Blackjack Basic Strategy: Charts and Guide for Aussie Players

Blackjack basic strategy is the mathematically best way to play every hand: a fixed rule for when to hit, stand, double, split or surrender, based only on your two cards and the dealer’s upcard. Played perfectly in a six-deck game where the dealer stands on soft 17, it cuts the house edge to about 0.28%, compared with roughly 5.5% for a player who simply copies the dealer.

The Casino Bros take a lot of punts on a lot of things, but this is the one area where we stop joking. Basic strategy is not a hunch or a system. It is the answer a computer gives after playing out every possible decision millions of times. This guide gives you the full charts for shoe games (hard totals, soft totals and pairs), shows what changes when the dealer hits soft 17 or when there are fewer decks, explains surrender and the Australian no-hole-card rule, and lists the mistakes that cost the most. If you need a refresher on how hands are counted first, start with our blackjack card values guide.

What Basic Strategy Is (and Is Not)

Basic strategy answers one question: given my hand and the dealer’s upcard, which action loses the least or wins the most over the long run? The first published version came from four US Army engineers, Roger Baldwin, Wilbert Cantey, Herbert Maisel and James McDermott, in the Journal of the American Statistical Association in 1956. Computers later refined it into the charts used today.

Three things basic strategy does not do:

• It does not guarantee a win in any session. Variance is large: in a typical shoe game you win about 42% of hands, push about 8% and lose about 49%.
• It does not beat the house on its own. It shrinks the edge to a fraction of a percent; it does not flip it.
• It does not track cards. Card counting is a separate layer that adjusts bets and some decisions; it does nothing in RNG games that reshuffle every hand.

The win/lose split sounds grim, so why is the edge so small? Because the player gets paid 3:2 on a blackjack and can double and split. Those extra-money hands make up for losing slightly more often.

How to Read the Charts

Find your hand in the left column, then read across to the dealer’s upcard. Use the hard chart unless you hold an Ace counted as 11 (soft chart) or a pair you may split (pairs chart). Always check the pairs chart first when you hold two cards of the same rank.

The charts below are for the most common shoe game: 4 to 8 decks, dealer stands on soft 17 (S17), double on any first two cards, double after split allowed, late surrender allowed, blackjack pays 3:2. The changes for other rules follow further down.

Hard Totals Chart

A hard hand has no Ace, or has an Ace that can only count as 1. Dealer upcard across the top.

The pattern behind the chart is easier to remember than the grid. Against a weak dealer card (2 to 6) the dealer must keep drawing to 17 and busts often, so you stand on 13 and up and let them do the risky work. Against a strong card (7 to Ace) the dealer will often finish on 17 to 21, so you keep drawing until you reach 17. The exception is 12 against a 2 or 3, which you hit because a stiff dealer 2 or 3 busts less often than a 4, 5 or 6.

Soft Totals Chart

A soft hand contains an Ace counted as 11, so one more card cannot bust you. That makes soft hands the best place to double against a weak dealer card.

Soft 18 (A,7) is the hand most players get wrong. Standing on 18 feels safe, but against a 9, 10 or Ace an 18 loses more often than not, so you hit. Against a 3 to 6 you double if you can, because the dealer is likely to bust and the Ace protects you.

Pair Splitting Chart

This chart assumes you can double after splitting. If that is not allowed, see the rule changes section.

The two rules everyone should know: always split Aces and 8s, never split 5s or 10s. A pair of 8s is 16, the worst total in the game, so two hands starting with 8 are better. A pair of 5s is a strong 10, which you double instead. Two 10s already make 20, one of the strongest hands in the game; breaking it up throws that away.

Surrender: When to Give Up Half Your Bet

Late surrender lets you fold your first two cards and get half your stake back after the dealer has checked for blackjack. It sounds defeatist, but with 4 to 8 decks and S17 the correct surrenders are:

• Hard 16 (not a pair of 8s) against a dealer 9, 10 or Ace
• Hard 15 against a dealer 10

In those spots you expect to lose more than half your bet by playing on, so giving up half is the cheaper option. Wizard of Odds values late surrender against a ten at about +0.07 percentage points for the player. Many land-based tables in Australia do not offer surrender at all, and live online tables vary, so check the rules screen.

