Blackjack House Edge
The house edge is effectively the casino’s advantage over the player in any given game, with a house edge of 5% meaning that for every $100 you wager, the casino, on average, will win $5. One of the reasons blackjack is so popular at US online casinos is that it has a low house edge, with a figure of around 0.7% fairly common at the excellent blackjack sites we work with. That means that if you were to play 100 hands at $10 a pop you would expect to be down by just $7 given “normal” luck.
With loyalty points, casino bonuses and just a tiny slice of help from Lady Luck, it’s easy to overturn that tiny advantage, especially when you consider the house edge on other casino games. Slots can be as high as 15%, roulette more than 5% and sometimes as much as 35% on keno!
As said, this explains, at least partly, why blackjack is such a popular online game, especially with USA players. However, within the game of blackjack there can be quite a big difference in the house edge. The house can vary according to the type of blackjack you play and also depending on how you play. In order to obtain the lowest house edge with whatever ruleset you play you must adhere to basic strategy, however, playing a blackjack variant with favorable rules is just as important in achieving a low house edge.
One of the biggest factors that affects the house edge is the number of decks used. One deck is great for the player and the difference on fairly standard rules between using one, four or eight decks is shown below:
- One deck – house edge 0.15%
- Four decks – house edge 0.56%
- Eight decks – house edge 0.63%
Another massive factor and one very easy to spot and avoid, is to make sure you only ever play blackjack that offers a full 3/2 pay for blackjack itself. Every USA online casino we feature here do exactly that but should you play at a casino that pays at 6/5, the house edge will jump from around 0.6% up to almost 2%.
Playing a blackjack variant with the lowest house edge possible, including rules that allow you to double after a split, double on any two cards and which offers re-splits, will increase your chances of winning, so always be aware of the rules before you take a seat! To get started and play blackjack online use any of our links to visit the USA online casino of your choice. All welcome USA players and offer a great blackjack experience. Also see the USA live online casinos which offer live dealer blackjack. If you are a serious blackjack player a live dealer casino is a must to check out.
