How to Play Blackjack
Get closer to 21 than the dealer without going over. Number cards count at face value, faces count as ten, and an Ace counts as 1 or 11. Hit for another card, stand to hold, or double down once on your first two cards. The dealer must hit under 17 and stand on 17 or more. A two-card 21 is a natural blackjack and beats any other win.
The rules, step by step
- 1Deal two cards eachYou get two cards face up. The dealer gets one face up and one face down (the hole card).
- 2Check for a natural blackjackIf either hand is a two-card 21, the round settles immediately: your blackjack beats a dealer non-blackjack, a dealer blackjack beats your non-blackjack, and two blackjacks push.
- 3Hit, stand, or double downHit for another card, stand to hold your total, or double down once (two-card hands only) for exactly one more card at double stakes.
- 4Busting ends your turn immediatelyGoing over 21 loses the round on the spot — the dealer does not need to play out their hand.
- 5The dealer plays a fixed ruleHit any total under 17; stand on 17 or higher, soft or hard. No judgment calls.
- 6Compare totalsCloser to 21 without busting wins. An equal total is a push. There is nothing to bank and nothing to lose beyond the round itself.
Try it — the rules above, running
Dealer · showing 10
Your hand · 14
Hit draws another card, stand ends your turn, and double down doubles your one remaining draw on your first two cards. The dealer stands on all 17s and peeks for blackjack before you ever act.
This session
- Rounds
- 0
- Wins
- 0
- Losses
- 0
- Pushes
- 0
- Blackjacks
- 0
- Streak
- 0
- Best streak
- 0
Pushes are not wins or losses and never affect your streak. No chips, no bankroll — just the cards.
Your statistics
- Played
- 0
- Won
- 0
- Win rate
- 0%
- Streak
- 0
- Best streak
- 0
- Best time
- —
A round counts as a win when you beat the dealer or draw a natural blackjack; pushes are not counted either way. Kept in this browser only.
Keyboard
- Space
- Hit — or next round once one is over
- S
- Stand
- D
- Double down
- H
- Hint — what basic strategy suggests
- N
- New game
- F
- Full screen
What are the card values in blackjack?
| Card | Value |
|---|---|
| 2 through 10 | Face value |
| Jack, Queen, King | 10 |
| Ace | 1 or 11, whichever keeps the hand at 21 or under |
What are your options on your turn?
- 1HitTake one more card. You can hit as many times as you like until you stand or bust.
- 2StandTake no more cards. Your turn ends and, if the round is still live, the dealer plays.
- 3Double downOnly with exactly two cards in hand: take exactly one more card, then you are forced to stand regardless of the total.
How does the round end?
Immediately if either side busts or a natural blackjack is dealt. Otherwise, once you stand, the dealer reveals the hole card and hits or stands by the fixed 17-and-up rule with no choices involved. Whoever ends closer to 21 without going over wins the round; an equal total is a push.
How do you win more often?
- Always play hard totals of 12-16 against the dealer's up-card, not in isolationA stiff hand like 14 is a stand against a weak dealer card (4, 5 or 6, which busts more often than not) and a hit against a strong one (7 through Ace). The same total calls for opposite actions depending on what the dealer shows.
- Double your strong two-card totals into a weak dealer cardA 10 or 11 with the dealer showing a low card is the single best spot to double: you have the stronger starting hand and the dealer is the one more likely to bust.
- Treat soft hands as more flexible, not saferA soft 17 or soft 18 can take a card that would bust a hard hand of the same total. That flexibility is what makes doubling soft hands into a weak dealer card correct more often than intuition suggests.
- Use the hint sparingly, then check your own instinct against itThe hint follows single-deck basic strategy exactly. Comparing your own read of a hand to it, rather than leaning on it every time, is how the pattern actually sticks.
Common questions about blackjack
- What is a bust in blackjack?
- Any hand totalling over 21. It loses immediately, without the other side needing to finish playing.
- What is a push in blackjack?
- A round where you and the dealer end on the same total (or both have a natural blackjack). Nothing is won or lost.
- Do you need to know card counting to play well?
- No. Basic strategy — the fixed best action for every hand-versus-up-card combination — gets you within a fraction of a percent of optimal play on a single reshuffled deck like this one, with no counting required.
Ready to stop reading? Play blackjack on the full board, with controls and statistics tailored to that game.