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Lesson 1.5 Blackjack basics
Basics Lesson: What Each Hand Pays and What the House Keeps
In this lesson you learn what every result pays: a win, a blackjack, a push and insurance. You also learn what the house edge is, how much it is with perfect basic strategy, and how a 6:5 blackjack payout raises it.
What each result pays
Every hand ends in one of four results. The table shows what happens to your bet in each one.
| Result | Pays | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Win | 1:1 | You get your bet back plus the same amount. |
| Blackjack | 3:2 or 6:5 | You get your bet back plus a bigger payout. |
| Push | – | A push is a tie. You get your bet back. |
| Loss | – | The dealer takes your bet. |
A win pays 1:1 when your total is higher than the dealer's total. It also pays 1:1 when the dealer busts – goes over 21.
Blackjack: 3:2 or 6:5
A blackjack is an ace plus a ten-value card (10, J, Q or K) as your first two cards.
At 3:2 you get 3 for every 2 you bet. At 6:5 you get 6 for every 5 you bet.
A paid blackjack happens about once every 22 hands. If the dealer also has blackjack, the hand is a push.
Open the game info before your first hand and look for the line that says what blackjack pays. You can compare amounts with the payout calculator.
Insurance pays 2:1
When the dealer's up card is an ace, the game offers insurance.
Insurance is a side bet that the dealer has blackjack. It costs up to half your original bet.
- If the dealer has blackjack, insurance pays 2:1.
- If the dealer does not, you lose the insurance bet and the hand goes on.
- With 6 decks, the house edge on insurance is 7.4%.
More details are on the insurance page.
What the house edge means
The house edge is the average share of each bet the house keeps over a very large number of hands. In one session your result can be much higher or lower.
Basic strategy is a chart of the best move for every hand. The table shows the house edge when you follow it perfectly.
| Standard rules, perfect basic strategy | House edge |
|---|---|
| Blackjack pays 3:2 | 0.62% |
| Blackjack pays 6:5 | 1.98% |
| Blackjack pays 1:1 | 2.88% |
Standard rules here mean 6 decks, dealer hits soft 17, double after split, no surrender, dealer peeks for blackjack.
Basic strategy lowers the house edge. It does not remove it.
Learn the moves with the strategy chart and play only at 3:2 tables. See the 6:5 page for why.
Practise: 25 hands
Only hands from this lesson. Your first answer counts.
The lesson on one card
- A regular win pays 1:1. A push returns your bet.
- A blackjack is an ace plus a ten-value card and pays 3:2 or 6:5.
- Insurance costs up to half your original bet and pays 2:1 if the dealer has blackjack.
- House edge is the average share of each bet the house keeps over many hands.
- Perfect basic strategy at 3:2: 0.62%. At 6:5 it rises to 1.98%.
- Basic strategy lowers the house edge. It does not remove it.
Check yourself
1. You have 19 and the dealer ends with 18. What does your win pay?
1:1
Right. A regular win pays 1:1. You get your bet back plus the same amount.
3:2
Not quite. 3:2 is the payout for a blackjack – an ace plus a ten-value card as your first two cards. A 19 is a regular win.
2:1
Not quite. 2:1 is what insurance pays when the dealer has blackjack. It is not the payout for a regular win.
2. The house edge with perfect basic strategy is 0.62%. What does that mean?
Over a very large number of hands, the house keeps that share of each bet on average.
Right. The house edge is a long-run average. Single sessions can end much higher or lower.
You lose exactly that share of your bet on every hand.
Not quite. Each hand ends as a win, a loss, a push or a blackjack. The house edge is only the average over many hands.
The house wins that share of all hands.
Not quite. The house edge is not a share of hands won. It is the average share of each bet the house keeps.
3. Two online tables have the same rules, but one pays blackjack 3:2 and the other pays 6:5. Which table has the lower house edge?
The 3:2 table
Right. With perfect basic strategy the 3:2 table has a house edge of 0.62%. The 6:5 table has 1.98%.
The 6:5 table
Not quite. 6:5 pays less for the same blackjack. That raises the house edge to 1.98%.
Both are the same
Not quite. The blackjack payout changes the house edge. A 6:5 payout raises it from 0.62% to 1.98%.