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The Complete List of Blackjack Facts & Stats
Are you looking to know more about blackjack and how its influence affects the world of gambling?
This article will help you put into perspective everything you need to know about the game, its most important odds, and some must-know facts that you can’t miss out on!
Top Blackjack Statistics
- Blackjack is the most profitable game in Las Vegas Casinos, as well as the most popular. It generates a revenue of over $600 million per year
- Globally, blackjack plays account for 31% of all actions taken in casinos
- Counting cards could give you an edge of up to 2% on the house – but it can only be done in land-based casinos
- A game of blackjack that pays 6:5 for a natural instead of 3:2 increases the house edge by an extra 1.4%
- The house edge on blackjack side bets is close to 7%. That’s a larger house edge than in Triple-Zero roulette!
Blackjack Figures & Odds
Let’s take a look at some of the game’s most important odds and must-know statistics that you should be aware of regardless of how many times you’ve played it – if ever.
We’ll dig deeper into blackjack hand odds later in this guide.
- The most common blackjack hands have a value between 12 to 17
- On average, the player gets dealt a blackjack once every 21 rounds
- Most blackjack games have a house edge that sits below 1%. Classic blackjack has an estimated return rate of 99.41%, one of the highest out of any casino game
- Your odds of winning a blackjack hand, playing optimal strategy, are 46,53%
- The odds of winning two hands in a row sit at 9,96%, whilst winning seven hands in a row has a 0,46% chance of happening when playing with an optimal strategy
- The odds of the croupier dealing you a blackjack are 4.80% in the single-deck version of the game
- If the dealer’s up card is an Ace, the chance of them getting a first-hand blackjack are 1 in 3
- The dealer is expected to bust 28% of the time, while the player usually busts 16% of the time when playing basic blackjack strategy
- The odds of being dealt a blackjack of the same suit are 1 in 430
- Being dealt a pair of aces as your first hand is 1 in 221
Blackjack Facts That You Must Know
An in-depth look at statistics is the safest way to thoroughly understand the game of blackjack, but let’s take a look at some crucial facts about the game, and its many versions, to dive deeper into its lore:
- Online blackjack is legit, but it makes it very difficult -if not impossible- to count cards, based on the randomness of how they are dealt
- Blackjack is the most popular casino game in US-based casinos
- Land-based casinos constantly check for blackjack cheaters. When a deck goes out of play, it is put into a discard tray that checks for marks of invisible ink
- One in four blackjack tables in Las Vegas use continuous shuffling to prevent players from counting cards
- There are over 90 blackjack variations in land-based and online casinos. Switch, Double Exposure, European, American, Classic, and many more!
- Although the expected return rate in blackjack sits at around 99.50%, players that don’t have a grasp on strategy could end up having lower return rates than in slots (lower than 96%)
- Blackjack is one of the few casino games, alongside poker, where your decisions can influence the outcome of the game
- In Atlantic City, casinos aren’t allowed to ban you for counting cards, but they use automatic shuffling machines and only deal 8-deck games
Blackjack Stories & Myths
Blackjack is one of the gambling games with the biggest repertoire of jaw-dropping myths and stories. Let’s take a look at the most popular ones:
- Blackjack was invented in France, during the XVIII century. The original name of the game was Vingt-Et-Un, which means “Twenty One” in French!
- Napoleon Bonaparte was an avid blackjack player. He forbid his troops from playing the game to prevent them from getting distracted during his campaigns;
- A blackjack dealer in Malta broke the world record for the longest consecutive time on the job when he dealt for 51 straight hours;
- There’s a common myth about card counters and their perceived infamy in casinos. Most land-based establishments actually don’t care about it.
- Another popular myth states that your odds change based on the decisions made by other players at the table, but that’s not true
Blackjack Probability Tables
The beauty of blackjack relies on the odds of different events occurring, and knowing how to deal with the dealer’s cards based on what you’re dealt with. The following tables are meant to help you get a stronger understanding of all possible outcomes in a traditional game of blackjack.
Player Odds - Probability of Busting
These are the odds that the player has of busting based on what the dealer’s up card is:
Up Card | Odds of Busting |
2 | 35.30% |
3 | 37.56% |
4 | 40.28% |
5 | 42.89% |
6 | 42.08% |
7 | 25.99% |
8 | 23.86% |
9 | 23.34% |
J, Q, K | 21.43% |
A | 11.65% |
Player Odds - Probability of Winning
This is how likely you are to win a hand of blackjack depending on the total value of your hand when the bets are settled.
Hand Value | Probability of Win (or Keep the Cash) |
21 | 100% |
20 | 92% |
19 | 85% |
18 | 77% |
17 | 69% |
16 | 62% |
15 | 58% |
14 | 56% |
13 | 39% |
12 | 31% |
11 | 0% |
Dealer’s Hand Odds
These are the odds of the dealer finishing a round of the game with hands of different values. The following table does not consider dealer busts.
Final Dealer Hand | Odds |
Natural 21 | 4.82% |
21 (3+ Cards) | 7.36% |
20 | 17.58% |
19 | 13.48% |
18 | 13.81% |
17 | 14.58% |
16 | 28.36% |
Dealer’s Chance of Busting
The following table shows the odds and probabilities of the dealer busting based on the most popular hitting rules:
Dealer’s card | Probability when standing on 17s | Probability when hitting on 17s |
Ace | 17% | 20% |
2 | 35% | 36% |
3 | 37% | 38% |
4 | 40% | 40% |
5 | 42% | 42% |
6 | 42% | 44% |
7 | 26% | 26% |
8 | 24% | 24% |
9 | 23% | 23% |
10 | 23% | 23% |
Hand Odds
Different odds have a different chance of being dealt every time the dealer starts a new round. This table shows all odds:
Hand | Odds of Being Dealt |
Blackjack | 4.8% |
Standing Hand (17-20) | 30% |
Decision Hand (1-16) | 38.7% |
No Bust | 26.5% |
Best Online Casinos for Blackjack in 2024
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Final Thoughts
If you’re still interested in learning more about blackjack and perhaps having a better understanding of how to win at the game, we recommend you check out our blackjack guide:
- Our must-read, noob-friendly Blackjack Strategy Guide
- If you're looking to play blackjack for free, you can read everything you need to know about a blackjack no deposit bonus.
