Blackjack is a casino game in which you can win in the long run using a basic blackjack strategy. In this article the basic blackjack strategy is explained in a cut down point.

A blackjack strategy will give you mathematical probabilities of the game guiding you on which are the best decisions to make in every possible situation you may find during a game.

It might take you an hour to learn this strategy but it is worthy. This won’t make you by night to win every single game, but using the basic strategy, and having patience and perseverance your game will soon be improved and in the long run you will gain an advantage over the casino.

You must consider the blackjack rules that are different from one casino to another. Land based or online, doesn’t matter; you will find blackjack games played with one or more card decks. Also, in some casinos the dealer hits on a soft 17 and in others the dealer stands on soft 17. Few casinos allow doubling after splitting.

The basic strategy presented here applies to a single deck blackjack game, with the dealer hitting on soft 17. For other blackjack variations you should find a more appropriate strategy. We will start with a short introduction:

Two initial cards that do not include an Ace are called a ‘Hard Hand’.
Two initial cards that include and Ace is called a ‘Soft Hand’.
When a player wants to be dealt an extra card it means he ‘Hit’
When a player wants to remain with his first two cards dealt, he ‘Stands’
To ‘Double’ means that the player wants to double his initial bet after the initial deal. In this situation he may hit only one card.
When a player splits his first two cards into two individual hands and plays them as 2 hands it’s called a Split.

Basic Blackjack Strategy:

When your first two cards have a total of 8 or less you should Hit.
When your initial two card hand total is 9 and the dealer hand value is between 3 and 6 you should Double if else: Hit
When your hand sums up to 10 and the dealer hand value is between 2 and 9 you should Double; if else: Hit
When your initial two card hand total is 11 and the dealer hand value is between 2 and 10 you should Double; if else Hit.
When your initial two card hand total is 13, 14, 15, or 16 and the dealer hand value is between 2 and 6 you should Stand; if else Hit.
When your initial two card hand total is 17 you should Stand.
when your initial two card hand contains Ace 2 or Ace 3 and the dealer has either 5 or 6 you should Double; if else: Hit.
When your initial two card hand contains Ace 4 or Ace 5 and the dealer has 4, 5 or 6 you should Double; if else: Hit.
When your initial two card hand contains Ace 6 and the dealer has 3, 4, 5 or 6 you should Double; if else: Hit.
When your initial two card hand contains Ace 7 and the dealer has 2, 7 or 8: Stand; if he has 3, 4, 5 or 6 you should Double; if else: Hit.
When your initial two card hand contains Ace 8 or Ace 9 you should Stand
When your initial two card hand contains a pair of 2’s or 3’s and the dealer hand value is between 2 and 7 you should Split; if else: Hit
When your initial two card hand contains a pair of 4’s and the dealer has either 4 or 5 you should Split; if else: Hit
When your initial two card hand contains a pair of 5’s and the dealer hand value is between 2 and 9 you should Double; if else: Hit
When your initial two card hand contains a pair of 6’s and the dealer hand value is between 2 and 6 you should Split; if else: Hit
When your initial two card hand contains a pair of 7’s and the dealer hand value is between 2 and 7 you should Split; if else: Hit
When your initial two card hand contains a pair of 8’s you should Split
When your initial two card hand contains a pair of 9’s and the dealer hand value is between 2 and 7 and either 8 or 9 you should Split; if else: Stand
When your initial two card hand contains a pair of 10’s you should Stand
When your initial two card hand contains a pair of 8’s you should Split