What Changes When the Dealer Hits Soft 17 (H17)

Some tables make the dealer hit soft 17 instead of standing. That costs the player about 0.22 percentage points and changes a handful of plays in 4 to 8 deck games:

The table layout normally prints the rule: “Dealer must stand on all 17s” means S17; “Dealer must hit soft 17” means H17.

Other Rule Changes and What They Cost

Basic strategy is built for a specific rule set. Here is how common rule changes shift the player’s expected return, measured against an 8-deck, S17 baseline (figures from Wizard of Odds, in percentage points):

The 6:5 payout is the big one. It costs more than every other bad rule on this list put together, which is why “blackjack pays 3:2” is the first thing to look for on any table, land-based or online.

Strategy Changes Without Double After Split

If you cannot double after splitting, some marginal splits are no longer worth it. In shoe games: split 2s and 3s only against a 4 to 7, hit 4s instead of splitting, and split 6s only against a 3 to 6. Everything else stays the same.

Fewer Decks

Single-deck and double-deck games favour the player and shift a few plays towards doubling. The most common example is hard 11 against an Ace, which you double in one- and two-deck games even when the dealer stands on soft 17, and hard 9 against a 2, which becomes a double. If you play a lot of low-deck blackjack, use a chart built for that exact deck count.

The No-Hole-Card Rule in Australian Casinos

Australian casinos commonly deal the European way: the dealer takes only one card at first and draws the second after all players have acted, so there is no peek for blackjack. Crown Melbourne publishes its table rules in a blackjack rules document approved by the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (Version 28.0, approved 24 September 2025, effective 24 October 2025), and other venues post theirs at the table or on their websites.

What matters is what happens to your extra money when the dealer turns over a blackjack:

• If you lose doubles and splits as well as your original bet, you should be more careful against a dealer 10 or Ace. Under that rule Wizard of Odds’ no-hole-card strategy hits hard 11 against a 10 or Ace instead of doubling, and hits a pair of 8s against a 10 or Ace instead of splitting.
• If you lose only your original bet, the standard charts above apply unchanged.

Read the rule card before you sit down. It takes ten seconds and tells you which chart to use. Our online blackjack guide for Australians covers the main local variants in more detail.

Basic Strategy for Online Blackjack

Online, two kinds of games exist. RNG (software) blackjack shuffles a fresh virtual shoe every hand, so card counting is pointless but basic strategy works exactly as above. Live dealer blackjack streams a real table, usually with an eight-deck shoe; the rule set is in the game’s help screen, and the variant name (Classic, Infinite, Speed, Free Bet) often signals a change. Free Bet and other side-game variants come with their own strategies, so do not assume the standard chart fits them.

A word on the legal side for Australian readers. No online casino is licensed to offer blackjack to people in Australia. Under the Interactive Gambling Act 2001, offering online casino games to Australians is an offence for the operator, not the player, and the ACMA has had 1,822 illegal gambling sites blocked since November 2019 (as of 24 September 2026). Offshore casinos that accept Australians operate under foreign licences, with no Australian complaint route, and BetStop does not cover them. Our Australian casino reviews show who still takes Australian players and on what terms. Live tables are covered on our live casinos page.

The Most Expensive Basic Strategy Mistakes

1. Taking Insurance

Insurance is a side bet that the dealer’s hole card is a ten. It pays 2:1, but in a six-deck shoe only about 96 of the 311 unseen cards are tens, so the bet loses about 7.4% of every dollar staked. “Even money” on your own blackjack is the same bet in disguise. Basic strategy never takes either.

2. Standing on Stiffs Against a Strong Card

Standing on 12 to 16 against a 7 or higher feels safe because you cannot bust. In reality the dealer finishes on 17 or more so often that a stiff loses most of the time. Hit, and accept that you will sometimes bust.

3. Mimicking the Dealer

Playing “like the dealer” (hit to 17, never double or split) sounds sensible. It gives the house an edge of about 5.5%, because you bust first and lose before the dealer even plays.

4. Not Doubling Enough

Doubling 11 against a 10, or soft 17 against a 3, feels risky. These doubles are where the player makes most of their profit. Skipping them hands the edge back.

