Blackjack Basic Strategy: Hit, Stand, Double, Split and the Live Table Extras
By TAYA777 Editorial Team
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Blackjack is a game about one comparison: your total against the dealer’s, without going over 21. Court cards score 10, an ace scores 1 or 11, and the dealer’s visible card tells you almost everything you need. You choose from four moves on each hand, and most of those choices have been worked out already, which is the whole point of basic strategy.
Blackjack basic strategy, hand by hand
This chart assumes a multi-deck shoe, dealer standing on soft 17 and doubling after a split allowed. If a table rules otherwise, some borderline plays shift.
| What you hold | Dealer showing 2 through 6 | Dealer showing 7 up to Ace |
|---|---|---|
| Hard total up to 8 | Take a card | Take a card |
| Hard 9 | Double on dealer 3 to 6; otherwise draw | Take a card |
| Hard 10 | Double down | Double on dealer 7 to 9; otherwise draw |
| Hard 11 | Double down | Double on dealer 7 to 10; draw against Ace |
| Hard 12 | Stay on dealer 4 to 6; draw on 2 or 3 | Take a card |
| Hard 13 through 16 | Stay put | Take a card |
| Hard 17 and up | Stay put | Stay put |
| Soft 13 or 14 (A,2 or A,3) | Double on dealer 5 or 6; otherwise draw | Take a card |
| Soft 15 or 16 (A,4 or A,5) | Double on dealer 4 to 6; otherwise draw | Take a card |
| Soft 17 (A,6) | Double on dealer 3 to 6; otherwise draw | Take a card |
| Soft 18 (A,7) | Double on dealer 3 to 6; stay on dealer 2 | Stay on 7 or 8; draw on 9, 10 or Ace |
| Soft 19 and up | Stay put | Stay put |
Pairs follow their own short rulebook.
| Pair | Split when the dealer shows |
|---|---|
| Aces, eights | Anything at all |
| Nines | 2 through 6, then 8 and 9 |
| Sevens | 2 through 7 |
| Sixes | 2 through 6 |
| Fours | Only 5 or 6 |
| Twos, threes | 2 through 7 |
| Fives, tens | Never split: play them as hard 10 and hard 20 |
The call: play the chart on every hand, including the ones that feel wrong. Why: the chart is what you get when every option is compared across the shoe, and a gut feeling about a 16 against a 10 is a guess the chart already answered.
Blackjack on camera: what the live seat adds
The cards follow the chart the same as ever; the seat brings its own rules. Rule on these before you sit.
- The countdown. A live hand gives you a window to act. A slow decision can be played for you or skipped, so keep the chart where you can read it fast.
- Seats and shared hands. Traditional live tables hold a fixed number of seats; others let extra players bet behind or share one dealt hand. How yours works is printed in the table’s help screen.
- Payouts on a natural. On a ₱200 bet a 3 to 2 blackjack pays ₱300; a 6 to 5 table pays ₱240. That ₱60 difference is why this is the first thing to check.
- Side bets. Boxes such as Perfect Pairs and 21+3 are extra wagers with their own payouts, and most of their price is in how rarely they land.
Blackjack in the lobby’s catalogue appears as an Evolution card, explained on the Evolution gaming card list, with named tables such as Blackjack and Blackjack Lucky Ladies under Sexy and Jili Game, Blackjack under KingMidas, and Buster Blackjack, Blackjack Surrender and Lucky Lucky Blackjack under Playtech. The list does not mark which are live.
Compare the hand-by-hand decisions here with baccarat’s fixed drawing chart, where the cards make every choice for you. Other tables sit on the live casino rules list, and an account gets made through the register steps at that lobby, if you still lack one. Join 76JL on this page is separate again: a sponsored route to 76JL, a different casino from this lobby.
How to Get Started
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Confirm the table's blackjack payout
A natural should pay 3 to 2. Six to five tables shave real money off every blackjack you are dealt, so look at the felt before sitting.
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Keep the chart open while you learn
The chart is not cheating. Use it for every hand until the decisions come without thought, then keep checking the awkward ones like soft 18.
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Skip the side bets at first
Pairs and 21+3 boxes are separate wagers with separate prices. Learn the main hand first, then read their terms in the help panel if you still want them.
