Jean Gabriel | January 7, 2023 | Updated on: January 15th, 2024
How to play Blackjack 2024
Learn how to play Blackjack for real money in 2024 with Casino Inquirer! Blackjack is one of the most exciting casino games to play. It is relatively easy to earn and understand but harder to master. This means that it welcomes many new players and challenges experienced gamblers.
Blackjack is also one of the few casino games where player skill and making the right decisions can lead to more wins. The aim of Blackjack is to get closer to 21 than the dealer, without exceeding 21. If you’ve never played a round of Blackjack before, then our How to play Blackjack guide will take you through all the steps to playing this incredible game. Let’s jump straight in and learn how to play!
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How to play Blackjack
One of the things that makes Blackjack so popular is how simple the game is to play and understand the basics. Below is our step-by-step guide on how to play Blackjack. This will guide you in your first few hands.
- Step 1 – The first step to playing Blackjack is to sign up at a top Blackjack Casino. We have plenty of recommended casino sites, all of which will offer great Blackjack games, as well as plenty of other benefits. Choose the one you like and create your account.
- Step 2 – Once you have created your account, you’ll need money to gamble with. You can play for free, which is recommended, but if you want to play Blackjack for real money, head over to the cashier. Choose the most convenient deposit option and add funds to your casino account.
- Step 3 – Once the funds have cleared, head over to the Blackjack games and head into one of them. Decide how much money you want to bet and click on the respective chips to make your bet.
- Step 4 – Once you have made your bet, click on Deal.
- Step 5 – You will now be dealt two cards. The dealer will receive two cards, but only one will be face up and visible.
- Step 6 – Take a look at the total value of your hand, as well as the face-up dealer card.
- Step 7 – Now, you need to decide how to proceed. There are a few options:
- Hit – You think your hand’s total is too low and want to receive an additional card to get you closer to 21. Be careful taking another card doesn’t put you over 21
- Stand – You are happy with the value of your hand. You think you’re close enough to 21 to stand a good chance of winning and do not want any more cards
- Split – If you have two cards of the same rank, two 8s for example, you will be able to split. This will turn your hand into two separate hands that you will play.
- Double Down – If you think you have a really good chance of winning, you can double down. Players will be doubling their bet, but they will only receive one additional card.
- Step 8 – Once you have decided to stand, presuming you never exceeded 21 and went bust, it is the dealer’s turn. They will reveal their second card and play their hand.
- Step 9 – Once the dealer stands, the game will determine which hand is the winner, whichever is closer to 21. If the player wins, they will be paid out. If they lose, the casino will claim their bet.
- Step 10 – Time for the next hand. Re-bet the same amount or make a different bet. Click deal to begin the next hand!
Playing Blackjack Online
When learning to play Blackjack Online, players will find a wide range of different game versions. However, the broadest categories for Blackjack are Online Blackjack and Live Dealer Blackjack. When learning how to play 21, we recommend sticking to the online version. Here, players will be alone and competing against the game. There are no other players to rush you, so you can take your time deciding how to proceed with each hand. In addition to this, Online Blackjack tables tend to have much lower minimum bet requirements. This means it won’t cost as much per hand while learning.
However, if you want the closest experience to a land-based casino, then check out Live Dealer Blackjack, when you are more confident with the game. Each round of Blackjack will be run by a real human dealer, using real casino cards. There will potentially also be other players enjoying the game at the same time as you. However, this is not the ideal choice for beginners. Other players could get frustrated at you if you take too long on your hand, and the minimum bet requirement will be higher. This is because it costs significantly more to run Live Dealer games, so casinos cannot make it as cheap to play.
Learning How to Play Blackjack
Blackjack is one of the simplest casino games to learn how to play. The two most important things to learn in Blackjack are the Card values and the game’s main objective.
Blackjack Objective
The objective in Blackjack is to beat the dealer by having your hand get closer to 21 than the dealer. Ideally, you want to get 21, but getting closer than the dealer is all that matters. If you do exceed 21, it is called a bust. If you bust, it results in an immediate loss. Always base your decision to receive an additional card on how likely it will cause you to bust.
Blackjack Card Values
The next thing to learn is the card values. This will help you quickly and easily determine how much your hand is valued at. It is also very easy to remember the values of all the cards. Cards are valued as follows:
- 2-10: Cards have their face value. So, a 5 is valued at five, a 10 at ten, and so on.
- Jack, Queen, King: These three are all valued at ten
- Ace: An Ace is unique, as it has two potential values. These are 1 or 11.
Basic Blackjack Strategy
We’ve got an entire page dedicated to Blackjack Strategy. If you want to know more, be sure to check out that page for more information. However, we do have a few basic strategy tips you can use.
Splitting
When you receive two cards of the same value, you will have the opportunity to split. This will turn your two-card hand into two separate hands. This will give you the chance to have two winning hands, but it does come with risks. It could also become two losing hands.
It is very important to know when it is a good idea to split and when you shouldn’t. An example of a hand you should never split would be two 10s. This gives your hand a value of 20, meaning the dealer will have to get 21 to beat you. Why would you want to throw away an almost guaranteed win to have two hands valued at 10?
If you have two 8s, it is advised to split. A hand valued at 16 is considered one of the worst possible hands. You are far enough from 21 that it is easy to beat but close enough that hitting carries a big risk of busting.
A general rule that can be used when considering splitting is to split on a hand valued at less than 17 and stand on one valued higher than 17. However, there are numerous exceptions. One example would be two 5s. Valued at ten, we recommend hitting and taking another card. The highest value cards you could get are 10 or an Ace, valued at 1 or 11. So, you’ll either land up with a hand valued at 20 or 21.
Setting Budgets
One important thing when playing Online Blackjack, or any casino game for that matter, is to set a budget for your money and time. Never gamble with more money than you can afford to lose. Decide how much money you can play with and stick to that. If you lose your budget, do not deposit more and try to win your money back. This is known as chasing your losses and will simply lead to losing more money.
It is also important to budget your time. Players can sometimes lose track of time and spend hours and hours playing their favourite casino games. This can lead to creating issues with players not spending enough time with their family or doing other things that they need to. Playing too much can also lead to ignoring your budget and losing too much money.
Stay Sober
It is also important to stay sober when playing Blackjack. To make good betting decisions, players need to keep a clear head. This means staying away from alcohol or anything else that will impair judgement. It is also a good idea to make sure you aren’t in a bad mood or aren’t too tired.
Counting Cards
Counting Cards is a strategy used in Blackjack, where players keep track of what has been dealt so they know what cards are still left in the shoe. If you know half of the high-value cards have already been dealt, you can determine there might be a lower chance of going bust.
However, this takes skill to do properly. In addition to this, it does not work when playing online. When playing online, the shoe is reshuffled after every round, so less than ten cards are dealt before a reshuffle. It is a viable strategy in Land-Based casinos, but doing it incorrectly can lead to further losses.