5. Splitting 10s

Two 10s against a dealer 5 or 6 is tempting. Twenty is already a winning hand; keep it.

6. Playing a 6:5 Table

No strategy fixes a 6:5 payout. Walk past it.

7. Changing the Plan After a Bad Run

The cards have no memory. Hitting 16 against a 10 is still correct after three busts in a row. Deviating on a hunch costs real money over time.

How to Learn Basic Strategy Quickly

1. Learn the hard totals first. They come up most often. Memorise the stand line (13 to 16 against 2 to 6, 12 against 4 to 6) and the 17-and-up rule.
2. Add the doubles. 11 against 2 to 10, 10 against 2 to 9, 9 against 3 to 6.
3. Add the pairs. Aces and 8s always, 5s and 10s never, then the rest.
4. Finish with soft hands. Remember that soft 18 is a hit against 9, 10 or Ace.
5. Drill with flashcards or a free-play RNG table. Speed comes from repetition. Most casinos and game studios let you play demo blackjack without money.
6. Keep a chart at the table if allowed. Many land-based casinos let you use a strategy card. Online, nothing stops you.

Once the charts are automatic, blackjack becomes one of the cheapest games in any casino, alongside baccarat’s Banker bet. Our baccarat guide shows how the two compare, and our list of the easiest games for Australian gambling newbies is a good place to start if blackjack is new to you.

Blackjack Basic Strategy Cheat Sheet

• Stand on hard 17 or more.
• Stand on hard 13 to 16 against 2 to 6; hit against 7 to Ace.
• Stand on hard 12 against 4 to 6; otherwise hit.
• Double hard 11 against 2 to 10 (and against an Ace when the dealer hits soft 17).
• Double hard 10 against 2 to 9; double hard 9 against 3 to 6.
• Always split Aces and 8s; never split 5s or 10s.
• Hit soft 17 or less unless the chart says double; stand on soft 19 and 20.
• Soft 18: double against 3 to 6, stand against 2, 7 and 8, hit against 9, 10 and Ace.
• Surrender 16 against 9, 10 and Ace, and 15 against 10, when allowed.
• Never take insurance or even money.

Play Within Your Limits

Even with perfect strategy the house keeps an edge, and short-term swings are large. Set a budget for the session, decide your stake per hand in advance and stop when the budget is gone. Gambling Help Online offers free, confidential support 24/7 on 1800 858 858 or at gamblinghelponline.org.au, and our responsible gaming page lists more tools.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is blackjack basic strategy?

It is the mathematically best decision for every combination of your hand and the dealer’s upcard: hit, stand, double, split or surrender. It was first published in 1956 by Baldwin, Cantey, Maisel and McDermott and later refined by computer simulation.

How much does basic strategy lower the house edge?

In a six-deck game where the dealer stands on soft 17, with double after split and late surrender, perfect basic strategy leaves a house edge of about 0.28% (Wizard of Odds). A player who simply mimics the dealer faces about 5.5%.

Can you win at blackjack with basic strategy alone?

You can win sessions, but not in the long run. Basic strategy minimises the house edge without removing it. In a typical shoe game you win about 42% of hands, push about 8% and lose about 49%.

Should you hit 16 against a dealer 10?

Surrender if the table allows it. If not, hit. Standing on 16 against a 10 loses more often than hitting, even though hitting busts you often.

Do you hit 12 against a dealer 2?

Yes. Hit hard 12 against a 2 or 3, and stand against a 4, 5 or 6.

Should you ever take insurance?

Not if you play basic strategy. Insurance pays 2:1, but in a six-deck shoe only about 96 of the 311 unseen cards are tens, giving the bet a house edge of about 7.4%. Even money on a blackjack is the same bet.

Does basic strategy change if the dealer hits soft 17?

Slightly. In 4 to 8 deck games you double 11 against an Ace, double soft 18 against a 2 and soft 19 against a 6, and, where surrender is offered, surrender 15, 17 and a pair of 8s against an Ace.

Does basic strategy work in Australian casinos with no hole card?

Yes, with small changes. If dealer blackjack takes your doubles and splits as well as your original bet, hit 11 against a 10 or Ace and do not split 8s against a 10 or Ace. If you lose only the original bet, use the standard chart.