Blackjack rules and how to play at Fair Go

How Fair Go blackjack versions differ

All three share the same core: cards 2 to 10 count at face value, picture cards count 10, an ace counts 1 or 11, and you win by finishing closer to 21 than the dealer without going over. The small print is where they part ways, and in blackjack the small print is worth real money.

Classic Blackjack

The dealer takes one card face up and one face down, and under the usual rules checks the hidden card for blackjack before you act. A blackjack (an ace and a ten-value card as your first two cards) normally pays 3:2. With basic strategy and typical multi-deck rules, the house edge sits around 0.5%.

European Blackjack

European rules usually give the dealer a second card only after you've finished. If that card makes blackjack, you can lose the extra money you put out on a double or a split, not just your first bet. Doubling is also commonly limited to totals of 9, 10 or 11, so good strategy is more cautious about doubling and splitting against a dealer ten or ace.

Face Up 21

Both dealer cards are dealt face up, so you know exactly what you have to beat. The game takes that advantage back elsewhere: in its usual form, blackjack pays only even money and the dealer wins ties. You decide on the dealer's full total instead of one card: stand on a weak hand when the dealer shows 12 to 16 and must draw, and keep hitting while the dealer's total beats yours.

How to play blackjack: one hand, step by step

1. Pick a stake. Check the table limits on screen. You get two cards and see at least one of the dealer's.
2. Make your move. Hit takes another card. Stand keeps your total. Double doubles your stake for exactly one more card. Split turns a pair into two hands with a second equal bet.
3. The dealer plays by fixed rules, drawing to 17 or more. Whether it also draws on a soft 17 (a 17 counting an ace as 11) depends on the table.
4. Settle up. Higher total wins. Go over 21 and you bust and lose, even if the dealer busts afterwards. Acting first is the house's built-in edge.

Basic strategy: the decisions that matter

Basic strategy is the mathematically best play for every combination of your hand and the dealer's up-card, worked out by computer for a given rule set. It doesn't win every hand, but it keeps the game as cheap as possible over time. A few rules carry most of the value: stand on hard 17 or more, always split aces and eights, and skip insurance. Every other decision, for hard totals, soft hands and pairs, is in our full blackjack basic strategy chart.

Two rule checks are worth more than any chart. First, make sure blackjack pays 3:2. A table paying 6:5 adds roughly 1.4% to the house edge and wipes out the benefit of good play. Second, find the soft 17 rule. "Dealer stands on soft 17" is better for you than "dealer hits soft 17". Fair Go doesn't publish either rule for its tables, so read them in the game.

Perfect Pairs and Suit 'Em Up side bets

Fair Go lists two side bets, both optional wagers on your first two cards.

Perfect Pairs

Perfect Pairs pays when your first two cards are a pair: mixed (same rank, different colours), coloured (same colour, different suits) or perfect (identical cards, possible because several decks are used). A common pay table is 6:1, 12:1 and 25:1, which carries a house edge of about 4% with six decks, several times the cost of the main hand played well.

Suit 'Em Up

Suit 'Em Up is built around your first two cards sharing a suit. Fair Go doesn't publish its pay table, and side-bet tables vary, so open it in the game first. As with Perfect Pairs, payouts for rare combinations are funded by the many hands that miss.

Playing blackjack with a bonus

Fair Go caps bets at $10 while you're wagering a bonus, and doubles and splits add stake mid-hand: a $6 bet doubled puts $12 on the table. The terms don't say how a double is counted, so keep your base bet low enough to stay inside the cap. Fair Go's terms also decide how much table-game play counts towards the 30x wagering. That weighting isn't in our facts register, so read the bonus terms before you play blackjack with bonus money. If the conditions don't suit you, deposit without a bonus: Fair Go's cashback offers only apply to those deposits anyway. All current offers are in our promo code round-up.

More card tables at Fair Go

If you like blackjack's decisions, pontoon is its closest relative. Baccarat is the low-effort option, and Tri Card Poker is the quickest. The full list is on our table games page.

• • Table game

  Play now: Pontoon (affiliate link, opens in a new tab)Info about Pontoon

  Pontoon

• • Table game

  Play now: Baccarat (affiliate link, opens in a new tab)Info about Baccarat

  Baccarat

• • Table game

  Play now: Tri Card Poker (affiliate link, opens in a new tab)Info about Tri Card Poker

  Tri Card Poker

• • Table game

  Play now: European Roulette (affiliate link, opens in a new tab)Info about European Roulette

  European Roulette

Fair Go blackjack FAQ