Online Blackjack Guide: Strategy and Casino Ranking

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4) What are the odds in blackjack? The odds in blackjack vary with the rules of the game. They can vary anywhere from being in the players favor by 1% to the dealers favor by 2.5%. You should understand that the better the odds are, the more likely your chances of winning.

How are the odds determined? The odds depend on a number of factors. I will list each factor and state its influence on the game. The overall odds of the individual casinos can be seen on the blackjack strategy cards.

Factors:

Number of Decks: The more decks the casino uses, the lower your odds. This is because it lowers the odds of you getting a blackjack. 1 deck blackjack is the players best option usually (be careful to look at the other rules, too.)

Dealer soft 17's: Better odds if dealer stays on soft 17's, worse if dealer hits soft 17's.

Double after Splits: Better for you if the casino allows you to double after splits. This rule may change your strategy because you may decide not to split a pair if you can't double after a split.

Number of Splits: All casinos will let you split at least once. Some will let you split up to 4 times. The more times the casino lets you split, the better odds you have.

Doubling: Some casinos let you double any 2 initial cards, while some may limit you to doubles on 9.10, adn 11 only. Better for you if you can double any 2 cards.

Split Aces: Most casinos give you one more card on split aces and that's it. They won't give you a choice of hitting. Some casinos will let you hit after splitting aces. A very valuable rule to find.

Surrender: Surrender allows a player with a poor hand to give up half of his/her bet and be counted out of the game and keeps half of the wager. Surrender can only be requested on the first 2 cards. Surrender is termed Late surrender if the surrender bet is valid after the dealer checks for blackjack. The dealer still collects the whole bet with a blackjack in Late Surrender. Early Surrender is a rare rule which we have never seen online. Early surrender allows a player to keep half the bet even if the dealer has blackjack.

European vs American Rules: In American rules, the dealer immediately checks for blackjack after the first 2 cards. Players must declare whether or not they want insurance, then the dealer checks for blackjack. If he has BJ, then the players lose their bets immediately. If no dealer BJ, then the players may continue to play. This is true if an Ace or a Face card is showing for the dealer. The American rules protects the player from increased losses on dealer blackjacks, which increases the odds.

In European rules, there is no hole card and the dealer can't check for blackjack. Players have the option to still double and split in this version even though the dealer may get blackjack. So, the European version allows the player to lose potentially more money on dealer blackjacks, lowering the odds.

A third possibility is the no peak option which the dealer wins only the original wager plus any bets where the player busts (such as busting after splitting 9's). This is termed Australian rules and is in between the American and European versions.

- How do the rule changes affect the odds? Coming Soon

- What are the major software companies for online blackjack? Coming Soon

- Where can I verify the odds on OBG? The odds we have posted on our website are from our own internal calculations that we verified with other sources on and offline. On the internet, here are two really good links that will help you verify our odds: www.thewizardofodds.com and www.blackjackinfo.com

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