Blackjack: How It Works, Odds and Payouts

Blackjack is a card game where you try to get closer to 21 than the dealer without going over. You can hit, stand or double, the dealer plays by fixed rules, and your decisions change your return, so it is the one table game here where skill matters.

Coins are virtual and have no cash value. The cards are dealt on our servers, so shuffles, speed and timing never matter.

Our rules, exactly

• Infinite deck. Every card is drawn independently with each of the 13 ranks equally likely, so there is no deck to count and a card seen earlier does not change what comes next.
• Dealer stands on all 17s, including soft 17, and draws on 16 or less.
• The dealer peeks. If the dealer's face-up card is an Ace or a ten-value card, the hole card is checked at once. A dealer Blackjack ends the hand immediately, so you never double into one. Against your own Blackjack it is a push.
• Hit, stand or double. Double lets you add one more bet equal to your original bet and take exactly one more card, on your first two cards only.
• No splitting, no insurance, no surrender. A 21 stands automatically.
• Payouts. A win pays 1.95x, a Blackjack pays 2.44x, a push returns your bet, and a bust or loss pays nothing. A winning double pays 1.95x on the doubled total stake.

How a round works

1. Place your bet. You get two cards and the dealer shows one.
2. If neither hand is a Blackjack, choose Hit, Stand or Double.
3. The dealer plays after you stand. Closest to 21 without busting wins.

Why the payouts are 1.95x and 2.44x

With the usual 1:1 win and 3:2 Blackjack payouts, these rules (no splitting, dealer stands on 17, peek) would return about 99.0% with best play. Cashout Arcade scales both payouts down by the same factor so that best play returns 97%, like the other games. That makes a win 1.95x instead of 2x and a Blackjack 2.44x instead of 2.5x. The 97% figure assumes the best play on every hand.

Your play decides your return

These are exact figures from the game's math, using the same rules. A player who stands on every hand returns 82 coins per 100, and basic strategy is worth about 15 coins per 100 compared with that.

Basic strategy for these rules

This chart was worked out from the rules above (infinite deck, dealer stands on 17 and peeks, no splitting), not copied from a casino chart, which assumes splits and other rules. Rows are your hand, columns are the dealer's up card. H hit, S stand, Dh double if allowed, otherwise hit, Ds double if allowed, otherwise stand.

A soft hand has an Ace counted as 11. The chart is for your first two cards; with three or more cards, you cannot double, so use the hit or stand letter. Three-card soft hands up to 17 always hit, and soft 18 hits against 9, 10 and Ace and stands otherwise. Many of these decisions are close, and the penalty for a wrong choice on a close call is tiny. The costly mistakes are standing on stiff hands against a weak dealer card and never doubling.

Why the dealer's up card matters

The dealer busts far more often with a weak up card. Given that the dealer has no Blackjack, the chance the dealer busts is:

That is why the chart tells you to stand on a stiff 12 to 16 against a 2 to 6 and to hit it against a 7 or higher. The dealer is likely to bust, so you let them.

A worked example

You bet 100 coins. You are dealt 6 and 5, a hard 11, and the dealer shows a 6. The chart says Double. You add 100 coins (200 staked in total) and receive one card, a 9, making 20. The dealer turns over a 10 for 16 and draws a 3, finishing on 19. You win, and a win pays 1.95x the total stake: about 391 coins. If the dealer had reached 20, it would be a push and your 200 would come back.

Max win and caps

The largest Blackjack payout is a natural, 2.44x. A doubled win pays 1.95x on twice the stake, which is a bigger payout in coins but not in multiplier. No round pays more than 250,000,000 coins. The odds page explains the best-play assumption for Blackjack.

What is the same as other table games

Blackjack shares the 97% target with Baccarat: How It Works, Odds and Payouts, but unlike Baccarat your choices change the return. Video Poker (Jacks or Better): Odds and Payouts is the other game where the 97% needs the best decisions. For the general question of luck versus skill in these games, see Skill vs Chance in Arcade and Casino-Style Games, and for strategy with more worked examples, see Blackjack Basic Strategy Chart for Our Rules.

Tips that hold up

• Use the chart. Playing the best way is the only thing that moves your return, and it is worth up to 15 coins per 100.
• Never double without the chart. Doubling is a bet at the best moment, not a hunch.
• Past hands do not matter. An endless deck means there is nothing to count.
• Even perfect play loses 3% over time. Strategy removes avoidable mistakes; it cannot beat the house edge.

Play with limits

Because a hand can be repeated within seconds, keep an eye on your total stakes, including doubles. Set a limit before you start and see Play Safely in Cashout Arcade: Limits and Breaks for tools. Cashout Arcade is for adults aged 18+, uses virtual coins and has no real-money prizes.