Here we take a look at the house edge at online blackjack and consider why and how blackjack is somewhat different to a lot of other casino games when it comes to the house edge.

First off though, let’s explain what the house edge is. The house edge is the name given to the advantage the casino holds over the player, with every game designed to ensure that in the long term the casino wins and the player loses. Normal statistical variation – or luck if you prefer – means that the player can win in the short term but overall the house retains the advantage.

Roulette is perhaps the easiest game to use to illustrate this. A standard American roulette table has 36 numbers and two zeroes, for a total of 38 possible results. In a totally “fair” game with zero house edge the casino would pay a single number at odds of 37/1. You could bet $10 on every number, staking a total of $380 and whatever number came up you would get $370 for the win, plus your $10 stake back, thus breaking even.

However, the casino doesn’t pay at odds of 37/1 but at 35/1, meaning you would lose $20 from your $380. The house edge expresses the percentage of total stake the player will lose and so playing double zero roulette the house edge is 5.26%. The existence of the zeroes creates the house edge, or at least the odds that don’t reflect their existence do.

In blackjack things are slightly more complex because there are a huge range of rules and variations that impact on the house edge. What is so clever about the game of blackjack is that it’s created in such a way that despite all the different options and possibilities, the dealer, that is to say the house, always has a slight edge. The game is almost even but the house has the slightest of advantages that ensures their long term success.

Much of the advantage the dealer has in blackjack is that the player goes first and can bust, automatically losing their stake regardless of what the dealer does. However, all the intricacies of the game also contribute towards the house edge and the different rules you will find slightly alter the house edge.

For example, the more decks used, the greater the edge, such that a game with a single deck will usually have a house edge around 0.5%, whilst eight decks significantly increases that. Other rules, such as what value the player can double on, splitting rules, blackjack payouts and surrender terms also have an impact.

Regardless of all this, online blackjack remains one of the most competitive games when it comes to the house edge, making it a great option for the savvy casino fan.

Whether you play online blackjack, in a traditional casino or even just with friends, knowing what call to make in any given situation automatically improves your odds of winning in the long term. Playing online blackjack should be fun but as with most gambling activities, much of the fun comes from winning, so you may as well give yourself the very best chance possible to do just that.

In order to reduce the house edge at real money blackjack to its theoretical minimum you should use basic strategy and one key element of that is knowing when to split and when not to split.

What is splitting?

Let’s start at the very beginning by explaining what we mean by splitting. Splitting is an option a player has when their first two cards are a pair, with anything from 2s to aces being “splittable”. When the player splits a pair they get a new card with each original card to create two new hands and they must bet the same stake on the second hand as they did originally, effectively doubling the overall bet.

When should I split?

The easiest thing to remember is to always split aces and eights no matter what. This is because splitting eights turns the worst hand, a 16, into two decent first cards, whilst splitting aces turns one average to poor hand into the best two cards possible, giving you a great chance of a big double stakes win.

There are lots of other times you should split too, with sevens a good example unless the dealer has an eight or above, whilst nines should be split unless the dealer has a seven, 10 or ace, in which case the player should stand. For full and thorough information you should consult a basic strategy chart that is applicable to the exact rules you are playing.

When shouldn’t I split?

In general you shouldn’t split when the dealer has a high card. If the dealer is showing an eight or higher the only cards you would split would be eights, nines and aces, subject to the exceptions listed above on nines.

However, the simplest rule regarding what not to hit is that you should NEVER split a pair of fives or a pair of 10s (or face cards). As before, for the fullest information on all possible splits, including re-splits, always consult a full and proper basic strategy chart based on the rules and number of decks relevant to the blackjack you’re playing.