First and foremost, you need to decide how much you want to play for. Choose a suitable limit so you can bet and play within your means. Once you place your opening bet, the game will start. Both you and the dealer will get 2 cards each.
As stated above, the aim of Blackjack is to make a hand where the total amount should be as close to 21 (inclusive) as possible. This is then compared against the dealer’s cards and must be higher than the dealer’s total, without exceeding 21 of course.
The cards values are as follows:
- The colours of cards (suits) have no bearing on the card value whatsoever.
- Cards two to ten value correspond to their numeric value (e.g. 4 of clubs will be worth’ 4’).
- Jacks, Queens and Kings each count as ‘10’ points each.
- Aces can count as either ‘11’ or ‘1’ depending on your preference.
As the player, you will get the see the dealer’s first card – from here, you need to decide if you want to ask for another card or you are happy with your total (this is known as ‘stay’ or ‘stand’). If you would like an extra card, you need to request another card by clicking on the ‘Hit’ button.
If you ‘Hit’ and get another card, you will be asked again if you want to ‘Hit’, ‘Stand’ or ‘Double’. You are allowed to receive as many cards as you like but you don’t want to go over ‘21’. Once you choose to ‘Stand’, the dealer will show his cards. The one with the highest total closest to 21 without going over is the winner.
There are various versions of blackjack at various online casinos but most basic blackjack versions have the same rules. The blackjack dealer has to stand (i.e. not collect any more cards) on ‘17’. This means that that if the dealer has a total value of ‘16’ with his two cards, the dealer must ‘Hit’ and receive another card.
Another possibility is if both you and the dealer have exactly the same value of cards. This is called a ‘push’ and basically means you will get your money back for that hand. However, if you both go over ‘21’, you are ‘Bust’ and lose your stake. That is basic blackjack and as you can see, it’s quite simple to play.
Want to understand the best moves to make and when? First you need to understand the advantage the online casino has over you. For information on House Edge, click here.