strategy. This strategy determines when to hit and when to stand, and also determines when doubling down or splitting is the correct action. Basic strategy is based on the player's point total and the dealer's visible card. There are slight variations in basic strategy depending on the exact house rules and the number of decks used.

Your hand Dealer's face-up card
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 A
Hard totals
17-20 S S S S S S S S S S
13-16 S S S S S H H H H H
12 H H S S S H H H H H
11 D D D D D D D D D D
10 D D D D D D D D H H
9 H D D D D H H H H H
5-8 H H H H H H H H H H
Soft totals
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 A
A,9 S S S S S S S S S S
A,8 S S S S D S S S S S
A,7 D D D D D S S H H H
A,6 H D D D D H H H H H
A,4 A,5 H H D D D H H H H H
A,2 A,3 H H H D D H H H H H
Pairs
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 A
A,A SP SP SP SP SP SP SP SP SP SP
10,10 S S S S S S S S S S
9,9 SP SP SP SP SP S SP SP S S
8,8 SP SP SP SP SP SP SP SP SP SP
7,7 SP SP SP SP SP SP H H H H
6,6 SP SP SP SP SP H H H H H
5,5 D D D D D D D D H H
4,4 H H H SP SP H H H H H
2,2 3,3 SP SP SP SP SP SP H H H H

The above is a basic strategy table for the most common 6- to 8-deck, Las Vegas Strip rules. Specifically: dealer hits on soft 17, double after split allowed, multiple split aces, one card to split aces, and blackjack pays 3:2.

Key:

S = Stand
H = Hit
D = Double
SP = SPlit

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